Illimitable - The Child of the Sannin
by TwoChimpsWithoutOne
Summary: From man he was made, possessing nearly all bloodlines in the known world, and a soul stolen from the world beyond. Raised by the greatest trio to have ever lived, this child of uncharted power will change the world, for better and for worse, unraveling secrets kept buried for thousands of years, and rewriting the history of events past and to come. Sapere aude; Dare to know.
1. Prologue

_**A/N:**_

_Mission statement at the bottom._

* * *

Illimitable

* * *

_Illimitable: (Adj.) Impossible to limit or circumscribe; limitless_

* * *

_"Learn from me, if not by my precepts, at least by my example, how dangerous is the acquirement of knowledge, and how much happier that man is who believes his native town to be his world, than he who aspires to become greater than his nature will allow." _

_\- Frankenstein; or, A Modern Prometheus._

* * *

How does one utilize a limited vocabulary to describe such an incomprehensibly perfect creation? Magnum Opus - which in and of itself meant _The greatest single work of an artist, writer, or composer_ \- was far too small in scope for what Kenichi of Amegakure was feverishly working to accomplish. The entirety of the war, Ame's greatest shinobi technique developer had worked almost non-stop on what words simply failed to describe the enormous complexity of. Kenichi would be the man who wrote history, who rewrote the very understanding of life _itself._ Kenichi Nil - for he himself knew not who spawned him - would create life, not from the natural womb of the earth below, but from the mind and hand of Man. For decades, he slaved over his goal, and many called him stupid and foolish, only putting up with him because his research bore more fruits than simply the theoretical, many of the creations spawned from his pursuits had been defining reasons his village was lasting so long against the bastard soldiers from the Leaf.

Of course, the War had its purposes too - the dead from both sides provided _perfect_ materials with which he could grow his Magnum Opus. Noble clans and bloodlines were difficult to come by, but his techniques made it so that all he needed was but a sample, and he could make far more. The entire war he came closer and closer to achieving success and perfection, but the simple fact of the matter was that he never put all of his eggs in one basket. Many dozens of 'children' - if one were to call the bastards of Man and not the babes of the earth 'children' - came out either imperfect or with defects that came from a then urefined process. He had started things out rather crudely - he'd simply stolen random assorted body parts from random assorted corpses, stitched them together, and then revived the body through the use of many self-developed kinjutsu, and while he had eventually been successful in breathing life in to the corpse, the act had taught him the single most important fact about the creation of life - be it by stitching together body parts or growing baby bodies in a synthetic womb, simply forcing a body to live deprived it of something that made it alive: A _soul._

That very fact had been what had taken him so damned long to refine the process. He had learned to create bodies with multiple genetic 'parents' just before the second Great War had begun nearly a decade ago, and his Magnum Opus' body had been crafted and finished mere months ago in the twilight days of said war. The difficult part was that souls couldn't be grown by man - the only way a soul could be 'crafted' was naturally, and he neither had the time nor the resources to make a soul naturally. He didn't have the desire, either, but that was a different topic. The only way he could breathe true life in to his Magnum Opus was to coax a soul out from the Pure World and seal it within the infant child's body. The problem was, someone couldn't simply steal the soul, he'd learned early on that that would damage it and leave the person a sickly, frail being. But one couldn't wait for a soul to chance upon his pathway either - it took too long and the result weren't nearly what he desired. No, he had to coax a soul out from the pure world and gently guide it in to its new body, in an impossibly intricate process that would result in the damaging or destruction of the unspeakably fragile thing should the performer even make the tiniest mistake.

So, when Nil realized his base was under assault by _Konoha ANBU,_ he panicked and began the process somewhat early, not bothering to attempt for a young soul specifically, instead taking the first one that looked strong in will. Sweat beaded down from his forehead as he slowly, perfectly, but frantically guided the pale blue glowing orb of fire and chakra to its host, his Magnum Opus. If it worked, he could feasibly claim godhood, if it didn't work, he would have to run and start from scratch. Needless to say, failure was not at all acceptable - not now, when he was _so close._

_"Come on... There you go."_ He cooed the fist-sized figment of a former man. "Right there... Life is waiting you again." He smiled warmly, even as in the distance he could hear the explosions and feel the shaking of the Anbu attacking his failures, or, specifically, the failures he'd decided to keep, as opposed to the failures he'd abandoned. The soul seemed unsure, it inched forward only to pause and falter, and wait. The sounds of battle grew ever closer, and the soul inched forward ever more slowly, until finally it did as it was begged and pleaded to: It entered the body of the baby boy, fresh from the synthetic womb.

There was the briefest pulse of pure blue-white light, and then there was silence. The man hardly dared to breathe, before his door was smashed open by an earth-style user. He panicked - stumbling backwards and trying to shout eight different words of cease and desist at once because they had the wrong idea, but they cared not - their orders were for him to die. He knew exactly why, of course, 'Kenichi the Grave Robber' and all that, somehow Suna had seen him pilfering their dead for blood and tissue samples, and word spread like wildfire. Soon all villages had reason to believe he'd stolen from their dead, with Konoha being the more vengeful of the bunch, they had far more noble and legendary clans, and he and his agents were more often seen on their post-slaughter grounds than any others. It was _not at all his fault_ that the largest clans from the Warring Clans period had flocked for the Leaf and their trees.

Without any fanfare, three kunai were sent flying through the still air and they all three impacted with his chest with a wet tearing sound. He fell to the ground, helplessly bleeding out.

They confirmed the kill soon after the body stopped twitching, and the light left his eyes. ANBU Panther stood at full height after he and his squad-mates assured they were all safe. They were a moment from making their exit before a child's loud, shrieking wails pierced the very air around them, doing what very few could claim to have done and _startling_ the assassins present. The man in the panther's mask stared at the shrieking infant, and then at his squadmate, who wiped a fleck of blood off of his wolf's mask.

In the dark room, all was silent, save for the baby's cries. Finally, Wolf broke the silence, "I wasn't aware he even _had_ a child." He murmured, with a quick glance around the room to make sure the madman's other protectors weren't lying in wait. They had cleared the cavernous building before they killed the Ame researcher, but one could never be too careful.

Panther shook his head, "he doesn't. He was rendered infertile in the last war." Had he been off duty, he may have snickered at the thought, but now wasn't the time. "What was he doing here?" He slowly crept forward to the child, noting the small seal on the infant's left breast, it held the kanji for 'soul'.

Their third member melted out of the darkness, Rat held in her hand a sheaf of papers, her attentive eyes were scanning over them at dizzying speeds. "I..." She stuttered, "this..." Despite her great skill, some injuries never healed, with a loud huff, she rolled up and tossed the papers to Panther, who caught them without looking.

Panther unrolled the papers and stared at them intently.

His next words would, unknowingly, be the ink for the pen that would write history itself. "We need to bring this to the Hokage." A pause, "someone shut that child up."

* * *

In one word, Hiruzen Sarutobi's life was hectic. His daily schedule included reading battle reports, coming to terms with casualty lists, issuing orders, leading his village, suing for peace, ending the war, _and_ exercising his slowly aging body to make certain he would be more than prepared should the worst happen and Iwa or Ame or any of their enemies attack them at their home. Such an idea was beyond preposterous, of course, the war was in its twilight - it was nearly over! But he still had to be prepared for anything, even during peace he took one day out of the month to sharpen his skills and work on something new, he wasn't called the 'God of Shinobi' for nothing, after all.

In all his years in leading his village, he could claim he'd seen a great deal of horrifying, stupid, and befuddling things - sometimes separately, sometimes all at once. He'd also heard the most confounding things ever, his personal favorite being a rather talentless failed genin swearing he could create a jutsu that transcended time itself, needless to say, after the explosion he had never been heard of again. But in all his years, he'd never seen something so horrifying, so arrogant, so terrible, as what his Anbu Assassination team had brought him.

Their mission had been simple - kill the man who was suspected of stealing bloodlines from their dead, burn his body, destroy his lab. They knew what he wanted their bloodlines for, after all, Konoha was the envy of many nations due to their rich bloodline presense - ignoring the obvious, the Sharingan and the Byakugan, there was Hashirama's Mokuton bloodline, the Kurama's genjutsu, withered though it may be, and so many countless more. What kind of mad scientist shinobi _wouldn't _want their bloodlines?

But Hiruzen had expected he was simply replicating the blood and distributing its power amongst Ame's forces; or trying to, at least, no Sharingan had been seen outside of _their_ half of the field of battle. No, instead, the _mad man_ Kenichi the Grave Robber had taken his hubris to the farthest possible level, he tried to steal a gift only afforded to Kami and he tried to create life from nothing. Worse, the monster _succeeded_ in creating another, a bastard child of man, harboring a stolen soul and an innocent, albeit tainted heart. The baby - who, by all accounts and the man's own written reports, had the blood of several clans, the most noteworthy being that of the Uzumaki and the Uchiha - was asleep in the arms of ANBU Wolf, blissfully unaware of what it was and what was going on around it.

Hiruzen looked up from the notes stolen from the now thoroughly destroyed lab, to the child, back to the notes, and then back to the child. He could hardly comprehend what on Kami's earth this even _was,_ let alone what he should do with it. Did he give it to Uzushiogakure? To the Uchiha? To any of the other clans it was bastardizing by sheer convenience of existing? Did he put it up for adoption and watch it? Did he kill it and put it out of its tainted misery?

No, he couldn't do such things, he decided, as he watched the baby stir silently, contentedly. Bastard it may be, it was a child, brought in to this world by the dealings of a madman, that didn't mean it deserved to die. But if not death, what _could_ it do? How could he possibly turn this around, repair such a _broken existence_? Did he even want to?

He sighed, rubbing the bridge of his nose. _Broken..._ It stuck to his mind, reminding him of his not-so-little student. She had just lost all the family she had, little Nawaki, kind Dan, she was grieving terribly, another problem he didn't know how to fix. He sighed again, so many problems, so similar, so different. He wished he could help her, but she needed an anchor, and he couldn't be it. He wished he could help the child, but it needed a fair - if second, or perhaps stolen - chance at life, and he couldn't do that, either, he had neither the time nor the resources.

Hiruzen blinked, his dark eyes sharpening as the pieces to the puzzle slowly started clicking together. It couldn't be that simple, could it? Was she still even in the village? She had sobbingly said she would leave after the funeral, but that had been a week ago.

He sighed, he may as well try, it would kill two birds with one stone, possibly fix two lives with one solution. "Is Tsunade Senju still in the village?" He asked his ANBU.

"Yes, Lord Hokage." Said one from the shadows.

"Summon her." The best case scenario would be that this would be very bad in the beginning, but become very good after a while. _Or,_ worst case, it would be absolutely terrible in the beginning, she would hate him for trying, leave, and never come back. He had seen her eying the sake last he'd seen her.

He sighed and shook his head as Wolf placed the baby in a basket. He prayed for the best case.

* * *

_"WHAT?!"_

_Best case... Best case..._ He repeated it silently like a mantra, as if - through will alone - he could affect her decision. "I apologize if I was not clear enough -"

Tsunade, though livid, showed a great deal of restraint by resisting the urge to scream such profane language that it would give the monks at the fire temple a heart attack. Instead, she unintentionally oozed a pure wave of killing intent, "I know _what_ you said, Sensei." She interrupted him, "but I don't understand _WHY!"_ She roared, "why in Kami's name should I take care of some brat?!" The unspoken 'I couldn't keep my own alive' was clear to Hiruzen, even if she herself didn't let the sorrow slip in to her eyes.

"You know well and good just what it is, Tsunade." Hiruzen said calmly, as he did when she was still just a genin, and not a legendary ninja with strength enough to break apart the Hokage Mountain. "It was made as a weapon, a bastard child of man born from a fake womb. I truly know not what to do with it but raise it and see what it is, _truly; _but to do that I cannot trust it any lowly foster mother." He said, knowing full and well that she saw through his lies, but also knowing that she knew he respected and loved her too much to tell her the truth. He was asking her to take this child as a call for help, an olive branch, a desperate plea for her to try and make herself better. Perhaps in raising one life, she could atone for the loss of two.

"But _me?!"_ She demanded, looking like she wanted to throw either of the two other Sannin under the carriage, but also well aware of who said Sannin were, and how stupid such a solution would be. Jiraiya would turn the child in to some kind of lecherous pervert, and Orochimaru would do... Whatever it was Orochimaru did usually, but to him, making it twice as creepy. "Why not keep him for yourself, or send him to a different village?"

Hiruzen shook his head solemnly, "I considered that." He said, "but that would require entire forests worth of letters sent back and forth between allied villages in order to coordinate the exchange perfectly. Someone would intercept it eventually, they would learn, and we could start a third world war before the second even finished. It would become a martyr without even having died, everyone would be fighting for control of the undead monster-child, simply because of _what it is_ and _what it could become."_ He explained. "With its Uchiha blood alone, it has access to one of the most powerful dojutsu in the world, and chakra reserves and fighting instincts to boot. The Uzumaki blood will give it vitality, chakra, strength and stamina, it is a _weapon_ that is already sharp enough and it's not even housebroken." Though thankfully the child hadn't eaten in its entire life, so it had nothing to vacate from its bowels, Hiruzen's office was spared the smell. "I cannot trust it to anyone _but_ you, Tsunade."

Tsunade deflated, the stress and sorrow of losing her loved ones weighed upon her visibly, now. Weakly, she asked, "are you certain there isn't anyone else?" She looked to the sleeping child, who had changed from peaceful to somewhat fitful, it was having a dream it seemed. Hiruzen couldn't help but wonder if the soul was feeding it dreams of an old life, or from the Pure World itself. "I... Don't think I'm up to it." She said meekly.

Hiruzen smiled solemnly, much as he wished it weren't true, he'd convinced her. "Tsunade, you are a Sannin. More than that, you are Hashirama Senju's granddaughter. If anyone can raise a child, teach it right from wrong, it would be you." He paused, and gave a solemn look for effect, "if you truly wish it, I will look for a suitable replacement if you do not think you can do it. But at least try it... For your _old_ sensei?" He cracked a grin.

She tried to suppress her own grin and failed, with a deep, exhausted sigh, she relented. "Fine... I'll _try..._ But I hope you know what you're doing, Sensei..." She walked over to the child, peering cautiously in to its basket. It began to rouse as the dim light of twilight was blocked from its eyes, "because I sure as hell don't." She reached in and gingerly, delicately, picked up the child, idly noting the 'Soul' seal on its left pectoral.

_The madman certainly was trying to make a weapon,_ she thought, giving the Hokage a brief bow before leaving the room with the bundle of joy in her arms. She could see it in its eyes, a sort of awareness in one's surroundings that simply shouldn't exist in one so young. She decided, however, that intentions or no, it would at least get its own decision for what its new lot in life would be. She knew better than to suspect Hiruzen of wanting the weapon for himself, but she still feared he would corrupt the monster - child? - and turn it to his own devices. ANBU floated through her mind as they no-doubt began following her home to her silent compound.

She couldn't help but grin, she _knew_ Jiraiya's reaction would be one for the history books.

As she walked home, she wondered what she should name it, as it had no name for itself.

* * *

_Okay..._ Silently gulped the white-haired toad sage. _Don't bring up Dan and Nawaki. Don't bring up Dan and Nawaki. Don't bring up Nan and Dawaki - Damn it!_ He knocked on the blonde slug medic's door, before he let himself inside. Tsunade had, simply, _not _been the same since the death of her young brother and her beloved, he was afraid she would do something rash if left alone for too long, and though he knew she was too strong for self harm, she hadn't been seen outside of the Senju compound for a _month, _not since their funerals. He would be a bad teammate if he didn't at least check on her.

"Hime!" He called out, in the jovial, obnoxious tone he had long ago adopted, such a tone completely belied the serious reasoning behind his impromptu visit. He just wished he could have brought in Orochimaru, but he was the one of three Sannin that was on deployment, Jiraiya and Tsunade were home on leave, though that would certainly be ending soon for one of them.

He didn't get what he'd expected - instead of silence, he was greeted by the loud cries of an infant child. A 'what the hell' look stretched across his face, not even wiped away by what came next. _"Damn it, Jiraiya!"_ The dulcent tones of his favorite medic roared out in a tone of irritation reserved specifically for him. _"I just got him to shut up and sleep!"_ Her voice was muffled by the walls, but they themselves shook from its raw force, he shuddered to think how loud she would have been if he'd been in the same room.

The toad sage blinked heavily. Since when did she have a kid? Since when were kids gestated and spawned in _one month?_ And, most importantly, _who was the lucky bastard?_

Bewildered, he strode through the house, up the stairs, and to the sound of a baby's cries. It quieted down somewhat as he got closer, but when he opened the door the baby was still crying and Tsunade was still cooing it to sleep in her own odd, gently violent kind of way.

"Hush little gaki don't you cry... Momma's going to stick a knife in Jiraiya's eye." The slug ninja cooed, rocking the child to sleep.

"Uh -"

"If you so much as twitch too loudly and keep this kid awake any longer than he needs to, I swear Jiraiya, _I will put you through a wall."_ The _mother_ threatened as the child calmed down. "There there..." She sounded wholly uncomfortable with what she was doing, like she had no idea at all, yet she also conversely sounded like she was completely within her element. Jiraiya couldn't explain just what he thought of this, he was equal parts jealous, confused, purplexed, and simply befuddled.

The child quieted down, and after she made sure it was sound asleep, she turned to face the offending toad sage. Said sage had to immediately clamp down on his lips - her entire front half was covered in vomit. She saw what he was suppressing and the glare in her brown eyes could have set him on fire, they were so intense.

_"Out!"_ She mouthed, forcing the white-haired man outside and down the stairs, gently closing the door behind her.

When they were safely downstairs and in her kitchen, Jiraiya let loose the tidal wave. _"What the hell was that, when did you get a kid, whose is it, is that vomit, **when did you get a kid?!"**_ He asked in rapid-fire.

"Sit down and shut up." Tsunade ordered, kicking a chair out for the toad sage. "In order, that was you waking up Hibiki, I got him a month ago, that's a long story, yes shut up about it, and a month ago, learn to listen." She glared at him.

Jiraiya gawked, _"what?!"_

Tsunade shook her head drowsily, _"listen."_ She cleared her throat, "that 'spy network' you're working on say anything about Kenichi the Grave Robber?" She asked, the toad sage nodded slowly. "He wasn't stealing kekkei genkai. He was stealing body parts, genes, blood, anything he could use to make a child."

The man blinked, _"make_ a _child!? You mean -"_ He almost shouted, but he caught himself. _"You mean that thing is... What, an impure resurrection?"_

"No." Tsunade said, but she thought a moment. "I don't think so. I don't know, Hiruzen doesn't think so, but the point is the kid's a walking nightmare." She said, "any other village catches wind of it..." She caught herself, and with a pursed lip she inclined her head, as if forcing a correction through. _"Him."_ It sounded as if she didn't quite agree with the term, but she pushed on. "It could start a war... _So..."_ She sighed, "Dan... And... I... Had... A... _Kid."_ She said slowly, forcing the contrived story out as she'd made it. Simple, but effective. Her voice audibly shook at the mention of her dead lover, but Jiraiya noticed immediately how only _one_ tear fell down her cheek, as opposed to the waterworks that would have sprung a leak had she even mentioned the man a month ago.

"_You _took it." Jiraiya said, _"you._" He pointed at her.

Had she had a tea cup, it would have gotten a pretty large crack in it. "Yes. Why?"

Jiraiya blinked, "are you even... Ready for such a thing? That's not your grandpa's gift dog, Hime, that's a _human being..."_ He said, "... Kind of..." He was having trouble simply wrapping his mind about what this woman was doing, the kid's bastard status hadn't even really registered yet.

Tsunade's eye twitched at the mention of Butters the Dog. "That... Was an accident, and you know it." Also was it a story she wholly regretted sharing with him and the snake-nin. "But what's your damn point? I'm the greatest medic kunoichi in the world." She said without an ounce of humility, or arrogance, "what is there to it that Shizune and I can't do?"

Jiraiya blinked _again,_ "Shizune? Dan's... Sister? Niece?" _Another_ anchor for her? Maybe this wasn't _that_ much of a bad idea after all, but still - a _kid!_ An undead demon baby, sure, but still - a _KID!_ Even _he_ wasn't that stupid, and he'd accidentally spied on Mito Uzumaki at the hot springs.

"Yes." Tsunade growled, so what if she took Dan's niece under her wing? She needed someone to look up to, Tsunade needed a companion - and someone to hold the damn diapers if the situation called for it. She had made a mental note a week ago to invest in the Shadow Clone jutsu her uncle had crafted. An extra set of hands - or twenty - may be worth its weight in gold, and definitely worth the chakra cost.

Jiraiya didn't comment further, he shook his head, "my point is it's not a dog, it's a living, breathing, human _being."_ Whether or not it was actually human aside. If it came down to it, Jiraiya honestly thought that Tsunade did have what it took to take on a kid, but she wasn't exactly emotionally stable, right now. "Are you sure you can _handle_ something like this?"

Tsunade sighed, feeling frustration build up within her. "Yes." She said firmly. "_but -"_ She caught his attention, "this is temporary. I'm still planning full and well to leave this damn village... But sensei needs someone to watch him until he can find someone better." Her voice faltered somewhat as she finished, telling Jiraiya all he needed to know: Despite what she said, she knew full and well that Hiruzen had pulled a fast one on her and she was stuck with the kid until it became an adult.

Jiraiya sighed, "alright." He relented, "alright. But you've got to do something for me."

Tsunade's eye twitched, "what?"

"You've got to bring Orochimaru in on this."

Tsunade blinked, but relented after some argument. Even if she thought she could do this on her own, she may need help from time to time, someone to watch the brat so she could go off and get a breath of fresh air. Though, she didn't admit that, not even close, bullheaded as she was, she had to argue it, and Jiraiya appreciated the effort - it meant she was, indeed, healing; slowly, perhaps, but healing nonetheless. Maybe, just maybe, if she figured out this kid thing and got a hold of it, it might help her heal all the faster.

And, he had to admit, 'Uncle Jiraiya' had a certain ring to it. Especially since he could be _that_ kind of Uncle, the kind that lived to make the little gaki worship the ground he walked upon and could make him annoy the hell out of his adopted mother.

Jiraiya grinned, and soon they got to talking of other things, with Tsunade soon forcing him to put his money where his mouth was when the kid woke up again and started wailing.

* * *

Two months out from her official/unofficial adoption of little Hibiki Senju, she had fallen in to something of a routine. She woke up, she checked on the gaki. She did her exercises, she checked on the gaki. She brushed up on her techniques, she checked on the gaki. By that time it would usually be around breakfast, so she'd feed the thing. She had been floored at how much baby formula had cost, and though she wasn't hurting for money - she was a _Senju,_ after all - she did regret letting so much go so she could have a few months of food for the kid stored up for whenever she got redeployed to the frontlines. After his first feeding, she would go about her day, checking in on him out of either habit or a lack of knowledge on what to do, and around the time she was studying up on medical techniques and the human body - noon time - Shizune would show up and the two would chat.

Shizune was the quintessential little sister, even before Dan passed she'd been somewhat perfect for the role. It didn't hurt at all that, in exchange for Tsunade imparting some of her _not_ inconsiderable medical knowledge upon the kunoichi, she'd help out with the kid. Shizune seemed to know the whole 'mom' thing a lot better than Tsunade, so she ended up teaching Tsunade as much as the sannin taught her.

She would admit, however, that she hadn't been able to hold back laughter when the young teen opened up the door - baby in arms - and nearly shrieked when the snake sannin revealed himself. The grin hadn't left her face when the snake summoner stared at the baby, utterly dumbfounded at what he saw. He understood the story quickly enough, though Tsunade had had to deny him the right to see Kenichi the Graverobber's notes, Hokage's orders, she said.

Oddly enough, the snake summoner had bonded with the child quicker than she would have predicted. They weren't as close as the kid and Jiraiya, no, not at all, but the kid seemed to appreciate Orochimaru's quiet contemplative self as opposed to Jiraiya's boisterous, lecherous attitude. Matter of fact, the only one of the group of four that the kid didn't seem to like was _Shizune,_ of all people, every time she cooed at him like a baby or did any 'goo goo gaga' noises, he looked at her like she was a fool, and if she didn't stop, he started crying, apparently having quickly figured out that crying quickly summoned the medic of the household, who would do whatever it was to get him to shut up again. Impossibly bright, that kid was.

More time passed, and eventually it came time for Tsunade to get rotated out with Jiraiya, who had left for the frontlines soon after his visit. The three sannin were never on the battlefield at the same time unless it was an important battle, and though Hiruzen had kept her off of the lines as long as he could, so she could get to know the kid and vice-versa, she had to get deployed sometime. Unfortunately for her, Shizune had too many obligations to watch over the kid 24/7, which left the slug sannin's two teammates. Or, to be more specific, _one_ team mate, because as good with the kid as Jiraiya may be, he was tired and haggard from war and needed time to rest, which meant Orochimaru had to be the first of them to take on the 'Baby Rotation'.

To say the snake summoner hadn't been amused would be an understatement. He stared at her for a full five minutes, in that silence that was characteristic of him. He didn't say _no,_ but in his silence he seemed to simultaneously question her sanity and make fun of her, the kind of 'you seriously think _I_ should be left alone with a _baby_ for a full duty rotation' look that told her she should feel stupid. She told him that that was exactly what she thought, especially given how the kid seemed to appreciate his presence a bit more than Jiraiya's, but the only caveat to the pale ninja watching the baby would be that he would have to defer to Shizune's far more motherly nature if such a need arose. Powerful and intelligent he may be, parent material, Orochimaru of the Sannin was **_not._**

Nothing proved it more than when she got a note from what was very obviously a frantic, terrified Shizune, after a particularly tough week in the field hospital.

_He's a madman!_ She had written, _I came to check on little Hibiki and he wasn't in the living room or in his basket in the dining room. I asked sir Orochimaru where he was and he said Soriddo was watching him! **HE LEFT THE WELLBEING OF A BABY TO A SNAKE!**_ Her hysteria was clear through her handwriting, and the fact that she'd flagged down a _shinobi messenger,_ one of the ones what would deliver their messages even if it killed them, to get it to the sannin as fast as he could.

Now, Tsunade had patience, she was willing to give her teammate the benefit of the doubt and assume that Shizune had neglected to mention a few details - perhaps he was filling out a report, or cooking himself some food. She'd sent a message to Jiraiya to get the full story, and it was only slightly better - apparently Orochimaru's snakes had never seen a human infant before, so he let one of his favorite snakes, Soriddo, look after it for a while so it could get a feel for what a human baby was like, while Orochimaru did a few tasks he couldn't be disturbed from. The baby was fine and unharmed - according to the snake, he'd actually seemed somewhat happy he had something his size to play with - and though Shizune had told off the man who was ten times as powerful as she could ever hope to be, nothing big came of it.

Though Tsunade had made certain to write Orochimaru her _own_ sternly written letter, vowing to put him through the Hokage's monument if he ever left the wellbeing and safety of a human baby to a summons, no matter how noble or strong the summons' species may be. Given what the kid was, and what Kenichi the Graverobber _did,_ it was more than likely that the kid was some kind of target, or at the very least he was a target due to his 'lineage', and connection to Tsunade. That meant, in its simplest form, ninja far more powerful than a stupid snake would try and take the kid, or - kami forbid - _kill_ him.

Orochimaru understood, the tone of his letter seeming to indicate he was growing fond of the thing - who seemed to watch him work with rapt interest, whenever they were in the same room together and it thought the sannin didn't know it wasn't napping.

_Real_ smart kid. With some training, it'd make a good ninja, one day.

Unfortunately for Tsunade, the war was in its final death throes, and for her last two months on the field, any enemy ninja that could still fight, fought like a cornered dog - ferociously and with no regard for self preservation. She'd nearly had some unholy combination of a panic attack, a seizure, and a heart attack, looking at all the bloody bodies that came in during the last few months. She'd been able to bear it, just barely, that first week, but she had to physically force herself to _not vomit_ as time went on. One time she had passed out wholesale during a surgery that would have given a shinobi back his legs. Her assistants had finished the surgery, not as well as she could, but still finished it, and thankfully they misattributed why she'd fallen out - thinking she was just exhausted, not a medic with a new-found pathological fear of of blood.

She had never scrubbed harder in her life after that specific night had ended. She'd practically removed the entire top layer of her skin. She could not wait to get back home, to her clean home, her somewhat clean gaki, her clean teammates, her clean apprentice, and revel in the _lack of blood._

Her rotation ended up running a month overtime, with Orochimaru coming to back her and the rest of Konoha's forces up for the final battles. Then, apparently, the fun had begun back home, because it was Jiraiya's turn for the Baby Rotation, and Orochimaru had admitted full and well that he left a snake in the house just to make sure Jiraiya was actually watching the kid and not sneaking off to a hot-spring to spy on naked women. And it was true, the toad sage hadn't abandoned the kid to go to the hot springs.

The fool had brought the baby with him, with Pa toad keeping it company and keeping it quiet while Jiraiya conducted his 'research'. Though Tsunade had a sneaking suspicion that Pa had swatted the baby on the face to make it cry and reveal Jiraiya, because somehow its cries had escaped the toad elder's Perfect Muffling technique to attract the eyes of the women on the other side of the divider. A few had gone over to investigate, and the rest was history.

Once the war was all well and done, was when the Hokage and the elders fought the last of the war with the only weapon deadlier than the most forbidden of all jutsu: The spoken word. Negotiations were in full, somewhat violent swing when she returned home, to find one of the most bizarre sights greeting her eyes.

Shizune had a frying pan in one hand and a dirty magazine in the other, with Jiraiya cowering on the ground in a 'duck and cover' position, shielding his head from the medic-in-training's deadly weapon.

_"You don't read porn in front of a baby!"_ The teenager shrieked like a banshee, her eyes wide with rage and a vein clearly visible on her forehead. She was continuously beating Jiraiya upon the head, back, and ass with the frying pan, a loud 'dong' noise echoing throughout the home with each smack.

Tsunade decided from then on that she loved Shizune, and if his laughter was anything to go by, so did little Hibiki. After she'd rescued the baby from Jiraiya's home and made certain Katsuyu had a good eye on him, she treated the medic-in-training to an admittedly lavish dinner, that had gotten interrupted an hour in to things, when one of the slug's split halves informed Tsunade that the baby was wailing, and due to its lack of limbs, it couldn't do anything to satiate it.

With a resigned sigh, Tsunade excused had herself and allowed Shizune to keep eating - still the sannin's treat. She deserved it after months of keeping the baby alive in the face of two questionably sane sannin, even with her tight schedule to consider. She got back to her home in record time to go through the motions - the kid didn't want a bottle, so he wasn't hungry. He didn't smell, so he didn't need to be changed. He didn't burp, so he didn't have gas.

As it turned out, Orochimaru's snake was still around, and Soriddo had decided to see how well it could terrify the kid before it reverse-summoned itself. Tsunade's slug summon corroborated the story, though she didn't admit that she'd had a hand in getting the snake in to position and thoroughly regretted the aftermath. She'd wanted a good laugh, instead, she'd been partially deafened.

_Damn summons._ Tsunade sent Katsuyu away and spent hours trying to get the little gaki to calm down. It was well past midnight when the kid finally calmed down enough to sleep, and Tsunade vowed to give Orochimaru an earful about letting his summons roam free in her - or any of the sannins' - home.

That soon became her routine, and after a month passed the news came back alongside the Hokage - the war was over, the Leaf had won, however barely, he didn't add. She continued raising the kid, staunchly maintaining that it was a temporary thing even as the new year came and went. Before she knew it, the Hokage was visiting her with a bit of news.

Something, way back in the part of her brain that she didn't like to listen to, actually feared what he had to say, but dropped that fear when he said it. This day, January thirteenth, was the one year anniversary of when the ANBU teams had found the child, so by all rights, it was Hibiki's birthday. Simply put, _no one_ celebrated birthdays like ninja, because no one was more happy they'd survived another year than those who knew they could die at any given moment. Tsunade had been hesitant at first, but when Shizune had appeared out of nowhere, practically bubbling with excitement over the prospect that 'her little Hibiki-kun' was already one, the slug sage had relented and the three sannin, the Hokage, and the niece of her deceased lover all had a quiet, if characteristically ninja, celebration for Hibiki Senju's first birthday.

As she watched the baby take a fistfull of cake with its surprisingly dextrous fingers, but fail horribly at guiding it to his mouth and instead smear it all over his face and bib, Tsunade the slug sannin, the greatest medic of her generation, and the broken woman who'd lost nearly everything she'd cared about in the war past, with a deathly fear of blood to replace them, allowed herself a small smile.

* * *

**A/N:**

Self Inserts are a dime-a-dozen. It seems every time I check the Naruto category, one or two more have sprouted up.

So, obviously, I decided to jump on the bandwagon.

But this **isn't** a Self-Insert. I'll say that again - this is NOT a SELF INSERT.  
Exactly what it is and what it will become must not be spoiled, but revealed by storytelling.

The only thing I'll reveal is that the 'Insert' has never read the manga or watched the anime in his entire life, meaning that any meddling with the timeline will be unintentional. That being said, some things - even in this seven thousand word prologue - have already been hinted at, and you **might** be able to guess where I'm going and how I'm going there based on the content of this prologue.

I hope you enjoy what I've got for you all,

I present, for your consideration:

Illimitable.


	2. Back to Life

Chapter 1

* * *

_"Nothing is so painful to the human mind as a great and sudden change." -Mary Shelley, Frankenstein._

* * *

Returning to life brought with it such an indescribable pain that the newly renamed Hibiki Senju simply couldn't explain with any language he knew so speak _how much it hurt, _to the point that even the raw, animal-instinct that every human being had, could not properly comprehend or describe how much pain had coursed through his body for those first few eternities that was his new life. Even comparisons, which was among the easiest ways to describe something and was integral to human understanding, failed to describe it. The closest possible comparison he could make would be getting brained by a drunken driver behind the wheel of a semi-truck, but _even that_ _hadn't hurt_ as much as the act of coming _back_ to life. For three months, the former vacationing graduate had been convinced that he was either in hell, or stuck in a hospital where the morphine and the pain killers simply weren't working, the only solace he ever found was in the sweet embrace of sleep. It had been after that third month did the pain _finally_ begin to dull, when a pale-skinned doctor had taken a good look at his chest and given him some kind of treatment, the effect of which was similar to a large bruise suddenly vanishing on the spot, shrinking down to the point where it was just a simple remnant of a blemish. After the doctor had given him whatever he'd given him, Hibiki had had time to get his head straight and his bearing settled. It took him a week until he got his facilities situated, his head clear and his thoughts coherent.

Initially, he thought he was still in Japan, everyone was still speaking the language, though for whatever reason the doctors and staff had _lost_ typical Japanese characteristics. Where was that US Army base? Okinawa? He'd been in Tokyo, why would they have shipped him there? Further confusing the child was how even the younger nurse in training - the dark-haired, dark-eyed one who couldn't have been older than his sister - was able to pick him up and man-handle him like it was nothing. He was a full-grown twenty eight year old man, and while it may be true he wasn't a built as he could be, four years working in the Fire Department over in the States had gotten him a significantly bigger than the scrawny stick he had been before graduating college. That in mind, how was this teenager able to pick him up and carry him around?

Furthermore, _what kind of hospital was he in?!_ It looked more like some woman's home than the sterile white and generally noisy environment of most hospitals he'd been in. He had once considered he was in some odd kind of hospital, but then one day he'd been placed in front of a mirror and all thoughts of normalcy and rational explanation were thrown out the window.

Hell, they were thrown out the _ISS, _and left to burn up on reentry, because the face he saw looking back at him was the face of a frigging _baby._ He'd tapped the glass a few times and done everything he could save for sobbing loudly to make certain beyond any doubt. What was going on? How was something like this possible? Was he dead? Was he alive? Did they do something like Walt Disney and put his head on ice, and then thaw him out? Why did they put him in a damn baby? Was he in a coma? _What was going on?_

He hadn't realized until the pale-skinned doctor - who had snakes practically falling out of his sleeves and a look in his eye that could kill - had quite literally smashed the door in to his room that the faint noise he'd been hearing was the sound of him screaming his few month old lungs out. The normally quiet doctor - unless he wasn't a doctor and was actually his 'dad', so to speak - practically panicked as he tried to calm down the terrified child, only succeeding by finally giving him food, water, anything that could go in to his stomach - and making a good amount of the snakes disappear. Hibiki wasn't afraid of snakes, he was afraid of not having the physical facilities to make sure said snakes - or any animal, really - stayed the hell away from him and understood who was at the top of the food chain and why. _Not afraid at all._

Hibiki had almost defecated himself when the snakes had disappeared in a big 'poof' of smoke. His mind couldn't handle much more than this, death, reincarnation, a magic man that could stuff a hundred snakes up his sleeves and then make them all disappear in a big poof of smoke. That was the kind of stuff that came out of fantasy books and anime, so after he forced himself to calm down and think rationally, he decided that that narrowed his options down to two things: He was dead and had been reincarnated in some kind of universe where magic existed, or he was alive and in some kind of coma-induced hallucination. There were probably more explanations than this - the Walt Disney one being among them - but his tired and addled mind had only come up with the two.

He didn't know what option was the right one, and no matter how much he tried the critical thinking skills that had reliably gotten him through college, he never came up with a definitive answer - and soon came to the conclusion that he _would_ never. So with all of that in mind, Hibiki made a decision that belied his newfound age - or, technically, lack thereof - he decided he'd live out his new life, however well he could. If he woke up on Earth, he'd have a hell of a story to tell, and he might make his million doing it, if he never did wake up on Earth, then he'd just play the hand he was dealt and keep going. That had been one of his father's mottos - play the hand you're dealt, don't bother wasting time and energy trying for the one you want.

Weeks turned in to months, and after several more passed a golden-blonde woman with the biggest pair of breasts he'd ever seen arrived in the house. She took the infantile man up with an almost practiced ease, Hibiki wondered if she was his 'mother', so to speak. Thinking along such lines made him wonder how he would adapt to this new world, 'Mom' and 'Dad' were terms he normally associated with the stay-at-home mom and the retired soldier turned computer engineer father back home, so perhaps he should refer to Miss Blonde - that being the kinder of the names he'd come up with - as something else? Madre? Ma? Mother? He'd decide later.

Time continued passing, and Hibiki learned many things - his name included. The most obvious being he _was_ in a woman's home and not in a hospital - he was in the Blonde's home, with said blonde going by the name of Tsunade Senju. He would be completely honest, if he were still twenty eight and had the body to match, he would have tried to go for her phone number, not that - as he learned later - phones even existed in his new world. That was another thing, this new world he inhabited was some kind of fusion between nineteenth to twentieth century technology - minus the weapons technology, but that was a point to reach in a moment - and anime-esque fantasy; he would have made the connection to Tolkien-esque fantasy, but there was no word on elves and dwarves, it seemed.

It was around his second birthday that Hibiki Senju was able to start moving around on his own, having gained what he would say was around ninety to ninety five percent control over his facilities back. When he started walking, he'd been surprised at how much Tsunade had cheered him on, for as long as he remembered she was an easily irritable woman who put up a pretty convincing act of wearing her emotions on her sleeves. She was like a female Vegeta, brash on the outside but complex on the inside. Shakespeare would have loved her. After she'd stopped celebrating, she actually started bringing him out of the house more and more often, something she had seemed almost supremely reluctant to do during his infancy.

Hibiki's first true exposure to his new world was eye opening, and he used his rapidly redeveloping language skills to learn everything he could. The differences between his new world's Japanese and the one he'd forced himself to learn on his friend's behalf were subtle, but were indeed present enough to catch him up a few times. Tsunade had, fortunately for him, dismissed his mistakes as a child's verbal tics, though she was suitably amazed at how well he'd started speaking and how soon. She wasn't willing to answer _all_ of his questions, but she did answer a great deal.

Cars, guns, television, cell phones, those things didn't exist, she'd gotten a very bewildered look on her face when he'd asked where the cars and the planes were. Radios, lights, fridges, those things existed but not on the same scale as his Earth, if he had to guess he'd say that his new home was around the late nineteenth century, just minus the weapons technology. Unfortunately for him, he couldn't just up and ask 'if we don't have guns, how do we fight?', because Tsunade was an impossibly sharp woman, she'd catch on real quick that something was up and he knew a lot more than a two year old should.

After a few months of her guiding him around by the hand, Hibiki had taken on a somewhat independent role of information gathering. Unfortunately, his first foray in to the world of 'Konoha's library systems had been without much thought - back home, if he wanted to go to the library, he'd _go to the library,_ he was a grown-ass man and that was his right. Here, though, he was two and a half and such oversights would get him in to trouble.

But, he had an unexpected bonus from his stupid mistake: He had his first run-in with Konoha's military force. They called themselves Shinobi - and this specific one wearing a dog mask called himself 'ANBU', which was apparently their Navy SEALs - but he pegged them for what they were the second he saw Dog's outfit: They were ninja. They had the knives and the weird magic to prove it, the latter of which still confused him, but he initially hadn't had any time to dwell on it - his blonde 'mother' had practically screamed his new head off, demanding to know what had gone through his mind when he made that decision, did he know how 'kami' damned worried she had been, how scared he'd made half of the village, bla bla bla. She noticed how quickly he'd turned her out, and after dishing out a particularly harsh punishment, even by his original mother's standards, she _did_ pull him in to a bone-crushing hug.

That wasn't a joke - he felt his very bones begin to creak and crack with the sheer force of her embrace. Though after she told him to _never_ scare her like that again, she'd used her magic to undo whatever was caused with her she-hulk strength, and promised to get him whatever books he wanted.

The first thing he'd demanded - well, asked for, the kind of weakness Tsunade had shown had put him off guard - was writing paper and something to write with. He had the opportunity now, and the things from his home were still somewhat fresh in his mind, so he'd write down and catalog everything he possibly could.

* * *

What in Kami's name was this?

Tsunade Senju, after making certain the kid she _was not at all fond of _and was _only tolerant of _because Hiruzen needed her to be, was sound asleep, had sneaked in to his room with all of the skill a sannin ninja possessed. She knew some ANBU that wouldn't have sensed her, let alone heard her, so the kid wouldn't have even stirred, let alone woken up. Two months ago, after he'd disappeared and had her convinced someone from Ame had finally tracked him down and abducted him, and most certainly had _not_ terrified her out of raw concern, she'd asked him what kind of books he wanted to read, and his answer had surprised her - he didn't want to read anything, not yet. He wanted blank journals and something to write with - no, he said, make it a _lot_ of something to write with, and a _lot_ of blank journals.

She had never seen something so _alien_, so _unknown_ as what she had seen in her little dark-haired gaki's journal. She didn't recognize the kanji he wrote with, the symbols he drew, the pictures he illustrated - quite skillfully, she realized.

The first page she'd opened up had sent her mind reeling, with the big kanji at the top spelling out _Quotes to Never Forget,_ its first entry a line of kanji that went _"Dad - Never do something half-baked and cocksure, always do whatever it is to the best of your ability.". _She literally couldn't read a single thing he'd written, absolutely nothing in this book was even legible, let alone understandable. It couldn't be that he was simply doodling random lines - they were all too uniform to be something like that, and the drawing pages he'd had were very recognizable.

If she had to admit, her favorite of his drawings was the one with the kanji _'ISS'_ floating above it. Some sort of massive building with glass wings jutting out at the edges, with a massive black void on one end, dotted with small twinkling lights like the night sky, and on the other end an even bigger half-circle with such details that she couldn't describe it. She had no idea what it was, but she did know what it meant: This kid was either a creative genius, or a practical one.

She flipped through a few more pages, moonlight and the chakra flow through her eyes helping her to see it in as much clarity as she could get without a dojutsu. She saw pictures of what were unmistakably people, labeled with various unintelligible words, _'Mom', 'Dad', 'Rick', 'Uncle Tom', 'The Dumbass That Should Not Be Named But Will For Clarity's Sake (Joey)', 'Sara' _and _'Jane'_ were the only ones he'd finished, and they were very clearly doodles - they didn't have anywhere near the detail the _'ISS'_ drawing did.

_I need to get Shizune to watch over him for a day... She's long since out of the academy now, and she **owes** me for all of this medical study._ She thought, squinting at a picture of a rectangle with thirteen bars and fifty odd symbols in an ink-filled box. _Jiraiya needs to see this... He's the only code-breaker I know and trust enough to try something like this._

* * *

Okay, sure, Shizune Kato was a somewhat respectable teenager, and was definitely smart given her age, she had been the youngest person after Tsunade to get through the medic-classes in the 'Shinobi Academy'. But by god's unkind glare, she was _annoying._ Hibiki, being a twenty eight - or, by virtue of technicality, thirty - year old man stuck in the body of a two and a half year old knew he had to afford people a little elbow room with how they treated him, but _damn it,_ she still treated him like he was a babbling baby!

"Oh!" She cooed when she saw him drawing his best picture of the moon landing by memory, he was no good artist by any means, but he got his idea across, and an unspeakable amount of time slacking off in class had refined his animesque technique. "What're you drawing there, Hibiki-kun?" She asked, all high-voiced and bubbly.

She and Sara would have been _best friends._ Jane would have popped her on the nose after about five seconds. He decided to instead disarm her, "moon landing." He said, adding in the shadows, he was no shader at all - he absolutely hated it - so he went the Wind Waker style cell-shade whenever he needed to color or shade. Sure, it sacrificed realism, but he liked how it came out, and given enough time, if he felt he absolutely had to do it, he could at least make a half-way decent attempt at realistic shading.

"Oh, a _moon landing,_ huh?" She asked with an award-winning smile on her face, as she planted both hands on his shoulders and leaned in close so she could see him drawing. "What's that - " She pointed at Armstrong " - supposed to be? The Sage of Six Paths?" She stifled some laughter, probably thinking something along the lines of 'aw, how cute!'.

Should he explain that, _no,_ it is not God, but just a determined explorer? He sighed, no, that would take too much time and would place far more suspicion than he was prepared for on his shoulders. Tsunade had confronted him a few days ago about his drawings, he - hopefully convincingly - payed the dumb card and said they came to him in dreams, before itching his tattoo for effect. He had no damn idea why Tsunade had given him a tattoo above his heart that said 'Soul', but he decided he wasn't old enough to question it. Tsunade had dropped it after his answer, surprising the hell out of the displaced firefighter.

"Yeah." He said simply.

"Wooooow." She drew out with a nice grin, "I didn't know you read those stories!"

He hadn't, he was too busy writing down everything he could remember from Earth, and drawing random Earth things whenever he got bored or too tired from it. In two months, he'd finished writing his family and friends, his most important memories, and the big moments in Earth history - the world wars, the moon landing, when the Dark Knight was released, etc. - and vowed to flesh out Earth History after he wrote down his theories on how and why he was here, and how and why he remembered everything he did. The fact that he _did_ remember such things was revolutionary in and of itself - it showed that memories and experiences weren't held in the brain, but the soul, and that the soul _had_ to exist for reincarnation to be possible. It made his head spin, but he persevered and would keep writing.

He rolled the dice of chance and decided to BS his way through this conversation, "I haven't read them all... But I liked the stories about the moon." He said simply.

He heard footsteps, Shizune stood up and turned around, "Oh, Jiraiya!" She greeted.

Now, this was a man that Hibiki decided he'd liked. Not as much as the far quieter Orochimaru, but he still had the certain 'Uncle Tom' quality he enjoyed in his extended family. Hibiki turned around and saw the white-haired man with the Oil headband on his forehead enter his room, Tsunade in tow. "Hey there, Shizzy! How are you and the little gaki doin'?" He asked, jovially as always.

Shizune kept herself composed, she liked Jiraiya as much as Hibiki liked her - she could only just tolerate him. "We're doing fine, sir, how about you?" She looked between him and Tsunade.

"Aw we're doing just fine." Jiraiya laughed, "Tsunade was just tellin' me about her little gaki's drawing skills." He looked to Hibiki, who frowned just a bit. "Can I take a look?" The Toad Sage asked innocently enough, with a wide grin on his war-painted face.

Well, he couldn't say _no, _but he could offer up something of an excuse. "It's not done yet..." He wined, looking from the white-haired shinobi to his latest journal, back to the shinobi. "You may not like it..." He suspected the exact opposite of being true, but didn't argue further when Jiraiya assured him that whatever he had in there he would like just fine - it might even help 'inspire' him.

Hibiki handed over the book with little more argument, and Jiraiya started flipping through it, a wide, kind grin plastered on to his face as he did. Tsunade cleared her throat, "Shizune, come help me make dinner?"

"What're we having?" Hibiki asked out of instinct, he would kill for some pasta, even the store-bought six dollar 'totally made in Italy' kind. Unfortunately, that, like pretty much every other food he knew of from Earth and thoroughly enjoyed, _didn't exist._ Konoha Ramen versus Itallian Spaghetti? He'd take Spaghetti every damn time.

"I dunno, you'll have to find out." Said Tsunade, as Shizune ruffled his dark hair a bit and followed her down stairs.

That was when the atmosphere changed, Jiraiya sat down on Hibiki's bed and, still with a smile, asked Hibiki what he'd been fearing. "Wow, these look _amazing!"_ He complimented with false sincerity, he wondered if the sannin genuinely thought he was dealing with a kid, that book should have been proof enough that he was dealing with some kind of child-genius, right? "Where do you get the ideas for this stuff?" He flipped around the book, Hibiki blanched - that was the page he'd doodled some random weapons on, a gun here, a grenade there, a bow and a sword for good measure. "What're these?"

This man either knew full and well what they were, or had no clue and was extremely lucky in his ability to scare the hell out of the kid. Worse, the man was as sharp - if not, sharper than - his adoptive mother, which meant lying would get him nowhere. But, that didn't mean he had to tell the truth, either, he just had to tell _a version_ of it, a practice he'd become well versed in during his highschool years. "They're just pictures." He said, "whatever comes to mind. I let the pen do the work." Not a lie, not the truth, but not a lie.

He couldn't tell if Jiraiya was buying it. "Do you mind if I keep this for a day or two?" He _definitely was not buying it._

_Shit. What do I do?_ He felt like he was an inbred redneck trying to match wits with Sherlock Holmes, he had to play this just right, if at all.

He shook his head.

Jiraiya frowned, over-dramatically. "Aw, why not?"

Hibiki shrugged, and extended his hand again.

Jiraiya seemed hesitant, but he did hand over the book. "_I _think..." Oh _shit._ Now what? "That I need to talk to your mom..." He was going to be sent to a looney-bin, he was going to be killed, he was going to be tortured. "About schooling options." No, much worse.

No. He was _done_ with school, he'd done his time, _screw that._ "I don't want to go to school." He said innocently enough.

Jiraiya smiled and got to his feet. "Well, your genius is being wasted here, kiddo." He said, placing a hand on Hibiki's shoulder. "Think about it, will you? I think you'd make a _fine_ academy student."

Hell _no,_ he would sooner chew his arm _\- _wait. Academy? As in, the place where one learned about Ninja Magic? Damn it, now he had a moral dilemma here. On one hand, _school,_ on the other hand, he could learn how to fling lightning and fire around and become this world's Raistlin Majere.

Damn it, "how old do I have to be?" He asked hesitantly.

Jiraiya smiled wide, "most kids get in at six, that's the minimum age.. But I think I could get you in at five, if you're a good boy." He said gleefully.

Three more years before he had a slightly different daily schedule?

Eh, why the hell not?

* * *

Late that night, Tsunade stay awake and waited for Jiraiya to arrive again. The kid was a sharp one, he'd gone on the major defensive after the master had asked a few innocent questions, so they couldn't take any risks, they had to meet well after he was sleep. She didn't rise when Jiraiya let himself in, she simply gave him a sideward glance as acknowledgement of his presence. He entered her dining room and sat down across from her at her table.

"Well?" She asked, "anything?"

Jiraiya shook his head, "absolutely nothing." He said, "I've been a lot of places, and I plan on going to a lot more, but I've never seen _anything_ like what that kid has in his books." He pulled out a scroll from his red coat, written upon it was the kanji he'd copied down from memory. He smoothed it out on the table and began dissecting it like a seal master would. "They make no sense." _Exactly_ like a sealing master would. "The seal on his chest makes more sense than this." He was very clearly channeling everything he had in his not inconsiderable arsenal.

"You can't get anything from it?" Tsunade asked, somewhat helplessly. These revelations were _scaring_ her, not because of what she didn't understand about the text, but what she didn't understand about the _kid._ Just _what_ was sleeping up stairs in her little brother's old room? Was it some sort of demon? An ancient being waywardly attracted to the soulless body of a monster? Or just a genius child who'd invented his own language after only two years of life?

Jiraiya shook his head, _"no."_ He said, "I showed this to everyone I trusted - the toads." He said simply, "even Ma and Pa didn't recognize it. This text is one of a kind... Maybe it's a language he made, maybe it's just him getting used to pen strokes." He shrugged, "I don't know... But I've seen _death seals_ less complicated than Hibiki's kanji."

Tsunade ran a hand through her golden hair, "have you shown it to Orochimaru?"

"I wanted your permission, first."

"Show it to him, you can tell him everything." She explained, the only men and women alive who knew of Hibiki's origins were the Sannin, the ANBU assassination squad, and the third Hokage himself, so she trusted Orochimaru with this, and reinforced that by telling the Toad Sage what he could and could not do in regards to their secrets. "If he doesn't know anything, we'll bring it up with sensei next time he's got a moment." Jiraiya's eyes flicked above and behind Tsunade, she sighed and let her head slump. "Like right now, apparently." She looked behind her, through the crook in her arms, and saw the aging God of Shinobi standing behind her, just past the sliding glass door. He wore a look of utter seriousness.

He and his _damn_ crystal ball. She got up and unlocked the door, he came in. "So how much do _you_ know?"

"Not nearly as much as you, I'm afraid." The strongest shinobi in the village lamented, as he sat down at a free seat at her table. "But I have seen him write, from time to time."

Jiraiya asked the question on everyone's mind first, only allowing the Hokage the time to answer out of respect. "So what do we think about him? Is he a spy of some kind?"

Though Tsunade had been considering the same thing, she did look somewhat scandalized. "He's _two!_ And he's never been out of the village, who could he be receiving order from, or sending reports to?" She demanded, convincing herself she was simply playing devil's advocate.

The third Fire-Shadow calmed his students down, "there is a great deal we do not know about the child." He stated _firmly,_ "Ever since I gave him clearance, I've had Orochimaru going through the graverobber's notes and trying to dissect the techniques he used to bring the child to life. For all we know, this... Writing, is merely a side effect of being brought back from the pure world." He indicated Jiraiya's copied sheet. "We simply do not know, what Kenichi did was... _Is_ so indescribably horrific, and so simply beyond any of our leagues that literally anything could be possible..." He paused, "_but..._ I do not think the child is a spy."

Tsunade blinked, Jiraiya spoke, "how can you be sure?"

"The grave robber wanted merely to create life for its own sake - to see if it could be done. He wasn't doing it for any specific nation, or do settle any specific grudges, the documents ANBU raided his lab for confirm such things." The aging leader explained, "so while still possible... It is very unlikely that he was programmed to be some sort of spy."

"So what do we do?" Tsunade asked, "we can't just force him in to ANBU the second he graduates."

The Hokage didn't say yes or no to that, "at the very least, he must be trained. With the multitude of families his lineage traces back to, he _needs_ the training, he could be an A-Rank shinobi, without any real effort." He said, "and with the proper training... From proper individuals -"

Tsunade slammed her fist onto the table, cracking it almost in two. "You're seriously suggesting this?"

"Calm down, Hime -"

"Jiraiya, he's suggesting we start training a two year old like _sannin."_ She scowled, "he wants his own little kage is what he wants, isn't even caring about what the damned _kid_ wants."

Hiruzen gave her a blank, if subtly challenging look. "It sounds as if you've learned to care for him, Tsunade."

Had the child not been asleep, she would have started shouting. As she forced her voice to remain low, she made mental note to reach a new agreement with Shizune - whenever she had to talk to her teammates or her sensei, the gaki needed to be out of the house. "I _don't."_ She growled, "I'm only putting up wit him because _you_ can't find him a damn mother." She fixed the Hokage with a look that could kill, unwittingly letting some killing intent leak out of her pores.

The Hokage didn't return it, but he did move past this topic, "regardless of who does it and when, the point is, the child needs to be trained. If only because he _is_ a target."

Jiraiya's shoulders slumped, this old man was _not_ about to do what he thought he was.

Tsunade narrowed her eyes, "what do you mean?!" She demanded hotly.

"Our spies have gotten reports that Ame is sniffing around other countries, looking for displaced war orphans. His description, specifically, has come up, and they're using his Soul Seal as a descriptor."

_Okay, so he won't tell her that **I** told him that._ Jiraiya suppressed the urge to glare, _but this is still a breech of trust. What is his game?_ Maybe Tsunade wasn't as wrong as he had thought.

Tsunade's head slumped, she needed either sleep, or a drink, one of the two, either of them would do it. "You're not going to take no for an answer, are you?"

"I am afraid not."

She sighed deeply, "I'll talk to him tomorrow, see what he thinks." She finally said, "but I won't train him before he wants to be trained." She looked up and pointed directly at Jiraiya, "and you and the snake won't even _look_ at him like a student until I've had him for a good long while, understand?!"

Jiraiya grinned, "on one condition." He didn't even wait, he knew that she knew what he'd say, "go out with me."

The cracked ribs, though they made it difficult to laugh, were definitely worth it.

* * *

"Chakra?" First things first, he didn't like talking, because he was used to a voice far deeper than the one he had now coming from his throat, and secondly, what the hell was chakra? Was that this universe's excuse for mana? MP?

Tsunade had pulled him aside after she fed him lunch, he should have known something was up when she'd made his favorite. Though things like spaghetti, pizza, hamburgers and sloppy joes didn't exist in this world, grilled cheese and ketchup _did,_ so _damn it_ he'd enjoy it for as long as he couldn't buy his own stuff. She started talking to him about the village - the 'village hidden in the leaves' - and what most people did for a living. There were the merchants, the civilians, the military police, and then there were the shinobi. He'd met shinobi before, he'd been _raised_ around them, and he knew what they could do, but the blonde had started talking in-depth about how they did what they did, finally summing it all up by the universally present macguffin: chakra. Call it what you will, space magic, phlebotinum, chakra was the macguffin that no one understood that allowed ninja to do whatever it was they did.

Tsunade nodded, "do you know what that is?" She asked, "I've seen you reading out of my books, recently." She said, teasingly.

He shrugged, truth be told all he'd been reading were things that could supplement his _own_ knowledge, specifically medical texts. Being an EMT, he had a cursory 'jack of all trades' knowledge, so Tsunade's rather extensive books were good for brushing it all off and updating it. He'd started reading them just a month ago, after his third birthday, when he'd finished writing down everything he could remember from Earth. the last entries in his notebooks had largely just been updates to various other entries, and a quick skim-through to update things with a fresh look at them, but now he couldn't remember anything more than what he'd written, so he branched off, silently vowing to see if it was possible to make guns with 'modern' industry. Though that was for another day, now, he was simply reading medical texts, he knew that the human body had to be different in some way in order to accommodate for the fact that they could breathe fire and shit lightning, so that had been what he'd started reading first.

"Hm." Tsunade only half bought it, he'd gone through two books in the last month, there was no way he hadn't at least looked in on chakra by now. "Well, to put it simply, it's an energy source that pervades all living things. People, animals, plants, the earth itself, it's all got various forms of chakra." She waited for him to nod his understanding, "the two kinds you have to worry about, are the kinds that you can mold: spiritual, and physical."

_Physical and metaphysical._ Thought Hibiki, "what's the difference?"

"Well, physical chakra comes from your body. It can be enhanced an augmented by physical training and conditioning, and in return, it can augment and enhance _you._ Whereas spiritual chakra comes from your mind, that gets augmented through focus and study." She explained.

So he probably had an excess of the metaphysical kind, he reasoned. "Okay." He said, "why are you telling me this?"

She grinned, crossing her legs on the ground they sat upon. "Well, it's simple, I'm certain you've heard by now, but mom's something of a big deal in the shinobi world. They call me a sannin." She explained, he nodded. "That means that people may come after you to get to me, or me to get to Uncle Jiraiya, or Uncle Orochimaru. So, I thought it prudent to start teaching you about these things a bit earlier than most kids. That way if something happens, you would at least have something up your sleeve."

_Lady, just wait until I invent the world's first handgun. I'll have a lot more up my sleeve than badass magic._ Hibiki nodded, "so... what are we doing, then?" He asked.

Tsunade lifted her hand and channeled her chakra through it. After enough started flowing, the hand was enveloped in a bright blue aura of flame. "We're going to be seeing how much chakra you've got, today, and we're going to start you working on the basics of retrieving it and influencing its flow." She explained, cutting the chakra to her hand. "Now, your body has three hundred and sixty one tenketsu in it. These points are responsible for helping direct the flow of chakra, and through various method - the easiest being handsigns - one can control and influence the flow through these tenketsu."

"But... where does it come from?" Hibiki asked, "it's got to have some kind of origin point." Otherwise it would just be a potentially god-like amount of potential energy flowing through every inch of his body, waiting to either be used or explode on him.

Tsunade inclined her head and grinned in her usual, cocky fashion. "Smart kid... Yeah, the center of your chakra pathway system is in your stomach." She answered.

_So the Chakra's form of the heart is in my gut. An odd place, but okay, I can work with that._ He nodded.

"Alright, now, given you've never manipulated chakra before, we're going to first focus on simply feeling it out. So I want you to clasp your hands together, like this -" her hands were pressed together like a clapping motion. "And close your eyes."

Though he felt incredibly stupid doing it, he decided to trust the 'legendary ninja' and did as she said. He closed his eyes and his world was enveloped in darkness. "Now, feel inside of you, it's different for everyone, but when I do it, I look for a small spark of warmth in my stomach."

Hibiki took a deep breath and tried what she suggested, in truth he had absolutely no idea what he was looking for or how to look for it, so he did the tried and tested method of winging it, and seeing where it got him. As he 'looked inside of him', he wondered what chakra in and of itself was, what it could do, and if it had anything to do with why he was alive now. If he were hallucinating all of this and he was in a coma, the explanations he would get would be contrived and not at all sensible, but if this were real -

"Stop thinking so much." Tsunade ordered firmly, though kindly, "just feel for it, you'll find it."

_Okay... Let's try and feel for something... Foreign._ He decided, in his last life, he had a pretty bad case of tinitus, but if he never thought about it, the ringing in his ears sort of escaped his awareness, as if it wasn't there at all. He wondered if this was something similar, something that was there, but he just wasn't aware of it because it had been a part of him for so long.

He focused on his stomach, wondering if what Tsunade said would help him. Chakra, a spark of warmth, its heart was in its stomach. Before Hibiki could think anything else, he felt it - just barely, it was fleeting, but when he focused on the warm feeling in his stomach, he _saw_ it. It was just a blue spark, just there, waiting to be fed, to be guided. On instinct, he 'breathed' on the spark, giving it the oxygen it needed to burn brighter, and almost instantly he felt a tingling sensation on his hands.

Hibiki opened his eyes, he first saw Tsunade, grinning warmly, and he looked down, his hands were enveloped in the same blue flames hers had, though it was significantly weaker.

"I'll be damned, it took me _days_ to figure out where to look and how to look for it." Tsunade commented, "but now begins the fun part." Her warm smile turned far too innocent for Hibiki's liking.

_Oh... Boy._

* * *

Chakra training was, in short, _exhausting_. There were many kinds of exhausting, but this one counted as many in one - mentally, physically, emotionally, it just left him _tired._ First had come the simple act of finding and manipulating his chakra, which in and of itself was indescribably difficult - he'd had to force his mother to reveal that masters could manipulate chakra without hand signs, but it was impossible for rookies like him, and she wasn't wrong - one night he'd tried it for himself, he'd barely been able to get a spark of chakra around his hands, let alone the small fires he got with hand signs.

So he had a goal to work towards - because he absolutely _hated_ hand signs.

Years would pass and the training would become just as physically intensive as it was merely chakra intensive. Tsunade seemed hellbent on turning the boy in to a Spartan, three years before _Spartans_ turned their boys in to Spartans. After he'd turned four and had a decent enough grasp over the basics of chakra, Tsunade had started on his physical development, and while the two subjects could be inclusive, she made certain that - for now - they were mutually _exclusive. _Using her own medical techniques, whenever they started training physically, she suppressed his chakra so he couldn't cheat and give himself a quick shot of fast-acting Red Bull.

When put on top of his chakra exercises, the man in a child's body was barely able to _move,_ let alone crawl his way in to bed and sleep. Add that on to the steadily expanding library he was developing, and he was - on top of it all - conditioning his body to work on far less than eight hours of sleep. He wondered if this was what it was like being in the military, back home - constantly and consistently exhausted to the point where personal time became _sleeping time._ It would make sense, but he reasoned that if US Soldiers could spit fireballs and fling lightning around, the world would have been a very different place.

Tsunade's excuse, when he'd asked her after they celebrated his sixth year with some of the most intense training he'd ever had, was that she had to break him apart if she wanted to put him back together. Before, he was made of weak, malleable flesh, but he had to be made of iron in order to face the troubles that would no doubt lie ahead.

But, unfortunately for him, the physical and metaphysical parts of training weren't the only things he had to do. He also had the intelligence - and the patience - training to go through - he had to go to school.

Which brought him to now, standing in front of the ninja academy, with children streaming in and parents streaming out; his own 'parent' not present due to various extenuating circumstances she didn't explain to him. Two things were running through the boy's head, the first being that he couldn't believe he was going _back to school_ after working so hard to stay out of it, and the second being that whatever he learned here better be good, else he'd sleep through it all and breeze through on his _not_ inconsiderable education from years passed.

Hibiki sighed and began walking inside, little aware that he was taking the first steps towards a life fraught with hardship, pain, and earth-shaking revelations. His earlier, joking comparisons to the archmage of a criminally underrated Dungeons and Dragons book would, as it seemed, become far more apt than he had at the time thought. But before power, came the road to it - he needed, to put it bluntly, to _get_ there, before he could _be_ there. Legends started somewhere, and in this deceptively large academy, Hibiki Senju's legend would begin in earnest.

All thanks in part to him being bodily slammed in to by a speeding blonde bundle of energy named Minato.


	3. A Meeting Most Welcome

Chapter 2

* * *

"Argh!" Hibiki and the blonde kid shouted when the latter slammed in to the former.

The two fell to the ground with a heavy thump, the blonde atop Hibiki. The blonde blur's head had slammed right in to Hibiki's chest, so while Hibiki was short for breath, the blonde was simply dizzy. Groaning and trying to get a single lung-full of air back, Hibiki pushed the blonde off of him, rubbing his chest as he tried to digest what just happened. Who was this kid? Why was he running around in a very packed schoolhouse? Why did he have to smash in to _him?_

"Oh, Kami!" The blonde groaned, getting off of the displaced man as he held his sore head. "What'd I hit?" He opened his eyes and saw Hibiki recovering from the brief but painful assault on his chest. "Oh no!" He got to his feet and scrambled over to the slowly recovering child. "Are you okay? I'm so sorry! I wasn't looking, I thought I was late for class, I -"

"I'm fine." Groaned the dark haired child, as he accepted the blonde's hand and got to his feet. "So, what excuse are you going to use?" Or was he just going to keep spewing one after another until one stuck?

"Err..." The blonde sheepishly rubbed the back of his head, "I didn't see you?" He grinned apologetically.

Hibiki couldn't help but chuckle, "who've you got for your teacher?" The kid looked to be about his age, so maybe they would be seeing a bit more of each other in the days to come. Though, given the pain in his chest, Hibiki debated whether or not such a thing was good; nevertheless, he gave the blonde a pat on the back and the two started walking through the building, weaving in and out of the crowds of students and parents. "My name's Hibiki." It had taken him this long to get his new name right and instinctual, but he still sometimes nearly slipped up and gave his old one. He didn't think he'd ever get used to the new look, though, always expecting to see a twenty eight year old, close-cut man with a dense body and a shadowed face.

"I'm Minato Namikaze!" Minato declared loudly and proudly, "I'm being taught by Serizawa-sensei, how about you?"

"Same." Said Hibiki, his rent-a-mom had gotten a letter the week previous containing his class schedule.

"_Wow! _Really?" Minato had a bright, ear-to-ear grin pasted on his face, "that's so cool!" He laughed, "you want to be friends?" He asked, a child-like smile on his face.

Hibiki blinked, his first instinct was to give the traditional 'I don't know you' spiel he'd adopted during college, but here he was _six,_ he didn't really need to second guess most of what anyone said. The point could be made that he _should,_ given he was in a _village run and protected by ninja,_ and was in a school where he would be taught, _to be a ninja,_ but Minato was his own age, and hey - _something_ about the kid said 'get to know me'. He sighed, "sure, why not?"

"Awesome!" Minato declared happily, as the two entered their classroom.

It reminded Hibiki of the college classrooms back home, stacked rows of seats, desks in front of them, the whole nine yards. Out of years of ingrained instinct, Hibiki went to the first front-row seat closest to the door and staked his claim, Minato set up shop right next to him. Time passed, and more students kept streaming in to the room, Hibiki saw - among others - a man with the darkest hair he'd ever seen, the fattest six year old ever witnessed on this earth, a kid with a pale jacket and unkempt hair, and two twins walking in tandem with each other wearing what looked like some kind of combat robes.

_Okay... List people to know. Minato... Twin guys look like they know what they're doing... Lard-ball will probably know where to get some good food... Aw hell._ Hibiki shook his head, _just wing it, don't try and categorize this stuff. _He rested his head on his desk, allowing his messenger's bag to fall off of his arm and hit the ground with a heavy-sounding 'thunk'. It had the textbooks he thought he'd need - Elemental Nations History, and the basics of Chakra - and notebooks, either for his classes, to draw in, or to write in random things he thought of from Earth. He had made a differentiation between 'Back Home' Earth and 'The New Hotness' Earth, the earth he'd been born on and the earth he currently inhabited, respectively. Back Home, there were massive cities, cars, cell phones, and airplanes, and in The New Hotness, the most advanced technology he'd seen would be a radio.

Hell, Back Home, there were guns, and bombs that could wipe out _twenty_ Leaf Villages, here? All they had were people who could spit fire and fart thunder. Hibiki's thoughts were cut when their sensei entered the room, Serizawa was a tall man with pale skin, he had bandages over both of his eyes, yet there were several pronounced veins on either side of his head. Hibiki noticed, as Serizawa entered the room, the twins had stiffened up, as if they recognized him.

"Class." Serizawa nodded, "I am Serizawa Hyuga." He greeted simply, "you, are my pupils. I am here to teach you, you are here to learn." He said bluntly, "so if there are any questions before we begin Konoha history, say them now. I have zero tolerance for tomfoolery or wasted time and-or-effort."

Hibiki had a question, but it was more a comment than anything - who the hell named this guy? Serizawa Hyuga? Did he have two last names? Who thought that one up? And how was he able to eye everyone despite somewhat-clearly having _no eyes. _His bandages did a decent job of hiding the fact, but they sunk in too deep into his eyes for them to be protecting healing organs - they were simply there to let everyone know that he was legally blind and they should be courteous.

Minato asked much the same as Hibiki thought, but in a hushed voice to Hibiki. "Hibiki... What do you think happened to his eyes?" He asked.

"If that is a story you _really _wish to know, you'll all pass your first test. This friday." The teacher responded almost instantly, his head snapping towards Minato's; everyone in the class groaned when it sunk in what the man had said.

_Oh boy... This guy's going to be fun._ The way Hibiki saw it, he only had to pay attention in History and Chakra classes, and the PT classes, of course, but other than that, he was certain he had things down.

Once history was over and done with, he debated whether or not he'd take a nap or doodle in his book.

* * *

Serizawa, true to word, took no crap from no one. Hibiki hadn't so much as put the pen to paper and started drawing Goku, than did the Hyuga chunin throw an eraser at his head with perfect accuracy. He was sentenced to detention, and as the day went on, so too did a Shikaku Nara for sleeping in class, a Chouza Akimichi for eating in class, and Minato Namikaze for talking to Hibiki.

The classes had been exactly what Hibiki had expected - _beyond_ simple for a mind far more used to college professors who spoke as fast as a fighter jet flew, or a nuke killed. The ones he paid attention in were, as he'd predicted, history, chakra studies, and PT. He had learned in passing that as years went on, other classes would be replaced or tacked on - survival training, trap making, weapons, the like. It was a military academy without the drill sergeant.

Hibiki had to admit, he found the history an equal mixture of dull and interesting. It was a clear case of being written by the victor, Hibiki could see the propoganda easily, but it was veiled and explained in such a way that made it too difficult for most kids to catch. The chakra studies class was the most interesting of the day, it was extending off of what he'd already been doing with Tsunade, whilst giving him explanations for what it was and what it did. However, where he'd been expecting 'Force Equals Mass Times Acceleration' physics and science explanations, he'd simply gotten reworded and fancy worded explanations of the same thing Tsunade said - it was an energy pool within every shinobi's body, that allowed them to do amazing and fantastical things. His earlier mana comparison still stood, but now he thought it was something like dragonball's ki, it was less 'use this much to do this spell', and more 'use this much to do whatever you needed it to'. Depending on how good or bad one's chakra control was, would dictate how much chakra a certain technique - a ninjutsu or genjutsu - would need, poor chakra control equaled more required chakra, excellent chakra control equaled smaller requirements, like a fuel-efficient car versus a gas guzzler's mileage.

Weapons class hadn't been so much a dissection of various weapons, as it had been learning how to throw said weapons at a target. Hibiki _severely_ wished he had a gun, because throwing throwing-stars and kunai knives was nearly impossible, his first few throws hadn't even hit the target. His teacher had made a comment about how he'd expected better from a Senju, which caused Hibiki to roll his eyes.

The days soon fell in to a routine of rinse, lather, repeat. History, time killing, a detention sentence, classes he let slip through his mind unless he was _really_ bored, PT and Weapons Training, chakra studies, and then the day would just slide on until he got home and got back to his rent-a-mom's books. Tsunade had been somewhat uncharacteristically interested in his studies those first first few weeks, asking if he'd made any friends and insistently demanding to know who they were. The routine helped to blend the days together, and before he knew it, a month passed.

During said month, he'd made a _few_ friends, Minato being the closest of them all, and a few others being mutual friends through Minato. He spent time with them when he had time to spare, which was pretty much _all _of his time save for what time he spent training at home with Tsunade. He would admit, it was somewhat grating hanging out with six and seven year olds who acted their age, but he couldn't expect Orochimaru, or Jiraiya, or Tsunade to spend all of their time with him, and he had to at least make some friends his own age, network a bit, and all that.

The situation he found himself in, however, was the exact opposite of the above sentiments. Tsunade was out, needing some 'girl time', and Shizune was studying for a very important test in the medical corps. She was guaranteed to pass, especially with Tsunade training her, but she was still worrying over it, which meant he had been left in the almost capable hands of Jiraiya.

The white-haired ninja practically kicked in his door after boredom had set in for him and he all but decided he had to get out. Hibiki was fine with just sitting and reading, or practicing his chakra control, but Jiraiya wasn't having any of it. "Screw that!" He said, grabbing Hibiki's nearly-read-through history textbook and tossing it behind him. "I happen to know for a _fact_ that you've never been to a hot spring before!"

The rest of his words were drowned out by the thoughts running through his mind. His entire second-life, he'd had to deal with sub par showers, the one in Tsunade's home - Minato's orphanage, too, which led him to believe _all_ showers - lacked hot water. There was no thing he missed more from Back Home than he missed _hot water._

"When do we go?!" Demanded the six-year old man.

Jiraiya recovered from being interrupted almost instantly, "grab yourself a towel and a spare change of clothes! We leave in five minutes!"

* * *

_Hot water..._ Hibiki moved with a zombie-like blankness in his eyes as he entered the hot spring. He was so single-mindedly focused on the long-missed utility. He once again silently cursed his new life's absolute, detrimental _lack_ of a heated water supply. They certainly had showers and baths, but said bathing facilities had no heated water supply.

Here? In this spartanly-decorated, bare-bonesed, rocky hot spring? There was so much hot water that the very air was saturated by the most pleasant steam he'd ever felt in either of his two lives. Hibiki had no doubt about it - he was in _heaven._

_Goodbye reincarnation..._ Thought Hibiki as he dropped his towel - his six year old modesty covered by swim-trunks - and stepped in to the hot spring. _Hello paradise._ He sighed deeply, the exhaustion of death, rebirth, and the stress of having to - admittedly fail, partially - at trying to disguise his mental age all flowed away as he relaxed in the _hot fucking water._ Hibiki slid back, the water sliding up to his neck_. __Oh... Thank... Sweet... Merciful... **God...**_ He thought with a deep sigh.

Where, just earlier that day, he would have been stressing about whatever it was he stressed about - primarily the intricacies of chakra and what made it tick - here, he let all of those thoughts flow away. There was nothing but him, the _hot water,_ and the muscle-relaxing perfection. Gone were how chakra, by simple luxury of existing, seemed to violate every single law of physics he'd been raised to understand, and here to stay - however temporarily - was the hot water.

For all of five minutes, it was just him and the heated spring. Then he made the mistake of letting his head loll about, and he found the tattoo on his chest, the one with multiple, varying kanji in a circle, and 'Soul' in its center. Slowly, but surely, the thoughts came back. Because of how far he was reading ahead in school, he knew what fuinjutsu - the art of hammerspace - was; at least, he knew its theory. It was taking the reality-bending powers of chakra and turning it up to eleven.

This seal - and it had to be a seal, it was the only explanation, as Tsunade wasn't dumb enough to tattoo her child - it had to have something to do with his undead status. Though, that did beg the question, Tsunade wasn't a sealing expert - all the seals she had, which were few, she either bought or had Jiraiya draw up - so she couldn't have written this on his chest. Orochimaru wasn't much of a sealing guy, though he had the intelligence, he was more of a ninjutsu user - that was largely why he was head of Konoha's Research and Development branch. Jiraiya could feasibly have the know-how to do a seal like this, but he wasn't the type to try and disobey the laws of nature. All of this pointed to two facts, the first of which being he couldn't be Tsunade's son, but that led to the second theory - she may have provided the uterus to grow his body, but someone, likely a fuinjutsu master the likes of which this world hasn't seen, grabbed his soul from the afterlife and sealed it inside his body.

This ink on his chest was the only thing keeping him alive. He had never felt so weak and frail before. It didn't look like it would wash off like a temporary tattoo, but it still made him somewhat wary - what if something happened, he was set on fire or something, and part of the seal was damaged? Would his soul start leaking out? Would it break free entirely? Would he _die_ if this seal on his chest was damaged in some way? Was there a way to make it smaller - less of a target?

_Note to self... Bar none: Learn fuinjutsu. _He vowed, even ignoring all the things he'd seen and read that fuinjutsu could do, he'd want to learn it to - at least - strengthen his own. _But this raises another point..._ Thought the man-child as he turned his head, somewhere in the back of his mind _swearing_ he'd just heard some kind of laughter on _this_ side of the male/female divider. _If my body loses its ability to support life - I get my throat slit, or get shot in the face, or something - would this seal anchor my soul to my corpse? Would I never pass on? And while we're on the subject... What the hell does this all mean? That memories - and, in consequence, the ability to conduct the abstract thought needed to survive in the twenty-first century adult world - is all contained in the soul, and not the brain? Is the soul how the brain works? One is needed for another to work, and without one the other can't function as we know it?_ He squinted his eyes, did he just hear another laugh? Now that he thought about it, Jiraiya was taking a long time to get changed. _And another thing, what the hell **am** I? A zombie? Reincarnated fireman? A Frankenstein's monster?_ He blinked, not sure which one to prefer - he liked the humor of the first, the meaning of the second, but he liked most how poetical the last was. He had a great appreciation for Mary Shelley's epic. _This might have to be something I'll **have** to decide upon... But here's something even more important: Who do I tell? **Do** I tell someone? My sannin would probably believe me somewhat..._ He thought, scratching the seal on his chest to prove his point, as he focused intently on the dividing wall, there _was_ someone there, the giggling wasn't feminine at all. _But they'd also treat me like... I don't know, a post-human, an information source. They'd squeeze and milk me for everything I have on my world - English alone **not existing** in this world means Konoha could have an immediate strategic advantage in code talking. But bring in guns, bombs, cars, airplanes? Is this humanity **ready** for such destructive forces? They've been out of their warring states period for... What, a century? Almost? And they're still slaughtering each other. Granted, my people weren't better, but we learned what our weapons did and evolved alongside them - we **earned** those weapons and **learned** to respect and fear them. These people wouldn't have such a respect, or such a fear... Maybe I should speak to Minato? _The blonde was certainly wise beyond his years, even if 'beyond his years' simply meant he thought like something approaching a teenager instead of a six year old, as was befitting a person idolizing his in-progress ninja training. _But... Hell, that's as bad a risk as it is a good one..._ He closed his eyes and shook his head, about to sink back in to the _hot water_ and force his thoughts to be as blank as they would be when he played playstation Back Home, when he caught something.

A fleeting detail, a flicker in the light that every sci-fi shooter player would recognize instantly. Active Camoflage didn't exist in this world, but invisibility techniques _did,_ and someone was invisible, right in front of a hole in the divider, meant to facilitate air flow between the two halves of the hot springs.

_Okay... I've got two options here... Let it go, let the guy get his tit-fix... Or watch the fireworks._ He smiled, he would have expected anyone at the fire station Back Home to do it if they'd told him they were in this situation, so by god, _he was going to do it._

He grinned, channeling a bit of chakra to his hand with a quick handsign. _Jiraiya's going to laugh so hard when I tell him about this._ Perverted though Jiraiya may be, he loved nothing more than to hear the failed exploits of those who were not - in his own words - 'Super Perverts' like he.

So, with the chakra in his hand, he prepared to slap the water and make a chakra-assisted splash. He'd worked this out a while back - when it enhanced the force of physical impacts, chakra raised the raw mass of the user's limb, which therefor increased the entire equation - Force equals Mass times Acceleration. Chakra enhanced the first half of the equation, which raised the final product. He'd considered that it raised acceleration, but his own experiments had made him learn that that simply didn't work - if one wanted to increase their speed, they would channel their chakra in to their legs, increasing their mass, increasing the force with which they propelled the runner.

What all of that meant, was that when he slapped the water with his chakra-enhanced hand, it flew far enough and in enough quanity that it would _burn_ whoever was peeping on the women on the other end. The man, despite his experience as a ninja, hadn't been expecting such a surprise attack from such a small attacker, and as such the best reaction he had was a quick turn of the head in the direction of the sound of rushing water. The technique slid away like paint splashed with water, revealing a drenched, scalding hot, cursing super pervert. Hibiki was half surprised he hadn't seen this one coming, but what happened next, he would have _never_ seen coming.

There was dead silence after Jiraiya's first curse. The women on the other side of the divider had no-doubt heard it, and had already put together how close the cursing man was. Jiraiya looked to the divider with the kind of fear that only a man who knew he was either about to die, or get his testicles ripped off and let _live._ This fear was indescribable in and of itself, because he feared not just the retribution of the women on the other side of the divider, but he feared the retribution of the _sannin_ on the other side of the divider.

With such strength that only the white-haired one of them had ever seen before, a fist slammed through the divider, ripping it to shreds, and colliding with the chest of the white-haired sannin super-pervert. The man flew at Hibiki so fast that the reincarnated man barely had time to sink underneath the water for protection, he could barely hear Jiraiya bodily _slamming_ in to the concrete on the other side of the male hot spring. The concrete shattered and cracked in to pieces, Jiraiya's insides more damaged than they'd ever been before, and the blonde Senju wasn't done yet. With angry chakra radiating off of her person, the nude woman strode through the hot-spring, literally walking over the hiding child - her feet walking on the water as if it were the concrete surrounding them - and striding over to the beaten toad-sage.

Against his better judgement, Hibiki rose out of the water and watched - along with the more morbidly curious of the women - as Tsunade began beating her fellow sannin, cursing him out for his perverted behavior and demanding to know what he thought he was doing, where he thought he was, _where her god damned child was,_ and what went through his mind when he decided to leave a six year old at home without any protection, among other things. The raw killing intent she was producing had Hibiki paralyzed to the core, had he not risen above the water just a moment before it hit his senses, he may have inadvertently drowned himself - it was _that_ powerful. It was only after she paused to take a breath that she noticed the beaten, bloody, bruised and broken toad-sage was trying to point at something, though his arm was too broken to even lift itself, let alone clench the muscles and ligaments required to point at Hibiki.

_Oh fuck no, this guy is **not** throwing **me** under the bus._ Thought a terrified-for-his-life Hibiki as Tsunade slowly, menacingly turned around, expecting to see Jiraiya's partner in crime. Though, despite his fear, he did have one question that was pervading the more curious parts of his mind - how did Tsunade get strength enough to be called a She-Hulk? And how could _he_ get that strength? He'd never lose a fight again if he could shatter concrete through sheer force of fist.

Tsunade's killing intent - which had before almost frozen Hibiki to the spot and made one or two of the lesser women urinate themselves - vanished the moment she saw the terrified child staring at her bloody display - and her bloody fists - with the same attentive eyes he'd had since he was an infant, though now, something else was flaring to life in his eyes - fear. Almost as fast as it had come, her killing intent, as said, vanished, to be replaced with a crippling guilt that she almost didn't recognize, initially. Forcing the look of a killer to vanish from her face - at least as long as she was facing the child - she turned to the bleeding, and nearly _dead,_ toad-sage. She leaned in close, focusing her killing intent on the man in front of her, making certain not an ounce of it leaked back behind her and further terrified her child.

_"If that kid wasn't here right now... I don't know what I'd do to you."_ She growled menacingly, before her hands lit up with the green medical chakra for which she'd made her name. _"You and I are going to have one hell of a talk when I see you in the hospital."_ Her words left no room for interpretation - she was only pulling him back together enough so he could make his way to the hospital and let the medics _there_ deal with his perverted ass, because she was not in the mood to deal with it _now._

In a dizzyingly fast amount of time, his ruptured organs were stitched back together, his legs healed, cuts and lesions sealed up, and his ribs at least healed enough so that they wouldn't pierce his severely bruised heart and lungs as he walked to the hospital - and he would _walk._ She didn't heal him enough to even consider allowing for a shunshin.

When she was certain he wouldn't be dying today, she gave him one more scalding look before she turned to Hibiki, her killing intent vanishing and her gaze softening. Suddenly aware of how nude she was in front of the six year old, she turned around and ripped the ugly red vest off of the recovering sannin. The man obviously wasn't in a position to argue. She threw it on and buttoned it up, it wasn't perfect, but it'd keep the six year old from seeing things he was ten years too young to see. She cautiously approached the child, who looked at her with trepidation.

She gave him a quick look-over, the only thing that looked wrong with him outwardly was the slight red tinge to his skin - he'd obviously been enjoying the hotter parts of the spring for a bit too long. She kneeled down, hugging her knees to her chest and making certain her womanhood was covered by the looser-bits of the coat, again, he was ten years too young to be seeing such things if they were preventable. "Are you okay?" She asked him.

He looked at her, and then leaned over to gaze at Jiraiya, who was simply groaning and trying to extract himself from the shattered rock. "Is _he?"_ Hibiki asked.

She kept a scowl from forming on her face, replacing it with a grin. This kid was indeed too smart for his own good. "He'll be fine. I'll be heading his recovery _personally..._ But until then, we're going home." She said, nodding towards his towel and then the men's changing room. "Get changed, I'll see you outside." She said, not at all blaming him when he sprinted out of the hot-spring as fast as he could.

There were many moments that she could say she despised Jiraiya, in direct spite of their war-forged bonds. There were also many moments that she wished she'd refused the hokage and left the village with Shizune. This was one of both of those moments, and was simultaneously a moment she'd decide she'd personally how well a bottle could numb her mind. She shook her head and got to her feet, cursing the perverted sage as she made her way to the women's changing room.

* * *

That night, after she fed the child a hearty meal consisting almost entirely of his favorite foods - wherever he got the craving, or even the _idea_ for ramen noodles mixed in with tomato sauce and browned meat, she doubted she would ever know, but secretly she was glad he'd came up with it, because she liked it too - she tucked the child in to bed and sat down next to him, they both knew what she was about to talk about.

"So... What all did you see today?" She asked, bluntly, the concern in her eyes masked by years of experience.

The walls of his room - and, as such, the two occupants - were only illuminated by the moonlight streaming in from the shades outside. His walls had, over the years, been covered by various drawings he'd made and shelves for books. None of these drawings were visible save for one on the wall just next to his head, a drawing of three people - a man, a woman, and a grinning teenager between them with his arms hooked around both. She never got an explanation as to who all of these people were, he simply called them 'characters in a story he'd never tell', but the familiarity he had with all of them got the light psychology-training she'd gotten years ago working in high gear. The moonlight illuminating the picture of the three didn't reach Hibiki's round face, and it cast a deep shadow on her own, which she thought for the best - she still felt crushing guilt over the display earlier. Not guilt over the fact that she'd _beaten_ Jiraiya's perverted ass into the concrete, but that Jiraiya had brought Hibiki and that the latter had _seen_ it.

She wondered which he remembered more vividly, Jiraiya, beaten and broken, her hands covered in her teammate's - his _uncle's - _blood, or any of the other violent displays in such a short amount of time. She noticed movement, he was shrugging. "I saw Jiraiya peeking." He said, "so I splashed water on him. Then you - you punched him in to next week." She noticed how he caught himself, every now and again he'd tell a joke that would give her pause or make her look at him in confusion, and more often than not, he corrected himself and told one she would know, she wondered which one he had caught this time, and was praying that it wasn't Jiraiya that he was getting this sense of humor from.

Tsunade nodded, leaning forward and resting her head on her interlocked fists. "And... What all did you see after Jiraiya hit the wall?" She wanted to know which injuries the boy had seen, sure, he was training _right now_ to be a killer - hell, she was _helping him,_ somewhat - but she wanted him to keep his own semblance of innocence for as long as he could.

"Not much..." He said, after a moment's silence. Was he lying to preserve her sanity, or because he thought that was what she wanted to hear? "I did see the blood on your hands, though." It was a simple bait and switch, a simple lie followed by a brief truth, to make her focus on the latter and forget the former.

_Smart kid._ Her mouth twitched in to a grin. "I'm sorry you saw that, Hibiki. It was wrong of me."

Hibiki shrugged again, "you're a ninja. I'm training to be one. I'll see it eventually." He said, sagely.

She nodded, "a fair point, but I'd rather you see the blood of your enemies spilled, than the blood of your uncle by my hand. Allies are something everyone needs, Hibiki, and no matter how mad we may get some times, we can't throw them around like they're replaceable." Though she didn't really practice what she preached in that regard, the message was clear to both of them: Cherish your friends, even if they pissed you off.

There was silence for a few moments, "can I ask you something?" He asked.

_"Anything."_ Tsunade stressed.

"How did you do that?" Hibiki asked, playing one of his cards whilst keeping the others close to his chest. "How did you do that strength stuff?"

She blinked, she'd expected a lot of things, but that hadn't been one of them. "Err... That's a complicated explanation, Hibiki." She said, more to buy herself time. "Why?"

"I want to learn." Though she didn't know it, his reasoning fell along the lines that, if he had the Hulk's strength and could somehow get the Flash's speed, if ever he found himself on a large-scale battlefield with a lot of guys a lot stronger than him, he could flow through them, beat them in to a pulpy mess, and move on to the next. This was, of course, considering that the ninja academy did a good enough job beating the regret of the kill out of him, while he did think of things in a very black-and-white way, he wasn't sure how well he'd take his first kill, or if he'd even want to kill for a living to begin with.

Tsunade blinked again, "something like that takes a _lot_ of training, gaki." She said, somewhat light-heartedly. "And you're still in the academy, when would you need strength like mine?" She asked.

"It's not like I'd use it while we're sparring." Though Serizawa had made it clear that sparring classes were coming up and were coming up fast. "I just... Want it in case I need it." He settled on.

Tsunade sighed, she did consider it seriously for a moment, but decided in the end that giving a six year old strength enough to level a mountain wouldn't be too smart; and she was certain that her sensei would have something to say about an undead monster-child holding such power within him, no matter how much potential he had and was showing with every waking moment. "I'm sorry, Hibiki... But I can't train you in that, yet. We'll stick to chakra control for now, maybe I'll teach you some medical techniques instead?" She offered.

That was an enticing offer, and while he might take her up on it after a few years of academy training, what he wanted now was a solid enough offense, before he worked on his defense. The way he saw it, if he got in to a battle he had to fight, he'd rather have Tsunade's strength _end it_ in one blow than take solace in the fact that he could pull a Wolverine and heal himself when things inevitably got nasty; and though the thoughts of perhaps - someday down the line - developing a badass chakra-equivalent to Wolverine's healing factor were enticing, he decided that he'd pushed hard enough. He turned over on his bed, "okay... Goodnight."

"Goodnight, kid. I've got to go check on Uncle Jiraiya in the hospital, so I'm going to leave Katsuyu here to watch over you, okay?" She asked, she got a nod from him, and that was that. After she summoned her slug and split it in to two, she left and made her way to the hospital, post-haste.

* * *

If Katsuyu wanted, she would have told her summoner straight up what she thought of the last six years of her life: They were the best things that could have happened to the human woman. Having lived for so long, and having been summoned by many humans and used for many battles and purposes, she saw what was happening to little Tsunade when Dan and Nawaki passed - she would have, with no interference, spiralled down in to an alcohol fueled early demise. Even before she had started talking of leaving the village, Katsuyu had seen depression sink its icy claws in to the woman's mind, and her sensei, that monkey-summoner of the Sarutobi clan, would have _let it happen._ Despite his strength, he was too soft, especially when it came to his children - be they biological or technical.

So when Katsuyu had been summoned one night, six years ago, and introduced to 'Hibiki Senju', she was ecstatic. She was summoned often for these small favors, mostly night-watches when Tsunade had no one else to call due to inconvenience, and Katsuyu didn't mind - she secretly loved human children. They were nowhere near as tough as their adult peers, much the opposite, they were squishy and innocent, almost like her. Though Hibiki lacked the innocence - it was clear to anyone with a trained eye - he was still squishy, and he respected the summons, so she liked him. More than that, she _loved_ him for the healing effect he didn't know he was having on the Senju clan-head. She was certain Tsunade herself didn't realize it either, but the facts were clear: This child was, whether anyone was aware of it or not, healing the ailing, nearly broken Senju medic.

During the nights when Katsuyu watched him, she sometimes spread some of her gas through the air so she could get a good look at the boy. He had a very conflicted body and soul, all almost foreign to each other. There was the blood of many in the body of one, and the soul seemed like it was unused to the body, trying to escape and - due to its pure _strength,_ which had overwhelmed her at first, as she hadn't expected him to be so strong in mind - would be succeeding, if not for one of the most advanced, intricate seals she had ever laid eyes on above his heart. It wasn't _dissimilar_ to a jinchuriki seal, but at the same time, the two couldn't be more different - jinchuriki seals sealed massive chakra constructs _within_ human souls, this seal seemed to merely seal the soul inside a body, so both could provide life to the other. Unfortunately, that was the extent to which she had knowledge of the thing, as she had no hands she couldn't make seals of her own, so her knowledge was limited to what she gleaned off of her many summoners.

This boy would make a fine, _powerful_ ninja one day. She would be honored if he chose her as a summons - and, she was completely sure, he had the potential to summon - but something told her that a different animal clan would be sinking their claws in to him. By the way his chakra seemed to leak into the air and catch the wind, she wondered if 'talons' would be a more appropriate term.

The point of all of these thoughts was, much like Tsunade, and possibly the other sannin as well, to a lesser degree, she considered this child to be family. Whenever Tsunade had been sent out on a mission the last six years and had had to summon her, they ended up chatting at least once on how he was doing, and whenever she was summoned to baby-sit, she always made it a point to talk to Tsunade about him before going back to the forest. He was such an intricately complex child, seeming to understand how most adult humans thought better than most adult humans, whilst simultaneously able to have a calming, friendly air about him. She wouldn't be surprised if it came to be one day that he would win loyalty through sheer force of will.

So, when three assassins somehow got past the ANBU shinobi watching the house, she geared up for a fight. A few of the home's security seals - which had been designed by the Senju Can's own former Uzumaki heiress - went off, but without the home's owner to be present to hear their otherwise silent alarms, they did nothing. She knew her other self was already informing Tsunade - who seemed to be in the middle of simultaneously healing and chewing out her white-haired companion - of what was happening, but she didn't think either of the two would have time enough to stop the inevitable.

Worse, due to her size - only twice the size of non-summons slugs - she would have little effect on any more than the first assassin to enter the room. That didn't mean she wouldn't try, oh, no, she was gathering up the chakra to spray acid all over the non-inhabited half of the room, all that had to happen was for someone to enter the damned thing and she'd start burning blood.

Silence and stillness, for five whole seconds, before one of the assassins soared in through the window. She waited a moment for One's partner, but they were smart - they didn't all soar in like rookies. One got too close to the child for her liking, so she let out a thin stream of acid and it slammed in to the back of the man's head, he started screaming loudly as his head, skull, and brains were all melted to bloody liquid, but he wasn't an assassin for nothing, and in the few moments he had left, he turned and threw a kunai at the slug, with surprising accuracy.

The slug effortlessly split in to two, smaller slugs, and both spit the remainder of their gathered acid, killing the man. Hibiki had awoken at this point but was frozen by fear, an understandable reaction, but one she couldn't afford to work with as One's allies - Two and Three - soared in after his death. Having located the slug, Three sprinted right for her, blocking an acid attack with a brief wind technique that he completed with one handsign. These men were _good,_ to have such skill.

Her link with her other split self told her that Tsunade was on her way, but she and the injured Jiraiya wouldn't make it in time. Fast they definitely were, but fast enough to cross the entire village in scant seconds? Even with the body-flicker, they would need time, and Jiraiya wasn't in any state to use the body-flicker. The slug tried to split further, but Three made it to her hiding spot _fast,_ and had her pinned to the wall with a surprisingly thick earth type technique. She spit acid at the earth-dome, but it melted slowly, it was thickly saturated with chakra. Resisting the urge to panic, as that would fog her mind and make her act rashly, the slug split herself so thin she became the very sludge she spat, and forced herself in to the cracks of the earth technique, slowly, arduously, forcing herself through it. She heard the child screaming and trying to use whatever it had to fight, but it lacked her or his mother's skills, and in mere moments the men had him out cold, tied up, and in a sack. When she finally made it through the miniature earth dome, the two men were jumping out of the window, with Three sending a large earth-technique at the ANBU in the tree, so as to throw him off and give them more time to run.

Katsuyu reformed and slithered her way to the window, but she was too late, she had failed, the men were gone.

They'd taken Hibiki.


	4. For Want of A Nail

Chapter 3

* * *

_"Nothing is as it seems. Black can appear white when the light is blinding but white loses all luster at the faintest sign of darkness." ― Christopher Pike, Evil Thirst _

* * *

_Okay... Stay calm._ He was bound and gagged, both of his hands were tied together behind his back with ninja-wire, and to make things more difficult, he was stuffed inside the most stereotypical burlap sack he'd ever seen - let alone felt, but that was a story he would never tell, mostly because of how he'd broken his best friend's arm and three of his ribs the moment he'd gotten out. He'd nearly panicked when he heard Tsunade's slug start spitting acid, the screams of the now dead man had woken up wholesale, but he hadn't been able to do anything with his newfound awareness and consciousness.

_Stupid... Stupid stupid..._ He cursed himself, he'd been acting all high and mighty for six and a half years because he had the intelligence of a twenty eight plus year old college graduate, he'd thought himself somewhat above all of the steampunk 'primitives' he was being raised by, and yet, when the going got tough and his intelligence was put to the test, he'd frozen solid and hadn't been able to do a single damned thing.

The only thing he could take solace in was that Tsunade and Jiraiya, at the very least, would be looking for him. Uncle Orochimaru seemed somewhat fond of him - he seemed to truly enjoy whenever they spoke one-on-one, after all - so it was also possible he'd join in the hunt. The problem was, his abductors had a head start on the sannin, and the sannin had no idea where they were going and what route they would take - for all they knew, the kidnappers end goal was Amegakure, but they'd take a seriously roundabout route so as to implicate Suna and possibly even Iwa.

As he struggled in the sack, Hibiki made a solemn vow to seriously invest in metal scrap and engineering tools - come hell or high water, he'd have a gun; whether or not it was a flintlock or a revolver or - god willing - a semiautomatic, he'd have _something_ he knew how to use and could protect himself with. There were problems with how open the weapon would be and how he'd conceal it, but his mind filed away those problems for later - right now, he had to put the intelligence he'd put so much stock in to work. Everything he knew, two lifetimes of experience, _how could he escape from this?_

_They've got to sleep sometime..._ He reasoned, as the sack shuddered from their fast flee from the leaf village. _But when they do, how will I free my hands?_ Damn it, he needed to start stretching, if he were more limber, or perhaps double-jointed, he could squeeze his arms around and work them to his front, where he'd get a better look at the wire. Even if it was this thin and this tightly bound, there was always a way to undo a knot - it was the first rule of the escape artist's handbook. He just had to find it.

He tested his bounds, trying to separate his arms, but the ninja had far more experience than him and had expected him - being the child of a freaking sannin - to have some kind of plan for this, which meant they'd treated him like an adult: Anything he could come up with, they'd planned for and had contingencies for. Merely pulling against his bonds managed to tighten them up, he could feel them starting to cut off the blood flow, they were bound so tight.

_Okay... Bad idea... What about chakra?_ He wondered, _they can't have expected me to have chakra training, I'm six - even some clan kids don't get training this damn early._ Though that was just hearsay from Minato, he was willing to put some stock in it, he was a bright kid. _But I can't form handsigns... I'd need to channel the chakra without them, and that could fuck me up if I get _**_anything_**_ wrong..._ He scowled. _Damn it... Damn it... Damn it! Come on! Think! If Chuck Norris can break the necks of a dozen starving mice with his teeth, I can get out of some freakin' handcuffs!_ He struggled more, trying to feel around for anything he could use, a catch, some slack, _anything._

* * *

"Jiraiya, I will go to _war_ to find this kid." The slug-sannin with strength enough to level mountains growled. "How _dare_ you suggest we _wait_." To say she was livid would be an understatement of epic proportions - she had bodily slammed through three hospital walls in her bid to get home faster.

Jiraiya was walking on hot coals - not only was he still recovering from his escapades earlier that day, but he'd never seen Tsunade so angry before, even _this afternoon_'s rage paled in comparison to this. "I'm not saying we wait indefinitely, but we merely call in backup. We can't go tearing across fire country half-cocked without a plan of attack. I've already sent out little Bunta, he's going to get Orochimaru and Sarutobi-sensei informed of what's going on. We'll have Orochimaru's snakes and ANBU's best trackers before the night is out." He explained, trying his best to not stir the waters but also to calm her down, a feat most would consider impossible, but the up-and-coming spymaster had it down to an art form thanks to years of experience and exposure.

"Jiraiya, those are unmarked shinobi with _ANBU_ skill! They evaded _our_ ANBU, took down _my_ summons, and damn near burned their corpse to ashes!" She ranted, rage lighting up her amber eyes. "If we let this go on any longer, we will _lose him!_ Kami knows where they're going and who's taking him!"

"Tsunade..." Suddenly came the slithering voice of their other teammate, as he arrived in the shattered window, stepping inside as if he hadn't rushed over here using his fastest body-flicker technique. "Perhaps you should heed Jiraiya's advice." He said slowly, a snake slithering out of his sleeve and making its way to the corpse. "Stupid though he may be in many things, he is wise when it comes to shinobi affairs. You know this. Take a breath." Anyone else would have been weirded out by his tone of voice, or would have had some trouble following his words, but both of the sannin had a great deal of experience in the subject. "Your adopted child is very wise, we all know this far better than any run-of-the-mill assassin." He stated, his tone leaving no room for argument; even though he lived with Tsunade, Hibiki spoke often to Orochimaru, he knew better than anyone how intelligent the child was, and how paramount it would be for them to remain in control of themselves, lest they fly off in to a rather Tsunade-esque rage and make a rash decision. "And in his wisdom, he is relying upon us to keep a hold of ourselves." The snake-sannin nearly hissed, hiding admonishment in what others would call a plea. "So take a breath... Calm down... And follow my snakes." The snake he'd let loose had bitten in to the corpse's neck, and in a rather disgusting display, had melted apart in to dozens of smaller snakes, just about the size of the non-sentient frog summons from Jiraiya's contract. They were all slithering back towards the window and outside.

Tsunade, arms crossed, frowned at the display. "What is it doing?"

"It's a... tracker." The snake-summoner explained, "... Of a sorts." He admitted with a slow blink of both eyes. "I've studied chakra and chakra usage all my life. One thing I've learned - and have imparted unto my summons - is that... Chakra can be leaked, so to speak, in to the open air. This man is dead, his chakra gone... But the chakra of his comrades, however burned, is still imprinted upon him." One of the snakes, the only one to stay behind, slithered up his leg and back in to his sleeve, he smiled widely, unnervingly. "Their trail and their direction will be found in due course. For now... I suggest we consider..."

"Don't you _dare_ tell me to wait!" Tsunade's ire was turned fully upon the pale-skinned snake summoner, who didn't even blink at the unholy amounts of killing intent leaking from Tsunade's body.

"The repercussions." He said, as if he hadn't even been interrupted.

Tsunade blinked, her mind slowing down as she tried to process what the ever-enigmatic white-skinned snake man was saying. "Of what?"

"The child is the bastard creation of an arrogant man. This man was known as the 'Grave Robber' for a reason." The snake-sage looked up and just a moment later a bulge came through his throat, before he disgustingly vomited up his own compendium of Kenichi's notes and exploits. "He took blood, DNA, bone, tissue, even _brain_ samples from many clans of many villages... But he found two he preferred above all else."

Tsunade frowned, "_what clans!?" _She never thought she would be able to simultaneously be thankful for and wholly regret giving the sannin access to those scrolls.

"He wanted Uzumaki blood and genes to keep the child healthy, as their vitality is legendary even amongst the noble clans. But they themselves have no specific bloodlines, and as such he wanted something that could give him power unmatched. I initially was fearful this would awaken his Kaguya blood, but from my own research, I have learned that that bloodline is awoken through other means entirely, and is exceedingly rare regardless. Then I considered the possibility of him awakening Kurama blood, but Kenichi made no indication of even knowing that clan _existed,_ so that can be ruled out. So, ask yourselves, how would one get massive amounts of power quickly? My answer... What quicker way to power is there than to steal the techniques of any shinobi one meets?" He unsealed the scroll and let it slide down, the blood of everyone in the room went cold as they recognized the white and red fan, and what it meant. "Imagine what the repercussions all of this... _Stress_ and _fear_ will have upon his Uchiha blood."

* * *

They'd stopped. He'd found the knot on the wires and was trying to find purchase upon it with his nails when they'd stopped just as suddenly as they'd started their cross-country sprint. All he had to do was loosen the knot up, _just a bit,_ and he'd be able to wriggle his hands out. For now, however, he had to keep the knot clenched firmly in his almost numb hands as they dropped his sack on the ground and started forcing it open without any care for its occupant. The darkness of the night was briefly overidden by the bright light of the moon and the stars above, a view that never ceased to amaze the Senju adoptee, but such sentiments meant little right now.

"We _did_ get the right fuckin' kid, right?" He heard one mutter, with a thick accent.

"How many kids live in the Senju compound?! Lemme get him out of there, you got that thing ready?" The man opening the bag asked his buddy.

"Yeh." Said his partner.

The man reached his hand inside, and what Hibiki was greeted with put the fear of god in to his very soul. However displaced he was, and however long he'd lived here, and however long it had been since his people used such weapons, he - being raised in the middle of the United States, in the bright first quarter of the twenty first century - was almost literally _unable_ to forget what a firearm even looked like. The one in the hands of Tweedle-Dee was some kind of rudimentary flintlock, and it looked far different than what he remembered, with some pieces added in and others removed, but it was what it was, and it was pointed right at his face.

Hibiki didn't blink, he ignored the gathering pain and pressure all around his wide open eyes as he eyed the gun like a dying man would eye his killer: Equal parts fear and hatred. How the hell did they have a gun? Where the hell did they get it from? There was literally _no precedent_ for something like this in the entire known world. Every textbook he'd read, every sannin he'd consulted, every weapons specialist he'd had the briefest of conversations with, they'd all said the same thing: In the art of chakra-less ranged combat, it was a bow kunai, shuriken, or nothing, and the only ones alive that still used the former most were in Iron Country.

_Jesus Christ... _Thought Hibiki, as his heart rate climbed and his eyes twitched. _I'm going to fucking die._ He was breathing hard, how was this possible?

It should be impossible that they possessed this weapon, but here they were, with a fucking _gun - _no matter how primitive it may be - pointed at his face. Hibiki could see almost every single detail of it, even in the low light - the adrenaline rush had obviously went to his eyes first, he would later swear he had better vision than an eagle. It was made of smooth wood, its barrel wasn't rifled, its hammer was glowing slightly - not flintlock, matchlock, it seemed - and it had bits and pieces sticking out from random, odd angles. It might be somewhat unrecognizable, but anyone who knew what a gun was would know what this was - it was a god damn _gun,_ in a world where guns shouldn't exist.

"Kami... I think we _did_ get the right kid, look at 'is eyes!" Tweedle-Gun cursed, Hibiki blinked, was he seeing things? Or -

"What?" His head was wrenched back, Tweedle-Dum looked in to his eyes. "Damn... But we need to be sure." He produced a knife, and Hibiki nearly produced bricks in his pants.

The kunai slashed down in almost slow motion, Hibiki could do nothing for it and closed his eyes tight, but what he heard wasn't the sound of steel piercing flesh, but rather steel rending cloth. They'd sliced his shirt open. Tweedle-Gun whistled, "yup. Seal on his chest, that's it." There was a pause, "it's not where the boss said it'd be, though... He said it'd be on his stomach."

"Oh, who gives a fuck? He said he'd be different from the others, so maybe this is what he meant. I mean, hell, he's got those damn _eyes_ after all." Tweedle-Dee shuddered so hard Hibiki felt it. "Anyways, set up camp here. Got an extra gag? We need to make sure his demon eyes don't screw with us."

_What? No!_ He had to get a look at Tweedle-Gun again, because if what he saw was right, it'd change damn near everything. Simply acting under the pretense of irritation, Hibiki wrenched his head forward and out of Tweedle-Dee's grip, he let it hang for a moment as TD strode towards one of the other bags he'd dropped before he'd dug Hibiki out of the bag. TG was still pointing a gun at him, and Hibiki raised his gaze as slowly as he could so he could get as long a look at it as possible.

He was right.

The man had no respect and no training with the gun. His finger wasn't on the trigger, it was resting on the trigger guard, the lit hammer wasn't drawn back but left hovering _just _above whatever ignited the black powder inside. The pistol didn't have any rifling on the inside of its barrel, as he'd noted earlier, and the way he held the gun - fist clenched tightly, elbow locked, the gun itself as far away from him as possible while still keeping a hold of it and looking menacing - it all screamed of one thing: He wasn't trained in the usage of it. He feared it. That meant he'd had to have seen its power at some point, he knew what it could do but not how it could do it, he had a rudimentary knowledge in operating it, but not an intrinsic understanding of what it was and the respect that came from such an understanding.

These two were supposed to be elite, even if their dialogue didn't suggest as such. The way TD handled a knife spoke volumes of what he was used to - bladed weapons and ninja techniques. Guns were so far out of their comfort zone that they had achieved a lunar orbit. It was likely that the only reason Tweedle-Gun was even holding it was because he'd gotten a few more bulls-eyes - or closer to it, at least - than Tweedle-Dee, and had been sentenced to waving around the instant death machine.

Now, while it was true that Hibiki didn't have training with _matchlocks,_ his father had been a hunter through and through. He'd taken Hibiki shooting when the man had been as young as five, Back Home. Hibiki knew guns, and even if he didn't have the muscle-memory anymore, in this new body, he knew he could still use them, far more effectively than either of the dummies. It was just _point and shoot; _he understood this, they didn't. He had the advantage, all he had to do was escape his bindings and kill Tweedle-Gun... _Somehow._ If anything, he could compare it to an action game - the primary targets for your bullet-weak brawler would always, invariably, be the guys with the guns, and everyone else second.

"Stop lookin' at me like that." Tweedle-Gun ordered, yanking Hibiki up by the hair and guiding him over to a nearby tree, barrel of his gun stuck firmly upon the back of his head as they walked. He tied Hibiki to the tree and went back to the slowly forming, make-shift, fire-less camp. Well, there was a fire, but it was less open flame, than it was burning coal, but Hibiki had stopped paying attention - he had a plan forming, all he had to do was get his hands free.

With that in mind, he went back to finding purchase on the knot in his hands, he was so close he could almost _feel it._

* * *

An Amegakure shinobi had, during the height of the second war, said one thing very simply: Never try and lose a Leaf ninja in the forest. It was suicidal, it was stupid, and by Kami it was downright _foolish._ Leaf Ninja were practically born in trees, trying to run from them by fleeing to a forest was like trying to flee a Suna shinobi by running in to the desert, or a Wave shinobi by swimming. The three legendary sannin were no exception to this rule, especially with Orochimaru's odd snake leading their way. Neither the toad nor the slug summoners knew how the hell a tracker _snake_ even worked, but they weren't questioning things right now, all they knew was that they had to get to Hibiki as fast as possible, because if the stress and fear boiled over and the worst-case happened, and he manifested a Sharingan, he would be in _grave danger._

Tsunade's head was rampant with the negative outcomes of such a sequence of events. The first would be a feeling of adrenaline, the kid would think he's invincible, he'd think he's stronger than he was, he'd get cocky, he'd try something that could get him killed. Regardless of that, chakra exhaustion would come in soon thereafter - the kid had good reserves for someone his age, but if he awoke the Uchiha's famed dojutsu, those reserves would be stressed in a way they weren't used to. He had no skill and no experience with the Sharingan, and that meant he would burn chakra faster than he was used to during training. Unless the kid pulled a miracle out of his ass, he'd _die._

On the other side of things, Jiraiya was more focused on the how of things, and not what would happen afterwards. He was definitely concerned for his teammate's little gaki, but the fact that three shinobi had breached Konoha's walls, sneaked past an _ANBU_ who specialized in _stealth assassinations,_ and taken him with only one casualty, spoke volumes not only about their skill, but how lax Konoha had gotten in the post-war period. This attack would ratchet up their preparedness and paranoia, for sure, but the fact was that they'd been enjoying their peace a little too much. With a scowl set firmly on his features, Jiraiya silently vowed to step up his spy game, the tides were changing and it if things kept going in the direction he feared they would, his sensei would have fought in one, and presided over _two_ world wars. Konoha would need all the help it could get, and even if it meant that Tsunade would hate him for the rest of their lives, he'd train that kid and make sure he was prepared for whatever came next.

Finally was the snake-summoner, who was listening to the nearly silent instructions being provided to him by his selectively-bred snake. He was somewhat addicted to this child, the thing was smart far beyond his years, was an oddity of nature - ironically despite being a thing _not of_ nature - and was, somewhat fittingly, one of the few people in the world that treated the snake-summoner like a human first and a creepy pale-skinned snake-guy second. Orochimaru didn't quite know _why,_ but he liked the kid, he wasn't as fond of him as Jiraiya or Tsunade, who had gone and fallen in love with the damned thing, but he had a respect for it that stretched beyond 'he is healing my teammate', so at the very least, he was obligated to rescue him. Furthermore, he decided as they leaped from tree to tree, he'd seen far more than enough death to those closest to him. These deaths had pushed him in to the arms of all of his studies in to the forbidden arts, and though he regretted not a moment of it, he would never sentence anyone he knew to what he did; that meant that he would be _damned_ before he let the kid die on him _or_ his teammates. As they sprinted through the forest at speeds only the sannin could achieve without chakra assistance, he debated whether or not he should find something for the voracious reader in the child to study, or whether or not he should teach the kid himself - damn what the princess said, the kid had _potential, _and a ninjutsu specialist with his kind of bloodlines would be a force to be reckoned with, possibly even out deitizing the 'God of Shinobi' himself.

"How far are we?" Tsunade asked almost silently.

"Still very far." The snake summoner said after a moment's communication with the Scout Snake, "they had a head start and were able to use chakra."

_"And we waited!"_

The snake summoner held back a biting retort, "that too." He considered dropping a bucket of full-grown snakes in Tsunade's bed when all of this was over, that always cheered him up. Or maybe have the snakes turn into toads, that would cheer him up even more.

* * *

Had someone told Hibiki that the idea that would save his life would come from the deliberate cash-in of the fourth Pirates of the Caribbean movie, he would have laughed in their face. Unfortunately for this older - or, perhaps, younger - Hibiki, the idea for his escape came from said movie. One he'd finally managed to free his hands - unintentionally slicing open his right forearm as he did so - he had to loosen his binds as slowly as possible. It had taken him an hour, during which time the fire had accidentally grow in to a low blaze, but Tweedle-Dee was too asleep to care and Tweedle-Gun was on watch, and as such was too busy to divert the attention away. This offered Hibiki some freedom to come up with a plan, and with rope constricting his chest and binding him to the tree, the scene from the movie in question came to his mind. In it, the series' most famous character, _Captain_ Jack Sparrow, was bound to a tree similar to the way he was, and to escape, he simply used the rope as an extra limb, and _climbed._ Now, Hibiki wasn't tied to a palm tree like the pirate had been, but the theory would largely be the same.

He hoped.

Hibiki waited for TG to make another pass, the man was a creature of habit - a _very bad thing_ for a ninja to be. He made his rounds the same way every time for the entire hour Hibiki had worked to escape. First he checked the camp, then he checked his friend, then their gear, then the perimeter, in that order, and simultaneously in order of increasing length. When Hibiki saw him start his next round, he pushed forward on the ropes, braced his feet against the tree, and started climbing. It was uncomfortable, but it got him a good seven feet off the ground before he ran in to his first branch, but this was where his retrieved ninja-wire came in handy. Hibiki hooked one leg over the branch above him through a feat of contortion that made his muscles _scream_ in pain, and then fed the wire under the rope and back up. He started sawing back and forth, and the ninja-wire did its job in spades, easily and cleanly slicing through the rope in moments.

Now free, Hibiki nearly lost his perch trying to catch the rope and prevent Tweedle-Gun from hearing he'd escaped. Hibiki knew he couldn't run, he was bleeding and even if he wasn't, they would find him, so instead, he made a plan of attack.

_Okay.._. Thought the academy-shinobi, _I can't rely on my weight to snap Tweedle-Dee's neck if I jumped on him, I'm not heavy enough. But... I can use him as a springboard of sorts, jump on him and then off of him, hit Gun, steal his gun, and shoot Dee before he can try something. But how do I kill gun? I have nothing but rudimentary chakra control._ He thought lightning-fast. _Maybe if I channeled a bunch of chakra in to my hand, I could increase its mass and its force, hit Gun in the chest with enough force to cave it in and explode his heart. That'd put him down for the count, I could steal his gun, whip around, and pray I've got enough time to cock the hammer, aim the gun, pull the trigger, and pray I hit something good and vital. _He shook his head, it was a _bad plan. _Matter of fact, it was worse than bad, it was suicidal - it counted on him jumping from a tree on to a paranoid ninja assassin's back, jumping off of said ninja when he'd probably already alerted his buddy in some way that something was wrong, channeling a space-magic substance that he barely had any control or understanding of, through his very body and in to his arm, weaponizing it, killing a man twice his size and thrice his skill, stealing his gun, preparing it, and killing the other man with it. Even if he were the luckiest man in the world, _that wouldn't work._

But, it was the best plan he had, and the only one he could use, given his time-frame.

So, without another thought otherwise, he flipped through a handsign and drew as much chakra as he could, as quickly as he could, in to his right arm, and a whole lot _less_ in to his legs. He felt power immediately start coursing through it, as if the arm itself had been submerged in lightning and had taken its energy. Hibiki jumped from the branch and soared through the air for a moment; he feared for just a second that he'd under-shot his target, but when his shoe-less feet _slammed_ in to the back of the sleeping form of Tweedle-Dum, he stopped doubting himself and leaped for Tweedle-Gun. The shocked grunt of pain from Tweedle-Dee had Tweedle-Gun whip around, and before he could do anything else the catapulting six year old slammed his chakra-enhanced fist into the man's chest as hard as he possibly could.

Several things happened very quickly after that, the first being he felt Tweedle-Gun's chest begin to cave in and he physically felt the force of the man's heart _exploding_ from the sheer impact of the chakra-enhanced fist, and while this was happening, the six-year-old's impact had jarred from the shinobi's hands his gun, which went flying a few feet behind Hibiki - closer to the recovering Tweedle-Dee than the edge of their camp. However, the second he hit and the dying gunman the ground, the last - and worst - effect of his ill-thought attack came: The damage to himself. He may have been praised once or twice by Tsunade for his above-average chakra control - and assured that he could become beyond excellent with time - the simple fact of the matter was that he didn't know how she got her strength, he'd only made assumptions, and as the saying went, assuming makes an ass out of you and me. The sheer amount of chakra he'd poured in to his arm and the subsequent impact had made a great deal of it explode outwards - which was probably a contributing factor to the gunman's death - and it had shredded its insides. It was bleeding internally from the chakra damage and externally from the damage caused by the wires earlier, worse, it was already swelling, making the damn thing immobile to boot.

His arm wasn't the only thing to be immobilized - the pain being produced by his muscles ripping themselves apart paralyzed the toddler and made him cry out in agonizing pain. His eyes teared up, and it was only through sheer force of will that he turned himself around - not at all aware of when he'd fallen to the ground - and scramble towards for the gun. Unfortunately, in his haste for a weapon he _did_ recognize, he failed keep an eye on Tweedle-Dee, who threw a kunai at the man-child, impacting him in his good hand.

Hibiki screamed in doubled pain as his left hand and now his right were both out of commission, will only went so far when one's body was shutting down, and now down two limbs with both of them bleeding - either internally or externally - meant that he was lying on death's doormat. The shinobi seemed to know this, too, because he came up to Hibiki almost gloatingly, pulling the child up by the hair and making ready to gloat. Unfortunately for the shinobi, Hibiki still had _something_ left in him, the very same something that had come up with the idiotic hollywood-influenced plan that was going to kill him. Hibiki hurtled his head forward and in to the shinobi's groin, and no matter how much experience and pain tolerance a male has, such an attack - especially when unexpected - hurt like hell. When he doubled over, Hibiki ripped his left hand out of the ground and shoved his palm in to the chest of the man, and thanks to the dagger sticking out from it, he drew blood. The man stumbled backwards, which gave Hibiki enough time to grab the kunai with his teeth, rip it out, and scramble for the gun. He might have an above-average score in accuracy in the academy, but he knew guns better, even if two of his fingers weren't as dextrous as they had been.

Hibiki snatched the matchlock off of the ground and pulled the hammer back, priming it for fire. With as little hesitation as was afforded to him by his enraged adrenaline rush, the child-man shoved the barrel of the gun under the shinobi's chin and pulled the trigger. Thunder clapped throughout the land as the trigger was pulled, the powder ignited, and the bullet sailed forth, up in to the man's fleshy chin, through his tongue, up, into, and through the roof of his mouth, and into his skull whereupon his brains were scrambled and ripped apart, and though he had no idea of knowing, Hibiki Senju had, in pulling this trigger, made shinobi history: The first man to kill another in battle with a firearm.

The man teetered and tottered, before he fell forward, too-top heavy to fall backwards in to the fire. Gasping and rasping for breath, Hibiki fell backwards onto the ground and sat there, exhausted, waiting for either sleep or death to consume him and give him peace from the all-consuming pain in both of his arms. Several minutes passed by, nothing.

_God... Damn... It..._ Thought the six year old, who was being denied any form of rest imaginable. _Is anyone looking for me?_ He was slipping in to the 'Earth' mindset, not even thinking about flaring chakra for any sensors to sense and come locate; he thought hard, the few times he'd watched Man vs Wild, one thing was common among all: Build a signal fire. The Tweedle Twins had already had a small fire going, so if he could just force himself back on to his feet, he could torch their camp supplies, maybe any powder they had left, and he'd have a fire that would last until morning, and smoke that would last a day or two.

_"Fuck..._" The mentally and physically exhausted shinobi-in-training cursed in his native tongue, as he forced himself to his feet. Even barely brushing his stiff, shredded right arm against anything caused him unexplainable amounts of pain, and though it hurt like lightning to use the one that had been stabbed, it hurt a lot less to move that one than the shredded one.

It took him ten ceaseless, endless, agonizingly long and painful minutes to throw the most flammable things - and the gun - onto the fire and get it going. Now, he felt the heat licking at his back, trying desperately to make him spontaneously combust, but to no avail - he retreated a good five feet from the fire, still able to feel its heat but not in danger of being set ablaze.

It was then, finally, his brain was overloaded and he fell out. His last thought was of whether or not he'd get any permanent damage in his right arm because of what he'd did.

* * *

The thunderclap had alerted them to the fact that they were far closer than even Orochimaru's 'tracker snake' had believed. It had provided a heading for the sannin, and a general area of concentration for their snakes. In five minutes they'd traveled as many kilometers through the eerily silent forest surrounding the village hidden in the leaves, until Jiraiya caught the orange light of a fire in the distance.

Tsunade had almost tackled her way through the trees her grandfather had built through sheer force of chakra when Jiraiya had pointed it out to her and the snake-summoner. They sprinted their way through the forest with the speed of another world's sports car, and before they knew it, they'd found what would have been the site of a makeshift camp hidden by expert shinobi, but they'd arrived _just_ as another squad of shinobi had done the same. Unfortunately for these shinobi, they wore similar attire to the two dead men at the six year old's feet, and they attacked the sannin first.

Before anyone could blink, a battle had started, and before anyone could shout, the enemy shinobi were dead, two bisected by the legendary grass-cutter, one beaten to death by chakra-enhanced strength, and one set on fire with an oil technique that soared over the campfire. The enemy shinobi hadn't even known what had hit them, and not a moment after they'd confirmed they were alone, was Tsunade kneeling before the unconscious form of her adopted child, but while her hands were indeed covered in the green chakra that constituted most diagnosis and medical techniques, her body was frozen by the blood running all over the child's hands.

This was the threshold Jiraiya had once feared she couldn't cross, wherever this deathly fear of blood had come from, he hadn't known at all if she'd be able to overcome it to help the kid she was taking care of. _Oh... Kami forgive me._ "Tsunade!" Jiraiya dashed over to her, "snap out of it!" He didn't want to be so harsh, but if he wasn't, he wouldn't shock the medical kunoichi out of her fear-induced daze. "Tsunade, look at me!" He grabbed her shoulders and forced her gaze to lock on to his own uncharacteristically serious one; all three of them knew that he hadn't held a gaze like this since the war. "Hibiki is _dying!_ You need to snap out of it or else you'll _lose him!" _Tsunade was shaking, babbling something about how this was all repeating, but he shook his head. "You can do it! Just work your magic and he'll be fine!" He released her shoulders.

She gulped hard and turned her gaze to the toddler. It almost physically hurt to see all the blood, but she pushed past that and used her diagnosis technique. This little gaki had tried mimicking her strength technique, the fool! The damages to his muscles were anywhere from moderate to severe, and the entire arm was discolored yellow, purple, or blue from all of the bruising; despite the damages, she estimated that if she worked fast he might make a full recovery in a week, maybe two. She closed her eyes, counted to three, and then opened them up in a hard glare before she flipped through handsigns at blinding speeds; the green medical chakra it the air ablaze, her first order of business was the shredded arm. It took time, and a _lot_ of concentration, but she the damages to his arm undone. It would be stiff and sore for a week after this, but - given there wasn't anything she missed or some kind of permanent damage resulting from his unskilled usage of chakra - he'd be fine. Compared to the skill it had taken to knit his muscles back together, fixing his other hand was a breeze.

When all was said and done, the kid was still breathing, which was a testament to how damn hardy he was. Though she supposed it made a bit of sense, the kid had come back from the _dead,_ of course it'd take more than a little chakra damage to his arm to put him down. She picked the child up in her arms, forcing herself to ignore the blood from his body that covered he and her. She gulped and forced her nerves to steady, before she turned to the other two sannin.

"What have you figured out?" She asked them, seeing Jiraiya summon another frog and watching it hop away towards the leaf village.

"Iwagakure ninja." Said Orochimaru, "their clothes suggest Amegakure, but my snakes are telling me their chakra tastes like dirt." He knew he had to get some more proof, though, so he came up with an extension. "Add that on to the crumbled earth that falls from their hands if you touch them. Indicative of heavy usage of earth techniques." He nodded to one of the shinobi he'd bisected, "that one specifically managed to pull up a rock-armor technique before he died. Amegakure doesn't have that technique, not unless they've allied with each other."

Jiraiya hummed, his hand stroking his chin, smearing some of the oil that had dribbled on to it. "What would Iwa shinobi want with Hibiki?" He asked aloud, "didn't Kenichi hail from Ame?" He wondered, noticing something on the pulverized shinobi's hip that looked out of place, he leaned down and snatched them up.

"He did." Said Tsunade.

Jiraiya inspected the bags, and scrunched his eyebrows together. "There's also these." He held up two sacks, one which bulged from the weight of dozens of small spherical object, one which looked like it held sand.

"What are those?" Tsunade demanded.

"Likely... Evidence of a third party." Jiraiya dug in to the sand bag and pulled out a small handful of the black powder from within.

"Be careful with that, Jiraiya." Said Orochimaru, slitheringly, "that is black powder."

Jiraiya looked at him blankly.

"Throw it in the fire." Orochimaru backed up, and Tsunade did as well - the snake summoner was the smartest of them all, so if he was backing up, it would be a good idea to follow suit.

With caution, Jiraiya tossed his handful into the still raging fire, it all went up in a brief but loud flash. He blinked confusedly, shock evident on his face.

"Commonly found in fireworks." Jiraiya practically panicked and dropped the bag, spilling the dust everywhere. He gulped, far more wary of what was in the other bag.

As Jiraiya kicked his feet about to rid them of the black powder, Tsunade chimed in. "Why the hell were they carrying around firework powder? It doesn't explode that well... It just flashes." She looked from the pile of dust, which shifted as the winds picked up, to the fire.

"As I said: third party. Maybe they had a use for them that we don't know about." Jiraiya concluded, dusting his hand off on his clothes.

"And you just spilled it on the forest floor."

Jiraiya gulped, and looked in to the next bag. "And then... These." He pulled out a handful of small, spherical metal objects. "Metal... Balls?" He inspected them in the firelight, noticing Orochimaru had his hand held up expectanty, he tossed him one. "Dangerous?" He asked the ninjutsu specialist, as he himself checked for seals of any kind.

Orochimaru scrutinized the metal orbs with the eye of a master, but shook his head. "No. They are as they look." He gave Jiraiya a glare, "don't drop _these_ ones." He held out his hand again, Jiraiya deposited his orbs and tossed them to the snake. "I shall have a look at them at R-and-D."

"Are we done here?" Tsunade asked, irritably.

Jiraiya gave the battleground a quick look around. "Yeah." He said, though he shook his head and whistled as they started their journey back. "Your little gaki's got the bloodlust in him. Two dead and he's not even seven."

"Jiraiya?"

"Yeah?"

"Shut up, or I'll kill you."

* * *

_A/N:_

_This is a posthumous edit, made waaaaaaaaay after this chapter was first published.  
Like, I'm writing this note as Chapter 73 is the most recent, but I digress. _

_I've been noticing a lot of folks jump ship here and next chapter, when the big twist - Tweedle Dee and Tweedle Gun's... Well, gun - is both introduced and then discussed by Hibiki, respectively. _

_Now, I fully understand why - guns and naruto just plain **don't** mix, and that's something I agree with, as they break the mold - and for the folks that are either intrigued or nonplussed, I won't be discussing spoilers here, merely generalities. _

_Like I said, guns and Naruto don't mix. The people in Naruto aren't like the fighters in Dragonball Z - there is no threshold here for when someone becomes bulletproof. Only a few people in canon could be described as such, and they're special cases. These people include Orochimaru (who is immortal), Naruto (who would only be such when using his tailed beast cloak), Sasuke (with his Susanoo), Ay and Bee (lightning cloak and tailed beast form, respectively). There would be others, but that's going into semantics. _

_Beyond them, pretty much everyone is mortal and everyone can be hurt with a weapon. In other words, you can stab them and they'll bleed. Bring a gun into play, and they would need damn good reflexes in order to pull a Neo and dodge bullets. If they couldn't, it would only take one shot to the head to put them down. I'm aware of shinobi having faster reflexes, but Lee put it best - you can see something coming, but still not be fast enough to do anything about it. Anyone from Minato to Tsunade could be taken down with just one shot to the head - no fight, no nothing. Bang. But this is a fighting manga, killing someone without a fight is missing the point - unless the point is a meaningless/sudden death. ___Thus, guns break the mold. __

__In Illimitable, there's a whole **host** of reasons guns exist, and by the time I've written this posthumous add-on, all of those reasons - and if not, a vast majority of them - have been laid out and presented.  
There may be points, as time goes on, where it seems like a lot of people have access to them, or that there are at least more than there should be.  
I will admit this.  
But again - there's a reason for that. And, I can guarantee that there will **never** come a time where the entirety of the Elemental Nations gets their hands on guns and suddenly it's **our** World War Three, as opposed to **their** World War Three. Once guns become a problem, Hibiki will solve said problem - even if it isn't readily apparent that it's been solved. __

__Only a small handful of people - less than **five** \- in this story will ever have access to a gun, fewer still will ever make consistent use of them, and all of them will be directly within Hibiki's sphere of influence, and even then, because they break the mold, they will never become a first option. Even Hibiki won't turn to them as a first resort - as he'll discuss in the next chapter, he needs one primarily as an emergency, 'I'm about do die if I don't tip the scales' kind of an option. There are only a handful of times I can think of that he'll ever pull out a gun to start things off, and it's for plot reasons.  
This is a fighting manga, and a fighting story at that, and I like writing fist fights too much to just go for guns. Gun fights are boring, unless you're John Wick.__

__If you want to, think of them like the Izanagi, in canon.  
It's there, and people who have Sharingan eyes can use it if they learn how, but only one guy ever used it as a primary weapon, and he was a special case to begin with, because otherwise it broke the mold, removed a lot of narrative tension, and thusly was only used sparingly, and not often as a primary weapon, a first resort.__

__So, to sum things up: **Yes** guns exist, **yes** they have a presence **and** a role in the story, but **no,** they won't become widespread, and I promise, **no,** they won't take over the story I've got planned. __

__So if you've enjoyed the ride so far, as many ship-jumpers have indicated, I would implore you keep going, if only to see how I deal with them. __

__'Till then!__

__-TCWO__


	5. Not-So-Mortal Kombat

Chapter 4

* * *

Hibiki Senju awoke in a hospital bed, both arms more sore than he'd ever remembered them being in both lives, and a general ache having taken rest inside his entire body. It hadn't been two minutes before a very familiar face entered his room, and Shizune Kato greeted him with her customary bright-eyed smile. After explaining that hospital work was how she'd made her living - and not having to say that the reason she had the job so young was because she was _Tsunade Senju_'s apprentice - she gave him the brief rundown of the entire thing. No broken bones, which was good, no malnourishment, which was better, no scars, which was almost the best, but the best news had been the news that came last, Shizune likely holding it _for_ last because she knew how important it would be to him: He would make a full recovery. Hell, given Tsunade's efforts, he _had_ made a full recovery, he was just suffering now from chakra exhaustion and a stiff right arm.

After she gave him the rundown of what had happened, she gave him a brief summary of who all had been to visit him, acting all snide and making a comment on how he 'must be a _very_ special boy, if he had _all three_ legendary sannin visit him on the same day'. After them had come a name he'd expected - Minato had stopped by and left a few cards and a book for Hibiki to read, the damn kid was way too smart for his own good. So too had a few other kids from class, though that part had confused Hibiki, as the only one he really _regularly_ associated with was Minato, so when he'd heard that a Shikaku Nara (and the lard-ball of an Akamichi that always tagged along with him), and a Fugaku Uchiha had also visited him, he'd tilted his head in silent confusion, especially when she let slip that Minato hadn't brought either of them. Shizune hadn't had an answer for his unspoken question, but she had said they were respectful and had offered sincere condolences during their stays.

After she left, he leaned his head back on his pillow, so as to use the time he had to think. Two things he'd learned from this encounter, after he'd made doubly certain he hadn't died again and proved reincarnation right for the second time. The first was that he needed more training, he needed to get better chakra control, he needed to learn a few defensive and a few offensive shinobi techniques, the whole nine yards - the ninja who'd taken him had been looking _specifically_ for him, which meant that more would come eventually. He'd silently cursed as he reminded himself once again that he wasn't almost thirty anymore, he didn't not have time anymore, he was six and as such people would train him at the speed required of a six year old. So if he wanted to get better, he'd need to do it himself. _Maybe_ he could convince Minato to spar with him every now and again, the kid was just as determined as he was to become a good shinobi; and he hadn't forgotten about the previous day's vows to learn more about fuinjutsu and the like.

Another shake of the head - he sorely needed either more time, or a way to learn ten things at once.

The second thing he'd learned, however, was what he had spent far more time pondering than the first. _Guns._ _Guns_ existed in this world. He had no explanation for this, but he knew something was wrong, because that _shouldn't be possible. _Making the jump from throwing knives to guns should literally be impossible - especially in a world where people are far more used to 'ranged' meaning 'ninjutsu'. Even if he considered that the evolution actually _had_ occurred naturally, he'd have to call bullshit on himself - Back Home, the evolution from bows and arrows to guns had taken over a thousand years. The first 'gun' had been some kind of black-powder propelled blowdart, he thought, and it had still taken _centuries_ to go from that to gunpowder and cannonballs, and from that to matchlock and flintlock pistols. He couldn't even claim that those inventions _had_ existed before he was around, because they most certainly would have been used in either of the World Wars they had been made in - and Hibiki knew damn near everything he could about either of the New Hotnesses' World Wars, nothing at all had been said about cannons, explosive blow-darts, or firearms.

They simply _hadn't existed._ Guns and firearms had been among the _first damn things_ he'd looked up when he'd figured out that there was a technological disconnect between the New Hotness and Back Home. Six and a half years of searching had left him with only one possible conclusion: Guns _shouldn't exist._

So what was he left with? Option A, a gun had somehow, miraculously, been brought in to this world and people had started making them. Option B, a ninja ship had made the trip from this continent to another, stolen a gun, brought it back, made more, and used it to take him. B had to be it - there was no other explanation that made feasible and technical sense. So that meant that there was a shinobi village that could have allies overseas, that there was land overseas, and that the people overseas were ten leagues ahead of the Elemental Nations in regards to warfare.

In short, he had to make himself a gun. There was no more time for delay, no 'I'll do it when I'm a bit further in the academy', none of that. He needed a gun, and he needed one _now. Why _he decided to throw the one he'd looted in the fire, he had no idea - it seemed like a good idea at the time.

Not even a moment after his silent declaration did the door slam open, cracking and splintering the wall it impacted, revealing a simultaneously irate and relieved slug sannin in the opening.

"What the _hell_ did I say about dying on me?!" She demanded, striding in to the room.

Hibiki blinked, "you didn't?" When the hell had she said anything to him about not dying? When had he ever put his life at risk?

He heard her voice catch, but that didn't stop her from bringing him into an intense hug. "Shut up." She choked, squeezing the life out of the reincarnated man-child as she did. Hibiki felt his shoulders get wet as time passed, and she knew that he felt it, "say that to anyone and I'll... I won't make you 'pasta' for a month."

Oh hell no, she was _not_ threatening the only earth food he knew how to make with local foodstuffs. He grinned, returning the hug. It was a blank threat and they both knew it - something told him she had pasta _waiting_ for him for when he got home, she was that kind of person, piss them off and then buy them off when she figured out she was in the wrong. Even if he didn't quite agree with the method, he appreciated the effort.

After she released him, she pulled up a chair and her hands flashed green. He'd seen this enough times during their chakra training, she was going to make sure nothing was wrong. She put her hand on his head and another ran down his right arm, he noticed the concern look in her eye.

She sighed, "I was afraid of that."

What?

"Hibiki, channel some chakra into your eyes." She said, kindly, but firmly.

Hibiki lifted his hands, but she grabbed them. "No hands." She'd heard enough from her grandfather to at least have the basics down. "Just... _Think_ it. The same thing you do when you do it with your hands, just without the added assistance."

He blinked, okay. He closed his eyes and felt inside himself for his chakra. It took a moment without the added assistance of his hands, but after a moment he did find it, and a moment longer he had a small trickle running up towards his eyes. Things had a domino effect after that - there soon came a warmth behind his eyes and an oddly comforting pressure, but also the very real and very tangible draw of his chakra reserves.

"Stay calm." She said, predicting he'd do exactly what he was about to do and panic and decide he'd done something wrong. "Open your eyes." She was going to address this problem now, in the safety of her hospital, rather than later, when an errant Uchiha sensor-nin detected the familiar dojutsu chakra signature coming from someone far outside their clan. He did, and he noticed now how his eyesight improved drastically after doing what she'd said, it was like a legally blind man before and after putting on corrective lenses, he could _see_, but nowhere near as good as how he could see _now._ He caught that Tsunade's calm expression was steeled when she saw his eyes. She sighed lightly, and reached over to a nearby table and retrieved a mirror, which she placed in Hibiki's hands. "I want you to stay perfectly calm when you look in the mirror, okay? I'm right here."

What was she going on about? What was wrong with his eyes? How had channeling chakra through his _arm_ screwed with his _eyes?_ Was it like the rumor back home, masturbate too much and you go blind? Channel too much chakra and your eyes change? Hibiki took the mirror and, anxiously, lifted it up. Like ripping off a band-aid, he lifted it right to his eyes, and what he was presented with shocked him. Instead of the previously onyx orbs he'd been reborn with, what were greeting him were blood red orbs with black pupils, but what interested him the most of all was the small oddities orbiting his pupils. Were those _commas?_ What the hell was wrong with his eyes?

He gave Tsunade an 'explanation would be grateful' look, and she nodded. "What do you know of kekkei genkai?" Being too smart for his own good, she had considered the gaki could know more than she thought he would about the subject.

"Bloodline techniques." Said Hibiki, "unique to... Clans..." He looked back to the mirror, and then back to Tsunade. "But isn't the Senju clan's kekkei genkai a wood release?" Was she finally going to spill the beans and tell him what she knew about his resurrection?

Apparently not, "what you have is called a Sharingan." She explained, "it is a dojutsu kekkei genkai, activated by people with Uchiha blood." So he had Uchiha blood? She couldn't spin that his father was Uchiha - she'd given him the spiel about Dan Kato just two years ago, and that man hadn't had a drop of Uchiha in him.

"I thought my father was Dan Kato?" He challenged, wondering how far she'd take this. He seriously doubted she'd go with the 'illegitimate child' angle, she respected Dan too much to do that.

What she _did_ do, was better, he thought. "Dan was half Uchiha." She lied straight through her teeth, "you, are a quarter." He thought he could see her soul rotting away, piece by piece, with each lie. As a matter of fact, when he thought about it, and focused on it, he _could_ see something, barely visible, shrinking away towards her core. It looked suspiciously like the blue aura that came around whenever he focused chakra. "Apparently that's enough for a sharingan to activate."

_Kind of like how anyone with even a drop of Saiyan blood can go Super Saiyan._ Thought Hibiki, before he grunted. "I see." She knew he was calling her on her BS.

She sighed, but didn't admit defeat. "Hibiki... There are things about your blood I can't tell you, not yet, not now." She said, "when you're older, when you graduate... I'll tell you what I can, then." She vowed, his hand in hers. "But until then..." She grinned listlessly, "try not to die on me?"

He nodded seriously, before he smirked. "Will you teach me your strength technique if I do?" He asked, cheekily.

She flicked him on the forehead, even without any chakra in it the raw force of the blow sent his head to be buried deep within his pillow. "Shut up and get your rest." She said with a humorous tone.

* * *

After he left the hospital, he fell in to something of a routine resembling the one he'd had before yesterday. The only differences were how much more seriously he was taking his training with Tsunade, the fact that he was doing much more in-depth self study in various subjects, and he'd finally figured out something rather important about Chakra.

Chakra was like a muscle. The more it was used, the stronger it got. The more it was flexed, the further it could bend. The more it was stretched, the longer it could last. He'd had an inkling of this during his training sessions, but the change had been slow, gradual, he hadn't seen it in black and white; but after his kidnapping, he'd seen it almost immediately. Apparently, over the course of the kidnapping, something had 'snapped' in his mind and had activated his Sharingan, and add to that drain the drain of his wild, almost literal superman punch, and he'd nearly killed himself by dragging all of the chakra out of his body, but once he'd recovered from the chakra exhaustion, he'd noticed how much _more_ he had. It wasn't like he could waste chakra for hours on end, no, but he had a noticeably larger pool now than he'd had before. This gave birth to the next part of his solo-training, he kept the Sharingan on for as long as he could, every day, until it drained his reserves to the point where he couldn't function properly. His goal behind this was to drain himself of chakra each day, fill up during dinner and that night's rest, and do it again the next day. Eventually, this continual drainage and refilling would make it so he had far larger chakra reserves than any other child of his age or future rank. There were some days when he didn't pull out all of the chakra before bed, so on those days he simply pushed it out in a constant stream before he went to rest, emptying the tank on purpose as opposed to letting it run itself out.

As to his solo-training, the word 'solo' was less applicable than it sounded. He'd cornered Minato a week after he'd left the hospital and asked if the kid would like a sparring partner. Minato had, in a word, been _ecstatic,_ and had almost started a friendly spar right then and there, but Hibiki had vetoed that idea in favor of actually making it through the day's lessons before they started beating the hell out of each other. It had been an eye-opening experience, as Minato was essentially the Vegeta to Hibiki's Goku, they were largely equal in strength, but they each had their own tricks up their respective sleeves. Hibiki had his mental age and the few fighting classes he'd taken Back Home, as well as his Sharingan - which, among other things, he'd learned slightly sped up his perception of time when he was fighting, so he could accurately tell what Minato was about to do and where it'd hit. Minato, however, had speed and an unholy amount of stamina that was only matched, in the entire academy, by Hibiki's own. After about a month of them sparring - purely physically, with no chakra, save for Hibiki's eyes, which Minato had foolishly agreed to on account of Hibiki's chakra exercises - they had earned the nicknames the 'inexhaustible duo'. They weren't _wrong,_ as Hibiki and Minato did indeed have more stamina than most kids in the school, but their fights rarely lasted longer than a quarter of an hour, in spite of their slowly increasing stamina pools. Truly, Minato was developing just as much as Hibiki was when it came to their sparring practice.

But simply turning himself into a Bruce Lee wouldn't be enough in a world where people spit compressed water and shat fire, so Hibiki had started tinkering. He'd vowed he'd start working on actual ninja techniques after he made his own gun and found a way to produce ammunition for it - as adequate as a flintlock-type weapon would be, he wanted to be a step above the Ninja he'd encountered earlier. It had taken him an entire year of hard work and producing - and, in some cases, _stealing - _materials, but he had eventually done it and created a repeating, six-cylinder revolver. The mere invention of such a device had meant a great deal to Hibiki, the weapon spoke of safety to him, who had grown up once in a world that practically _worshiped_ the killing power of firearms. He'd spent an entire day finding the most perfect place to hid it, and, ironically, had decided to hide it under Tsunade's bed. The woman rarely went in to her room, preferring either to bring her work home with her an fall asleep at the kitchen table or on the couch, sometimes with a bottle nearby, and whenever she did go into her room it was always a mess and she was always too exhausted, or, on not-so-rare occasions, inebriated, to notice a change. That wasn't an assumption talking, he had specifically tested that theory over the course of a month, changing various details of her room from the subtle to the almost painfully obvious, and her customary ninja-paranoia hadn't changed at all, and she'd never mentioned a word of it. Better for him was that they would expect him to hide his 'secret' belongings - his journals and various Earth-inspired trinkets and projects - under the loose floorboards under his own bed, he doubted even Uncle Orochimaru would look under the Senju Heiress' bed. Unfortunately for him, while he had indeed made a gun - and had tested out how well its repeating, revolving cylinder worked, and it worked perfectly - he was making little progress on ammunition for it. It had taken him _six months_ to just get the _materials_ to make a bullet - the gunpowder being donated from a few fireworks a vendor had 'lost', and the brass coming from some of the more abandoned, less looked after homes in the Senju compound. He didn't think anyone would notice he took their brass, literally the only living Senju were Tsunade herself and her grandmother, the first Hokage's widowed wife, Mito Uzumaki. He hadn't gone _near_ her home, however, he didn't know what a 'Jinchuriki' was, or why she and Jiraiya had spoken of it in such hushed, fearful tones, but he assumed it was a step above sannin in skill, and thus, he didn't want to mess with that. Returning to his bullets, he'd had a few theories as to how he could press the metal in to shape, stuff the powder inside, make the primer, and form it all into the bullet, but they all would take time he didn't have. If he could figure out how to multiply _one_ bullet in to _several,_ then he'd be in business, but he'd already pressed his luck when he'd spoken to Jiraiya about some fuinjutsu textbooks. He had indeed gotten one or two beginner books and an intermediate level one for his most recent birthday, but Jiraiya had said to lay-low on the 'big favors', apparently the toad-sage had caught a lot of flak from Tsunade about it.

However, while he'd spent a year investing in his future and bonding with his small, but close-knit group of friends, someone had been noticing his near-constant use of his dojutsu, and that someone cornered him after school one day.

"Hibiki Senju." Declared Fugaku Uchiha, as Hibiki entered the sparring room with Minato in tow, the two of them chuckling at a rather bad joke Hibiki had made.

Hibiki stopped walking and inclined his head towards the Uchiha. "Err... Yes?" He had spoken to the boy and the other who had visited him during the hospital. As it turned out, it had actually been Chouza had convinced Shikaku to take him, because he'd heard Hibiki talking once about 'pasta' and was hoping he could catch the Senju adoptee and learn about it. When Hibiki had learned this, he'd sought out and struck up a conversation with the Akamichi heir, and before he knew it, he had another new friend with which he semi-frequently went home with, primarily to have dinner with and swap recipes, but still. With Chouza came Shikaku's friendship as well, given that Hibiki was apparently one of the few people in the academy that didn't care at all for Chouza's young age and advanced weight. Hibiki respected Shikaku - the kid was smarter than Minato, though lazier than anyone the displaced man had ever met in both lives, and his laziness was likely why Chouza hadn't trudged on into the sparring rooms behind Minato and Hibiki.

Then, of course, had come Fugaku Uchiha. As it turned out, his story had been a lot simpler and less endearing than Chouza's: He'd simply been at the hospital that day by coincidence, and had heard his name in passing, and had tracked him down to wish him well. Hibiki had been out cold, so he simply left his condolences for his doctor to pass on. The end.

Now, however, the Uchiha heir obviously had a bone to pick, he was outright _scowling_ at the unofficial Senju heir. "Where did you get it?!" He demanded.

Hibiki had to repress the urge to make a penis joke, they weren't old enough for that. "Well..." He said, scratching the back of his scraggly-haired head. "One day I was walking around the village with Minato, and we passed by this store with some really interesting looking gag-manga -"

"You _know_ what I _mean!"_ Fugaku interrupted, growling over the sounds of Minato's laughter as he stomped over to the two. "_Where did you get the Sharingan?!"_

That definitely shut Minato up, the blonde blur knew when was the time for joviality and when wasn't. Hibiki hadn't kept his possession of the dojutsu from his friends - though he had pissed off his 'mother' when she'd caught on to the fact that he'd let it slip. He trusted his friends to keep the secret, however, which was why he didn't back down from Fugaku, much the opposite, he rose up. When it came to class rankings, Minato was near the middle, Hibiki was first, and Fugaku was second. He used to be first in the Taijutsu ranks, but then the Inexhaustible Duo had started catching up with their self-practice.

With Minato at his back, Hibiki had no misconception question that he couldn't beat up a seven year old, especially when Shikaku and Chouza showed up - bar none, they knew when to get serious when the chips were down, and there _was_ a story in that, but now wasn't the time nor the place to recall it. The true question was how long the seriously pissed off Fugaku could hold his own against two and possibly _four_ damn good fighters without backup.

"Why do you care?" Hibiki fired back, he and Fugaku were about the same height, with Fugaku having just barely an inch over the displaced man.

"That is an Uchiha's birthright, and _you are not an Uchiha!"_

_Tell that to my mom._ Thought Hibiki, who flitted the dojutsu on just to get a rise out of the Uchiha heir. "Well, it seems my blood would prove you wrong. Otherwise, I wouldn't have it." He said, not going so far as to verbally taunt the Uchiha.

No, that was what _Minato_ did. "What, Fuggy, angry that you didn't awaken it before the Senju?" He grinned.

Fugaku glared at Minato, before he turned to Hibiki. _"Where did you get it?!"_ He demanded.

Hibiki's face slowly went blank, Hibiki gave the arrogant kid the best 'Mike Ehrmantraut' glare he could muster. "I don't know." That wasn't technically a lie - he had no idea where his Uchiha blood came from, though given how useful the Sharingan was, he wasn't complaining. The thing gave him something of an _eidetic memory!_ He was remembering details from Back Home that he'd never even thought of before the Sharingan had started circulating the chakra a bit more. Its uses far outweighed the chakra cost.

"I have a _right to know!" _Roared the Uchiha.

_"What's going on here?"_ Came the deep, tough voice of Serizawa Hyuga, his own kekkei genkai activated as it was always.

As he walked in the room, Hibiki decided he'd play nice guy and cover the Uchiha's ass for him. "Nothing, Serizawa-sensei." He said, "Fugaku here just challenged me to a spar, and we let the trash talk get a little out of hand, is all." He said, Minato quickly, energetically corroborated his story.

Had the Hyuga instructor had eyes, he would have blinked them. He did have eyebrows, however, so he did raise one. "Oh?" He looked towards Fugaku, "is that true, Uchiha? Do you want to fight Senju?"

_Interesting choice of words..._ Hibiki suppressed a grin.

Fugaku gave Hibiki one look, and then looked back at the blind Hyuga. "Yes." He said firmly.

* * *

And almost instantly after that, they had drawn a crowd. Minato had stuck with Hibiki to act as his corner man, while their friends went to the bleachers to get a good view. Fugaku's fangirls had heard about it, and they spread the news like wildfire, and in the five minutes the two had to prepare, a crowd of boys and girls their age - and even a few chunin instructors a decade older than them - had gathered around to see the class' best, and the worst of the best face off.

Hibiki was somewhat apprehensive, while he certainly had a more experienced mind and was very good at thinking on his feet, Fugaku had been trained for pretty much his entire life - the joys of being a clan kid, it seemed. Hibiki certainly had some experience, thanks to Tsunade and Minato, but the former had focused more on chakra control and physical development than actual combat, and the latter wasn't as good a teacher as he was a springboard to bounce ideas off of. That being said, the Goku and Vegeta metaphor Hibiki had made earlier still rang true - every fight Hibiki had with the blond blur, he learned something new; but if Minato was Vegeta, and Hibiki Goku, what would that make Fugaku? Batman?

"Any advice?" Hibiki asked the Namikaze as he stretched his arms and the referee prepared to start the match.

"Yeah. Don't lose." The blond blur chuckled

Minato grinned, but it didn't reach his eyes. Just ballparking it, what were Fugaku's strengths and weaknesses? He was strong, physically, and definitely intelligent - not in the same way that Hibiki was, but still damn intelligent, with battle being written into his very genes. But he was also somewhat arrogant and standoffish, and though he looked to be fast, he couldn't be anywhere near as fast as the Namikaze cheering Hibiki on, Minato practically specialized in speed, and though Hibiki was definitely working to keep his at least equal to Minato's, he wanted to be less of a pure speedster ala 'The Flash', and more of an all around speed-brawler, like Captain Falcon, or Goku - fast when he needed to be, but _debilitating_ if he couldn't be.

In short? He'd have to wing it and see what happens. If he could let Fugaku hit first, he'd have a better chance of figuring out what he could do and how he could counter it, but in the end he might just have to brawl the kid into submission. Given he could win in the first place, however - the kid _had_ been number one in the class for the entire year Hibiki had been slacking, after all, that had to count for something.

"Are both fighters ready?" Asked their referee, a chunin by the name of Heta. She got two nods from two students, who soon assumed fighting stances. She gave a brief shrug and a tilt of the head, "alright. Begin."

Before the fight, Hibiki and Minato had decided that Hibiki shouldn't use his dojutsu here, both because it probably wasn't wise to let everyone know he had an ace up his sleeve _just_ yet, and because it would piss off Fugaku - which would make him sloppy; and piss him off it did. When Fugaku felt his honor was being besmirched by the opponent's blatant disrespect for his abilities, he decided he would take the first move and hit first. He dashed forward, and in response, Hibiki ran forward as well, but he had both of his arms close to his chest, making it look like he was going to guard, parry, and then counter Fugaku's wild superman punch. That wasn't what he did at all, taking advantage of Fugaku's rage, Hibiki - at the last possible moment - bowed down low and opened wide both of his arms. Before Fugaku could react, Hibiki bear-hugged Fugaku's mid-section and lifted him up off the ground. In an almost stereotypical Mixed-Martial-Arts fashion, Hibiki lifted the Uchiha off of the ground, raised him up, and with his forward momentum, carried him for just a moment before he slammed the boy onto the ground. The impact winded the Uchiha, so Hibiki pressed his advantage as much as he could, crawling up to his knees and ground-pounding the heir.

Unlike in his world, where 'sparring' was done with thick padding and 'training' involved katas, weight-lifting, intense jogging and eighties-action montages, in this world, 'Sparring' was far more Spartan: Beat the shit out of your opponent until he fell out or called uncle. The way the shinobi saw it, the two partners wouldn't kill each other, and if they did any damage, it would only make them better in the long run. This was the logic he'd run with when he started beating the Uchiha heir in the face repeatedly, his advantage only lasted a few seconds and half of a half of a dozen blows before the bloody-lipped and almost cracked-nosed heir brought his hands up and, instead of blocking as an MMA fighter would do, _caught_ both of Hibiki's hands like a shinobi with the proper training would do. In response to his immobilization, Hibiki reared his head back and slammed it home, though he'd misjudged the distance and instead of hitting Fugaku's nose, he hit the kid's chest. Damage was still done, but not the kind he'd wanted and not in the quantity he'd wished, after all, the saying was: No one won with a headbutt.

Fugaku took advantage of Hibiki's momentary daze and ripped his feet out from under Hibiki's legs and, just after he let go of the boy's hands, kicked forward with all of his might. Hibiki's lungs were almost flattened and he was sent flying a few inches, straight onto his ass. He got up as quick as possibly and was forced to dodge Fugaku's next few swings. Even without his Sharingan giving him enhanced perception, Fugaku was nowhere near as fast as the Blond Blur, so Hibiki had a bit of an easier time dodging him. When Fugaku missed an overhead swing for Hibiki's face, Hibiki ducked down, grabbed the arm that missed, wrenched it forward and slammed his fist into Fugaku's chest once, twice, three times before Fugaku nailed him in the face.

Hibiki backpedaled a few steps, he was starting to get a feel for Fugaku's style - it was largely reactionary, he could take the initiative but the style was very obviously designed to compliment a Sharingan he didn't have, though he had quick enough reflexes to make up for it, for now. Hibiki took up a boxer's stance and covered his head from the relentless assault upon it, taking the opportunity for quick jabs here and there when he had a chance. Fugaku took Hibiki's momentary dulled peripheral vision to try a spinning roundhouse kick, but unfortunately for him it impacted the boy's raised arm, and Hibiki wrapped said arm around the leg as fast as he could and locked them together, what he did next would forever net him the name 'The Nutty Improviser'. With all the speed and force he could muster, he slammed his fist twice into Fugaku's family jewels, before he let go of the boy's leg and, as the Uchiha stumbled back on one and tried to regain his balance, he catapulted forth with a running front kick - right into the same target area. Fugaku fell to the ground, his eyes tearing up fast under the relentless testicular assault, Hibiki held no punches when it came to his fights, even if he was sparring he fought to win, and if that meant biting or punches below the belt, than god damn it, he'd do it.

He did, however, allow Fugaku a moment to recover. He wasn't _that _much of a bastard, after all, he'd just hit the boy three times as hard as he could in his gonads, and this was a spar - he wasn't fighting for his life, so if he wanted to allow his opponent a moment to regain control of his facilities, he'd give him that moment. A moment Fugaku took as he shakily got back to his feet, but he seemed to learn his lesson from the previous assault - he had to be careful with this one. Where he stuck almost strictly to the Uchiha Intercepting Fist, Hibiki most certainly did _not_ stick to Academy Standard when it came to unarmed combat - he used a mix-match of all of his 'experience' from his own world and an improvised brawler style to keep his enemies off-balance.

He took up his IF stance again, and Hibiki kept one arm raised high and one arm close to his hips, ready to block wherever Fugaku would strike next. Fugaku, again, took the initiative, but instead of a relentless, angry assault, his blows now were more meant to test Hibiki's defenses, find their weaknesses and categorize them off for later exploitation. Hibiki didn't disappoint, his defenses were solid enough for a seven year old, but there were a few weaknesses Fugaku was noticing - he favored his strong arm but was fighting south-paw to build his weaker side up as well. He was fast but if someone got past his defenses they could get at least one blow in in the unguarded areas before he reacted, and perhaps most damning was that he was compensating for a reach he seemed to be used to having but certainly didn't.

With all of that in mind, Fugaku retreated, allowing Hibiki to go on the attack while he formulated a plan. He didn't expect the improviser to be the kind of one who would last long under a focused, planned out assault, nor did he expect the man to be someone who would similarly formulate a plan. Unfortunately for Fugaku, he'd never watched the Sherlock Holmes movies _once,_ let alone the dozens of times Hibiki had watched them Back Home. A good training program they were not, but a source of inspiration they most certainly could be. What Hibiki did as he fired off attack after attack from varied forms of martial arts and with various limbs was testing Fugaku's _own_ defenses, looking for his _own_ weaknesses and formulating his _own_ plan of attack; but unlike Fugaku, his wouldn't be a general idea of what to aim for, he wanted a quick one-two-three punch that would put him down and put him down _hard, _and he was figuring out where to punch. The problem was accurately predicting how Fugaku would react, he was smart, but he was no Holmes.

_If I had the Sharingan, this would be less of a problem._ With the extra perception the dojutsu bloodline granted him, even in the early stage it was currently in, it helped him immensely when he sparred with Minato. It wasn't perfect, but he was able to sometimes _tell_ what Minato was about to do and react to it, unless Minato was moving too fast, in which case all he had time to do was mentally prepare for a beatdown of epic proportions - because even if he saw an attack coming, he might not have time enough or reflexes good enough to react to it.

The two backed off, breathing heavily, and wholly unaware of the enlarging crowd and cheers from around them, similarly unaware of how much time had passed since they'd begun. Fugaku, breathing heavily and with a livid look on his face, made ready to start his plan, all he had to do was dodge outside Hibiki's compensation, get within his defenses, and press his weaker side as hard and as fast as he could, he'd win this. He started forward from his end of the ring. Hibiki, similarly breathing heavy but with a calmer look on his wide-eyed, slightly frowning face, made ready his own plan. Fugaku's style wasn't called the 'Intercepting Fist' because it sounded cool, blocking and countering his blows was literally the name of the game, so all Hibiki had to do was move _fast_ and push Fugaku's arms out of the way whenever they came to intercept his blows. He started forward with a brief huff.

They met in a rapid clash, Fugaku dodging Hibiki's first swing and then ducking in to his left side, whereupon he sent three rapid, debilitating punches into his midsection, before he swung as heavily and as quickly as he could towards his head. Hibiki, on the other hand, while definitely dazed from the sudden, biting pain issuing forth from his ribs, managed to swat away the Uchiha heir's full-power uppercut. _First, double-fist to his chest._ He whirl-winded both arms and, with the bonus in speed, smashed both fists into Fugaku's chest in a debilitaring double-underhanded punch. _Block left cross._ Fugaku very obviously knew that Hibiki knew he favored his right, so Hibiki put everything on Fugaku trying to catch him off guard with a left; his gamble worked and Fugaku tried to hit him in the face with a wild haymaker punch with his left hand. Hibiki intercepted it with his right forearm, and though a brief lightning bolt of pain was sent down his arm for his troubles, Fugaku was now open for another attack. _Right, then left, then center to cheeks and nose._ First he swung his right and hit Fugaku's left cheek, then he swung his left and hit Fugaku's right cheek, and then with as strong a jab as he could muster, he slammed his fist home on Fugaku's nose. _Finisher..._

There were many things Hibiki could resist doing, making dirty jokes to his new friends, asking questions in English, and the urge to sleep in and skip that morning's exercises and training were among those things. However, cursing in English, trying to push up the bridge of his nose a pair of eye-glasses that did not exist, and yelling out the legendary name of the attack he was about to execute, was not among those things. With a loud, almost giddy roar, he cried out, "_SHORYUKEN!"_ As he took two rapid steps forward and spun upwards and horizontally, building up momentum as his fist soared upwards into Fugaku's jaw.

Hibiki's attack had exactly the effect he'd wanted, but also an unintended side-effect. When an object is spinning in any circular motion, it is constantly accelerating, so this meant that Fugaku was, as he spun around, dazed and confused and mere seconds away from falling out, building the latter half of F=MA. As a last, ditch-effort attack before he hit the ground, on the second spin he threw up his fist and slammed it into Hibiki's unprotected face as fast and as hard as he could.

The impact sent Hibiki to the ground just after Fugaku, the both of them were tired, huffing, and puffing.

The ref cleared her throat, "the match will go to the first person to stand up and bow." She announced to a silent room.

_Oh... Okay... Alright... Just got to get up... _Slurred a star-seeing Senju. _Come on._ He groaned in pain, trying supporting himself on his elbows, but when he shook his head to clear it of the stars and the cotton-fuzz that had taken up residence within, it only made things worse and he lost his strength.

On the other side of things, Fugaku was trying the exact opposite of Hibiki, where Hibiki was trying to get to his feet from his back, Fugaku looked like an Army recruit who was in the middle of his thousandth push-up. Sweat was pouring off of his head, and he fell to the ground again with an 'oomph', putting them on equal terms as they tried to get up again. The entire room gasped when Hibiki stumbled forward and slammed his chin on the ground from a nearly crouching position, whereas Fugaku was practically on his feet. The entire room gasped again when, after getting to his feet, Fugaku didn't bow, he just stared at the still struggling Hibiki with a confused glare.

He'd won, or damn near it, at least, so why was the kid with the stolen eyes - that had actually _refused to use them -_ still going?

He didn't know the answer to his question, nor did he know what beckoned him to do so, but instead of bowing and ending the match, he forced himself to march forward, and before Hibiki knew what was happening, he saw a hand in front of his face. Not a fist, not a flying foot, a hand. Fugaku was offering him a way back up to his feet. Shakily, he raised his own hand and clasped arms with the Uchiha heir, and the latter hauled up the former - both of them nearly losing their balances again and going back to square one. The entire crowd - or, at least, the academy students, most of the genin, and the more zealous chunin - burst in to cheers as they both, as if acting upon some silent, pre-made agreement, bowed at the same time.

The match over, Hibiki couldn't help but smile, breathing heavily as he tried to cool his core down, with sweat pouring down his exterior in an attempt to cool _it_ down. "You're pretty good." Had he had the energy, he would have flashed a 'Revolver Ocelot' pose, but he didn't, so he just stuck with the compliment without the reference. "You know... You would've won if you hadn't -" He swallowed with a dry throat, "- pulled me up." The look in his eye told the Uchiha heir that, despite the technical draw, he knew who had really won the fight itself. Fugaku respected that.

Fugaku, too breathing heavily, nodded slowly, the scowl and the glare gone, but a stoic look more attributed to the Hyuga than the Uchiha had replaced it. "I am... Aware." He said.

And thus, a friendship and a rivalry had been born.

* * *

_A/N:_

_And with that, our first 'real' fight scene. _

_I stress that, while some things may make **no **damn sense right now, it's all to do with timing. I can't show my full hand right now, everything has got to have time to develop._


	6. Dissection

Chapter 5

* * *

Following the fight, Hibiki had gotten, in order, several compliments from Jiraiya about a hosting 'surprisingly entertaining fight... Even for a couple a seven year olds', before he'd offered advice on how to be better, more wild, and a bit more improvisational. Then came the diagnosis and dissection from Orochimaru, who had - in his own way - also complimented him on his skill, but mentioned he may want to pursue ninjutsu as well as he did taijutsu, and conspiratorially promised to get him a scroll or two before he was a final-year academy student, saying without saying that he was aware that Hibiki was training on his own.

Tsunade's reaction had been the interesting one. First came the tongue-lashing he'd been expecting, the 'how could you be so reckless to fight an Uchiha' and the 'what were you thinking walking around with your eyes on all the time'. He'd been partially deafened and the walls of her house - and a few other Senju houses - had shaken from the sheer force of her vocal authority. After she'd finished - and had properly assessed his 'wounds' and healed the ones she'd decided warranted immediate attention, whilst leaving the other ones to heal on their own, 'so he'd learn a damn lesson', had come the surprising part.

"How much training have you been doing on your own?" She asked him.

Not having the energy nor the will to lie to his mother-figure, Hibiki told her the truth: Every night for two hours before bedtime, every morning for two hours before he left for the academy, with Minato for an hour or two after school, and then his books during any free time he had nothing better to do with. She'd then commented on, when she'd used her diagnosis technique, she had noticed two things: The first, whatever he was doing to his chakra stores, it was working, they'd effectively doubled in the last year, and she'd said hurriedly - as if she didn't want to admit his unintentional genius - that he was smart for doing such training while he was still young and his chakra coils were still flexible and developing. The second thing she'd noticed, however, was how damn exhausted he was. He wasn't unhealthy _yet_, but he was pushing the limits of his age, however expanded they may be due to his training on his own, with Minato, _and_ with Tsunade.

So she'd suggested to him something that had sent him reeling, "what do you know about the Shadow-Clone technique?" She'd asked him. He knew little, admittedly, only that it was invented by Tobirama and was listed as a kinjutsu due to the chakra it took to use it. She'd followed up his answer by confirming what he did know, and adding on to it by explaining what else it could do - as it turned out, it wasn't just a quick but costly option for reinforcements, it was a damn good training tool, too. This was because the technique transferred _memories_ upon dispersal, so if one were to train on and learn a technique, and then dispersed itself, the 'Alpha' - he himself - would get the memories and the mastery of said technique.

She'd agreed to teach it to him on two conditions - the first, he'd promise her he'd learn some medical techniques too, the second, that he wouldn't overdo it if and when he used them to train. The Shadow Clone technique split chakra up _evenly_ between the clones, so if he made one, that one would get half of his chakra, if he made three, his chakra would be split up in to thirds, and if he tried to make ten, he'd have only a _tenth_ of his chakra with which to work with, and if he used what was known as the 'Multi-Shadow Clone Technique' - the art of creating _hundreds_ of clones - he could kill himself.

"So don't fucking use it to train your chakra stores." She growled, with an unusually intense look in her amber eyes.

After he'd agreed to her terms, they'd set out training on the shadow clone technique. It was, actually, deceptively simple, especially with his Sharingan helping to burn everything in to his mind, to expedite the process a bit. In two months he had the technique down, and in three, he'd learned that his maximum was ten clones solid, but that was before he started exhausting himself, if he wanted those clones to fight, he could only make five.

However, what he learned about the clones after learning the technique had set about his future usage of the technique: They were as weak as wet paper. If he hauled off and whacked on as hard as he could in the face, it'd pop, if Tsunade hit one full strength - not only would his own ribs start aching for a brief moment thanks to the memory transfer - but she could pop far more than just one. This all led to how he approached the technique after getting its usage down pat, instead of training with it, he _dissected_ it, and wrote down everything he learned.

Nothing at all about the technique failed to amaze him, he wondered if Tobirama had known exactly what he'd done in creating it.

Day one of the dissection, he'd wanted to see if he could make the clones more stable, more resistant to damage, and after a week had learned that it was all a matter of willpower and intention. If he made a clone with the intention of it being a suicide bomber, it wouldn't have any more willpower than he himself had, and would pop after one hit; but, if he made one with a lot of willpower behind it, and the intention of having it fight for as long and as hard as it could, it wouldn't pop until something landed a lethal blow - and in learning that, he'd unintentionally learned that regular memories weren't the only things transferred, muscle memory was as well, meaning that if they trained for hours on learning a reflex and popped themselves, he'd get that reflex as well. But if they were stabbed and killed, he'd get a brief lance of pain wherever they were stabbed, and his vision could go dark for the briefest of instants.

Did clones have souls?

After that first week, he'd then dissected just what was the dividing line between what popped alongside the clone and what didn't. So, after stealing a kunai from Tsunade's room - and making doubly sure his gun was still hidden - he started work. He placed the Kunai in his pocket, and made a clone. The clone removed the knife, and they both confirmed that it was solid and it was sharp. The clone would then take possession of the knife, stab it into the ground, and after they both confirmed it was rigidly in the ground and wouldn't budge without a decent amount of effort, the clone dispersed itself. After the smoke cleared, the knife was still there. Then, he made a new clone, and gave it back the knife, after dispersal, the knife fell to the ground, still as real as it had been before. However, the next test netted something interesting.

Following the same protocol as the first test, the clone - after stabbing the kunai into the ground - then took its kunai back out of the ground, without first popping itself, and placed it back in its pocket, and popped itself. The kunai disappeared with the clone. After a week of testing and retesting it to make absolutely certain that he was indeed breaking a law of physics and making _something from nothing,_ he'd gotten another bonus lesson; he learned that if a clone popped - whether it be self inflicted or otherwise - it returned all of its chakra to the original. The only loss was in whatever the clone used, and the chakra used by the original to make the clone, which, Hibiki had realized, was astonishingly low. If he had to put a number on it, he'd say that, out of a hundred point pool, it took five points to make the clone, minus the fifty the clone would take for its own use. If that clone then dispersed itself without having used any of the donated chakra, it would return the fifty points it had taken, netting a mere five Chakra Point loss.

So, not only did the Shadow Clones transfer all memories _including_ the five senses and muscle memory, but they could create something from nothing, took extremely little chakra to actually create, and returned unused chakra upon dispersal.

So, naturally, the next test Hibiki did was in how _little_ Chakra he could supply a clone with and have it remain stable enough for a taijutsu spar. Again, the results hadn't failed to amaze him. Using his previous number comparison, Hibiki had learned that, not counting the five CP it took to spawn the clone, a clone could stay stable and as physically strong as he was with as little as _two chakra points,_ and the previous bonuses - something from nothing, chakra return, muscle memory - all still applied. With this knowledge, Hibiki had effectively _tripled_ how many clones he could make combat-ready before he had to worry about his own chakra stores, and had _quintupled_ the clones he could make before exhaustion started kicking in.

After these tests had come the next big one, he spawned a clone early in the morning, and let it do its own thing while he went to the academy. The point of this test had been to learn if, by mere luxury of existing, the clone expended chakra, like the Sharingan did when activated. The results were conclusive: They didn't. As an extension of this test, Hibiki did the same thing, but ordered the clone to eat and sleep, and do things that would recover chakra. This one had surprised him as much as it hadn't - he got the physical energy from the clone sleeping, but not the sustenance gained from the food. He also did indeed get the clone's ten - for example - recovered Chakra Points, but what had intrigued him was that the five points extra had wasted away, like when one threw gasoline on a fire - it blazed up brilliantly, but the result was only temporary, and it would soon return to normal. He'd gotten back the chakra required to _make_ the clone, but the chakra the clone itself had generated beyond what was needed to make it, had simply been layered on top of his own and had either had to be used _right then and there,_ or it would fade away after an hour or two.

It provided a hell of an adrenaline rush, he'd admit.

So, all in all, the Shadow Clone technique was something of a damned miracle. Some would consider his 'bare-minimum' clones to be largely useless, but he didn't, because he had something most others didn't - a way to fight without chakra. It took him an entire year to refine the process, perfect it, and execute it without something going wrong, but he had eventually made a bullet that his gun was chambered for. He took the gun from Tsunade's room and ran to his training grounds with it and the bullet. After he spawned twenty bare-minimum clones, he performed his Something from Nothing tests with the bullets, and had gotten the same results - now twenty bullets richer for astonishingly little effort. The applications for what he was calling the 'Something from Nothing' technique were awesome, as were the implications - he could make a constant, steady, numerous stream and supply of bullets for his handgun without all the effort of locating the materials, forging the bullet, and making sure the size was right. As long as he had the Alpha bullet, things would be _fine._ He could, also, feasibly replicate _money_ \- but that held some problems he didn't want to tackle, such as what would be the logistical nightmare of having five versions of the same bill? Or how bad would inflation become if he cloned a million Ryo and spent it all in a day? So, for now, he'd simply keep his Something from Nothing technique strictly for weapons purposes.

He'd spent days practicing with his newfound, _usable_ gun, and was very pleased with what he learned. His favorite discovery was, as long as he could spawn a new clone, he could have feasibly limitless fire support - the clones never ran out of ammunition as long as he had some, they just fired, ran out, popped themselves, and he spawned a new one with full ammo stores; and if he ever ran low, he could just spawn a few clones, have them drop their ammunition, pop themselves, and boom - instant refill. He laughed when the comparisons to ammunition recovery mechanics from First Person Shooters Back Home came to mind - he practically _did_ have an invisible vacuum that sucked up ammo, straight off the floor, into his hands, and it was awesome.

Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Gun's supplier had just met his match, and then some.

But, before he could continue training with his revolver, he wanted to make something he would desperately need, especially if he was to lead the life of a ninja: A sound suppressor. His bullets were fast enough that they broke the sound barrier a few times over, which meant every time he fired his gun, in addition to the thunderclap from firing it, there was another thunderclap from the gun breaking the sound barrier; the delay between the two was practically nil, but still - that was a big boom. Fortunately, in the training grounds, such noises were common place, but he didn't want to attract wandering eyes thinking they could get inspiration for a new technique, so he needed to build a silencer for his gun.

He left his training field feeling giddy, satisfied, and _far_ safer than he'd ever felt in his entire new life. All he had to do now was start putting some serious time in to fuinjutsu, and if he played his cards right and studied hard enough, he hoped he could figure out a way to write a seal onto his own body, and hide the gun where he would _always have access_ to it. Oh no, another Tweedle-Dee and another Tweedle-Gun decided to come up and kidnap him? Ha-ha, he's no mere six year old with a penchant for stupid ideas anymore! He's an eight year old with a fucking hand-cannon! _BOOM!_

He cleared his throat, and after he was certain his moment of self-indulgence was over, he exited the training grounds, completely unaware that a certain third in the line of the leaf village's Hokage with a certain crystal ball had been watching him like clockwork whenever he had the free time to do so, and he knew the kid was out training.

The sannin were summoned almost immediately.

* * *

Tsunade could count on one hand the times she'd felt out of her league. The fight with Hanzo, Nawaki's death, and the time she'd challenged Enma the Monkey King to a sparring match were all three of those times. Now, she could add a fourth time to that list. When Hiruzen's ANBU had arrived in the Hokage's office, after the three sannin had been waiting there for a grand total of thirty seconds of silence, she hadn't understood what was going on, but had a suspicion. When the ANBU had presented the odd object to the Hokage with so much care that he could have held a baby in those hands, she had been confused. What was this object being given to the Hokage, why did the ANBU seem to _fear_ it? _Why did _Hiruzen_ seem to fear it?!_

Hiruzen had taken the metallic object from the ANBU with even _more_ care and trepidation, as if it were a massive explosive-tag waiting to go off. He looked to each of his students, "do any of you know what this is?" He asked, no one confirmed or denied it. He sighed, "I... Would show you, but what this is and what it implies terrifies me more than what the child is and what _he_ implies." That got Tsunade's attention faster than an explosion on the Hokage monument.

"What is it, sensei?" Orochimaru asked, recovering far faster than any of the others, he was always intrigued by the dangerous and the unknown, and his eyes were staring at the object with a rapt, almost lustful interest.

"I do not _know."_ Said the Sarutobi Clan's head and the Leaf Village's Kage. "But it came from Hibiki."

Jiraiya blinked, "what? The kid's in to metal working? What _is _it, then? An ornament?"

"An ornament that he hid under Tsunade's bed." Hiruzen stated bluntly.

Tsunade recoiled in shock, _"what?!"_ She nearly yelled, _"what the hell is it, and why the hell would the Gaki break in to **my** room to hide it?!"_ She was... Okay, she wasn't going to put the gaki through a wall, but she'd be_ damned _if he ate anything other than a field ration for the next_ month._

"It is an explosive earth release that requires no chakra." Hiruzen said slowly, as if he himself didn't know if he was right.

None of the three knew what to say. Orochimaru stood up and strode over to the Hokage's desk, "may I... _Sensei?"_ He emphasized and almost hissed the last word, the Hokage nodded, and the snake-sannin picked up the weapon. He inspected it with a master R&amp;D Department Head's eye, but couldn't find anything that could work it, or suggested _how_ it worked. It was heavy, though, the steel, the wood, it all had a weight that felt uncomfortable in the sannin's pale hands. "Do you know how it works? What handsigns are needed?"

Hiruzen shook his head, "none at all." He looked to his left, where the office was covered in shadows. "Were the secrecy seals reinforced, Wolf?"

_"Yes, Lord Hokage."_ Came the deep voice of ANBU Wolf.

Hiruzen looked back to Orochimaru, he guided him through the way to activate the technique. "Pull back the latch on the top rear." Orochimaru did so, the cylinder spun, the trigger clicked in to place, the technique seemed to be primed and ready, but lacked the final push to use it. "Point it at..." Hiruzen looked about, but, lacking any good target, he summoned up a shadow clone, and had it stand in front of one of the thicker walls. "The clone." Orochimaru did so, fingering the weapon awkwardly. "Pull the lever on its bottom." Orochimaru did so.

The technique exploded with a deafening clap of thunder, the clone vanished instantly, and Orochimaru was beaned in the face by the weapon, not breaking his nose, but definitely breaking his skin. He threw the gun to the floor out of instinct and his hand went to his nose. Jiraiya and Tsunade had hopped to their feet and were halfway to the other side of the office, with Jiraiya standing on the wall with a pre-made barrier seal ready to be slapped on the ground, and Tsunade with green fire coating her hands, ready to heal wounds either her own or her teammates, her fear of blood _almost_ momentarily forgotten.

There was silence in the room, save for the ringing of the ears of everyone present - the Hokage excluded. After everyone calmed down, he removed the cotton balls from his ears, and briefly clenched his chest as if in pain. Tsunade caught on, "are you okay, Sensei?!" She said out of concern.

"I am fine." Said Hiruzen, "just... Phantom pains."

"What the _hell_ was that?" Jiraiya shouted, his ears still ringing somewhat, before he hopped down from the wall as Orochimaru, deep in thought, clenched his steadily bleeding nose.

Hiruzen shook his head, "I do not _know."_ He said with despair. "Kenichi's arrogance created it."

Tsunade, after passing a brief, but hesitant and shaky, hand over Orochimaru's nose, turned to Hiruzen, suppressing a shudder at the thought and image of the blood. "Then we need to get that little gaki in here and make him -"

_"No!"_ Hiruzen declared, both fearfully and forcefully, silencing the blonde and tearing the snake-sannin from his thoughts. Hiruzen gathered himself, and removed his white hat, running a hand through his graying hair as he collected his thoughts and calmed himself down. "No." He said, calmly this time, but still firmly.

"Sensei..." Orochimaru began, still utterly befuddled at what had just transpired. "He needs to explain to us what this is... I - it must be filed in R-and-D's archives and labeled a kinjutsu." He said slowly, finally breaking his glare at the gun and turning to Hiruzen.

The Sarutobi Clan's head shook his own. "What do you think he will do if we let him on to the fact that we know he is doing something? You saw how defensive he became when Jiraiya confronted him about his notebooks. We _still cannot_ decipher Jiraiya's copied page, and we've spent over half a decade on it." He explained. "If we let him know we know one of his secrets... He'll lock himself down. Hide his things somewhere else, train in dire secret. He made _that -"_ He pointed at the gun, "- it is not within the realm of impossibility that he could hide himself from my all-seeing-eye technique. If we let him in on our secret, he'll do _everything_ of his own in even more secrecy, and we'll never be able to chart his progress or his techniques ever again. Just imagine if he made something _worse_ than this, and we didn't know, because we told him we knew about this... _Thing,_ and he made the next one in secret?" He implored his three.

"But... Sensei... This thing is a..." Tsunade was at a loss for words.

"Thunder kinjutsu." Orochimaru deduced.

"A thunder kinjutsu!" She repeated, concern written all over her normally guarded expression. "If we act like we are unaware, what would he make next? A _sun technique?_ Would he harness the power of the stars? Would he drop the moon on top of us? Create a ten-tailed beast?" She listed off the most ridiculous things she could think off, all suddenly sounding less far-fetched than she had originally believed, thanks to this thing they found.

A _ninja technique_ that required _no chakra!_ Such a thing was _impossible!_ Even kami-damned _explosive tags_ needed some amount of chakra when they were inked up! This kid could revolutionize the entire damned _world!_

Hiruzen shook his head and ran scratched at his beard, never had the aging man looked so haggard as he did right now. Tsunade wasn't the only one feeling out of her league. "Such are the secrets of one brought back from the Pure World." He said, sinking both hands into his hair in a very un-Kage like manner. He lifted his head after everyone had a moment to think and collect their thoughts. "For his sake... For ours..." He looked to the Caged Thunder technique. "For the _world's..._ We must keep this to ourselves... For now." He sighed, deeply, he felt as if it were the middle of the War again, and he was knowingly telling his shinobi to go off and fight a battle that would kill more than half of them if they _won,_ and all of them if they lost. "And pray that he knows what he is doing." He said, sounding far more elderly than he was.

* * *

Grabbing a towel from his pile of clothes, Hibiki wiped some of the sweat off of his shirtless upper half. Minato had fought twice as hard ever since the fight with Fugaku, utterly convinced that Hibiki had been holding out on him and determined to make him give his all with every training match they had, ever.

Even if it meant the two had to remove their shirts due to the raw amounts of sweat they'd kick up, no doubt pleasing Hibiki's steadily but slowly growing legion of fangirls. Neither of them had believed it when a trio of kunoichi-in-training had asked to sit with their small group during a lunch one day, a week after the Fugaku fight. Fugaku - who had, after a few days, taken to sitting with Minato, Hibiki, Chouza and Shikaku - had been the one to snap at the girls, thinking they were his own fangirls and demanding they leave, the look on his face when they'd said they were there for Hibiki had been priceless, and Hibiki had never wished more in either lives that he had a camera than at that very moment. As time went on, the three became five, became ten, became twenty, and before he knew it, Hibiki had had a small legion of them dogging his every step and fawning over his every move.

He would never make fun of Fugaku again for the damn-near limitless patience he seemed to have for them. Back Home, he would have done nearly anything to get even just _one_ girl to obsess over him in school, but now? All he wanted for them was to _go the hell away, _and his friends shared in that sentiment. He knew things had gotten serious when _Shikaku_ had gotten annoyed and had proposed a plan to get rid of them for a day or two.

Today, somewhere just above half of them were in the sparring rooms along with he, Minato, and their other friends less Fugaku - he had his own training to do, something about a Fire technique.

"So... Doesn't one of us have a birthday coming up?" Minato asked conversationally, ignoring the hoops and hollers of the fangirls as they dried off. He'd gotten one or two of his own, even, after they'd seen him hold his own against the Nutty Improviser.

"Yeah. Chouza's turning nine on the twenty second." Said a panting displaced man. "What about it?" He tossed the sweaty, gray towel to the side and reached down for his non-descript black T-Shirt. Despite the idiocy of it, some habits transcended lifetimes, and he had still worn pants during the spar - whereas Minato had changed to shorts. Hibiki wished, almost every time he put on a new pair of pants, for a pair of nice, worn, comfortable, _jeans._ He missed them so much.

"Don't you always tell him about that food you think up when we're at his house?" Minato asked, he too donning his brighter-colored clothes. He saw Hibiki nod, and knew thanks to the look in his red eyes that the Senju with a Sharingan knew where he was going. It was like they were the same person, what had Hibiki said? Great minds think alike? "Well... What if we threw him a surprise party? You make the food you think he'd like the most and we make a night out of it." He proposed, "I think he'd _love_ it."

The wheels started turning in Hibiki's head, as he thought of what Earth stuff he could make for his overweight friend. "I think I could do that... Let's stop by his dad's restaurant tonight and see what he thinks." He was stuck between Pizza and Hamburgers - he knew Chouza would fall head over heels with either of them, but which one he'd like best was what the Senju adoptee was struggling with; the tomoe in his eyes spun irritably as he wrestled with his thoughts, slightly happy he wasn't focusing on training things for the time being.

No, that was what his shadow clones were doing in the various training grounds. They'd pop in an hour or too, and he'd work out to build his muscle to compensate for their development.

Minato grinned, and nodded enthusiastically, his head of spiky, anime-styled blonde hair whipping up and down. "Yeah!" He turned to their friends, who were seated as far away from the giggling fangirls as they could be, while still able to keep an eye on their friends. Ever since the Fugaku fight, they'd been a bit less prone to being late to their sparring matches, and were following the Inexhaustible Duo a bit more closely, that way if things got heated, they could jump in and help just like Minato had done for Hibiki. _"Hey, Chouza!"_ The red-haired boy's head popped up, the hand with the beef-jerky frozen inside his bag. _"Want to..."_ He chose his words carefully, didn't want to tip off the damned fangirls, no matter how much money they'd bring Chouza's family restaurant. _"Get some _good_ food once we're out?"_ He asked; it dawned on Chouza what he was saying, and he nodded enthusiastically - any plan with food was a good plan in his book, but a plan with his _mom's_ food? That was a gift from the divine Kami himself, no one in the elemental nations made steak and barbecue like his mom.

Hibiki nodded alongside a grinning Minato, "I'll catch up with you guys." He told Minato, not shouting, even though it meant Chouza and the napping Nara couldn't her him, it also meant that the girls couldn't hear him either. "I'm going to lose them and head home." He'd had a bad feeling on the back of his neck for the last hour or so, and he wanted to get home and change, and check on his stuff if he could.

Minato inclined his head, but nodded nonetheless. "We'll meet you on Goku Street!" He said with an exuberant smile, which Hibiki returned in the form of a reserved nod.

* * *

Someone had taken the gun.

Someone had taken the gun, and _used the gun!_

If someone wound up dead in the hospital from bullet wounds, it was his goddamn fault.

Hibiki had checked the gun out of compulsion, a bad prickling feeling on the back of his neck that made his hair stand on end. Whoever had taken it - and if it had been Tsunade, she wouldn't have hidden it again, she was a confrontational woman and as such she would have stood there waiting for him, gun in hand, lecture in mind - had hidden it well, exactly how and where he'd hidden it - even down to the orientation of the weapon. But they'd missed a few things which had tipped him off, first one being they hadn't flipped back the hammer and made the gun safe - so-to-speak - and they hadn't replaced the bullet they fired. He practically felt bricks drop from his anus and his heart stop wholesale when he checked the gun and saw it had been fired.

He had to batten down the hatches, hide everything again, somewhere else, keep the gun on him at all times until he learned how to ink his wrist with a small storage seal. He had to hide his journals again and he had to consider burning the Japanese copies he'd made of his Shadow Clone studies. Someone had broken into the house, found the gun, used the gun, likely killed someone with the gun, came back, hidden it with great skill, and left without any of Tsunade's security seals going off.

_Where do I hide it?_ He thought, _how do I approach 'mysterious deaths' with Tsunade?_ He wondered.

He still had infrequent nightmares about Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Gun and his killing of them both, but the prospect that someone had taken the gun and killed someone else with it nearly made him vomit. He should never have made it, it was a stupid idea, he vowed not to bring firearms any further than his revolver until he could make storage seals, and ink them on his very body - never to be separated from him again. He decided to duct-tape the firearm to his thigh, it would be the most inconspicuous hiding spot until he could make a seal - and on that note, Fuinjutsu was now at the very top of his priority list, everything - even his sparring practice with Minato and his Shadow Clones raiding the libraries to read more books faster - was second to learning how to seal things. If the gun could be stolen once, absolutely nothing would stop it from being stolen again unless he did something drastic - like sealing it into his damn wrist.

Quickly snatching a roll of duct-tape - and absent-mindedly admiring that this world _had duct tape - _he ran up to his room and stripped of his sweaty training-clothes. He unrolled the duct-tape and wrapped it and the gun around his left thigh, making sure it was tight enough to be secure, but loose enough so that - on the _off chance _he actually needed it - he could rip it from the tape and have it in his hands relatively quickly. He put on a new pair of pants and checked himself thoroughly in the mirror, there was no bulge - thank god and thank Kami for baggy pants - but he had to make sure to cross his right leg over his left whenever he sat down after that.

After getting dressed and hand-combing his lengthening brown hair back, he spawned and popped a quick shadow clone - letting the ten or fifteen ones that were running around now about the change of plans. He gripped his desk tightly and, after a moment, was assaulted by the memories of fifteen clones. Getting memories en-masse wasn't a gentle process, and while he was starting to get used to it, it still hurt sometimes, like getting a brief migraine, but it wore off after a moment or two. The clones had done the same thing he'd done - spawned a new clone, and then popped it - so he'd get their memories, they'd acknowledge the updated orders, and go off on their quest.

_Okay... Just act natural... But be alert - someone in Konoha knows about the destructive power of a magnum revolver._ He wondered if the man had beaned himself in the face when he'd killed his target, if nothing else, that would have been funny to see. He prepared himself mentally, before he nodded once and adopted his 'Hibiki' face - carefree, jovial, but also serious and reserved at the same time. A living oxymoron.

He exited the house and sprinted for Goku Street.

* * *

Chouza Akimichi's family restaurant _loved_ Hibiki Senju. Not just because he - unlike most of their other friends - would try just about anything they'd give him, but because the one time they'd taken him up on his offer to share a recipe with them, for-profit, their sales had _tripled._ Spaghetti had become an instant hit in the months following, and the word had somehow made it all around the land of fire, with a few people from Rock and Wind even having heard of it - they were making a killing. Of course, he wasn't stupid, he was an academy student somewhat infamous for his genius-level intellect and his steadfast refusal to jump ahead a grade, so he'd finagled a deal with the Akimichi Clan's head for a quarter of the profits made from his recipe to go into a savings account, one he wouldn't touch until he graduated the Academy. Chota had thought he was being generous to the then-seven year old, but after sales had exploded and money had practically come flying in at shunshin-speeds, he'd realized that he wasn't the one being generous - _the kid had been!_

So, when the kid, his blonde friend, and the Nara boy came to them one day with a plan to throw his little Chouza a surprise birthday party, he vowed to never regret Chouza's choice of friends: The lazier than a turtle Nara, the blonde bundle of energy Namikaze orphan, and the Senju with a Sharingan. When Hibiki had told him he planned on making another original recipe, he'd almost shit gold, _almost,_ as Hibiki had said he wasn't yet ready to provide this specific recipe, he wanted to keep it for himself for when and if he retired from the Shinobi corps.

Hibiki could tell from the near perfect peripheral vision his Sharingan that Chota looked damn _blessed_ for his son's connections, and Hibiki didn't blame him.

"So, there we were -" Minato said, bringing him out of his reverie, "- Hibiki had my leg caught in a vice-grip, I wasn't letting his head go for my life, the fangirls were screaming, even _Shikaku_ was up watching the display." Hibiki remembered this particular sparring match, it had ended somewhat painfully.

"What happened?" Chouza was simultaneously focused on Minato's story and his own plate of fried food. Hibiki had thought about trying what the Akimichi heir was having, but he preferred his money-maker with some sausage on top.

"He lost his balance first, and somehow we both managed to land on eachothers' balls!" Minato and Chouza laughed loudly, Shikaku shared a glance and a grimace with Hibiki.

Hibiki, not one to be outdone, grinned and made his voice sound as close to Minato's as he could. He placed his fork on the table and cupped his groin, _"Hibiki! I think my balls broke, I think my balls broke!"_ He cried, shutting Minato up and having Shikaku and Chouza spit up their food.

He ignored the feel of the grip of his gun brushing up against his fingers during his display. He'd worry more heavily about the theft and its usage tomorrow, after school. Right now was the time for friends, because while they may all be around the same eight years of age, they were still his friends, and he still appreciated the sane effect they had on his decades old mind. He'd appreciate the few hours out of the day on the twenty second, no worrying about where Tweedle-Gun got his piece, no studying everything under the sun, no brief migraines that came from the dozens of shadow clones popping themselves before bedtime, just some time to himself to hang out with his friends.

It'd _almost_ be like he was back home.


	7. Wanna Bet?

Chapter 6

* * *

In the two weeks that passed between the planning night and Chouza's birthday, Hibiki had done two things. In order of ascending importance, he'd worked out just how to properly make a large pizza given the materials he had access to in his new world, and he'd begun work on the basics of fuinjutsu.

Simply put, there would be no 'fast track' to learning this art, even with twenty bare-minimum shadow clones studying everything they could get their hands on at all hours of the day - once even when he slept, which had been a bad idea he would never attempt or speak of again - it was still an impossibly difficult task. From his still limited knowledge on the subject, one _literally_ needed perfect penmanship to properly write his own seals, and Hibiki's 'write as fast as you can' style would just get him blown into pieces. This one was the simplest to correct, and though it took _time,_ he had shadow clones working on it at all hours of the day, he gave it a month or two before his handwriting was up to par.

Unfortunately, things only got more complicated as his studies went on. Certainly, one could copy other seals and depending on their own skill, penmanship, and chakra control, would dictate how effective his copied seal would be; however, to make one's own seals, they needed - among countless other things - a key, like a legend on a map, so the seal's effects would be kept somewhere as a base for what it should do, impossibly good chakra control, so as to make certain the chakra-laced ink didn't explode, and the seal itself didn't explode when one poured chakra into it, needed perfect, and clear-cut intentions for what the seal was and what it did. So, for instance, if Hibiki wanted to make a storage seal, it seemed that he needed to have his intentions right and focused for as long as he wrote the seal, chakra control to activate it, and so many other variables it made his head spin.

_Then,_ there was the damned art of making original seals. To make one's own seals, all of the previous requirement have to be met, and one would - to summarize an explanation that took two hundred pages to finally start making sense - essentially have to write their own language. Some seal masters had made new kanji for their seals that would never be seen, heard from, or used again _ever._ The Explosive-Tag - which was practically the ninja grenade - was such an example of an invented language, the only word that was in the common spoken tongue was the kanji at its center which read 'Explode'. Its creator had literally, from the ground up, created an entire language for _one seal,_ and Hibiki had something of a desire to make _many._ It was his advantage that he had English on his side, a language no one spoke and met the requirements for what was explained to him from the books he may or may not have stolen from a ninja library.

In short, it was _god damn difficult_ to learn fuinjutsu, become a master, make his own seals, and learn to ink them on to surfaces other than paper. He hadn't been able to find anything on non-paper written seals, but what he had found had essentially said that, if making his own seals and writing them down on paper was difficult, making his own seals and writing them down on his fucking skin was damn-near impossible. It would be like creating a jet-engine from dog feces, petrified wood, and cow bones.

He wasn't giving up, no matter how difficult it was, but he was pretty frustrated at it, which would either mean he'd slow the hell down and unintentionally draw out the pain that much longer, or get angry and study it like crazy and try and make it go by as fast as he could, both of those being nasty habits he'd picked up in college Back Home and hadn't dropped even after death. One could say that, if he had a teacher, he could expedite the process, and that same person could also argue that the most difficult part - the invention of a language - was already solved thanks to his English skill, but he would respond to that person by saying, in order, if he wanted a fuinjutsu master he'd have to go to Jiraiya, and the Toad Sage was a smart one, despite his lecherous, perverted attitude, the man was a genius, and would likely quickly discern that Hibiki had a reason he was so hurriedly trying to master fuinjutsu, and would put together that he'd done something way out of his league, and the only possible outcome from that would be him revealing the gun, which would be far too much trouble than it was worth. Then there was the point on language; it was true he could speak and write the language - all of his most important notes were in English, and he still read it like a pro - but he hadn't spoken the language in his second life, and the last time he'd written it was a long time before he'd gotten the Shadow Clone technique, having written his discoveries on the latter in japanese - the way he saw it, anyone could figure out the oddities of that technique if they only experimented with it. He had a point to make about the absolute _lack_ of scientific curiosity in this world, but that was a point for a later day, his main point was it would take him a while to get back in to the swing of English's messed up grammar, usage, and mechanics.

So, in summary, fuinjutsu was proving to be a _bitch_ to learn. It was difficult, but possible.

Now, however, he didn't need to worry about that, the guys - Fugaku included - were out in the main room of Chouza's family's restaurant, entertaining the boy of the hour while he made their dinner. It would feel great to slip in to something he _did_ know, because even if he didn't have any pepperoni, he did have sausage, and he preferred that on his own pizzas, so he hoped Chouza would like it as well.

_Ah... Come on, come on, come on..._ He, Minato, and Fugaku had agreed to make him wait back in the kitchen while the food was made, if the boy of the hour saw him at all, he'd probably instantly get some suspicion as to what he was doing there and what he'd get as a birthday meal. The pizza had proven simple to make, and was now simply sitting in the oven, it had just a few more minutes before it was ready to be eaten.

He leaned back, contemplating his friends. There was a massive mental age gap between them - him being... Hell, he'd forgotten now, how old had he been when he died, twenty eight? He was eight now? That made him thirty six years old, technically. He was nearly _four_ decades old, and his friends were all not even _one_,which meant that he had to reign himself in a lot during conversation, he couldn't make bathroom-humor or fire-department jokes, he couldn't reference puberty or any of that, they were all too young - he included, technically. This age difference grated on him somewhat, sometimes he forgot about it and would come very close to snapping at his friends when they either wanted to do something befitting of their age or had such a simple solution that it wouldn't work, but they were convinced it would because they had no idea how the world itself worked. However, whether they knew it or not, they all had a very calming effect on his mind, and had he not started talking to Minato when he did, he may very well have thought and worried himself to death - yes, he still overthought the hell out of things _now,_ but at least now he had multiple forms of stress-release, he could either spar with Minato, play shogi with Shikaku - and he was planning on teaching the boy chess for his upcoming birthday, the kid would _love_ it - or eat and swap jokes with Chouza. They all appreciated the jokes part, but Chouza filled the role of the 'loveable oaf' in their group, though no one should let his weight fool them, just as they shouldn't let Shikaku's laziness or Minato's endless energy fool them, they all were wise beyond their years, and Hibiki had many times considered that that had been why he'd gravitated towards them - they thought older than most kids in the academy, and as such were easier to relate with.

Then there was Fugaku, a case unto himself - everyone in the group loved to hate him, just as he loved to hate them. It was this love/hate relationship that kept them all friends with him, he was the voice of reason the everyone else's dumb ideas, the only sane man in an insane world, so to speak. He somehow managed to reign Minato in, get Shikaku to work, talk Chouza out of that second helping, and get Hibiki to _stop_ working, and though he - and, by proxy, they - would never admit it, he appreciated what they did for him: They didn't treat him as the infallible Uchiha Heir who either did no wrong or was the worst boy in the village, they just treated him like another member of the gang. A member that would almost always pick fights with Hibiki, and had a win-loss record of eight to eight, now, but a member nonetheless. Conversely, they appreciated the sanity he brought to the group, Shikaku would suggest the laziest solution, Minato would suggest the biggest, and Fugaku would present to - to all people - _Hibiki_ a mixture of the two solutions, the solution that _worked_ and worked _best._ Chouza just ate and did whatever he was told - again, ever the loveable oaf.

All in all, they may be a band of misfits, but they were _Hibiki's_ band of misfits, and he'd have any of their backs, any day.

Except when puberty hit. He had gone through that once and he did not want to make the process easy on them - why should they not feel any pain when he'd had to go through a whole lifetime of it? Though, that did bring up a problem he'd been wrestling with ever since the fangirls had started hounding him and Minato - dating. From what he'd learned, Ninja started dating _young - _usually around their Genin promotion. This was because the lifespan for a ninja rarely extended past twenty five years, and got shorter and shorter as time and promotions went on. From what he understood, the life expectancy for a Jonin was five years after his promotion, and for an ANBU, it was three years _period,_ with decreasing increments depending on the job. So when he looked at it from his point of view, if he started dating at new-age twelve, he would mentally be forty two - or somewhere around there, at least. Was he willing to deal with that? That was a kind of situation that got people arrested, sent to jail, and had broomsticks shoved up their asses and through their mouths Back Home, but here - as long as the youngins in question were within a few years of each-other - no one cared. Arranged marriages were common as far back as _birth - _Fugaku's dad had been signed off to a woman when he was _in the womb,_ with Fugaku himself about to get hitched to some Uchiha maiden he'd never caught the name of. When the hell should _he_ start dating? _Should _he start dating? Because he'd be a forty plus year old man dating anywhere from pre-teen to teenage girls, that was pedophilia, no matter what his physical age was.

The smell of a fully cooked pizza stole his mind away from such mind-hurting thoughts. He shook his head and brushed the topic away by just deciding to wing it and take it as it comes - if he finds an awesome girl and he's twelve, he'll stick with it for as long as it works. If he doesn't find someone awesome until he's twenty physical, and sixty mental? So be it.

_Maybe I should stop thinking of things in terms of 'technical' and 'physical'._ He considered, as he put the gloves on and checked the pizza.

Oh, it was most definitely ready.

Despite the cramped, half sterile white and blue and half warm brown and red kitchen not affording him much room - which struck him as odd, given most Akimichi had enough weight to weigh down a large car - Hibiki spawned a shadow clone and, together, they removed the party-sized pizza from the oven, laid it down, and started cutting it up in to pieces. This was such a large pizza that it could have fed _ten_ people, Back Home, and there still would have been room enough for left-overs, so the Akimichi should be fine. Hibiki sent his shadow-clone to catch Minato's attention - and to open the door to allow the smell to escape, which would likely _instantly_ catch Chouza's attention. He waited a moment, the clone popped himself, letting the Alpha know it was good to come out - perfect, even, Chouza was in the bathroom, so he'd exit and be greeted by the best Earth food Hibiki could make.

With another clone spawned to help him carry the food out, Hibiki, the clone, Minato and Fugaku helped situate the food on the table and make sure it was alright. The sausage was arranged on the pizza so it read out 'Happy Birthday Chouza', and Minato said, with no uncertainty, that it had to be the best smelling thing he'd ever smelled, and Chota agreed.

Two more minutes passed, and then the red-haired Akimichi heir exited the bathroom, his eyes widened noticeably when the smell of the pizza hit his nostrils, and they widened as far as they could possibly go when he saw his final friend standing behind a food he'd never seen before. The biggest smile he'd ever had grew onto his face as his family and his friends started singing a rousing chorus of 'Happy Birthday', and when they were done, Hibiki offered him the first slice of 'Pizza' ever to grace the leaf village - and, though no one else knew it, likely to have ever graced _this world._ Had Chouza known, he would have felt honored - hell, he _did_ feel honored, but mostly because he could tell just by looking at it how much work it must have taken to make it.

He froze stiff after the first sloppy slice graced his mouth. His eyes were wide, his mouth chewing on pure instinct, the hand holding the slice was hovering, frozen stiff, over his yellow plate. Someone prodded the Akimichi heir - how _good was it?_ they wanted to know. Chouza snapped out of it and before anyone could say something else, he had half of the pizza in his mouth and was voraciously ripping into it like a starving man would eat a three-course meal. When he was done - and finished coughing, because the thing was still pretty hot - he loudly proclaimed that it was the single greatest thing he'd ever eaten, _ever,_ and unless Hibiki did the impossible and spawned something better, nothing in the elemental nations - not even the thread of death - would change that. Then he grabbed another slice, and everyone almost started fighting over each other to grab one of their own.

Hibiki simply sat back on his folding chair, smiling as he absorbed the warm, friendly, and celebratory atmosphere of the room. Everyone was loving the pizza, the other present Akimichi were practically slobbering over it, Minato was inhaling his, Shikaku was eating it quickly - for a Nara - and even Fugaku was looking at it, wide-eyed, and likely wishing he had his Sharingan with him so he could remember every single detail of this meal forever.

_So if the ninja thing never works out, introducing America's best and worst foods will help me make my million._ He smiled, and pushed the thought that they all were loving his food so much because they were hallucinations, and these were _his favorite foods_, out of his mind. This was not the day to be doubting reality.

After an hour passed of celebration - and one rather short-lived pizza eating contest between Minato and Chouza, the latter of whom won by eating _two slices at the same time - _Hibiki noticed the serious look in Chota's eye. Hibiki turned and looked in the direction of the door, there in it stood an ANBU agent in a Bear's mask, making her way to him.

He blinked, and couldn't help but pale - _did they know about the gun?!_ He swallowed heavily, "err... Is there something you need, Miss Bear?"

She shook her head, "you have been summoned by Mito Uzumaki. She has tasked me with retrieving you." Who the hell warranted - _wait Mito Uzumaki had summoned him?!_ Mito Uzumaki, as in, the first Hokage's _wife,_ Mito Uzumaki? The oldest living woman in the village, Mito Uzumaki? The only Kunoichi who could probably make Tsunade quake in her shoes, _Mito Uzumaki?_

"Why does Lady Uzumaki wish to see me?" The party had quickly grown silent as everyone noticed Rat's presence. Why couldn't this shit happen _after_ he was done taking a mental break from all of the over-thinking?

Bear shrugged, "not my problem." She lifted her arm, "grab on."

Oh god, he hated side-along body flickers. He had only stopped vomiting after Uncle Orochimaru had gotten annoyed and had flickered the two of them all around the village, constantly, for an hour. So while he didn't vomit anymore, it still felt uncomfortable, like going down a long dip on a roller-coaster, or being dropped a hundred feet through the air thanks to some bad turbulence on an air-plane. _He hated it._

But he grabbed on anyways, Mito Uzumaki was not a woman to ignore, and she was not a woman to piss off. A moment later, they vanished from the now thoroughly dead party.

* * *

Meeting the oldest woman in the village, Hibiki suddenly felt like there was a lot more riding on this than the rest of his night. She simultaneously carried an air of power earned and respect demanded. By simply giving him one single, appraising look, she had told him so much and, likely, he so much to her. But what was most telling to him was what he caught a peek of before she put a dark red scarf on to cover up her neck and throat - she had one _hell_ of a tumor growing up her neck. Hibiki had seen cancer before, one of his friends had fought the fight and lost, and while it was somewhat different, person to person, he knew that she had some kind of cancer, and it was killing her.

That she still managed to stay on her feet and look like she could wipe out half of the village spoke leagues about either her strength, her will, or her chakra control. He didn't mention it, something told him that it would be a very unwise thing to do, he could almost _feel_ something in her, bubbling beneath the surface, not the cancer, but something angrier, more powerful than nature's most horrifying killing tool.

He cleared his throat, being the first to end the silence between the two. "Err... What are we waiting for, ma'am?" He asked, there had been an extended silence between the two since he'd arrived, he didn't know if she was waiting for someone else, or was waiting for him to speak.

"Someone else." She stated plainly, her voice was definitely addled with age and was suppressing the effort it took to keep up appearances, but he was surprised that she was still kind and warm-toned despite the golf-ball sized growth on her neck. What was her secret? Did she sell her soul to the devil?

"Oh." He broke her gaze and took a sip of the tea he'd been offered upon arrival.

He nearly spat it out when he heard a horrendous crashing noise coming from behind him, he turned his head and Mito looked up, both of them interested, as a fiery red-head practically came barreling through the door to Mito's tea-room. The girl was breathing heavily and some sweat was pouring down her forehead, she looked as if she'd sprinted all the way here from wherever she'd been before being summoned by the former-Senju head.

_"I'm so sorry I'm late!"_ She bowed with such fervor that she lost her balance and smacked her head on the ground. That didn't seem to stop her from her grovelling, however, as she kept going after impact, _"I was out eating ramen when I saw a creepy guy in a mask start walking my way so I didn't hesitate and ran as fast as I could and I didn't know he was ANBU I only just got to this village please -"_

"Please yourself." Mito said calmly, a light grin on her face, as if amused. "Calm. I am not angered by your tardiness. It is a natural and understandable instinct for a child of such age and gender as yourself to run from what could be a potential sexual predator." She said, grin still light, tone still warm, and with a small nod.

_Keep your eyes and ears open and your mouth shut._ Hibiki quoted his mother, not willing to break the admittedly amusing display for fear of retribution from either of the two women. _That being said... What the fuck did I just witness?_ He wondered as the red-head got up and dusted herself off. She was dressed very dissimilarly to Mito; where the elder woman wore formal, chinese-like robes and had her hair up in a very tight bun, this girl was wearing a casual skirt and a plain T-shirt.

Soon after the brief display, the girl herself had a cup of tea in front of her, and silence reigned again as the noblewoman appraised the younger one as she had done the boy. "I believe introductions are in order." She finally said. "I shall begin. My name is Mito Uzumaki. I am the widowed wife of the first Hokage of the Hidden Leaf Village and am hailed as one of its foremost seals mistresses." She kindly nodded to Hibiki.

He cleared his throat, and silently wondered why she'd tacked on that last bit at the end. "My name is Hibiki Senju." _I am a reincarnated thirty six year old asshole who still doesn't know if he's hallucinating or not. _"I am Tsunade Senju's son." What the hell _else _would he say?

Mito seemed satisfied, "I know little Tsunade, my husband doted on her so." She said kindly, "it has been a while since I have seen her myself, she liked my husband more than I. I didn't know she had a child." She nodded again, Hibiki wondered if that was her instinctual response to everything - like he did when he shrugged, or Minato did by shouting at something.

The red-head went next after being beckoned by Mito. "I am Kushina Uzumaki, daughter of Had and Hana. I arrived at this village a few days ago from Uzushiogakure, and am in the process of being enrolled at the local Shinobi Academy." She looked like she could have said a lot more, but she withered under Mito's gaze.

_If she's going to show up soon, I wonder if she'll end up meeting Minato. Given her previous performance, I think they'd get along. _But the better question would be, who could shout louder?

Mito nodded once again, he tightly-bunned hair not shifting an inch as she did so. "It is nice to meet the both of you." She said, "I know you are wondering why I have summoned the two of you." This got Hibiki to put his cup down and lean forward with interest, an act of which she didn't miss. "It is simple, truly. My time is coming, and there are things I wish to pass on." She said, quickly turning serious. "Hibiki. I was not aware that you were the child of Tsunade, but I had heard a Senju was looking in to the art of sealing with an Uzumaki-esque fervor, and I wish to make certain the things I have learned and that my husband taught me are not lost." Hokage seals, now _that_ interested him. "I had honestly been expecting little Nawaki to be the one I would see tonight, but it seems I am far more out of touch than I realized, if he is no longer around." Her pupilless eyes looked somewhat concerned at her own words, but her warm, albeit serious tone betrayed none of that. "If you would have me, I would teach you what I know and my husband knew."

Had he had the chakra for it in the first place, he would have dropped his Sharingan out of shock, but he'd more or less emptied his stores the day previous because of a stupid experiment that had bared only a few results, and as such he didn't have enough to keep it up nearly as long as he could have. Instead, he blinked smartly and broke her gaze to run a hand through his hair. "Err... Certainly, ma'am." He said, "thank you for this opportunity."

Mito nodded, "you are welcome. However, as a caveat for being my apprentice, whatever I say within these walls must not leave them until such a time as I can safely say you have the skills to repeat them, and I reserve the rights to change such rulings if ever I see fit." She said, before turning to Kushina, who was several shades paler than she had been before. "Kushina, daughter of Had and Hana. You were brought to the village on my request. Very few knew, and fewer still live who remember, but when he forged the hidden villages, my husband sealed within nine individuals, creatures of such power that if they were to be unleashed, they would wreak havoc and death on untold and indescribable scales. He had hoped that these would be a deterrent to violence and war, and eventually, a proponent for peace, but unfortunately, he was wrong, and they simply fueled the atrocities for war." Hibiki got out of that only one thing: Hashirama tried to make a nuclear deterrent, but instead of fearing Mutually Assured Destruction, the villages instead just started bombing the hell out of each other whenever the going got tough.

Kushina blinked, trying to figure out what the woman was telling her. "I..."

"Such individuals, known as Jinchuriki, have sealed within them the legendary tailed beasts. I am certain you know of them." Hibiki could actually say he _didn't,_ he'd read a bit about them but there wasn't a lot of reference material on them. He'd just assumed they were some kind of errant technique that everyone didn't touch for fear of breaking reality. Chock this one up to how wrong he'd been. "When sealed within a human being, they can grant great power, but they also bring with them a terrible curse, as they must be _passed on,_ lest their jinchuriki die and risk the inevitability of the beast being reintroduced to the world."

Well, that sucks. It dawned for Hibiki what the woman was saying - and why she'd told him to keep his mouth shut about it before she'd said anything - far before it did for Kushina, who, though she was starting to connect the dots, was still trying to understand what the ancient woman was saying.

Mito caught on that Kushina hadn't yet put the pieces together, "Simply put, miss Kushina, I am dying." She finally said bluntly. "Try as he might, the beast within me cannot stop what ails me, and as such, I must pass him on, otherwise... Well, I have seen his destruction first hand. It was the reason I took on the burden of the most powerful of the beasts. I summoned you to this village because I needed to train and prepare an Uzumaki seal-master to take on the responsibility of being the Jinchuriki of the Village Hidden in the Leaves." She paused, "Kushina, daughter of Had and Hana, I have summoned you here because you must be the one to take on the role."

It took the red-head a few moments to fully understand what the woman had told her, but when she finally did, the horror grew across her face far faster than Mito's cancer was growing along her neck, and to make matters worse, the waterworks started. Before he knew what was happening, Hibiki was being ordered outside so Mito could continue conversing with the young Uzumaki, he had been told to come back tomorrow, and just like that, he was outside the house, blinking his confusion.

_What the fuck just happened?_

* * *

Serizawa Hyuga sat patiently as he waited for Tsunade Senju to arrive. They did this little song and dance once every six months, and today would be no different. Out of concern of his chakra reserves, the blind Hyuga kept his bloodline firmly deactivated until Tsunade entered the room and declared herself. If he were to say so himself, her son was something of a wonder - almost as lazy as a Nara, but twice as brilliant as the same in his academic pursuits, whilst still managing to give his resident Uchiha a terrifyingly close run for his money when it came to class rank. Then take in to consideration that the Senju heir was able to drag the orphan, Minato, and their other friends, the Nara and the Akimichi, up with him through the ranks, and they had something of a born leader among them.

Simply put, the child was too smart and too skilled to keep in the academy. He'd learned everything he needed, and whatever he didn't know, he studied with an almost angry passion. He certainly didn't try to hide his physical development - he trained extensively with Minato every day, and had frequent taijutsu matches with Fugaku whenever he decided it was time to 'kick it up a notch', as he said, and startlingly often he fought _other_ students. When Serizawa had learned this, he'd almost stormed in to the sparring rooms and forced them to a stop - such an act was common of a feud between students and commonly ended in serious injury and hatred that wouldn't abate for years, and yet, such things didn't even enter the young Senju's mind. Instead of hating his fellow students, or them hating him, after winning - or, as did sometimes happen, _losing - _he gave them pointers, taught them a few things, and went along his way with little change save for the new experience. People were looking up to the kid and he was only eight. He was Jonin material for sure, the only thing the Academy really had left to teach him was chakra control and the clone technique, but the Hyuga had a sneaking suspicion, given the infrequent but sudden jolts of chakra the kid would get, that he'd already gone far past something as simple as that.

In its simplicity, the kid was done with the academy, all that needed to happen was for the academy to realize this, thus, what Serizawa hoped to bring up to the Senju Head tonight. He heard the door open and sensed the chakra of the woman before he heard her voice. "Serizawa?" He heard the woman call out.

His dojutsu activated and he saw her with instant clarity. It had taken him a _very_ long time to focus his technique to the point where he didn't automatically see through women's clothing, such a courtesy his wife and her friends greatly appreciated. "Come in, Lady Tsunade." He watched her with his sightless, bandaged eyes,as she entered the room and took a seat in front of him. "Will Lords Jiraiya or Orochimaru be joining us tonight?"

She shook her head, "Jiraiya's out of the country on-mission, and Orochimaru is too busy with R&amp;D." She said, "so how is my little Gaki doing?" She asked.

Serizawa decided that he would respond bluntness with bluntness. "I wish to graduate him." He said simply, not even giving Tsunade the time to react before he continued on. "I am well aware of his extra-curricular activities and pre and post school training. Your child is beyond anything the academy can give him. Just yesterday during detention I saw him reading _Fuinjutsu _textbooks and taking his own notes. I know some _Jonin_ that fear that art, and yet he is taking it before he's even halfway through his education here. As well, infrequently, but often enough for it to be noticeable to me, his chakra fluctuates and rises in levels that are consistent with Shadow Clones bursting. He _himself_ has moved beyond the academy and is pursuing his own studies when he is here." He explained to the legendarily bull-headed sannin. "I cannot ignore it for any longer. He is beyond academy training, he needs a Jonin sensei, and if what the political climates are saying, he will need one _soon._"

Tsunade, for her worth, managed to stay calm and composed through his admittedly lecture-like explanation. When he was finished, she spoke simply. "No."

Had he been a lesser, less-experienced man, he would have sighed, but he was a Hyuga and such things were beneath him. However, he saw the brief fluctuation in her chakra levels when she made her declaration, and her throat quivered in such a way that said her voice was supposed to be shaking, even if she was doing a good enough job of masking it. She was nervous, and she knew he was right, but she didn't want to admit it, likely because she _knew_ how relations were faring with the other nations and didn't want her son thrust into such things earlier than he had to.

"Lady Tsunade." Serizawa said slowly, "I am not the only one who sees these things and thinks such thoughts. Before speaking with you I confided in my fellow teachers, and they all said the same thing - he is beyond our ability to teach. Even in his formerly weakest subjects, weapons and taijutsu, he has exploded beyond all save for a select few of his peers. If we leave him in the academy, we will only be wasting and likely retarding his potential." He paused, to let her think, but only long enough for her to do just that and nothing more. "I do have someone lined up, who is willing to take on the responsibility of instructing the last Senju heir in his Shinobi skills."

He could see rage building up in her, but exceeding that was a sense of resignation. "Who?"

Serizawa briefly flared his chakra, "I am certain you have heard Dante Uchiha's name during your experiences on the battlefield." He began, "well, he was cleared from recovery a few months ago. You yourself may have seen the report cross your desk at the hospital." He said offhandedly, "well, he is not yet ready for his old work and the related assignments, and there is little precedent for them regardless, so it was suggested to him that he take on a Genin team to help ease him back in to things, and he agreed. I chose him for his skill, and admittedly because of Hibiki's apparent skill with the bloodline given to him by his father, but also because of what Dante wishes for his team to specialize in."

Tsunade steeled herself, Serizawa was somewhat awed at how easily the made-of-iron woman crumpled when her son was involved. "Let me guess. Dante Uchiha's genin team will specialize in combat."

"That's right." Came the new, exhausted, deep, and oddly accented voice. Tsunade turned, but Serizawa didn't even move - he'd had an 'eye', so to speak, on Dante ever since he'd activated the Byakugan, he had only been two rooms over, after all. With Dante's entrance in the room, the scent of mints flowed inward. "It is nice to meet you, Lady Tsunade." He bowed half-way between respectfully and in greeting, his horrendously uncared for hair fell across his shoulders in dirty, unkempt clumps. He hadn't washed in days, a fact which made Serizawa glare at him, he'd _told_ the man to make himself presentable for Tsunade! "I assume -" He yawned without even covering his face, "- you're Hibiki's mom?" He gave her a look over, "he has his dad's eyes. And hair." He looked down slightly, then back up. "And body."

Tsunade was gripping the chair so hard she was literally crushing the iron wood it had been carved from. "No." Her resolve had been steeled by the unkempt, unwashed Uchiha's appearance. _"No."_ She repeated firmly, before Serizawa could even speak. "I'll let _Orochimaru_ train him before this one."

Again before Serizawa could speak, the dirty Uchiha spoke up. "How about a bet, then?" Serizawa froze, and Tsunade shattered the arms of her chair - this one was good, and he was too well informed.

She couldn't resist it, and with a glare that could kill, she turned back to look at the Uchiha, who was lazily picking his ear with his pinky. "_The... Stakes?!"_ She growled out, with considerable effort.

"I win, I get the kid. You win, he stays here 'till Lord Jiraiya can pick him up." So he knew about that, too? She didn't blink, too angry to do so, maybe he _was_ good. "The terms are simple: You and me, one on one, the first one to get hit loses." Tsunade opened her mouth, ready to say that all she'd need to take this guy down would be _one finger _almost before he'd finished the challenge, but he raised his wax-covered finger and cut her off. "But! No taijutsu. No genjutsu. Only one ninjutsu, and if you use more than one, you forfeit. Bloodlines are allowed, weapons are not."

Tsunade accepted the challenge. One technique? She knew just the one. This guy had said nothing at all about summons.

* * *

A sannin, a Jonin, and an Academy Instructor sprint to a training ground. It sounded like the beginning of a pretty bad joke, but that was what had happened almost immediately after the encounter in the classroom. Here, in the dead of night, two ninja who had had their skill forged in the fires of the battlefield, would settle a bet. The night was almost oppressively dark, the only light being from that of the crescent moon and the stars above. The trees were black from the dark and the ground was a uniform brown-gray, the only color was the muted color schemes that came from the lone three shinobi on the training field.

His three-pronged Sharingan blazing brilliantly for the first time in eight unending _years,_ the Jonin kept himself calm, collected, and reserved. It wouldn't do him any good to get cocky while he was fighting a sannin. He'd let her take the first move, that one would dictate the pace and the tone of their entire game. He gave his old friend a brief nod, and Serizawa cleared his throat, his breath making frost in the cold night. "Begin!" He called out.

Faster than most ninja could even think, the Sannin had her palm on the ground and the contact-seal spiraled out, chakra exploding outwards from her and then inwards to the seal. Barely a second later a slug as big as a house appeared in a massive explosion of chakra-laced smoke. Had it been normal smoke, it wouldn't have blinded him, but because of the chakra the sannin had no doubt expended purposefully, it kept him blind for those precious few seconds it took her to order her slug to attack.

Clever girl, he hadn't said anything about summons, so the rules didn't apply there. He'd never bothered with the summoning art, it took too much chakra, and he didn't really like trusting his life to an animal, no matter how smart.

He saw the chakra funnel through the slug as it expanded and contracted - and had successfully dodged the acid bullet before it had even gotten halfway to him. He was leaping across the ground as the slug was splitting itself apart, intent on bringing numbers into the equation, but it had already given him a valuable clue - it spit acid. His first thought was to use a fire technique and be done with it, but this slug was somewhat legendary for the punishment it could take, lighting a little fire wouldn't even tickle it, let alone put it out of commission. _But,_ durability didn't mean jack when it was covered in an electrically-conductive slime and was covering the battlefield in a similarly conductive acid, now did it?

People very often forgot the basics. The clone technique was never seen on the battlefield, the substitution was rarely seen, and low-level techniques were often disregarded for the flashy, instant-kill ones. Dante, however, made it a point to remember everything he was taught, even the one-sign lightning technique meant for _beginners,_ that barely took any chakra from a _genin,_ let alone a Jonin war veteran. With his power behind it, added to its chakra requirement - or practical lack thereof - he could basically spit, shit, piss, and vomit lightning, and still be able to keep going for hours. He only had above-average chakra stores for a Jonin, but it was what he did with it that got him an A-rank Bingo Book entry.

That he could spam lighting without any hand-signs? That was just overkill, in his old teammate's opinion, and it was for Serizawa's benefit that he did just that for this fight. He threw his hand forward and lightning sailed forward so fast and so frequently that it was almost a constant stream, and the witless summons had been spreading its watery slime all over the battlefield - no matter where it was, it got hit. It wised up quick and started jumping everywhere instead of crawling, but half of its surprisingly large number was on the ground convulsing uncontrollably.

The hairs flew up on the back of his neck, and not because of the electricity he was generating. Without hesitating, Dante pushed off of his tree and dived straight for the ground, narrowly dodging an acid ball as he did so. He landed left-hand first, and pivoted around before he launched himself off of the ground, zapping the offending slug and sending it falling to the ground, slime and acid flew out in all directions upon impact.

Tsunade was starting to see why he'd picked his own terms, _damn_ good as Katsuyu was, there was a reason she didn't like lightning affinities. Her multiple spawns were convulsing uncontrollably all across the slime-filled ground, unwittingly spewing out more slime in an attempt to protect herself from the physical damage - which, in effect, only exacerbated the lightning and made it worse when the Uchiha zapped them again to keep them down. Worse, the Senju sannin knew that Katsuyu couldn't simply split apart in to her smallest form, her liquid form would just make things ten times as worse than they were now.

The Uchiha was _playing._ The Senju was tempted to haul off and whack him just for that, but she had a bet to win, so she silently apologized to the slug and dodged a lightning bolt. Unfortunately for her, she'd done so on instinct, and as she was heading back down for a fast landing, she suddenly realized what the Uchiha had made her do - if she wanted to get traction and friction on the slime, she'd need to use chakra, which would make her lose. But if she didn't use chakra, she'd slip on the substance and leave herself open for attack. She had no counter for this, not without one of her techniques.

But, she was proven wrong. He didn't even wait for her to land, she was in mid-air, she couldn't dodge him, so he pushed off of a dry patch of ground and flew up to meet her, lightning gathering in his hand. Just as he came within a few feet of her, the lightning flew forth and zapped her, its force sending her flying backwards along the same trajectory as his own. He landed just a few feet from her, just before he got a face full of acid.

And promptly turned into a log.

_"What the fuck?!"_ Tsunade was on her feet, chakra streaming through every muscle, before Serizawa could even blink. She sensed the Uchiha behind her and took a swing, her fist landed on his face and he slammed into a tree, she and her summons were in front of him in less than a second, but she was stopped by the sound of laughter.

"I win!" Laughed the accented Uchiha.

"The fuck you do! You used the lightning _and_ the substitution technique!" She roared, as Katsuyu pooled acid in her mouth, just waiting for the word.

The Uchiha grinned a bloody mouth, "wrong."

"Wrong?!"

"That's right!" He dislodged himself from the tree, but found himself stuck there by Katsuyu's hardened slime technique. "Wrong!" He grinned, "you see, I only used the lightning technique. I'd _already_ performed a substitution, before Serizawa called go. So, I only used one technique." He wasn't trying to dislodge his midsection from the tree, he saw the look dawning in Tsunade's eyes as she realized that he'd caught her in a loophole, just as she'd done to him. "_You..._ On the other hand..."

She'd said all she'd need was one finger, but she was too angry to remember that, so she instead curled up her hand into a fist and put the arrogant Uchiha through the tree. After she made sure she'd undone all his injuries in a way that guaranteed he'd be sore for days, she stalked away, sending away Katsuyu with a thanks, and didn't even acknowledge his victory.

Or the fact that he'd probably be perfect for Hibiki.

But she'd be _damned_ if Hibiki only got his tricks from a cocky, dirty Uchiha. Maybe it was time to start talking to Jiraiya and Orochimaru, Hibiki needed to learn a few more of their tricks before he took on that damned man's.


	8. The Test

Chapter 7

* * *

Being told he was Mito Uzumaki's one of two _only_ apprentices hadn't been enough for the Universe, it seemed. Whichever god he'd pissed off had just decided to remind him of the fact - because now he had an irate Tsunade training him 'her last gift' in the form of a medical technique, promises to be seen by both _Jiraiya and Orochimaru, _and this dirty looking Uchiha telling him he was getting a Jonin instructor, without having even taken the Genin exam.

_What the fuck?_

Such words pretty much summarized everything that happened the last three days. Minato went 'what the fuck' when he saw the headband suddenly appear on Hibiki's face, Fugaku went 'what the fuck' when his best friend/rival/enemy had surpassed him in rank, Chouza and Shikaku went 'what the fuck' when they realized they didn't have someone to cheat off of or spend detentions with, and even_ Mito_ had went 'what the fuck' when he showed up one day wearing a Konoha headband.

Mito had been somewhat understanding, after Hibiki told her what he was capable of, but had promised him that she would not take it easy on him in his instructions - he had told her yes and had therefor made a verbal agreement. He was obligated to show up and learn or such an agreement would be broken and she could refuse to ever teach him again. Thank _god_ for the shadow clone technique.

Minato had been somewhat pissed off, amusingly enough. He'd nearly knocked the Senju heir out _cold_ when he saw him show up, headband donned, to their sparring practice, but had been stopped by the appearance of a certain lost Uzumaki. Hibiki had actually fell down laughing when he saw the look on Minato's face - the kid's jaw had almost literally been hanging from his head at the appearance of the Uzumaki.

"Is this where they let us beat people up and they don't ask questions!?" She'd brashly asked.

Minato shook his head and gathered his wits, "yeah! Want to spar?!" He asked excitedly.

The red-head glared at him, _"hell_ no!" She walked back in to the room she'd appeared from, and after a moment, came back in dragging a kid who was covered in bruises and only barely conscious. She promptly started kicking his chest in an amusing, anime-esque fashion, yelling at him angrily about tomatoes.

And that, odd and amusing as it had been, had been how Minato Namikaze and Kushina Uzimaki had met. Unfortunately for Hibiki Senju, he wouldn't get to see the friendship and the eventual romance bud, he literally had half of a dozen things pulling him in as many directions: one clone with ample chakra was dedicated to Tsunade and her medical training, one clone with ample chakra was dedicated to Lady Mito and her fuinjutsu instruction, another two clones each with healthy amounts of chakra were dedicated to Orochimaru and Jiraiya for whatever unholy things they would be teaching them, a fifth clone with the bare-minimum chakra working on Earth-science experiments, and then he himself - with as much chakra as he could keep without worrying - was left in a classroom with dozens of other graduates, all there, all waiting for their Jonin instructors to come, announce their teams, and pick them up.

Hibiki had _no damn clue_ which two were his, but his mind was too far away to think about that. Tsunade had been two colors of pissed when she'd showed up the night Mito had popped her instruction on him, one color had been about Dante Uchiha and his newfound instructor status, and the other color had been about Mito herself.

"What -" She had cried, " - she doesn't talk to me in ten years and all of a sudden wants my kami damn son so she can teach him fuinjutsu?!" She was so livid that her killing intent had almost started peeling the paint off of the walls.

Needless to say, she had kept him from Mito's for a few days due to her constant visits to the elder Uzumaki-Senju's home with her attempts to get her to stop teaching the boy. Despite her strong warnings against missing the instructions and the repercussions of doing so, Mito hadn't said a word six days after the feud had begun when Hibiki had finally been able to sneak out of the house and get there on time.

"Just please..." She had said, right after she'd given him her warnings and right before Kushina had showed up. "Don't ever miss my instruction again."

And speaking of Mito, _holy shit,_ had that been a lot of information to take in. She was basically a walking, tumor-infested _nuke_,and was trying to get her detonator passed on before it too got covered in tumors; and for whatever reason, she wanted to teach _him_ how to mess with reality by sealing it up in a tin can. He would give her one thing, however, the woman was _smart,_ probably smarter than his new mother, the way she described the art of sealing and helped him out when he needed it made the entire damn process twice as easy. Thanks to his clones utilizing their Sharingan - however sparingly - he was able to retain with perfect clarity everything she said and showed him. It would still be a long process to learn fuinjutsu and finally get the gun taped to his hip sealed to his wrist, but it seemed like it would be a lot less long with her teaching him.

Uzumaki, after all, were natural with Fuinjutsu, and the more she taught him, the more naturally it came to him. After a week of training, he'd managed to copy down his first exploding tag, and after a month, he was - according to her - halfway to putting chakra in ink. Unfortunately for him, with whatever fuinjutsu users did, if they did it wrong, it exploded, and _boy_ had Tsunade been mad when he came in one day with scorched arms and an ink-stained face. After that month, however, that had brought him to the end of the academy's year, and as such, the graduating class was graduating, and he had no more time for 'face-to-face' training with her, and as such she was now clone duty.

Then, of course, came the three sannin. They each had different things they absolutely _had_ to teach him before he became a gennin, apparently, but each of them went about it differently. Tsunade wanted to teach him her medical techniques, and to do so she hammered in to him _precise_ chakra control, and in order to do _that,_ she was making him walk on water.

"Fuck the trees!" She had roared from the middle of the lake she'd appropriated, "if you can stand on a raging lake, you can stand on an immobile tree!" And just a moment later, she'd started punching the living hell out of the lake, putting more strength into it each time Hibiki fell under. It had taken him the entire month and a half he'd had before graduation just to get down walking on water without his clone bursting due to lack of chakra. It was doing wonders for his chakra pool, all the stress, but still - it was exhausting, and somewhat painful, stressing them to the limit each day and almost _feeling_ his pools stretching each night.

But, he couldn't say her methods weren't effective, it took the utmost control to be able to stand on raging, shaking, shifting waters, and it only got more difficult the more strength Tsunade put into her punches. He was able to stand on the lake as it was, now, but he couldn't walk more than ten steps before he slipped up and the raging waters claimed him. Tsunade had said that, once he can run _laps_ on this raging lake without any effort in concentration, then he would be able to learn her medical techniques.

Then there was Jiraiya, Hibiki didn't know _what_ the hell that man was trying to teach him, he was so 'hands-off' it hurt. Literally, it _hurt,_ the man was trying to teach Hibiki how to augment his muscles with chakra, with_out_ handsigns, but wasn't giving him a single damn hint as to how to do it. Hibiki's Sharingan only helped him so much when it came to watching Jiraiya's demonstrations, and due to the limited chakra pools of his clones, he could only practice for so long before the clone popped, or had to stop to recover some of its strength. How would Hibiki know he was ready to move on to whatever was next? Well, it was simple - once he could move some overly _massive_ boulder with his chakra enhanced muscles, and nothing else, he'd be ready. Hibiki had been nearly ready to tear his hair out after the first week, but he was somehow making progress, despite it all, which was more than could be said for Orochimaru.

Orochimaru was teaching the displaced man a little of just about everything - _everything._ Swordsmanship, other weapons, ninjutsu, taijutsu, genjutsu, stealth, trap-making and detecting, sensing chakra, the man was a _demon,_ and he gave no warning when he switched topics - one moment he was swinging the Grass Cutter blade at him yelling 'dodge' with every swing, the next he'd be throwing quadruple-layered genjutsu onto him and telling him to dispell it without his Sharingan, which, they'd learned after day one, could see _through_ genjutsu. As much as it physically and mentally pained him to do so, Hibiki pained through it - taking a mixture of the Mister Miyagi and the Son Goku approach, in that hard work would eventually let him see the method to his teacher's madness.

Hibiki shook his head and laid back in his chair, he'd had it worded better when he'd come up with it. Goku proved hard work could get a man the strength to fight his enemies, Miyagi showed that even in the mundane, skills can be found. How had he combined the two? Something about - he shook his head again. Later, he'd think about this later, right now, he had to decide what to do about Minato and his friends. Barring something drastic - like, a _war - _they'd be stuck in school for another four years, and they were all somewhat pissed Hibiki had been disallowed from passing on anything he learned from his sensei while they were still in school. Fugaku had grown somewhat distant after this revelation, and though he masked it well, Minato was obviously disappointed in himself that he wasn't good enough to keep up with his friend.

So, the obvious solution was to keep going with his training with Minato anyways, but if he couldn't show him what his sensei taught him, what _could_ he show him?

_I wonder how he'd like fuinjutsu..._ Thought the dark-haired genin before he suddenly realized he was one of only three people in the room.

He sat up straight and took a look at his two teammates. To his left, there was a brown-haired, pale-eyed kid who bore all the countenance of a thorough-bread Hyuga, he had the light-colored battle-robes to match. To his right was a kid with tight-fitting slacks and a long-sleeve black shirt on his torso, tied tight around his right arm was his headband, and on his head was a disturbing lack of hair. The kid looked like a Spartan, despite the fact that he was sleeping like a rock. Noticing now that he hadn't seen the headband on the Hyuga, Hibiki looked back to him and saw that it was around his head.

_Hm... Wonder what we're optimized for._ Thought the displaced Senju heir, as he went to lean back and fall into his thoughts, but the door opened then and in came a very unkempt, unshaven, dirty Uchiha Jonin, who looked like he hadn't slept in as long as the time between now and his last shower. As the Uchiha entered the room, so too did the scent of mints.

He took a look at his genin team, who in turn took a look at him. "Hn." He grunted in a typical Uchiha fashion, not too terribly impressed with what he was seeing. "Hibiki Senju, Noboru Hyuga, Suburo Nil." He looked at the three of them in turn. "You three don't look like much." He said offhandedly, blinking innocently as he insulted the three of them. "Come along." He waved the three of them along and then guided them to the top of the academy. Hibiki took a moment to inspect the man's attire - he had no flak jacket, and his clothing was non-descript, dark, it covered most of his skin, and was probably the only clean thing he had on him.

After a few minutes of hunting around, their sensei found them a small little spot on the corner of the roof. He sat down at the edge of the corner, a few inches above his students, and beckoned them to sit before him. They did, sitting in the shade cast by his shadow. Suboro looked like he was liable to fall asleep, but Hibiki thought he could see an almost supra-awareness within him, something that said this was all an act he was putting on so his enemies would underestimate him. The Hyuga looked like most Hyuga did, angry without reason, arrogant, some pride mixed in, and confident in his own abilities. The look in his eyes spoke of disgust for his sensei, a Jonin was _not_ supposed to carry himself so _disgustingly._ He wasn't even wearing a flak jacket! The only thing that identified him as a shinobi was the damned headband hanging loosely from his neck.

"So... Introductions!" The man grinned. "We'll keep things simple, name, hobbies, likes and dislikes. I'll start - I am Dante Uchiha, my hobbies include sleeping and fighting, I like sleeping, and I dislike being awake when I could be sleeping."

"How about bathing?" Suboro asked cheekily, waving his hand in front of his face as if there were an odor hovering in front of it. "You look disgusting."

"I know." Dante grinned, "you can start us off."

Suboro rolled his eyes, "my name is Suboro. No one knows who my parents are so my last name is Nil. My hobbies include reading and training, I guess... I don't really have many. I like eating new foods and studying things I didn't know before. I dislike not knowing something, being exhausted, and my friends being hurt."

"Hm." Dante nodded thoughtfully, he turned to the Hyuga. "And you?"

"I am Noboru Hyuga. My hobbies include training and studying. I enjoy mastering new techniques and indulging in my sweet-tooth." He seemed somewhat reluctant to admit the last bit, "I dislike slobs and petulant man-children who bring disgrace to their clan." His insult wasn't thinly-veiled - it was open and direct.

Dante nodded again, and turned to Hibiki. "And our youngest member. What've you got for us?"

Hibiki cleared his throat, "I'm Hibiki Senju. My hobbies include training with my friends and mastering concepts I didn't understand before. I like reading and learning, I dislike not comprehending whatever it is I'm studying." It was good enough, they'd learn more about him as time went on.

The Hyuga blinked, and turned to him. "Weren't you the second year that managed to dissect and diagram the transformation technique?"

Was that a bad thing? "Yeah." Serizawa hadn't ever looked so humbled than when he had apologized to Hibiki for giving him the wrong test, but the Senju child had never actually gotten the scores for said test, so apparently he'd done well.

"Interesting." The Hyuga gave him an appraising look, but turned back to Dante after a moment.

Dante seemed somewhat interested in what Hibiki had said, but gave off an air that he either already knew, or knew he would get the story later. "Well, that was enlightening, wouldn't you say?" He asked, "so, all that's left is my test."

Suboro tilted his head and furrowed his brow, "_your_ test? You mean the exam we passed wasn't the real thing?" He asked in a tone that spoke of politeness, but the thinly veiled frustration was evident to anyone who paid attention.

"Oh, no, that test was to make sure you remembered everything the academy taught you." Dante said, before stealing a quick glance to Hibiki, "or you taught yourself. Either-or." He shrugged and leaned back, almost half-off of the edge of the roof. "_My_ test is to see whether or not you've got what it takes to be a real genin for our quaint little village." He leaned forward again, "you in?"

"I am." Noboru said almost instantly.

"I came this far." Answered Suboro.

Hibiki shrugged, "sure."

Dante nodded bodily, "great! But, I probably should have warned you before you accepted, this test isn't just a pass or fail exam. You fail this, you give in your headbands, you can never be a shinobi again, for as long as you live." He stated ominously, the air started to get colder as he spoke.

_Is he putting us under an illusion?_ Wondered Hibiki as the other two started shifting uncomfortably, a brief flash of red from his own eyes confirmed his suspicions and dispelled the genjutsu, a fact of which Dante noted almost instantly.

_Smart kid..._ He leaped off of the edge and landed on his feet a few feet behind his Genin team. "Meet me at training grounds twelve in an hour, bring only what you've got on you." He ordered, before he vanished in a gust of wind.

Hibiki felt their eyes on him before the Hyuga spoke again, "you truly passed the Genin exam without even knowing?" He asked, genuinely curious, despite the indifferent tone he used. "You're only a second year."

_A second year with an interesting idea..._ Hibiki didn't answer the boy's question, he nodded in the direction the Jonin had vanished from. "Let's head there now, yeah?" He said, turning around to the two of them. "Get there early, get a lay of the land." _And get to know each other._

They seemed to agree with him, given their lack of argument. Through a series of short events that led them from the roof to the ground, it had somehow been decided that Hibiki would be their guide for their little journey. Suboro spoke up first after they were out of earshot of the academy and their former instructors. "So what do you think the test will be?"

Norobu shrugged, "perhaps a survival exercise?" He suggested, over a gust of wind; he ran his hand through his hair as the three walked down the street towards the north-east, where the training grounds were supposed to be. "I do not know. Dante-sensei is a Jonin, and given his age, he is likely a war veteran... He could do anything to us."

Hibiki turned his red eyes to his two team-mates, a thought occurring to him. "What were you guys good in? What were your ranks?" If Dante wanted to test them personally, he'd need a reason to do so, and to test their skills personally would be the best bet, but their skills would likely determine the test. Moreover, if their skills complemented one another, it would almost assuredly be some kind of test that would force the three to work together to overcome a common threat - Dante Uchiha.

"What are you getting at?" The orphan asked bluntly, while the Hyuga was silently contemplating Hibiki's words and what they could mean.

_Funny... I would've thought the clan kid would get all uppity._ "Well, think these things through logically. Noboru himself said that it's extremely likely that, given his Jonin rank and his probable war experience, he could do damn-near anything to us. But even three Genin, if they were determined, and working together, could feasibly take down a Jonin, so he wouldn't want to go in all half-cocked, he'd want a plan of some sort." Hibiki was half reasoning with the kid, and half pulling thoughts out of his ass and throwing them at the wall, hoping they would stick. "So, consider our skills, and then we'll have his plan." He hoped.

"My class rank in taijutsu was one." Said Noboru, in response.

Suboro caught on thanks to the Hyuga's prodding, "Teriki sensei said I had an outstanding potential for genjutsu."

"So that would make me ninjutsu." Hibiki reasoned, though he didn't necessarily know how or why - he only knew the shadow clone technique, and he could apparently dissect the transformation technique, so he could do that as well. He had good chakra control thanks to his training, and that certainly helped with ninjutsu. Maybe it was time to actually start putting some serious time and effort in to that? It wasn't like he was short on ideas - he'd raised himself on anime and fighting games Back Home - but was it really time?

These thoughts and their words, however, led credence to the Hyuga's conclusion. "A combat-survival test, perhaps?" He suggested, brow furrowed as he tried to work it all out. "It would match his instructions to not prepare, to only bring what we have on us - in combat, we would only ever have what we have on us at that moment." He nodded.

Suboro clutched his head and groaned, "I hate fighting. Why did I get put on the combat team?" He asked.

"Let's rationalize for a moment." The physically youngest of the team declared. "He wants to test us on our combat and survival skills. Well, each of us has strengths in a specific area - Noboru, with your taijutsu and your bloodline, you can take down any target, and keep said targets away from us. Suboro, with your chakra control you should be able to whip up some kind of illusion for us, maybe daze the opponent or put him off kilter for that one moment we need him to be. And me with my ninjutsu and _my_ bloodline, I can bring the pain." The tomoe in his eyes spun in accordance to his declaration.

Noboru tilted his head at Hibiki's words, "we two have bloodlines." He said slowly, "perhaps he assembled us for that? Perhaps we three all have a combat-applicable bloodline?" He looked at the bald one, "what would yours be?"

Suboro shrugged helplessly, "I'm an orphan, my foster parents didn't even know my surname, so I can't help you there."

"Hm..." Noboru flicked on his Byakugan and stared deeply into Suboro as the three kept walking, now very far separated from their old academy. "I cannot see anything out of the ordinary."

"Your eyes can see bloodlines?" Now _that_ was interesting.

Hibiki's hopes were dashed, however, when Noboru shook his head and straightened his headband. "No, but usually there is something different about a person with a bloodline. Something, appropriately, in their blood. Like flecks of gold in a red river." He gave Hibiki an interested, if somewhat accusatory glance, "your blood was more golden than it was red." He said as-a-matter-of-factly.

"Weird." Hibiki wondered what that could mean, did he have more bloodlines than just the Sharingan? What was Tsunade keeping from him?! "But that's a conversation for another day. Right now, we need to think strategy." As he said that, he got the brief but informative flash of memory from one of his clones; Orochimaru had just worked it to exhaustion and it had popped from chakra exhaustion, Orochimaru would probably be pissed whenever they saw each other next, but that mattered little, he'd just been faced with something new: As he'd learned, a lot more than simple cognitive memory was transferred between shadow clones, muscle memory and such did as well, so now Hibiki was half exhausted, not a good thing when he was likely about to fight a Jonin ninja. Even the memories he got from the training himself, and the supplementary muscle-memory wouldn't offset his new exhaustion, Hibiki shook his head and ran a hand through his growing hair, this was why he tried desperately to make doubly sure his clones popped at bed-time, that way he could deal with the exhaustion right then and there.

"We cannot win against him in a straight-up fight." Suboro began, "the guy's a Jonin for a reason... But I doubt we could throw together any traps that would escape his senses either."

"And he is an Uchiha, so any genjutsu we craft will not work on him." Noboru added. "If he expects us to win a fight against him to become genin, it may just be simpler to shred our headbands now." It wasn't that he was giving up before the fight began, it was more that he was knowing which battles to fight and which ones to not - this was a battle he should not fight because he could not win.

"Now, don't go soft on me yet, Hyuga." Said Hibiki, a plan ever-so-slowly forming in his head as they were talking. Assuming they were going to fight the jonin in the first place, they would need a plan that could be flexible enough to adapt to the situation as needed, but rigid enough so that everyone knew what they were doing and when, no matter what. "Like I said three determined and skilled genin could feasibly take down a Jonin... It'd just take time and effort."

"So what do _you_ suggest we do, then?" Suboro asked, in a tone that said, while he was taking the boy seriously, he was indeed humoring the one younger than them both by almost half of a decade.

The best plan he could come up with was divide and conquer, so he said as much._ "Divide and conquer."_ Hibiki said in English.

They both almost stopped walking, wholesale. _"What?"_ Said a bewildered Hyuga.

"Divide and Conquer." Hibiki corrected himself, "make it look to him that we three are working alone, almost insubordinately. We will then fight him on our own and assess and gauge his strengths, find weaknesses. If we can, we will regroup, if we cannot... I've got an idea for that, too." He hadn't performed the transformation technique, but he did have the theory, and he had dissected it for that test, though he was still largely bewildered by that bit - he had truly thought it was just a part of their test.

"What idea?"

"Can you show me the handsigns for the transformation technique?" Coupling Transformation with the Shadow Clones could be a _powerful_ combination. "And what are its limits? Do either of you know?"

Suboro showed Hibiki the required handsign - Dog, Boar, Ram, and Noboru answered his question. "Its applications are limited merely to your imagination." He said, "but it does almost constantly need chakra to be used."

Hibiki, Sharingan activated so he could burn the details of the handsigns into his mind, gave Noboru a puzzled glance. "almost?"

"With good enough chakra control, its chakra usage is so small it is almost null. There are legends that say a master of the transformation technique was able to assume the form of a lion for six weeks straight." He explained, as Hibiki burned through the handsigns quickly and performed the technique so as to get a feel for it.

What greeted them after a brief pulse of smoke was a nearly six-foot tall man, with closely-cut hair wearing unrecognizable clothing - blue pants of some odd cloth, a white shirt underneath an unzipped hoodie. He had glasses on his face and, after a moment, a confused but gleeful look to join said glasses. Hibiki grinned, and released the technique. "Awesome. So, if we cannot regroup, I'll pop a shadow-clone. The transformed clones I leave with you will get its memories, and they'll give you a run-down of the facts. Got it?"

"You know the _shadow clone_ technique?!" Suboro said, shocked.

"My mother is Tsunade Senju, what do you expect?" It wasn't an excuse he wanted to play often, but it was one anyone would buy with - hopefully - no questions asked.

"My father was a main-branch member of the Hyuga clan, and _he _didn't know the shadow clone technique!" Noboru exclaimed in amazement, "it is no wonder you graduated as soon as you did." He adjusted the loose sleeves on his robes, tightening some straps around them so they would no longer swing around freely. "So, what do we do if he does not challenge us in combat?" He asked, likely playing devil's advocate purely because no one else was. "What will we do then?"

"We're _shinobi _now_,_ Hyuga, fighting is our _job_. What else would he have us do? We've already passed the intelligence portion of our test, literally the only thing he could do to us is either a combat exercise or a survival exercise." Suboro said before Hibiki could.

"If we do a survival exercise, priority number one is staying together and watching each others' backs. Use whatever weapons we've got to get food, and then improvise everything else." Hibiki shrugged, stuffing his hands in his loose-fitting, unzipped hoodie.

"Why are your plans so loose? They do not cover anywhere near the number of possibilities that could come up during combat." Noboru narrowed his pupilless white eyes at the Senju heir, who shrugged.

"No plan survives first contact with the enemy." Said Hibiki, "so keep it simple and flexible, you can't go wrong."

* * *

It took them a half hour to make it to the training grounds. In all honesty, Hibiki had been completely fine just lying down and waiting, perhaps even taking a power-nap as he waited for Dante-sensei to show up, but Noboru took charge and told him that, if they really were doing a combat exercise, they needed to create a 'fall-back zone', so to speak, for when they inevitably had to retreat. The fall-back zone took them a half hour to set up, as it wasn't any simple 'mark an area with a knife and make sure it's somewhat hidden', they went all out in the half hour they had, and as a result, the place was booby-trapped out the wazoo. They hadn't been able to do anything incredibly fancy, but a few bare-minimum Shadow Clones had been able to speed up the process and give them one 'big' trap of Suboro's design, which Noboru helped hide with his all-seeing eye, and Hibiki confirmed was _well_ hidden with his own eyes.

After they secured the fall-back zone, they made it back to the training-grounds proper, whereupon they waited for only a scant few more minutes before Dante Uchiha arrived via body-flicker.

With a light grin that didn't reach his eyes plastered all over his grimy face, Dante made new greetings. "I see you all took my instructions at face value, interesting." He said, noting their large lack of any proper weapons, totally unaware that Hibiki had a clone sharpening make-shift spears a few hundred meters from their fall-back zone. In addition to that clone was the two other bare-minimum clones transformed as rocks in both of his genin-teammates' weapons pouches; the draw on the shadow-clones' chakra wasn't _large, _they would likely be able to keep themselves afloat for an hour, maybe two, but if he ever wanted to make this a regular tactic, he'd need much greater chakra control, and much larger chakra stores.

He just hoped whatever they were doing wouldn't be too chakra exhaustive, otherwise he might have to prematurely play a card he'd only just drawn.

Hibiki was snapped out of his reverie by Dante, "so, I bet you all are wondering what we're doing here." He said, as he flopped down onto the ground and leaned back on his hands. "It's a simple affair, and given how intelligent you all are, can I correctly assume you've already figured out your team's specialization?" He recieved nods, "good. Now _why_ do you think I've made such a specialization?"

Hibiki had no clue, actually, nor did Suboro, but Noboru had an inkling. "Tensions never really winded down after the second Shinobi war." He said, realization slowly dawning in his empty eyes. "If anything, they have only been growing. You expect a war." He concluded.

Dante nodded, an impressed look on his face. "Hn." He grunted, impressedly. "That's the long and short of it, yeah." He leaned a bit more heavily on his arms, "I don't know when or where or how, but there will soon be a straw that will break the proverbial carriage's supports. I've largely been out of commission since the end of the last war, so I've had my ear to the ground. All I can say with certainty is that another one is coming, so I want to be prepared." He leaned forward with a light grunt, "so, that brings us here. If and when war breaks out, you _will_ find yourselves on the front lines, you have full academy training - well, most of you do -" he caught himself with a light grin, "- and you'll have had at least some instruction from an A-ranked Jonin sensei who had a great deal of combat experience. Thus, you will no doubt end up fighting enemies that outclass you in every way, and that is what you will be doing today." He indicated himself with a thumb, "your test is to take me down with what limited resources you have."

Hibiki blinked, "you want us to kill you." He said flatly.

"Oh, _kami,_ no. Not only could you not do that, that's not what I said. I said 'take me down'." Said Dante, "the rules are simple, you can use anything and everything you have right now - weapons, ninja techniques, taijutsu forms, everything - to either immobilize me, or failing that, land three hits on me." He grinned, "obviously, if I were to go all-out against the three of you, even as rusty and crusty as I am -" He wiped a hand across his face, leaving a dirty smear as a result, "- we'd be addled with two or three injured or dead Genin. So, to make it at least somewhat possible to pass, I'll be limited to the first technique I use. Deal?"

Noboru and Hibiki got the same idea at the same time, "does your one technique include bloodlines, or not?" Hibiki asked, onyx eyes narrowed in suspicion.

Dante grinned a toothy grin, "it does indeed. If I find a reason to use my Sharingan before I try out another technique, I'll be stuck with it." He nodded in affirmation. "And remember - come at me with intent to kill, otherwise you _will_ not pass this test. Any more questions?"

"How do we fail this?" Hibiki asked, mostly out of curiosity, but also to know what constituted a loss.

"If any one of you die, or get knocked out."

"What counts as a hit?" Suboro asked, "only full contact, or do glancing blows count?"

"I'll decide."

"That's hardly fair."

"Tough." Dante smiled wide, "ready? _Go!"_ He said quickly, and before the genin could react, he was already in mid-air, flipping around to a standing position.

As Dante was no-doubt specifically slowly drawing his throwing weapons, or, at least, slow for a Jonin, the three newly minted Genin were scrambling to their feet and making to retreat a few feet to at least get some space with which to react. Hibiki desperately wanted to flare his Sharingan, but while it did burn a lot less chakra than it did right after Tweedle-dee and Tweedle-Gun, it was still a noticeable drain, and such a drain would prematurely _ruin_ his plan. Fortunately for him, his teammates didn't need any inspiration, they separated from him almost immediately, as per his plan. He didn't have any weapons with which to distract Dante for those precious few seconds, but it seemed he wouldn't need them, because after he narrowly dodged the kunai and the lone shuriken thrown by the Jonin, he picked up one of the knives and took it for himself.

"Going to fight me yourself?" The unkempt Uchiha wondered, eyebrows raised. "I know you're good, but I would have thought you'd be a bit smarter than this."

_I'm a lot smarter, Sensei._ Thought Hibiki, as he folded his hands behind his back, surreptitiously forming the Shadow Clone handsign and the transformation one as quickly and as subtly as he could. "I just wanted to ask, is there any way I could talk my way to victory?" He asked, as a bare-minimum clone with just a bit more chakra than usual appeared and transformed into a second kunai. Hibiki was lucky there was some dust kicked up in the air from the running around, else the smoke from the clone's appearance and transformation would have been seen immediately.

Dante stared at the Senju heir, who stowed the Uchiha's kunai in a belt-loop, and brought out the Clone Kunai. If his plan worked, he'd be able to test out how well the Uchiha's reaction time fared, and if he could think on his feet, as well as testing a theory - whether or not transformed clones could perform techniques. "Are you serious?" Dante asked, staring at the Senju heir incredulously.

Hibiki shrugged, "it was worth a try." He threw the Kunai as fast as he could and with little warning, his clone's instructions were to wait fifteen seconds, and it had been thirteen.

The Uchiha looked at him with a raised eyebrow, and simply tilted his head in one direction as the kunai passed the halfway point. When it got closer, however, was when the clone made its attempt - and shaved off as much and as little of its chakra as it could to create as many Shadow Clone Kunai as possible. The Uchiha hadn't seen that coming, what with the smoke he'd seen earlier, he'd thought that he'd really been dealing with an average, run-of-the-mill clone this entire time, but apparently this _kid_ knew the shadow clone technique! Tsunade and the Hokage hadn't been kidding around, he was _good._Unfortunately for the kid, he may be good, but he wasn't anywhere near good enough to take him down, and the Uchiha showed him as much when he tossed a few of his own knives, knocked a couple of the cloned kunai off course and, using the hole he made in the wall of flying knives, simply leapt through it and out of danger.

He would admit he was impressed when the kid showed him that that hadn't been the extent of his plan, the knives transformed en-masse back to their original state, and half of them took the knife stuck in their pants and threw it at his back, while the other half equipped the knife, got traction on the ground after landing, and went in for the kill. Dante leapt to the side to avoid the airborne kunai, but drew another of his own to start deflecting the oddly reverse-handed blows from the Hibiki clones, all he had to do was to hit them good once, and they'd pop, he wasn't worried.

At least, he wasn't worried up until he _nailed_ one of the clones in the face with a solid right hook, and it didn't pop. Did he just break his student's skull? No, he reasoned, he couldn't have, because not two seconds later he parried a back-stab from one of the other clones and stabbed it in its strong arm, and it didn't pop either. What was going on? Did this kid put _him_ under a genjutsu? There was no way - he wasn't a good sensor, but he could tell when he was under the influence, and his chakra wasn't flowing the proper way to facilitate a genjutsu influence. Damn it, would he have to use his 'one technique' card on his Sharingan? Or would he have to use it on something a big bigger so he could see if it was just force that was needed to pop these clones?

Whatever he would choose, he realized he'd have to choose it quick, because the clones, while painfully easy to dodge, were using horde-tactics against him, as if baiting him to make a rash decision and use his technique. Worse, they were fighting somewhat coordinatedly, they knew their own strengths and weaknesses and were covering each other. They weren't covering each other _perfectly,_ but it was an effective fighting style, especially when the other clones rearmed themselves and went on the attack. It was only after a good fifteen seconds of surprisingly tense battle, when he stabbed one of the clones right in the heart, did it finally pop, letting him know that, whatever version of the Shadow Clone technique the Senju was using, all he had to do was land a lethal blow and it would be undone.

He spun to the left - feeling some of his clumped, unkempt, and unwashed hairs get cut off by a kunai that would have hit his head otherwise - and killed the casually dressed clone that would have scored the team's first hit. The clone popped, but just after that one leapt through the smoke-screen made by its dead brother and tried for a flying front-kick; the raven-haired Uchiha shinobi caught the kick and swung the child around like a wrecking ball, slamming it into its allies before he threw it bodily into a large group of allies. Another one sprinted towards him head-on, it threw its coat at him as a distraction, but he batted away with his empty hand and intercepted a knife-swing with a stab to the throat, only now suddenly aware that the kid was getting the memories from these things - was he feeling all of these killing blows?!

While he certainly didn't know that, he also didn't know that there had been two clones that had jumped through the previous smoke-screen, the second one had transformed into a knife and had landed at the Uchiha veteran's feet, waiting for another one to be popped right above it so it could drop the transformation and go for broke. When the throat-stabbed clone popped after an almost unnoticeable delay, the Kunai-Clone undid the technique.

_"SHORYUKEN!"_ Roared the clone as it transformed in a puff of smoke, it leapt upwards and spun circularly, a small amount of chakra gathered in its hands and feet and its eyes blazing red with its dojutsu. It knew that the chakra it would consume would make it pop, but through sheer willpower, it kept itself going long enough to make full, physical contact with Dante's chin.

Dante had heard the shout and had just that much time to try and dodge, and while he did succeed in lessening the impact of the blow, the edge of his chin was indeed caught, and his head snapped back from the chakra-assisted impact. A moment later, the offending clone popped, and so too did the three remaining clones he had yet to kill.

"Okay... One down, two to go." Dante rubbed his chin and looked to where the Alpha Hibiki had been standing, to discover - to his shock - that the kid was already long gone. Given what he'd seen so far, he would have expected the kid to have been there, Sharingan blazing, to see and remember everything that happened in front of him. How well had he mastered these clones that he was willing to rely on their memory transfer? "Interesting..." He ripped off the unzipped hoodie from his free arm and tossed it aside. He still had his one technique, but he was starting to wonder if he'd have to do something similar to what he'd done to Tsunade, a low-level skill that he could just keep spamming, because if the other two kids were as hardy and as skilled as this one, he may be in for some trouble.

The problem was, they weren't working together. It was time to check in on the other ones, see what they were up to, given that they were so willing to let Hibiki stand here and do all of the leg-work.


	9. Smash

Chapter 8

* * *

_Boy_ was Hibiki Senju glad that the memories he got from his clones only came in quick, brief flashes, otherwise he would have considered rewriting his tactics entirely. His clones literally having to _die_ in order to be forcibly dispelled wasn't pretty, for the fighter or for the Alpha, and _damn_ did it sting when their sensory-memories come back. He also couldn't describe the utterly _foreign_ feeling of steel piercing his skin and resting _inside_ his body for as long as it took for the clone to die and dispel. He wondered, rather lewdly, if that was what it felt like on the female side of sex - to have some foreign object literally _inside of you_ rooting around and doing the bidding of its wielder.

He got off that subject rather quickly, he knew the clones he'd left with his allies had given them an update on what he'd learned, so right now he was working on escape and evasion. He'd only stayed for the first half of the fight, Sharingan blazing so he wouldn't forget a moment of it. Fighting that Jonin was tough, and it was down to sheer dumb luck that that last clone had gotten that hit, it wouldn't have come down to luck if he hadn't declared his attack like that, but there were some things he just _couldn't resist. _

He got a report back from one of his clones - Noboru was under attack, Sensei still hadn't used his one technique, but given Noboru was a Taijutsu-specialist, it was likely he wouldn't _need_ to. Unless Noboru could get the drop on him, which gave Hibiki an idea. He spawned and popped a clone, sending Noboru's clone a message - Noboru needed to pick up the pace, go all out, fight as fast as he possibly could. If he could go fast enough, he could force the Uchiha to use his Sharingan, and then they would have him at something of an advantage, he wouldn't be able to use any ninja techniques.

Unfortunately they would then have to deal with a Ninja who was probably a master of the Sharingan and who had unlocked far more of its abilities than Hibiki's paltry, single-tomoe, sensory-perception upgrade and eidetic memory, but still, they would be able to press this advantage. Even worse was, when Hibiki started moving again, hoping to intercept Noboru and get either him or their sensei to fall back, another one of his clones popped - this one from Jiraiya's neck of the woods. It had been more exhausted than Orochimaru's clone, and the popping clones were taking a toll on Hibiki and his chakra reserves.

Hibiki groaned and fell against a tall, brown tree. He had to catch his breath, he didn't want to stop but he had to, now - he was doubly exhausted from his Training clones, and was tiring himself with the clone usage in _this_ battle. Had he never created the bare-minimum clone technique, he probably would have been unconscious at this point, he digressed. He slid down the tree, sitting with both feet splayed out in either direction, a few leaves started tumbling down from the tree and floating down to the ground. One of them landed on the back of his left hand, which still had some residual chakra running through it from his escape.

_How would I - or any of us - be able to hit Dante-sensei again,_ he wondered in vain, as he brought his right hand up and down upon the leaf on the left. _He's going to be on his guard and - _The leaf shot out from underneath his hand at speeds that had to be past muzzle velocity.

Hibiki blinked, what did he just do? He heard a 'thunk' to his left and saw a green object sticking out of the trunk of a tree. He got up and investigated, to find the leaf that had previously been on his hand, imbedded halfway into the tree! He felt the leaf up - it was still as leaf-like as before, no change there. What had he just done? He reached down onto the dirt and grass covered ground and snatched up another leaf, he placed it on the back of his left hand and slapped it with his right palm again, but this time nothing happened. One more slap, two, three, all nothing. What had happened last time? Did it have something to do with chakra? With this in mind, he got some - just a little - chakra to circulate to both hands without a handsign, and he slapped the leaf again.

This time, it drew a little blood, but this one too shot away faster than a speeding bullet, embedding itself into a tree several yards away.

Now, _this_ was interesting. He could shoot leaves like bullets, maybe he could get the drop on Dante-sensei?

_Or maybe..._ He had an idea.

A wonderful, _awful_ idea.

He gave the tree in front of him an evil grin that would have made the Grinch himself blush madly.

* * *

Noboru was sprinting away now, as fast as his twelve-year old Hyuga legs could carry him. His bloodline was blaring and he was moving through the forested training grounds with almost reckless abandon. He'd taken the little Senju Spider's whispered advice and gone full-throttle, and had forced the Uchiha Jonin to use his Sharingan.

He'd nearly had his arm broken and his ribs shattered not two seconds later. They needed a new plan, and _now, _but when he'd been smashed in the stomach the Senju's clone had been knocked clean from him - he had to either find the eight year old himself, or Suboro, which would be incredibly difficult with the Uchiha Jonin just there, at the edge of his vision, golden flecks raging through his veins and his chakra flaring wild with the activation of the man's experienced bloodline.

_The fallback point, that is our best option._ The Hyuga decided, but he couldn't go there on his own - it was meant as a retreat point for _all three of them,_ if one of them used it and got away, and then another tried to use it but only found it undone, they would be doomed. _The only way we can possibly defeat this man is by working together... Two more hits, if we ensnare him in that trap, we can **win!**_ He didn't know how fast Suboro was, but he was leaner than him and had longer legs than the Senju heir, he would likely be their best bet when they got Dante in the trap.

But, of course, the Senju was the one who thought on his feet, he would likely react faster, which was ironic, given the kid's age.

He stumbled when he heard a _loud_ cracking noise followed by a thunderous crash. He could have sworn he heard someone shout out before-hand, but the wind had been flowing through his ears so much it had been faint at best. Just a moment later, Suboro came sprinting out from the forest and inadvertently tackled the Hyuga bodily.

The two stuggled to disentangle themselves, and when they did, Dante-sensei was halfway to them. Noboru rushed through his greetings and his explanation, "Suboro! Is Hibiki still with you?! Tell the clone to dispell, we need Hibiki here _now_ and we need to fall back! Sensei is using his bloodline!" The man was closing in faster and faster.

A small poof of smoke let the small leech on Suboro's shoulder pop, Suboro grabbed the Hyuga and lifted him to his feet. "Go! I'll hold him off!"

The Hyuga was about to argue with him, but then Sensei showed up, there was no chance of running, now, they had to fight.

The dark, clumpy-haired, dirty Uchiha tilted his head this way and that almost nonchalantly. "I'll admit, I'm impressed. But I would've thought you'd at least get a hit in, with that kind of impact speed." Noboru prided himself on being one of the fastest Jyuuken-fighters currently in the clan, he had decided to specialize in striking blindingly fast and moderately hard, as opposed to just devastatingly hard. Unfortunately, Dante-sensei's fully matured Sharingan saw his palms coming with such clarity and such speed-of-perception that they may have well been crawling. "What say you, Nil, ready to give it a go?" He asked calmly, not even short of breath.

The two genin looked at each other, and each nodded silently, before the Hyuga fell into a Jyuuken pose - ignoring the pain and stiffness in his arm - and the clanless fell into the Academy Standard. Another tree fell somewhere distant, and that was the call to battle - the two Genin rushed forward and savagely began attacking the Jonin. As it turned out, the robed Hyuga's hopes for the dark-clothed Suboro's fighting style were entirely wrong - the lanky kid preferred raw, savage _power_ as opposed to any kind of speed. He put his everything in to every swing, and what they lacked in speed they made up for in power, but the downside was that it was almost painfully easy for the Sharingan user to dodge.

But when said Sharingan user was fighting a heavy hitter, and a lighting bruiser, at the same time? Things got trickier for him, especially given his self-imposed handicap. He dodged fist after gloved fist and palm after palm, before he lashed out with a lightning-fast punch to the orphan's gut and a jab at the Hyuga's throat. The buzz-cut child flew back a few feet and the Hyuga clutched at his partially collapsed windpipe, coughing and choking on himself.

_They work well together... They just don't work **well** together._ The speed of the Hyuga kept him off-balance enough that he had to focus on dodging his palms, which kept his attention from the lumbering fists that came from Suboro's side, it was odd that he would choose such a fighting style, he looked like he had the build for a genjutsu user as opposed to a Taijutsu specialist, but it didn't matter right now, Genjutsu were effectively useless on the man as it was. The problem with the two was a lack of cohesion and experience together, they needed to be trained, and they would eventually become unstoppable, and with the Senju's jack-of-all-trades style? The three could probably rival the Sannin, once they became adults.

_Probably._

The Jonin stuck his hands in his pockets and whistled a tune, "hn... You're done already?" The two were picking themselves up slowly, silently trying to come up with a plan that would at least land them _one hit._ They were lucky he hadn't placed any time limit on them, else they would be screwed - it was closing in on noon.

"What do we do?" Suboro whispered.

"Buy time." Hibiki had been the one to make the plan, had been the one to single-handedly land the first hit on their disgustingly unclean sensei, and he was the only one of them who had a real, true counter to a Sharingan - a Sharingan of his own. Whatever he was doing, be it recovering from his brief spout, or sprinting through the forest as fast as he could, they needed to buy him as much time as they could before they all three made a retreat. "Move fast, hit hard. I'll make the opening, you go for the kill." It wouldn't work forever, but it would have to work long enough for either Hibiki to show up and give them a greater numerical and strategic advantage, or at least long enough to land a damn hit!

The two dashed forward, chakra practically radiating off of their bodies as they put everything they had into everything they did. The chakra leaking into the air distorted the Jonin's chakra-seeing vision, but there wasn't anywhere near enough to blind him, it was a minor inconvenience and little else. The sound of _another_ distant tree breaking apart and falling to the ground caught his attention, that had to be Senju, what was he doing? This distraction proved to be exactly what the Hyuga noble child needed to launch a furiously fast assault, which put the Jonin on the backfoot and immediately on the defensive. The Hyuga Genin was practically pouring chakra into every limb, to increase his speed and his hitting power, Dante knew a few _Chunin_ who wouldn't be able to keep up with these strikes, but they came at a cost - he was burning through his stamina at a somewhat alarming rate, even his clan-child training wasn't enough to keep him going any longer than a few minutes, not at this speed and consumption rate.

Dante knew what the boy was doing, though, and was able to dodge Suboro's superman punch when the Genin swung around his back and tried to land the hit. The boy was moving too quickly and had too much momentum to stop himself from slamming his fist into Noboru's face, and not a second after the first impact Dante was swinging his foot around towards Suboro's head, thinking that this was almost _too damn easy._

At least until his foot swung straight through the Genin's head, and he figured out too late that its chakra flow was too weak to be a normal person - he'd been tricked by a damn clone! Worse than that, Noboru was sprinting towards him, completely untouched by the nonexistent attack and bent low to the ground, and the real Suboro was on Dante's flank, fist pulled back. Dante leapt up and back, but a new challenger approached when he was too high in the air to change his course.

_"Falcon PUNCH!"_ Roared the Senju heir as he flew threw the air and landed his chakra-coated fist into the small of Dante's back. The flaming chakra practically exploded outwards in all directions upon impact, and the stunned Jonin _flew_ forward at break-neck speeds.

Hibiki landed on the ground rather ungracefully, grinning from ear-to-ear despite himself. Noboru and Suboro jogged up to him, "what in Kami's name was _that?!" _Noboru demanded - he had seen the hit with his Byakugan, he couldn't even describe the raw force and the sheer amount of chakra that had coated his hand before the punch, let alone that of the damn _impact!_

"A really bad idea." Hibiki was still grinning, despite visibly shaking - he had used a _great deal_ of chakra to make that hit, he was scraping the bottom of the barrel, even his Sharingan was deactivated. "But one that paid off. We've got to go, he'll hit us any moment!" He had misjudged his punch, and had angled it downward, so while the Jonin would fly far, he'd hit the ground far sooner.

Suboro shook his head, "alright, let's go!" The three sprinted off as fast as they possibly could.

* * *

What the hell was _that?_

Did he just get hit in the back by an explosive summons, or an angry runaway child? How the hell had the kid even _done_ that? Tsunade had told him that the kid had only asked her _once_ to be taught her monstrous strength, and she'd refused him, so how had he been able to do _that?_ Dante flew through the air for another three seconds before he finally impacted; he certainly could have used a technique to get him to the ground safely and without the damn _bounces,_ but he was nothing if he wasn't a man of his word, and he'd said he would only use one technique, and so he _would._

But he never said he wouldn't use Chakra period, so when he hit the ground, chakra was immediately funneled into his hands and feet, and upon impact he stuck fast. His arms were nearly ripped out of their sockets by his momentum, but chakra cured all and helped keep his body in one piece. Dante stood up and stretched his aching back, feeling the sore muscles stretch and his spine pop. He hadn't even caught a glimpse of what the kid had done, only sensed the _massive_ spike in Chakra just a second before the kid's fist slammed into his back. It had obviously been some kind of Ninja technique focused to enhance the effectiveness of his Taijutsu strikes, but how the hell did an _eight year old_ get the ability and the mastery required to try something like that? His 'special' circumstances aside, that should be impossible even for child geniuses.

_Two down... One to go._ Dante sighed and ran a hand through his unwashed hair, he had to admit, despite how much the Senju heir was confusing him, his skills were impressive, as were those of his teammates.

He was certain: When he went up against the three of them, which he would venture to do any second now, they would score a hit, bar none. The question would be who and how, would it be the Senju heir, the Hyuga noble, or the clanless orphan? He would put his money on the Senju child, the other two were skilled but they seemed to be _relying_ on him, almost like unskilled genin relied on their Jonin master.

Dante grinned, _that_ was the connection. Hibiki had to have been the one to come up with their plan, and like the children they are, Noboru and Suboro were following his lead through and through. But the question now was, how badly would they fall apart if he managed to separate them from their Sharingan-wielding Senju? _Would_ they fall apart? Maybe it was time to get a little lethal and see how they would react to the danger.

_But do I really want to hurt him?_ Thought the Jonin, stretching his back as he did and getting ready to track down his genin team. _What'll that teach them? Maybe I should stick to what I'm doing... _He leapt into the air and began sprinting across tree-branches, only slightly frustrated that he'd limited himself. Sometimes, during his weaker moments, he wished he would just say 'fuck all' and stop holding himself to his promises, it would make life a whole hell of a lot easier.

It took him three minutes to track down his Genin, they were rushing through the forest as fast as they could, Noboru wasn't using his bloodline in an attempt to save what little chakra he had left, Suboro was at the head of their group, and Hibiki was to Noboru's right. They each looked exhausted, and likely had little chakra left, but what was intriguing the Uchiha was that Hibiki had something bulging in his pocket that was leaking very trace amounts of chakra, almost enough to be missed. Now what could this kid have in his pocket that would give off _chakra?_ An explosive seal? Maybe another clone, transformed into a weapon?

Dante followed the three for another minute, before they arrived at what was obviously a pre-prepared, hastily hidden, fallback point. There were traps everywhere, including one rather large and intricate one that had to have been made by Suboro. The big one was hidden pretty well, but his Sharingan was too good to miss it, so with this foreknowledge, Dante began creating and executing his plan.

Into his explosives pouch his hand went, and out came an explosive tag to be tied around a kunai. It wouldn't make as much of a lethal explosion as it would make a concussive one - it was meant to throw his opponents back, as opposed to killing them. Hibiki was just a foot away from the big one, he was perfectly positioned for his ambush, and without further pause, Dante threw the kunai with enough force to bury it into the ground.

The kunai hit the ground, and like the rookie he was, Hibiki first whipped around to look at it before he reacted, this proved to be his undoing as the tag exploded with a massive amount of force, sending him sailing right into the big one, which immediately sprung into action, wrapped its massive net around his small form, and lifted him high into the air. Suboro and Noboru were on their feet and in their fighting stances in seconds, and Dante went down to meet them, his Intercepting Fist ready for whatever the exhausted Genin would throw at him.

Like before, the clan and the clanless kid worked well together without working well together, but this time they were reaching their limit physically, and were having to use chakra to keep them going, which only served to exhaust them even more, after all, a candle that burned twice as bright only lasted half as long. But then something unexpected happened, the net shot up further into the sky, as if a large weight had been removed, Dante ignored it for all of two seconds, until he saw a stone falling from the net transform into a replenished and ready-to-fight Hibiki. This proved to be the Jonin's undoing, because the half second he spent marveling the subtle genius of Hibiki's plan, even if the child hadn't executed it in the way he had likely intended, was a half second too long, and Noboru's palm slipped past his defenses and nailed him in the gut; even though his perfectly clear peripheral vision caught the attack and saw it coming, he hadn't been able to dodge it, such was the weakness of an Uchiha Sharingan-user: even though they could see attacks coming, that meant nothing if they couldn't be fast enough to dodge it.

Noboru, seeing his victory, leapt back, followed by Suboro, followed by a cautious but gleeful Hibiki.

Dante, a little winded, stood up and rubbed his gut. He grinned lightly, "well I'll be... You guys passed. Do you want to know why?" His old sensei would be proud, not just because he now had a team, but because Dante had actually paid attention enough to be able to quote the man. "Because you worked as a team." Comprehension dawned on them in the second he gave them to consider his words and their victory. "I'll admit, you three didn't have many differences to put aside, but at the same time none of you know each other that well, past our brief introductions. Despite that, you knew that I was a much higher class foe than any of you have ever fought against in your lives, and that to defeat me you would need to work together. I wish I could have seen all three of you fight me at once, but what you did show me proved to me that you three will go far together, I eagerly anticipate training you all." He bowed his head in respect, and the other three did the same. "You've all earned the headbands you're wearing... And you've also earned yourselves a lunch, on me." He nodded in the direction of the village.

"Oh thank _god."_ Hibiki flopped over onto his back in a slightly comical fashion, Dante had no clue that the third of his four clones had popped as well - that had been what had shattered the ruse and given away his advantage when he'd been stuck in the net. He was exhausted beyond reason, and would need all the rest he could get, because he would no-doubt have three irate Sannin to deal with when he got home.

_Thank god Miss Mito's clone didn't pop._ Thought the kid, as his sensei hauled him up onto his back and promised rides for anyone else who wanted one - Noboru declined out of raw pride and a desire to not be treated as the child he no longer was, technically, and Suboro said he hadn't fought hard enough or long enough to be too tired to walk, let Hibiki take the ride. _That would have been a -_ As per Murphy's Law, what could go wrong did go wrong, and not even before he finished his sentence, the clone that had been working with the eldest of the two Uzumaki women in the village popped, having been blown to pieces by exploding chakra ink. The very last thing he remembered the clone seeing was a laughing Kushina and an understanding Mito. He highly doubted she'd be so understanding now that the cat was out of the bag, though - it was common sense that no one liked being relegated to clone duty, least of all, ironically, the clones.

_Fuck._ Hibiki fell asleep almost instantly after the memories came back, and the brief feeling of intense, burning pain on his face, eyes, mouth, and _brain,_ passed.

* * *

Late that night, long after a great deal of the civilians and most of the Genin of the village were asleep, three Sannin and a Jonin entered the Hokage's office. What sounded like the beginning to a really bad bar joke would soon turn in to one of the most important reports in that world's known history, as it would pave the way for history yet to be written.

Dante Uchiha, his clan's most well-known black sheep, being his usual self, entered the Hokage's office a good thirty minutes late. The Senju clan's head made a comment about how she thought he'd been bathing, but he'd quickly disarmed her by saying he would bathe when she took one of her teammates out for dinner. He would also defend, to the day he died, that he had no idea she would punch Jiraiya so hard in the jaw that the raw force of it nearly broke the bone and most of his teeth, though secretly, deep down inside, he knew well and true that the white-haired Sannin had the hots for the blonde Senju, it was as plain as his perverted reputation.

Once the slug Sannin finished patching her sage teammate up, Dante stood at attention in front of the Hokage's desk. The Sarutobi clan's head and the head of the village regarded him for a moment, before he nodded briefly. "I take it from your bruised jaw, everything went as well as expected?"

Dante nodded, a light grin playing his features. "Yes sir. As I told you I would, I gave them the combat test. Hibiki landed two of the three hits, Noboru Hyuga landed the final one." He reported, "Suboro Nil looked poised to make a hit himself, but he's a softy hiding under a tough exterior, the moment the fighting was over, he was the first to check on a clearly exhausted Hibiki."

"I told you teaching him the Shadow Clone technique would only lead to him overextending himself." Jiraiya commented, mirroring Hiruzen's thoughts. "How bad was he?"

"Just chakra exhaustion." Said Dante, "I believe he went into the battle expecting me to go all-out from the word go, as he'd had a clone take his place from before I even arrived." He explained, "but he isn't the type to run and hide. Much the opposite, he was right with us the entire time - transformed as a small pebble inside his clone's pocket. When he was ensnared in a trap meant for me, the clone dispelled, and out came the original, ready to fight. Unfortunately for him, he didn't have enough control to keep the transformation at a bare-minimum of chakra, he was visibly running low when he got back up."

"And no one has taught him this technique, yes?" Hiruzen asked, to the acknowledgements of all of the present shinobi.

"That is why I think he burned through his chakra so quickly. In addition, his tactics included a very liberal usage of shadow clones, both in the traditional sense, and an interesting interpretation of a clone weapons technique." He paused, "but what impressed me the most was his tactical aptitude. When the fight began, his two teammates ran, likely under his orders, and he actually had the gall to try and make me surrender before the fighting even began." He explained, before he went into detail about the entire day's proceedings. He praised everyone in equal measure, but had to - due to his audience and the reason he was here in the first place - put emphasis on the adopted Senju heir.

"Can we focus, for a moment, on how he's taken Tobirama's shadow clone technique, and made it his own?" The Third Hokage requested, though he knew from the fire in her eyes that she wanted to know how in Kami's name the kid had reverse-engineered her strength technique, even as rudimentarily as he'd done. "You said he has above-average chakra reserves for a child of his age, and even for someone of average age of his rank, and yet he was able to throw dozens of clones at you?" He emphasized the numbers, "and what's more, these clones were _solid._ They were able to take beatings meant for real people, and keep going?"

Dante nodded, "the only way these clones dispelled was through self dispelling, or lethal attacks. I would like to emphasize that last point - wise as he is, Hibiki is reckless, as evidenced of him creating a technique and using it in battle, _on the fly."_ Hibiki had answered enough of Dante's questions about his 'Falcon Punch' to let him know that the technique hadn't existed before this afternoon. It actually made Dante shiver in fear just a bit, considering that the technique, _as it was,_ was very lethal, and it was unmastered and in the hands of a mostly untrained and untested child. If this child became as powerful as they all thought he would become? This 'Falcon Punch' could have the potential to become stronger than even _Tsunade's_ monstrous, legendary strength, it could very well set the bar for the most powerful taijutsu technique in the world.

_Kami_ help whoever he used that technique on, and if he ever learned to use it as instinctually as Tsunade could use her strength? The world would never be - or look - the same.

"I believe he did that out of a wise application of desperation." The ninjutsu-specialist of the Sannin said, slowly. "You yourself said that he was testing you as much as you were testing him. Maybe he wanted to see how you would react to desperate usage of an untested technique?" He suggested.

"The last time he tried replicating my strength, he nearly crippled himself." Said Tsunade, but Dante cut her off.

"I had a medic check out all three of them before I sent them home after lunch. Outside of some bumps, bruises and a few cuts, there was no severe, or even moderate damage. They all, all three of them, were fine." He couldn't speak much for his pride, however - beaten by three Genin! The scandal! Serizawa would never let him hear the end of it, if he ever got the stick out of his ass and came to visit him.

Tsunade didn't look appeased, but she did quit talking so Hiruzen could speak. "So, Dante. What do you think of him specifically?" He asked bluntly, "of his combat skills... You've fought with him at his youngest. Do you think we are correct? Or is he like any other child?"

Dante shook his head, "the seal on his chest automatically rules out that last option, sir." He said, "but to answer your question... If he works hard, is raised right, and trains diligently, he could be all you think he is and more. Team six is fully equipped to be Konoha's first shock-trooper _team_ since its inception, all we need now is our humble beginning."

* * *

"Dante Uchiha... Dante Uchiha... Dante Uchiha... Why is that name familiar?" Asked Minato Namikaze, after they began cooling down from their not-so-daily-anymore spar, with Shikaku and Chouza following he and their only Genin friend.

"He's my sensei?" Cheekily responded Hibiki, who got an eight-year old palm to the back of the head for his troubles.

"No, man, the name sounds familiar." While they'd been sparring, Hibiki had regaled his friends with the story of the Genin field-test from the day previous, even Shikaku paid attention to it. "But I can't place it..." He leaned his head back, thinking hard as the three made for Chouza's family restaurant, Hibiki wanted some good-cooked spaghetti before he the next day, when he started D-Ranks. He was already feeling the pull of making so many clones for the day, his chakra reserves hadn't fully recovered from his bout the day before, which meant he'd had to make a _fourth_ clone with chakra in addition to the three he usually made - though its job was to sleep and eat, and do whatever he'd proved helped to make chakra regeneration as quick a process as possible; when the clone dispelled, he'd get all of its newly generated chakra, and would largely be ready for the days ahead. "Shikaku?"

"I sleep through history class." That hadn't been a luxury Hibiki could afford, every _other_ class, definitely, but not history, their physical ones, or chakra studies. "But it does sound familiar."

"Maybe we should ask Fugaku." Chouza suggested through a mouth of dried pickles. "He's always talking about his clan training and his dad teaching him their history, and stuff. Maybe he knows." He shrugged, his wild bloody hair rustling about as he did.

"Good idea." Said Hibiki.

"Alright, I've got to ask - what's it like? Wearing the headband?!" Minato finally popped, he'd been holding it in out of spite the last few days, but now that Hibiki was dedicating some time to his friends again, he couldn't stay mad. That they'd beaten the snot out of each other not even an hour ago, and Hibiki promised to tell him anything he wanted - and was allowed to tell - helped.

Hibiki reached up and adjusted the piece of metal and cloth wrapped tightly around his forhead, before he shrugged. "Heavy." He said, "but I'm getting used to it." He hadn't even noticed it was on when he'd started fighting yesterday, and had only noticed it today when Minato had made the mistake of _punching_ it earlier today. He did know that it would give him one hell of a tan-line, though, once he started working in the fields and such.

"Yeah, but what does it _feel_ like, man?" Minato asked excitedly, "you're a _ninja_ now! You can learn all sorts of cool techniques, go on quests and save entire villages and stuff!" He almost yelled out, practically shaking with excitement. "You're so _lucky,_ I wish I could graduate early!"

"Uh, hey guys?" Chouza asked suddenly, "who's that?" He pointed in front of them, Hibiki looked up and flitted on and off his Sharingan, and raised his eye in interest, because walking up towards them was a trio of Hyuga - one big one, and two small ones. He recognized one of them as his teammate, Noboru, and while he didn't know the other two, he did recognize that they were walking with a purpose - and that purpose was his small group.

"That's... My teammate, Noboru... And if I had to guess, his mom and his sister?" They all carried themselves with the same dignified, noble air, though Hibiki noted the lack of a headband on his mother's head and his clearly older sister's head. Did only Hyuga men become Shinobi? Or had those two decided not to go down the path?

Hibiki's group kept walking, and when they crossed paths with Noboru, the latter nodded to the former. "Hibiki. I do not believe you have met my mother." He nodded to the taller of the two women, "Akemi, and my sister, Asuka." The two women nodded as they were addressed.

What was going on? "Hello." Hibiki nodded his head in greeting, his friends did so as well, and he introduced them all. "What's up, Noboru?"

"I thought it fitting to introduce my teammates to my family." Said Noboru, "if you would have us, we would like to take you to dinner, and would be willing to accommodate your friends as well. Suboro is on his way, but will be delayed due to duties at his home."

_Oh, okay then._ "Sure, where did you have in mind?"

* * *

And just like that, they were smack-dab in the middle of the Hyuga compound. As he'd learned from Noboru's brief explanation, the compound's central building was used for formal affairs and large gatherings, no one lived in it, and they ended up going here instead of Noboru's home because of their group's unexpected increase in size. Hibiki could speak for all of his academy-aged friends when he said he felt out of place in the clean, pristine, formal environment of the Hyuga compound; he was dressed in khaki pants, a weathered hoodie and a nondescript black shirt, and his friends were dressed in varying similar degrees of casualty, where everyone else - Noboru and his family included - was dressed extremely formally. Truly, the only difference between Noboru's attire and the attire of other males was that Noboru wore less robe-like pants, his were meant for mobility and speed on the battlefield, whereas the others wore something akin to robes.

Hibiki couldn't help but notice, however, the intricate seals on the foreheads of nearly everyone present. What was up with the swastikas on everyone's foreheads? He was ninety nine percent certain they didn't have the same connotations here that they had Back Home, but it still made him somewhat uncomfortable. Fortunately for him, Noboru misinterpreted Hibiki's uncomfortability and assured him no one would comment on his attire.

The group sat and drank tea, chit-chatting amongst eachother as they waited for Suboro to arrive and for dinner to be ready, Hibiki noted as time went on that Noboru only spoke when he was spoken to, the boy was deigning simply to lie back and watch Hibiki interact with the latter's friends and the former's family.

"So... Where is your father, Noboru?" Minato asked, brazenly.

"He died." Said Noboru, just as bluntly. "In the second war. I was conceived just before he went to fight his last battle. Now that I am Genin, I head my root." He explained.

"Root?"

"To say I head my family would be to say I head the Hyuga clan in and of itself, and that would be incorrect." Noboru explained, taking a sip of his tea as he did. "The Hyuga clan works on a root system. While I cannot divulge its intricacies to outsiders, I can explain that there is a Main house, and a Branch house. Each house is divided into its own root, like those of a tree. As I am a Genin and now a legal adult, I head my root in the absence of my father." Noboru explained rather elegantly.

"So... What is the difference between the Main and Branch houses?" Shikaku inquired, interested in how clans other than his own worked.

"The same as the difference between nobility, and the lack thereof. Else, I cannot say."

"So... You can't say why they've all got pictures on their heads?" Chouza, who had surprised everyone earlier by putting down his bag of chips and picking up the cup of tea, asked innocently.

"Unfortunately I can say little else than it is for protection, theirs and ours." Noboru nodded solemnly, not really wanting to lie to his teammate and his friends, but also wanting to maintain a good standing in the Main house - a great many formerly main roots had been 'uprooted' - as it were - and sent to the Branch house instead, for far less than divulging clan secrets.

Fortunately for the quieted group, the shaved Genin arrived just a few minutes later, with deep apologies about his lateness. Noboru assured him everything was fine, and after he summoned a few Branches, they were being served their dinner. It was some traditional Hyuga dinner that had a complicated name, but Hibiki called them on their BS the second he was given his plate.

"This is sushi." He said, simply.

"It is not. This is Sushi's father. Sushi was inspired by this." Noboru defended uncharacteristically vehemently, it must be a touchy subject, Hibiki reasoned.

Fortunately, Akemi brought the conversation to a better subject. "So, Hibiki, I have heard rumors, but is it true that your mother truly is Tsunade Senju?" She asked, her voice deep and womanly, and her tone pleasant and respectful.

"Yes ma'am." Said Hibiki, as he took a bite of his totally-not-sushi.

"And you've made friends with many clan heirs, I see." She gave Shikaku and Chouza an appraising look with her blank white eyes. "I must say I am impressed, your remind me of what I have read of Hashirama Senju... Your grandfather, yes?"

_This chick knows more about my rent-a-family than **I** do._ Thought Hibiki, but he nodded nonetheless, and swallowed his food. "Yes ma'am. But I'm not befriending clan heads with any political motives in mind, I simply agree with who I agree with and hang out with who I like." He explained, "else, I wouldn't be hanging out with the blonde one." He grinned, and Minato gave him a brief, but playful, glare that told him he'd be throwing his raw fish if he didn't fear a few dozen all-seeing eyes would catch the action and break the hand that threw it.

"Hm." Akemi gave Minato a look, "Minato... Namikaze?" She asked, "I think I knew your mother. You have her eyes." She said with a kind smile.

"Oh wow, you knew my mom?" Minato asked, excited as always. "What was she like?"

"Kind, very friendly. Anyone who spoke to her inevitably became her friend. But she was not cut out for shinobi life, I'm afraid, she was far too trusting."

"Wow, that's you exactly." Said Chouza, who had already finished his plate and was eying Shikaku's, though the lazy Nara wasn't considering giving it up - his father had told him about the Hyuga, and he did _not_ want to do anything that could even possibly insult them and gain his clan their ire.

"Did you know my dad?"

She shook her head, "unfortunately not. He distanced himself after she passed from the growth. And when he perished in the war, I never heard anything from your family again. Had I known you were alive, I would have dropped in from time to time." She said kindly, "I am glad to know your mother's legacy continues." She smiled, kindly ignoring Minato's blush.

Suboro cleared his throat, "so..." He felt terribly awkard here, in a Noble Clan's compound, sitting around at a dinner table primarily filled with people he didn't know. "Did you serve as a ninja?" He asked Akemi, who shook her head.

"We are something of a rarity. Neither I nor my daughter inherited our clan's bloodline." She explained, "my daughter tried to get a blessing to go to the academy regardless, but the clan head would not allow it, unfortunately."

"Oh." Suboro sunk into himself after that, itching his buzz-cut head awkwardly.

"Do not worry about it." Akemi waved the topic aside with a brush of her pale hand. "It is no matter." She said kindly.

The small dinner group fell silent for a few minutes, as everyone ate, and a dumbfounded Chouza found that he'd been given a second helping without even having to ask, hell, he'd gotten it without even _noticing,_ one second his plate was empty, the next he looked at it, it was filled; it seemed that the Hyuga had done their homework, and were able to provide for him even with their extremely short notice. As they ate, Hibiki took the time to surreptitiously look over his friends, as their seemed to be a dividing line between them - his squad and Noboru's family sat on one side, and his academy-aged friends at on the other side of the table, with he and Noboru sitting at its two heads. His academy friends had no reason to be cold or indifferent to his squadmates, but they still stayed silent and only really spoke if they were spoken to, where, on the other side, Noboru, his family, and Suboro, all seemed completely fine just sitting there, eating, and enjoying the silence.

If they were trying to get to know Noboru's teammates, they were doing a piss-poor job. Hibiki decided to rectify this.

"So, Noboru." Noboru's head perked up, and his white gaze met Hibiki's onyx. "Unlike myself and my friends here, you and Suboro actually made it through the academy. So, do you have any interesting stories to tell?" He asked, with a friendly grin.

In his later years, he would swear he saw gratitude flash through Noboru's eyes at the admittedly weak conversation starter. He smiled kindly, but in that blank way that was characteristic of many Hyuga. "Unfortunately, I do not. I was a reserved student, I preferred to let my classmates do the fighting so I could watch and learn." He explained, "but there was one time, I will admit, when I did have to soundly defeat an entire gang of Uchiha clansmen who were picking on some younger students."

Hibiki grinned, not missing the knowing smile in Suboro's own face. "How'd you get involved in that one?" He asked, before he plopped his last piece of totally-not-sushi in his mouth.

Noboru placed down his chopsticks, "it began, really, that morning just before class began..." He began, before he enthralled all present with his admittedly simple story. The day began with the gang of Uchiha, ranging from graduating students to the lowest of the academy entrees, they'd felt their honor had been affronted by a few 'second-rate' academy students who didn't belong in the school on account of them having no traceable ninja lineage - they were orphans. Before long, they'd started beating on the children, so Noboru stepped in and, with one solid palm-strike, took down the biggest of the bunch; a few fell in line afterwards, but a few more decided to fight. Noboru got a broken arm for his troubles, but it was a decisive victory - all of his opponents had been defeated.

Noboru's story turned out to be the catalyst for others to start talking of their own academy experiences. Suboro told a story of how he threw a kunai so fast and so hard that it shattered into a thousand pieces, and that his old instructors were _still_ finding random shrapnel spread about the training ground to this day. Hibiki told the story about how he met and befriended Fugaku, and ended up admitting he still didn't really understand why Fugaku hadn't gone to his father and outed his Sharingan. Minato regaled them all with a tall tale about how he took on an entire group of bullies that had been terrorizing a certain redhead and her few friends, leaving out that he'd actually lost that fight and had been in the hospital for three days afterwards. Even Chouza and Shikaku told a few stories, Chouza talked about Hibiki's 'spaghetti' and the time he'd accidentally convinced his mother he'd torn his intestines out when he'd spilled it on his gut and, because of the light cast on him by the fires of their grills and stoves, it looked like he'd been tearing apart his stomach from the door outside. It was a rare occurence to see an utterly _terrified_ Akamichi, he said, as it was to see a _livid_ one, that night had had them see _both_ in less than five minutes. Shikaku told them all about how he'd once almost beaten one of his clan's few living elders in a game of Shogi, unwittingly convincing Hibiki that this man would have been a chessmaster Back Home, and that he'd have to find a way to give him a set eventually.

Before they knew it, time had passed and it was well past dark. Akemi, Noboru and Asuka guided Hibiki's group out of the compound, with Noboru stopping his teammates before they left for their respective homes.

He looked only the slightest bit sheepish as he tried to find the right words and mask his sheepishness under his usual Hyuga air of nobility. "I would just like to say to you two, before we begin working together in earnest." He began, slowly, "that I think you both are very good men, and have the potential to be even greater shinobi." He bowed, "I am honored to be a part of your team."

A little off guard, Hibiki returned the bow. "I can't wait to work with you either, Noboru."

Suboro seemed to have expected this, but with a wide grin, he brought his two teammates into a massive bear-hug. "I'm real happy to know you guys too!" He said gleefully.

* * *

_AN_

_Next chapter, the tone will be set and I'll show you all just what I've done by introducing to this world - a world that literally defies all known laws, not just of physics, but of reality - a man who can bring the dead back to life, wholly. _

_I said this wasn't a Self Insert before, I think now I'll expand upon that and say that it's more of an A/U that draws on the concept of a Self-Insert. Next chapter will show you just **how** A/U I'm talking. _


	10. Wolverine

_A/N_

_A long one, clocking in at 12,000 + words, but the ending **will** make it (and the journey thus far) worth while, I promise._

* * *

Chapter 9

* * *

In his old life, Hibiki Senju learned that there were many things he loved, and there were many things he hated. He loved learning how things worked, making things work, and he loved reading anything from manga to sci-fi novels to the occasional bad fantasy story. He hated stupid people, people who seemed only to live to screw things up, and not having enough money to allow himself just the tiniest bit of self-indulgence. Then, there were things he loved to hate, like the jobs he'd had before he'd graduated college, the chain of command, sleep; but all of those things applied to his life Back Home, in the New Hotness, he'd finally found something he simply loved to hate.

D-Ranked missions.

D-ranked missions were, essentially, the perfect thing for the bright-eyed young Genin fresh from the academy. They were analogous to teenage jobs Back Home, anyone from civilians who couldn't be bothered to the elderly who weren't physically able asked of the Genin corps everything from dog walking, pet rescuing, babysitting, to such tasks as tilling fields, landscaping, and yard work. Hibiki would curse them out if they didn't provide him with something he'd desperately started craving the last few years: A break from the monotony. Ever since Tsunade had started training him with chakra, his days had consisted of eat, sleep, study, train, go to school, sleep some more, spar with Minato, rinse, lather, repeat. Even the boring tedium of the D-ranked missions, no matter how much he hated said tedium, was a very welcome break to the monotony that had become his life, if only for the odd jewels he'd find scattered about the random assorted D-Ranked missions his sensei would have them do. Hibiki's favorite, most ridiculous D-Rank thus far had been the woman who'd demanded they cook dinner for her because she'd stubbed her toe the previous day and thought it still hurt, he had never before been given such a blatant reminder of his job Back Home, but he would defend until his dying breath that he was crying because of the smell of the woman's house, and not because of nostalgia. Even a shinobi village had the lowest common denominator, it seemed, but the mission paid - not _well,_ but it still was good money. No one could live on an average Genin's salary, but Team Six was three quarters still under thirteen, so none of them were even considering moving out.

Hibiki and his team had fallen into a rather respectable pattern in the last six months. Amazing the entire team had been Dante, who'd provided them with their itinerary - three days out of the week they would work D-Ranks until sundown, three days they would train from sun-up to sundown, and then the last day was theirs to do with what they pleased. Though, for Hibiki, his training schedule was quadruple that which his teammates had, on account of his Sannin instructors and his jinchuriki seals master; thank _god_ for the Shadow Clone technique.

It was rather interesting, comparing and contrasting Dante from his other instructors, as he seemed to be some unholy mixture of all four of them. Jiraiya was a very hands-off kind of guy, preferring to let his students figure it out for themselves and only arriving to give them a few pointers when they were struggling, whereas Tsunade was incredibly hands-on, preferring to hammer into her students the _right_ way, and beating out of them what she thought was the _wrong_ way. Orochimaru worked him to the bone every day, honing his skills and his instincts and making certain his muscle-memory was more like muscle-instinct, whereas Mito was calm and cautious, understanding of his strengths and weaknesses and willing to fortify the former and work around the latter. Dante, on the other hand, somehow managed to have one hand on his team and one hand off, managed to work them to the bone but not to the point where they felt like dying, and was stern but kind, strict but loose, wise, but incredibly _dumb._ He much preferred impromtu training in the field as opposed to training on proper training grounds, his most infamous impromptu training had been 'taking away' various vital pieces of his Genin during a particularly grueling landscaping job. Appropriately, Noboru lost his eyes, Hibiki his hands, and Suboro his legs, it had taken them the entire day to lay the foundations for, and put together, an entire fence around one of Konoha's _largest outskirt farms._

But that wasn't all the training they did, and it certainly wasn't all the training Hibiki was privy to. Six months was a long time, especially for a quick-study like him. One of the first things he'd aced was Tsunade's water-walking training, he'd managed to full-out sprint for five minutes on the raging rapids she'd made with her fists, proving to her he had the control and the discipline required to start learning her own medical techniques. Next had come Jiraiya, who'd witnessed Hibiki put what he'd learned with the Falcon Punch - more on that subject later - to use with the boulder, managing to move it six feet without handsigns, before he lost his momentum and the clone nearly popped, showing the toad sage that he had the ability to properly utilize chakra without handsigns, and was learning the limits of his body's tolerance to its own chakra. Orochimaru, though, he hadn't mastered, there was no real way to master what the twisted snake sannin was teaching him. His best records were him being able to last thirty seconds against Orochimaru's sword, dodge one out of every three taijutsu strikes, and manage to evade him for a total of two minutes before he got caught. Being the jack-of-all-trades teacher he was putting him out to be, Orochimaru also instilled within Hibiki a very good respect for stealth and traps, the sannin passingly said that Hibiki was surpassing most average-aged Genin, and could likely take on some low-level Chunin. As a bonus, the snake-sannin was unwittingly instructing the displaced adult how to use chakra in creative, new ways, which helped him in his self training. Then of course there was Miss Mito, who had been unabashedly amazed at how well Hibiki had taken to sealing, after he'd found his groove. Hibiki had learned how to put ink in chakra in less than two weeks, and was able to precisely copy an explosive tag and set it off without any premature detonations; she'd off-handedly said that the only person who'd had a better tag than his was her other student, Kushina, who was several subjects ahead of him. Hibiki found the art of sealing _fascinating,_ but it was what Dante was teaching him that he was really taking a shine to.

Ninjutsu, chakra usage and manipulation, Dante was taking his wild approach to teaching and using it to hone Team Six into a sharpened blade. His first _real_ lesson had been tree-walking, which had come up during a mission to rescue some fat woman's runaway cat. Hibiki took to it the quickest, able to, after a few seconds of effort, reverse his water-walking technique and apply it to trees. The difference between the two was simple: Attraction and Repulsion. When one walked on water, they had to push chakra out of their feet like a jet engine, whereas, when they walked on trees, they had to suck it in like a vacuum cleaner. Team Six had gotten the art down pretty quickly, and had been given a quick gem from Dante, who told them that a quick way to build their chakra stores was to walk on trees, water, or anything really, as long as they could burn chakra fast, it would fill up with a deeper store, which only helped Hibiki's 'it's like a muscle' theory, as his own were almost exponentially increasing as time - and training - went on. He excelled greatest when Dante taught them their first combat technique, a simple lightning zap that could either be used like a taser, or amped up to a killing bolt. He'd let them in on his method, telling them that they would want three basic techniques from the most versatile elements - lightning, fire, and wind - before they started working on their own affinities, though after seeing how quickly Hibiki took to the lightning, and how not-comparatively-quickly he took to the wind, Dante was pretty certain he could predict what would happen to the chakra paper when he broke it out for the adult kid.

That brought Hibiki's thoughts to other chakra techniques, specifically, the only one he'd made himself - his appropriately named Falcon Punch. Tsunade had all but demanded where he'd gotten it from and admonished him for how _stupid_ he'd been for using an untested technique in battle, he could have either killed himself or his instructor. He apologized profusely, but had made the excuse that Dante had said 'go for the kill', and that had been exactly what he'd done. Regardless, he told her about how he got the idea. When the leaf he'd shot had shot forward, he'd deduced that it reacted to two opposing chakra forces like a magnet - opposites attract, like-forces repel, and that sort of thing. The idea came into his head that maybe he could 'leech', so to speak, the chakra from one hand and 'catch' it in the other before it dissipated into the air, like tossing baseball back and forth from one hand to the other, and weaponize it in a bright flash of chakra when it impacted. The result had been what he'd recognized immediately as the freakin' Falcon Punch, and though it hurt like hell the first time he'd done it, he was training with it almost constantly to get it down to an art form. The trick was to take all of the chakra being channeled into his left hand, catch it, make sure none of it was lost, and add it to what was in his right fist, and then let it all explode outwards at impact, and he did that by simply slamming his left fist into his right hand, and then balling the right hand up into a fist - all it needed then was a target; its raw explosive force was dependent on how much chakra he pumped into it - one day, he'd gone for broke and put everything he could into a Falcon Punch, just to see what it could do, and the shockwave from the displaced air had cleared a good five meters around him of all trees, let alone the one he'd punched, that one had exploded into splinters. The effect was only doubled when he used a clone and the clone hit the same target, but it was very hard to coordinate who hit what, so it was likely only really good for one-on-one fights.

Experimentally, he'd tried taking his 'leech' and 'catch' concepts and running with it, specifically the latter, wondering if, if he clasped his hands together and focused chakra in the space between them, he couldn't 'catch' the chakra and see what happened. What happened was rather underwhelming, he was calling it his 'chakra fart' until further notice - because while something _did_ happen, if he ever wanted to go further with it, he'd need a lot more training. What he concluded was that his hands had acted as a cage of some sort, and when he 'caught' the chakra in the small space between them, it just built up inside and waited to be released. Admittedly, he'd been hoping and praying that he'd be able to turn this into a Kamehameha when he'd let it go, but all that had happened was a brief gust of wind, the chakra surged forward in a pale blue cloud, and the wind blew with it, but nothing else of note happened; it was - as said - a chakra fart. Something in the way back of his mind told him that he'd done something wrong, that the idea had been right, but the method and the execution had left something to be desired, but Hibiki wasn't willing to dedicate any large amounts of time to trying and remaking the single greatest energy attack in fictional history, he'd practice off and on and use what he'd learned from earlier exploits to see what he could do.

Back to the Falcon Punch, one experiment had yielded some rather interesting results - he'd tested out with a clone what would happen if first the clone poured as much chakra into its arm as it was physically able, and punched a tree, and what would happen if he poured as little chakra into a Falcon Punch as he could, and then hit a different tree. The results had been understandably interesting - the Chakra Punch had just cracked, splintered, and weakened the tree he'd smashed, whereas the simple Falcon Punch had obliterated the tree wholesale. Hibiki didn't have an explanation for it, but his running theory was that it had something to do with how the Falcon Punch was made - it leeched chakra from another limb and then exploded it outwards, whereas a regular chakra-assisted punch just punched, only harder than usual. In other words, a chakra punch was just acting on Force equals Mass times Acceleration, whereas the Falcon Punch, no matter how much chakra it used, was a bomb the detonated on impact.

He remembered, after a rather good day when he'd made a lot of progress on controlling his original - in a manner of speaking - technique, practically goading a second Tweedle-dee and Tweedle-Gun to try and take him now. He wouldn't rip apart his arm this time, but he likely would blow a hole in their guts.

He hadn't forsaken his friends for his training or his career, either, much the opposite, he tried to spend as much time with them as he could on his free days, delegating further training to his shadow clones. He'd spent time with all of his friends, Fugaku included, over his first six months, but that changed on one rather lax thursday, after Dante had told Team Six to meet him at their usual training grounds for a 'special surprise'.

The others from Team Six hadn't been slacking either, much the opposite, they saw how hard Hibiki was pushing himself almost constantly, and were both inspired, in their own ways, to train themselves as well. For Noboru, this turned into him pushing himself every day to increase his chakra reserves, master his family's martial art form, and learn some of their techniques, though he wasn't keen on letting Hibiki know what he'd been learning, saying he would either save the reveal for when it was needed, or when Dante told them to spar again, which had to be coming soon. For Suboro, it was an interesting mix - the man had gone and broken into the Ninja Library's chunin section and stolen as many genjutsu books as he could, ingeniously by distracting the librarians with an explosion outside and stuffing the books in his bag and leaving without any kind of anxiety whatsoever. He wasn't a genjutsu master by any means, but he was studying genjutsu theory and was doing some rather amazing things with it - whenever Hibiki let the boy test his self-created genjutsu on him, under the conditions of no dojutsu, Hibiki found the differences between real life and fantasy to be almost impossible to discern, and it was getting harder and harder to dispel it without cheating and resorting to his copy-wheel eyes. The boy was a _natural_ with genjutsu, it was almost scary.

"Awe, look at my cute little genin, showing up early." Said the smiling, disgustingly unwashed Uchiha sensei. Hibiki had no honest idea why Dante refused to shit, shower, or shave, but the guy looked as disheveled as an average bum Back Home, his hair was so dirty it practically clumped together like a cave-man's, _what_ was this guy _doing?!_ "So, I'm pretty sure you're all anxious to know just why I called you all here today." He stretched his back, peacefully unaware of the three somewhat disgusted glares he was getting from three thoroughly disgusted genin. "Well, wonder no longer, I just got the clearance from our Lord Hokage, Team Six is to take on its first C-Rank today." He smiled, but it slowly fell into a frown at the lack of response. "What... Nothing?" He blinked, looking at the three of them in turn.

"What is the mission?" Noboru finally asked, after he gave Hibiki and Suboro the almost customary 'is he actually serious?' glance. The three had almost perfected the act of silently making fun of their Jonin instructor, and though none of their subtle jabs slipped past his radar, he let it go - it was all a part of growing up, after all; and truth be told, what they did to him was _nothing_ compared to what he and his teammates did to their instructor.

"I'm glad you asked, Noboru!" Dante smiled, and pulled a scroll from within his coat. "Simply put..." He unrolled the scroll and gave it a brief skim, "escort and protect target A to out-of-the-way Village B, payment to be received upon completion of task." He explained, "he's in something of a hurry, his daughter is expected to be giving birth any day now, so he wants to get there as soon as possible, and is willing to cut straight through bandit country to do it." He rolled back up the scroll and placed it within his coat. "Simple job."

Hibiki caught on just a second faster than the other two, "bandit country?"

Dante smirked, "indeed." He strode forward and sat down roughly, "that's why I summoned you here this morning. I won't beat around the bush, you're ninja, it is your job to kill." He stated as bluntly as he'd warned. "Whether it is on this mission or a later one, you will end someone's life during the course of your own." He looked at each of his three students in turn, "the entire point of the academy was to numb you to this fact, but nothing compares to the actual act of killing someone. I know each of you think you're ready to end a life, but I also know none of you have actually done it. So, this is your one, and only, chance: Abstain from this mission, and turn in your letter of resignation as a ninja and retire completely, or stay the course and become a true shinobi." He gave them each a look, considering whether or not he should let them in on the Uchiha clan's worst kept secret - exactly how most Sharingan get manifested - but decided not to in the end. "We're all to meet at the gates by nine thirty. If I don't see you there by then, I'll consider that your answer." He got to his feet and made a quick handsign, "until then!" He vanished in a poof of smoke.

* * *

Had Dante really expected any different? All three of his students showed up at the gates, to see him speaking idly, albeit kindly, to their employer, an old fellow with sagging skin and graying hair, but a strong air to him and a fire in his dark eyes. They had spoken for a few minutes on what Dante had told them, but Dante had chosen his students specifically, and had chosen them wisely - they three, while different in many aspects such as upbringing, countenance and blood, shared one aspect specifically - a somewhat pragmatic approach to their career choice. Noboru was the most desensitized to the aspect of killing, as he was of noble blood from a noble clan, he was all but expected to kill at some point in his life. Suboro might not have the desensitization that Noboru had, but he possessed an ironically killer instinct for protection, and would not hesitate to kill if it meant his loved ones or his allies would live. Hibiki was the wild card, raised by a medic and taught to cherish life, in addition to his first upbringing from Back Home, where his career choice had been the fundamental _opposite_ of the one he had now - an EMT saved lives, a shinobi ended them. He did, however, reach the same conclusion his teammates did: When it came to us or them, he'd choose us.

All three of the members of Team Six had been selected for their pragmatic views towards violence, and their aptitude to improve through both training and the fires of combat. Dante had caught a lot of flak for his veto of the usual guy-guy-girl roster, but this was the chance to prove he was _right,_ and given that all three of his Genin were willing to jump headlong into a dangerous route in dangerous lands, he knew he hadn't chosen unwisely.

He also knew he would never let them in on the fact that he'd been the one to choose their route, and that he'd specifically chosen the one with the highest chance for a random attack, and that he may have put the smallest bounty on the old man's head. He wasn't leaving anything up to chance - if, Kami forbid, the bandits got past his students, he'd wipe the floor with them, but still, he wanted to make doubly sure he'd be getting all the bang for his buck with this one. He wanted to see them in a real combat situation, so come hell or high water, _he'd see them in a combat situation._

"All ready to go?" Dante smiled, turning to his students as they walked up to him. They each were packed for their two-week long round trip, all three of them had their weapons pouches stuffed full, and Hibiki had two dozen bullets hidden on him in case of emergency. The duct-tape on his leg was just beginning to chafe, but he felt he was getting close to storage seals, so he'd just grin and bear it, it would be all over soon.

Hibiki ran a hand through his hair, "yes, sensei." He said succinctly.

Noboru bowed his head to their client, before he too confirmed he was ready.

Suboro adjusted his pack and nodded his affirmative.

"Well, we're off!" Dante turned around, "Noboru, I want you at the front of the group. Suboro, you'll stick with me and our client. Hibiki, at the back." He ordered as they began walking towards Konoha's massive gates.

Hibiki saw the wisdom in the decision - Noboru with his all seeing eye should be at the front of the group to scout out any possible hostiles, and he with his own dojutsu should stick to the back and check Noboru's nonexistent blind spot. Despite the clan rivalries, if a Sharingan and a Byakugan were paired together, the results were actually rather stellar, too bad the rivalries were too thick to actually try and experiment with the pairing, however; Hibiki had been the first Sharingan user to be paired with a Hyuga Byakugan wielder since the days of the first Hokage.

What dwarfed his thoughts, however, was the massive gate that loomed over him as he and his team neared it. This would mark the first time he'd ever been outside Konoha, he realized. So too would it mark the first time in both lives where he faced the very real possibility of ending someone's life. It was surreal, he realized, to truly consider ending a life and to realize he'd probably be _just fine_ with it.

_Time to set some ground rules. Ground rule number one: Only use the gun if there is no other viable option._ Thought Hibiki as they walked past the gate, out of Konoha, and soon began heading east. _Ground rule number two: Set more ground rules._

* * *

The trip was silent. The environment was grand - enormous, looming trees for as far as the eye could see, leaves almost constantly falling somewhere or another, densely packed but also loosely shifted dirt marking their path, the sun casting its golden rays through the breaks in the foliage roof. If Hibiki hadn't been clued in that they'd entered Bandit Country a half hour ago, he'd be taking his time to marvel at the beauty of the world outside the leaf village. One thing few people Back Home truly appreciated was the beauty of the planet they called home in its natural element. This silence was what the world sounded like before cities existed, this beauty was what the planet looked like before humanity began piercing it with his steel obelisks of commerce and civilization.

Sometimes he missed the white-noise that came with living in such close proximity to Atlanta, Georgia, sometimes he was glad to be rid of it. Sometimes he missed being able to whip out his phone and access the entire collective knowledge of mankind, sometimes he was very glad he didn't have any bad books or cat pictures to stare and snort at. Sometimes he missed hot water showers - no, he _always_ missed hot water showers, jeans too - _god_ how he missed jeans. He had a working theory about how he could plug the Transformation technique into his Something from Nothing, but he hadn't had the time recently to experiment with it. If it worked, he would at least get his god damn jeans back, but if it didn't, there wasn't much harm done. He also sometimes missed cars, but he now had a second lifetime to get used to walking everywhere, so that was either-or by now.

He didn't _have_ to miss guns, he had one duct-taped to his thigh right now. But chakra made up for most of it all, the ability to break Newton's laws at will and become an eight year old archmage was an enticing one. Bloodlines were another interesting topic that his lack of time kept him from thoroughly researching. Soon, very soon, he'd just make a thousand Bare-Minimum clones and let them go wild in the libraries of Konoha, while he made ten or twelve real clones to experiment with his techniques again, like he'd done in the academy.

As he wandered through the woods, in a strict formation with his team, his mind wondered what Minato was up to right now. Probably trying to stay awake during Serizawa's lecture, or brimming with frustration and rivalry-born fury at his no-doubt soon-to-come realization that Hibiki was out on a _C-Rank_ and he was still in school. Hell, if it motivated him to stop slacking off and graduate early, Hibiki didn't mind.

Hibiki flitted on his Sharingan and scanned their environment. The schedule they'd fallen in to for the last two days as they walked would be that every three kilometers, Noboru would flit on and off his Byakugan and scan their surroundings, and every fifty meters, Hibiki would scan their environment with his Sharingan. It was an interesting experience, seeing all the little nuances the wild world had to offer, with an eye that would allow him to miss _none_ of it.

So too was it interesting when he caught the broken branch and slightly soggy, but definitely still recently stepped on wood a few trees ahead, at the same time Noboru did. Without breaking stride, Noboru stretched and began falling through the academy-taught silent language, which essentially equated to sign language where the signs were easily mistaken for common actions by any human being. A stretched back, for instance, was a sign that contacts were near and they'd left signs, probably because they were tired, probably because they were lazy.

Dante itched his eye - _Use your Byakugan._ He tilted his head and itched behind his ear - _What do you see?_

Hibiki saw the chakra pulse with his Sharingan, ever since he'd caught on to the fact that he could literally see Chakra with his bloodline abilities, he'd tried to find its nuances, and hadn't been disappointed - if he didn't focus on it, it bled into the background chakra like everything else. But if he focused on seeing chakra, or had a dire need to, it would jump out like a clown in a mime gathering. Noboru looked around a moment, then killed his bloodline and itched his back twice, in a circular motion, with three fingers - _Six targets. We're surrounded._

_That just makes it easier for us to hit them._ Thought Hibiki as they continued forward, all but Dante and their client seemed just a bit more tense. Hibiki forced himself to calm down, they were _just_ bandits, they weren't missing-nin, the best and worst they could bring to bear against them would be a few swords, and maybe a bow - but most people in the shinobi countries refused to use bows, they were too taboo, more of a samurai weapon than a shinobi's. And if somehow - god forbid - they managed to take down Dante, he had a gun and he had his clones, he could take them all down with no effort.

_Wait... It's taped to my thigh... How the fuck am I going to get at it?_ He couldn't believe how far he hadn't thought that. Priority number one: Goddamn Seals.

And as if his shifting priorities were the starting pistol for the bandits' mad dash towards victory and easy money, six men leaped out from the bushes. Before he even realized he'd done it, Hibiki had his Sharingan blazing, and in the scant seconds he had before he and his team moved on auto-pilot, he took in everything he saw. They all were armed, but astonishingly poorly - one of the six had a sword, the rest had rusted and dull kunai knives, they all wore ski masks or scarves over their faces, and not a one of them looked like they'd seen the headbands on the shinobi before they'd jumped out and declared themselves. Sword looked like he was about ready to speak, but Dante had a kunai in the air before the man could twitch, and it was buried inbetween his eyes just a moment later.

The bandits were stunned, the Genin were waiting for their orders.

Dante shrugged, "have fun."

* * *

_Minato_ was tougher than these guys, let alone Fugaku, or Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Gun. In barely five minutes, six men were dead, two each by Hbiki and Noboru's hands, one each by Dante and Suboro. Dante was searching the bodies now, his dirty, unkempt hair masking his face as he crouched over the bodies and patted them down, looking for a bounty sheet or anything they could use to definitively decide whether or not they were here by chance, or if they were hired.

Hibiki sat with his teammates, all three of whom were seated in front of a shaking client. Hibiki only realized now, as his mind was beginning to process his actions, that he'd never bothered to learn the man's name, and if he'd heard it, he must have tuned it out. Right now his attention was focused on the two bodies he'd made, replaying the brief bout over and over again. Both Tsunade and Dante had drilled into him that he should consider each and every one of his opponents as if they were stronger than him and more experienced, _especially_ while he was a Genin, so he'd taken that into account when he'd rushed for his first opponent. Two solid shadow clones up, each with a healthy amount of chakra, in case they needed to Falcon Punch their way out of a bind, the Alpha Hibiki and his clones rushed their first target, each with a knife in hand. Hibiki's first kill had brashly charged him back, assuming that the center Hibiki was the Alpha - he was wrong, Hibiki put himself on the left because he knew that the man would assume just that, as it wasn't an unwise thing to assume, just predictable. Clone One deflected the man's clumsy, but powerful stab and jammed his kunai into his arm to paralyze it, and Clone Two and Hibiki each rammed their own kunai into any vital area they could reach, which was effectively _any_ vital area, as One used a bit of chakra to yank the Target down to their level. Hibiki's kunai went into the man's temple, Clone Two's kunai had hit his throat, he was dead just a few moments after he hit the ground with a wet slap.

Hibiki still had the man's warm blood on his hands, even now. Then, however, he hadn't focused on it, adrenaline was rushing through his body and he was working somewhat on instinct and somewhat on barely contained panic - weaklings though they may be, they could get lucky and get a good hit on him. This panic-induced paranoia was why he was able to almost _sense_ Kill Two coming for him from his rear, Alpha Hibiki had been a bit quicker than his clones on this regard and had another kunai out from his weapons patch and flying through the air as Kill Two made his mad dash. The kunai was off-target, but it still buried itself into the man's chest, which made him stumble and lose his balance, long enough for Clone One and Two to smash a fist and a kunai into his vitals, respectively.

It had gone by in a flash, Hibiki could vividly remember the twitches of his muscles and the sounds of steel splitting flesh.

He felt a hand on his shoulder - Noboru was giving him a knowing look, joined by Suboro when he noticed the movement. He and Suboro were going through the same thing, Hibiki realized. He gave Noboru a nod, and Noboru nodded back, they really were a team now, they'd spilled blood together, this was a bond that was likely to never expire.

"Aha!" Dante shot up, a scroll held triumphantly in his hand.

"What is that?!" Their client practically cried.

Dante shrugged, "a bounty. Someone wants you dead, my friend." He grinned as he opened it up, he chuckled after he read it, and then tossed it away haphazardly. "Apparently they don't _really_ want you dead, you're only worth a few hundred Ryo." He stretched his back, "how are you guys doing?" He looked at the four.

"Someone tried to kill me!" The old man roared indignantly.

"I am fine." Said Noboru.

"I'll be fine." Said Suboro.

Hibiki shrugged, "I'm good."

"Good! I think this little demonstration has warranted an accelerated time frame, don't you think?" Dante itched his unshaven face. "We'll head out in five minutes, here -" He threw his genin the bandits' water canteens. "Wash your hands, and your clothes if you've got any blood on them, too. Else you'll attract flies."

* * *

Their earlier leisurely walking pace had been replaced by a brisk run, but they hadn't been able to keep going after the first hour - their client wasn't a ninja, that he was able to run at their decent pace for so long was probably something of a miracle, especially for a guy of his age. They only slowed down to a quick walk, still covering ground fast but it would still take them a few days to get to the man's house. Fortunately for them, outside of the first bandit group they ran into, they hadn't had any company. After they had walked for most of the day, and the sun was setting deep in the west, the four of them decided it was high time to set up camp and call it a night.

After a quick game of ro-sham-bo, Hibiki had been the lucky short-stick who got stuck with the night watch. He sat back against the trunk of a tree, his team's fire to his left and the thinning woods of the land of fire to his right. According to Dante, they were just a few kilometers from their borders, after which the forests would become a lot less common.

He heard a footstep to his left, he jumped with a start, a knife in his hand before he even knew what he was doing, but he calmed down when the disgusting Jonin sat down next to him.

"Hey there." Said Dante.

"How do you manage to not smell?" Hibiki asked.

"You killed two people today and you ask me that?" Dante gave him an incredulous look, Hibiki shrugged.

"You chose us because we'd excel at combat scenarios and warfare." Hibiki gazed back out into the woods, "I know I killed a couple guys today, but they would have killed me and-or our client if I hadn't, so..." He shrugged.

Dante was silent for a few moments, "it's a technique I developed. Takes no chakra, keeps me smelling minty fresh." He grinned.

Dante blinked as he realized that _holy fuck this guy _does_ smell like mints!_ "Why burn chakra at a constant rate, all day, every day, just so you don't have to bathe?"

"I replace chakra faster than this technique spends it. I'll be fine." The Jonin said, fidgeting a bit as he sat more comfortably. "So, your mother told me you've nabbed yourself a Sharingan. Do tell, where'd you get it?" He looked Hibiki over with his own three-tomoed eyes.

Hibiki shrugged, "I was kidnapped when I was six. I had to kill the kidnappers or I'd never get home. My best guess is that it manifested then."

Dante nodded and hummed in understanding. "I'm kind of surprised, actually. I heard some murmurings running through the clan about a kid outside of us with our eyes, but nothing's been done about it." He gave Hibiki a conspiratorial look, "did you really make friends with my clan's heir by beating him up?" He got his answer when Hibiki nodded, "you're pretty smart, you know."

Hibiki blinked, "how so?" He asked.

"Make friends with the heir of the clan known for being combat-oriented, through combat. Gain his respect, he'll keep the elders off your back." He nodded, "I was told you were smart, but wow, even Serizawa wouldn't have come up with that at your age."

While Hibiki did note that Dante knew his old teacher by name, what was more important to him was what he'd said before that. "Fugaku is keeping your elders off of my back?" He didn't think the kid cared that much - or at all, really. Sure they were friends, but he honestly hadn't thought he'd do that.

"That's what I've heard." Said Dante, "I'm something of a black sheep in my clan. Most of us are pretty uptight, and the only folks who are more strict about bloodlines are the Hyuga, though they just press unclaimed half-breeds into their clan, they don't hunt them down and rip their eyes out."

Hibiki blanched, "_what?"_

Dante nodded, "that's standard operating procedure. Only orphans with the Uchiha name are spared it, but you're neither orphan nor do you have the Uchiha name. You're probably worse off than most - you're Senju, and that bad blood runs deep, bud." But despite his words, Dante gave Hibiki a light-hearted slap on the back. "But that's why Serizawa got me on your side." He grinned.

"Why's that?" Hibiki gave the blood-eyed man a hard look, and the Jonin just grinned in response, before he brushed some of his dirty black hair from his face.

"Well, I've got a few talents that the clan elders know about, and because of those talents, they know they can't do anything about you without pissing me off, and pissing off a few friends I've made over the years." Said the Uchiha.

"You like to be vague, don't you?"

"It comes with the job." He chuckled, "so what all do you know about your bloodline? I can't imagine your friend has been entirely forthcoming about something like that."

Hibiki looked back out into the forest, "I'd imagine you can't really tell me clan secrets without being called in for treason, right?"

"It is my right as a Jonin Sensei to teach my students whatever they need to be taught, and if it just so happens that one needs to be taught how to work a dojutsu that may or may not exist outside of the bounds of one of the most powerful clans on the planet... Well, that's just okay." He grinned, before he gave Hibiki another pat on the back. "Before I leave, would you like to explain why you've got a clone over there sleeping?" He nodded at the Hibiki in a sleeping bag. "They don't work that way."

_You'd be surprised._ "They're also supposed to be really fragile." Said Hibiki, "and it's not a clone. I've got half of the Alpha Me's chakra, so if there's any trouble, I'll be able to handle it long enough for him and you guys to wake up. Don't worry, he's thought it all out." And if push really came to shove, he still had his gun - no chakra needed.

Dante nodded and left the Hibiki clone to do his duty, silently wondering if there was anything he could do to kill this kid's reliance on Shadow Clones. It was pretty damn insightful, how well the kid was taking to them and making Tobirama's technique his own, but there was something to be said about the mental fortitude of an eight year old who was shoving months - if not, _years_ \- worth of training and study into a young mind in such a short amount of time. Could he _last_ doing this? Or would his mind eventually snap and he'd have to be put down for mercy?

Dante shook his head, his thoughts now going to the kid's blood. The Sharingan wasn't the only thing the kid could get, but it was the only thing the kid _had,_ and it was arguably his most powerful, outside of perhaps his Kaguya blood - and Kami help him if he awakened _that_ bloodline. Dante could train him in most everything a Sharingan entailed, from its youngest state to its most mature, save for the legendary Mangekyo, but a bone release? Dante had had a _lot_ of experience with various village's kekkei genkai - a man of his earlier career couldn't go without such experience - but he had no idea how he would go about training the kid in them, it would be as much of a learning experience for him as it would be for the kid. And what would happen if the kid had bloodlines that Kenichi the Graverobber's notes hadn't recorded? He'd heard of such wild rumored bloodlines as an Explosion release, a Smoke release, a Lava release, a _Gravity_ release, anything was possible with chakra bloodlines.

As Dante stoked the fire, he chuckled to himself, imagining what would happen if Kenichi's blood-mixtures managed to give the kid a Rinnegan. It would make about as much sense as it wouldn't, he reasoned.

* * *

Two days after their first run-in, still no further contact with bandits. They were far past Bandit Country now, roughly in the middle of the Land of Rice Paddies. Bandits didn't run rampant here, but they were still on their guard - their client had a bounty on him, after all. They maintained their brisk pace, not taking any time to take in the sunny, farm-filled scenery; where the land of fire had forests everywhere, the land of rice paddies was covered in farms.

Another day passed, according to their client and their map, they were pretty much _there,_ if they pulled an all-nighter they'd make it by morning. Dante made the call and they stopped for the night, no matter how much the client grumbled under his breath. Hibiki actually appreciated his decision, it gave him an opportunity to look at the stars, unabetted by city-light, which Konoha _did_ have, as unfortunately as it was. The night sky didn't look too different from Earth's, if he were to be honest, but given the lights at night Back Home, he didn't have any _real_ comparisons to make, just broad guesses.

On this night, he found himself searching for any constellations he remembered from Back Home. He could just make out the Little Dipper, and Orion's Belt - but he'd never been able to make out Orion himself, either Back Home or in the New Hotness. He _thought_ he saw Aries the Ram, but he wasn't sure. All of these constellations being in the sky made him wonder where Earth was, in the night sky, if it was even there. Was his new sun part of Earth's night sky? Could Sol be seen from where he was? Did Sol even exist where he was? Or was the similarities between this night sky and the other one just him imprinting memories and images into a coma-induced hallucination? He still couldn't choose whether or not this was the real life, or if it was just a fantasy.

_Caught in a landslide... No escape from reality._ Dante smirked and rolled over in his sleeping bag.

He sensed a flare in chakra, a _big_ one, his eyes flew open and he saw Dante leaping up to his feet, and Suboro - the one given night-watch - backing up from a great deal of bandits. Hibiki scrambled out of the bag about the same time as Noboru did, no one needed to say anything - they were surrounded.

_What the fuck... All these guys for a few hundred bucks?_ There were far more than six guys, there had to be dozens - all of them far better armed than the ones from before. Hibiki had his Sharingan activated, Noboru's own dojutsu flared to life, Suboro had no kekkei genkai to call upon, but he was circulating his chakra, making sure it was ready for whatever he needed it to be. Dante was standing above the still sleeping client, who had no sensitivity to chakra and therefor had no clue that Suboro had sounded the alarm.

The four ninja and the dozens of bandits were all cast in an ominous orange glow by their fire. Dante spoke up, his Sharingan spinning menacingly. "You don't have to do this, not for three hundred Ryo." He had expected one or two attacks, but he hadn't expected _so many people_ at once. Something else was going on that he wasn't aware of.

"You're right about that." Said a bandit leader, as he strode forward - a battered Amegakure headband tied around his waist. "We're doing this for thirty _thousand_ Ryo." He grinned, "a piece."

Dante scowled, so there was at least one Missing-nin among their ranks, how many more would there be? "What's worth thirty thousand a piece?"

The Missing-Ame-Nin grinned evilly, _"Leaf-Village hitai-ate!"_ With that declaration, every bandit at once started running forward as fast as they could.

Hibiki had to think fast - these were a lot of people, and even Jonin could be taken down through raw numbers. They had to get their client out of here if they wanted to fight without distraction, but they couldn't let him just run without cover. With that in mind, Hibiki spawned twenty clones - fifteen with chakra enough to fight, five bare-minumum, they would be guarding the client, if they were engaged, they wouldn't fight with chakra. He immediately felt the draw on his reserves and fatigue begin to pull at him, but he ignored the feeling and launched himself into the fight.

His clones all had their silent orders - they had to break through the horde, the client's home was to the north, so that was where Hibiki and the chakra-posessing clones surged. Like clockwork, there were sixteen declarations of his best and only effective combat technique, _"Falcon PUNCH!"_ The lethal explosion of chakra and hyper-enhanced strength either killed or seriously maimed their targets, and the force the clones had turned into momentum when their targets flew back into their allies, clearing a path for the gun-toting bare-minimum clones, four of which managed to rip their guns from their thigh, the fifth having woken up the terrified, groggy client and dragged him out of bed.

_"Good job, Hibiki!"_ He heard Dante shout out over a loud thunderclap, as he was engaged in a deadly battle with the missing-nin.

Hibiki didn't acknowledge his sensei, he and his clones were too busy engaging bandits and covering his teammates' asses. These bandits were a lot tougher than their cousins from the Land of Fire, they seemed more experienced in fighting ninja, if it were possible for a bandit to fight a ninja and survive in the first place. Another thing Hibiki noticed about these bandits was that they had armor and all of their faces were covered, be it by balaclavas or by bandanas and rags, their identities were hidden and their cores were protected.

Unfortunately for the bandits, all the flak jackets and kevlar in the world couldn't keep them safe from an eight year old's Falcon Punch, let alone an army of fifteen eight year olds doing that very attack. The only problem, he was starting to realize, was using this technique as frequently and as _intensively - _because he didn't know exactly how much power he needed to kill someone, so he was just using all of it - as he was, was burning through his chakra reserves. Before two minutes had even gone by, six of his clones had taken themselves to their limit - three of those clones had popped! Hibiki needed a different strategy, but he couldn't try the Lightning Zap technique Dante had taught them - even though it only needed three quick handsigns, that was too damn long compared to the _no_ handsign Falcon Punch. Then combine all of this with the constant drain of the Sharingan, however small he may have made it through constant use, it was all adding up.

It all added up to a crescendo, Hibiki fought fast and fought hard, and he definitely had stamina, but burning his chakra supply like he was was sapping that stamina and was making him sloppy, and nothing proved this more than when he felt a tip of a sword drag right across his back. He stumbled forward with a loud yelp of pain, he grabbed a kunai off of the ground and whirled around - managing to slash the ankles of his attacker, but the damage had been done, he was losing blood, and over the loud commotion of battle, he couldn't hear anyone other than himself and the people running for him.

His combat style unsustainable given his current physical build, and especially when added onto his injured physique, and slowly bleeding chakra thanks to his dojutsu, Hibiki was running out of options, he needed a new damn strategy, but he couldn't get to his gun fast enough without putting himself at further risk for injury. He was surrounding, and had he not been pouring chakra into his eyes to keep the sharingan active, his eyesight would have been blurring over. He fired off another Falcon Punch and killed one man while sending a few others flying away, but the bandits seemed endless - _why did he duct tape the gun to his thigh?!_ His only option was to keep fighting fast and fighting hard, speed was his best friend, but he couldn't keep fighting like this - his body literally couldn't handle it any more than it was. Priority number two: Stamina.

He smashed his chakra-coated fist into another bandit, adrenaline overriding the pain in his back and the ache all over his body, his brain unconsciously glossing over the other cuts and bruises he was getting thanks to the blows and jabs he was too slow to dodge. He thought he heard someone call out for him - it sounded like Noboru's voice, but he couldn't tell, his hearing was being overidden by a persistent ringing noise. He spun in place, fist arcing in a wide circle as he did, chakra practically radiating off of it like a flamethrower, which helped in keeping his enemies away, but it opened him up for a sword-wielder to stab him in the back, literally.

One moment he was trying to make himself space, the next he felt a freezing cold, and then scalding hot lance of pain scream down his back and out of his chest. It was odd, seeing a metal blade sticking out where it had no business being, but there it was - slicing straight through his favorite shirt, too. Come on, who _did _that?

Hibiki blacked out.

But he didn't lose consciousness.

No, something far more terrifying took his place as the raw battle instinct of the Kaguya clan's Shikotsumyaku took over.

* * *

That was _not_ chakra that Noboru Senju was used to seeing, or feeling for that matter, radiating off of the Senju heir. He'd tried to warn his friend that another Missing-Nin had arrived - and was going for the guy that was literally blowing all of his bandits away - but Hibiki had thought someone was at his back, unwittingly swinging there and making an opening for that missing-nin. Everyone was having trouble with their fight, and even with Hibiki's clones evening out the odds just a bit, things were hairy, and now, to make matters worse, Hibiki had been stabbed and his golden blood was practically _shining_ with the light of the long-since-set sun. It almost blinded the Hyuga noble, but the Genin focused through it and knew that, bar none, he had to get to Hibiki and keep him covered. That in mind, he knew he had to clear out the bandits around him, force an opening. It wasn't necessarily designed with this purpose in mind, but he only had one area-of-effect technique, and if he overcharged it with chakra, it should help him out.

_"Eight Trigrams Palms -"_ He roared out, as chakra began surging out of his tenketsu. _"Rotation!"_ He spun in place a full and complete three hundred and sixty degrees, repeatedly, forming a rotating wall of solid blue chakra, repelling any and all attacks and sending those who tried to hit him flying. However, this wasn't the end of his attack; taking a leaf out of Hibiki's book, he forced even more chakra out of his tenketsu - to the point where his chakra was _exploding_ outwards. Now, the Revolving Heaven grew exponentially, sending everyone around him within three meters _flying_ through raw force of rotating chakra, even - loath though he was to admit - the two Hibiki clones that had been close to him, with one having finally taken one hits too many and popping wholesale.

The Rotation's chakra dome fell after a moment more, and though he definitely felt the after-effects of improper usage - his entire body, from head to toe, burned as if it had been rubbed vigorously all over with a wire brush - he pushed past the pain and ran for Hibiki, though what he saw with his Byakugan as he got closer made him widen his eyes in horror. Hibiki's very _bones_ were sticking out of his body at horrifying, unnatural angles, with some of them having been broken to the point where they were now sharp, jagged edges - and the damn kid was _fighting with them!_

"Sensei! Suboro!" He didn't know what to do other than to call for help and try to help his friend. "Hibiki is in trouble!" He didn't bother to hear for a recognition - he leapt into the fray at Hibiki's side, covering the bloody Genin's blindside as the two fought in tandem. He noted blithely that Hibiki's Sharingan had changed - there were two tomoe now in each eye instead of one. Whatever they had done to him had forced his bloodline to adapt, it seemed.

With a loud roar, the two Genin leapt forward, Hibiki bloodily slicing his opponents to bits and stabbing them full of holes with his jagged bones, Noboru slamming his palms into the vital areas of his enemies, feeling organs and bones alike rupture and break, killing their former owners. Within seconds, he saw Suboro appear at the edge of his vision - Zapping his opponents with lethal dosages of lightning techniques and smashing them to pieces with chakra-coated fists and feet, the Genin was _furious_ he hadn't been able to protect his friend and teammate. The three fought savagely, killing anyone that came their way, though unable to refrain from injury themselves. When there was a lull in the war, Noboru finally took the time to search with his Byakugan - the only Bandits left were three Missing-Nin trying to take on Dante-Sensei, but faster than Noboru could blink, Dante leapt into the air and flew through the handsigns for a fire technique, sending it cascading down to the ground in explosive fire bullets. Two of the Missing-Nin went down dead and the third - whom Noboru identified as the first one to present himself - was still alive, albeit barely. Dante knocked him out and left a Shadow Clone to tie him up - he sprinted over to his Genin.

"Who's hurt?!" He scanned the Hyuga and the Orphan with his blazing Sharingan, they two had multiple injuries, but none of them would be life threatening if they were dealt within the next hour. Hibiki, on the other hand, was _covered_ in blood, some of it his, most of it the bandits', and he had bones sticking out of his wrists and his elbows. They were sharpened to a point and were dripping with copious amounts of blood.

Hibiki turned to his Jonin-Sensei and his Genin-teammates, rage and fury clear in his wavering Sharingan eyes, it was clear he wanted to keep fighting, but so too was it clear that he was acting on pure instinct - his eyes were clouded over and he was wobbly on his feet. Dante raised his hands up slowly to try and placate the youth, but his efforts were unneeded - the weaponized broken bones disintegrated into dust, and the torn flesh they had been sticking out from began stitching itself together as fast as it could with what little chakra Hibiki had left, and Hibiki fell to the ground, unconscious.

Dante caught the Genin before he'd even made it halfway to the ground. The Genin was in his arms bridal-style the next moment, and before the still-conscious but definitely exhausted Genin could blink, he was turned around and sprinting towards their client's village as fast as his chakra-coated legs could carry him. Noboru and Suboro followed as fast as they could, but they couldn't keep up with the battle-hardened Jonin.

* * *

_Oh... Shit that hurts..._ It felt as if his entire body were in a vice grip that was coated in acid and drowned in salt, _damn_ did he ache.

Hibiki was in so much pain, was so sore, and so _exhausted, _that he couldn't even summon up the energy to open his eyes. He could, however, hear - _boy_ could he hear. He heard Dante speaking calmly, he heard a voice he didn't recognize screaming for his mortal soul, and he heard his teammates arguing with who had to be their client.

"I don't care if you don't have many sheets! He got sliced open trying to protect you, the least you owe him is a bed to rest and recover in!" Shouted an uncharacteristically _irate_ Suboro.

"That's good Han, that's good. I can use that." Came Dante-sensei, "now I want to know who hired you to get these headbands. If you tell me, the demons will go away, but if you lie, they will only grow closer." He paused, "it looks like the winged spiders are closest to you... You may wish to speak closer, I do not know if I can hold them off for much longer." He said calmly, over the horrified screams of his target.

"But he's _bleeding_ all over my room!" The old man argued, as if he didn't even hear Dante and the other man's screams, "do you know how hard it is to get blood out of sheets?!"

"Yes, actually, I do." Said Noboru, "but I would remind you that that was the _boy_ who ripped apart twenty eight men with his bare hands, and kept on fighting when those same men broke his arms and legs to the point where their bones were sticking out, and he _killed people_ with the jagged broken ends." He explained, as gorily as he could. "I think he actually disemboweled one man, from the intestines I saw hanging from his hands. If you wish to wake him up and tell him he has to stop bleeding on your sheets because it is difficult to clean that blood, you are very welcome to, our duty to protect you ended when you crossed the threshold of your village." He said as-a-matter-of-factly. "I just hope you pray he is feeling generous, I have heard that second-stage Sharingan can cast genjutsu through mere eye contact. Imagine what horrors a prodigy such as he could come up with."

There was silence for a few moments, "Had... That doesn't help me. I said I wanted a _name..._ Now what happens to you is beyond my control." More screaming, "don't worry, the webbing will stop the bleeding. You'll live. Now give me a name and a village, else they'll take your testicles next."

"If I paid you cash right now to clean those sheets, would you do it?"

"We'd expect D-Rank salary, old-man." Said a growling buzz-cut Genin. "Can you afford that, out of pocket?" The old man didn't answer, "I thought so."

"I am going to check on him, his heartbeat has changed, he might be waking up." He heard his door open, Noboru grimaced, "Dante-Sensei! The genjutsu wore off in here!"

_"Almost done!"_ Said Dante in a sing-song voice, over the screams of his target.

He heard Noboru approach and he tried to block out the sounds of screaming. "Hibiki, are you awake?" Noboru's hand rested atop Hibiki's head.

Hibiki grunted affirmative.

"Can you open your eyes?"

Hibiki grunted negative.

"Can you speak?"

"Yeah." Hibiki croaked.

"Do you need anything?" Asked the voice of Noboru.

"Water."

"Suboro! Get Hibiki some water!"

A few minutes passed, Suboro came in with a large bucket filled with water, and a cup. Hibiki drank small sips to wet his throat. He grunted to signal he was done, "so..." He swallowed, "how long have I been out?"

"A day." Said Noboru, as he set the cup down with a light clink. "Dante-sensei has been interrogating the missing-nin he captured."

"Anything interesting?"

"No, he's been in there almost as long as you've been in here." Said Suboro, as he leaned up against the wall. "Our now-former client is kinda mad you're bleeding all over his sheets."

"I could hear. What happened?" Hibiki asked, after he'd gotten stabbed it all was a pretty big blur. "Noboru said something about my bones being broken?"

Silence, though Hibiki couldn't see it, Noboru and Suboro exchanged glances. "I... Think Dante-sensei should explain that bit to you."

"Hm." He swallowed again and tried opening his eyes, but found now that he was awake and a bit less sore that they were actually covered in tightly bound bandages. "Why are my eyes bandaged?" Was he blind? Did he get hurt?

"It is just a precaution, Dante-sensei said." Said Noboru, "he said your Sharingan matured yesterday night, and you're suffering from severe chakra depletion, your eyes might be very sensitive to light right now." He explained over the screams of their prisoner.

Hibiki nodded, and tried to sit up, but couldn't make it past a forty-five degree angle, and fell back onto the bed. The screams stopped, and a few minutes later, the smell of mints floated into the room as Dante-sensei strolled in, smiling as his Sharingan eyes flicked off. "I see someone's awake, how are you feeling?" He asked cheerfully, as he pulled up a chair next to Dante's bed and sat down across from Noboru.

"Sore." Deadpanned Hibiki. "What did you find out from Ame?"

"I'm surprised you remember his headband." Dante said absently, "I found out that he'd been hired by some Iwa affiliate to hunt down Konoha shinobi and kill them for their headbands." He explained, "the men we took out were, funnily enough, a vast majority of a bandit group that there is an outstanding B-rank contract on. Given all of the men we killed yesterday night, the bandit group won't be able to stay afloat much longer, so it looks like you all will be getting that payment as well. Good job!" He smiled with a thumbs-up.

"Sensei." Noboru scowled, "focus."

Dante shrugged, "so what all do you remember?" He asked Hibiki.

"Everything after I got stabbed is really blurry." He repeated.

"Hn." Grunted a nodding Dante, as he chose his words carefully. "What do you know of the Kaguya clan?"

_"Dick."_ Said Hibiki in his native tongue.

"What?"

"I don't know anything."

Dante gave him a hard look for Hibiki's momentary linguistic slip-up, but went on after a shake of his head. "The Kaguya clan is a clan of ninja that never really left the Warring States period. Rumor has it they're orbiting somewhere around Kirigakure these days, but not a lot of people will try and pick a fight with them, they're savage, they're strong, and they've got one of the most powerful bloodline this side of the Legendary Dojutsu. I don't know the name specifically, but it basically equates to a bone release." He indicated the bandages around Hibiki's knuckles. "From what I was cleared to know, the Kaguya clan can weaponize their very skeletons, they can grow weapons from their bones, control their physical hardness, and have an intrinsic healing factor that helps to reverse the damage done by weaponized bones ripping through their skin on a constant basis."

_So now I'm Wolverine?_ Hibiki blinked, "why do I have a bad feeling about this?" He asked, the pieces falling together as Dante sighed deeply.

"What I saw that night confirmed that you possess the Kaguya bloodline." Dante stated.

Hibiki forced his sore body to sit upright, groaning as he did so. If he had a damn healing factor, why was he so _sore?!_ Was it tied to his chakra, or did he have to purposefully call on the bloodline for it to kick in? He ordered the bandages covering his eyes removed, and after he confirmed that they hadn't been needed in the first place, he lifted his hands and gazed at their bandage-covered selves, "how is that possible? The only clan I have in me is Senju on my mother's side, and some Uchiha from my father." That was bullshit and he _knew_ it now, Tsunade had a _lot_ to explain when he got back home.

Dante shook his head, "I have no idea." He said, as Hibiki tried to feel within him and call on the bloodline.

Given that what Dante had just explained to him had immediately called visions of Weapon-X to mind, Hibiki focused on that image and dragged a bit of his chakra to his hands. Almost instantly he felt the _thoroughly_ uncomfortable and foreign feeling of bones tearing their way through his hands, and then popping up between each of his knuckles. Interestingly enough, they actually took the shape of the adamantium claws, as opposed to the bone-claws from the movies. Hibiki didn't miss everyone catching their breaths at the display.

_Now... How do I get rid of them? Because I can't just hide these in my arms - that's unnatural, my body wouldn't be able to handle that._ He reasoned, and not a moment after the desire for them to be gone came to mind, did they start rotting away into _dust,_ vanishing from his hands as if they hadn't ever existed. The wounds that had been sliced into his knuckles healed in scant seconds, not even leaving scars in their wake.

"Hm..." Hibiki didn't really know what to say to this. He had the perception-enhancing legendary dojutsu, and now the Wolverine Gene. What was next, Dragonball Z-style chakra weaponization?

Dante nodded slowly as he digested what he'd just seen. "I'll report this to the Hokage... But I don't think I have to tell the three of you that we can't let this spread beyond the three of us." He said, as his ear twitched ever-so-slightly, did he hear a hawk outside?

Hibiki nodded, simply staring at his hands and wondering what else was in him that was being hidden from him by Tsunade. Noboru nodded, but he had a question for Hibiki, "Hibiki... Do you know how it is you possess so many bloodlines?" His earlier comment about how gold Hibiki's blood looked was fresh in the three Genin's minds. Hibiki shook his head, Noboru spoke again, "Hm..." He hummed, "I do not know what explanation exists to properly explain this... But you are my teammate and my friend. We've spilled blood together. Should _any_ trouble come from your blood, I guarantee you the protection of the Hyuga clan until the madness ends." He said determinedly.

Hibiki broke his gaze with the shredded bandages on his hands and gave Noboru a look of awe. "Yeah!" He an Noboru looked to Suboro, who wore a kind, warm grin on his face as he made his own promise. "And I promise I'll help you any way you want when you want to figure out what you can do!" He declared proudly, "I might not be in a clan like Noboru, but I can find my own way to help, and you're my friend, I'll do anything for you, man." He nodded.

"Guys -"

_"HEY, NINJA!"_ Came the irate voice of their client, before he barged into their room. "Is that damned hawk outside that's terrorizing my very pregnant daughter _yours?!"_

Dante was on his feet and out the room in an instant. He had been right - he had heard a hawk outside. But what on earth would warrant sending a messenger hawk all the way out here? They would be on their way home soon anyhow, and even with Hibiki injured they should make far better time than they did getting up here.

"So..." Said Hibiki, trying to break the rapidly growing tension. "That's two for two, now. What else do you guys think I can do?" He raised an eyebrow and grinned, rubbing his knuckles as he did.

Suboro thought hard, a smile growing on his face; despite their occupation, they _were_ all just kids, and they weren't really in any position to brood over their kills - though Hibiki would make certain to check in on the two later, once they'd had time to react and settle in. "Maybe you can..." He drew on, "create explosions just with chakra!"

Noboru and Hibiki grinned, "perhaps you can leach bloodlines." Said Noboru.

"Or a wood release, like your grandpa!"

"Or a magma release?"

"Or a ki release?" If Hibiki could throw around Kamehamehas, he would be well and truly ready to declare this all some sort of dream.

"Life energy? Oh, that will be difficult to top..." Suboro lolled his head about, as if trying to stir his thoughts and come up with a new one. "What about a nature release?"

"Or a darkness release?" Noboru asked, "or a light release, on that matter."

"Maybe you can make genjutsu that affects reality. Maybe all your boodlines will mix together and you'll get one super-cool bloodline, that can beat all the others!" Suboro declared, as Dante-sensei entered the room, the look on his face wiping the jovial mood from the room.

"We're leaving right now. Noboru and Suboro, help Hibiki to his feet, I'm going to body flicker, we're not wasting any time getting home." He ordered tersely.

Hibiki blinked, as he raised up both arms so his teammates could lift him up. "Where's the fire, sensei? What happened?"

"The Third Hokage has been killed, and acting-Hokage Shimura has recalled all active-duty shinobi to shore up our defenses."


	11. Death

_A/N:_

_I'll go ahead and say it now: Sarutobi isn't the only Canon character I'm killing.  
Through his death **alone,** I've killed two or three by proxy. _

_From here on, things change._

* * *

Chapter 10

* * *

The Hokage was _dead?_

That man was lauded as the _God of Shinobi,_ and he was _dead._

Hibiki hadn't believed it, but after a two hour body-flicker from the land of rice paddies to Konoha, he knew almost instantly that he was wrong, and Dante-sensei was right. Where once the gate guards numbered only two, and looked somewhat bored, albeit attentive, with their jobs, now they numbered twelve and each of them were tense and paranoid, to the point that they nearly blasted Hibiki and Co. apart when Dante appeared in a poof of smoke. It took them three hours to get into the gate, all of their effects were searched thoroughly and they all - Dante included - had to provide their headbands, their ninja identification, their former civilian identification, their former _academy_ identification, and they had to be submitted to an Uchiha inspection - meaning they had to be inspected under the nigh-infallible eye of a fully matured Sharingan wielder. If the shinobi found even _one_ discrepancy anywhere, they would be detained if they weren't executed on-site.

The entire village was subdued, and silent - all civilians had been ordered into their homes until further notice, and the only ones allowed outside were Uchiha Military Police, and Shinobi ranked Chunin and above. Dante kept his Genin on a tight leash, not letting them out of his sight and keeping his head on a constant swivel, his Sharingan blazing heatedly, as if he might find the escaped assassin. On that note, Hibiki knew he didn't have the whole story - all he had gotten from Dante was that someone had used some kind of lightning/earth fusion technique to kill the Hokage from afar, and had gotten into the village _through the front gate._

In record time, Team Six went from the gate to the Hokage's tower, which Hibiki could almost tell was crawling with whatever Anbu weren't out looking for the escaped Assassin. Dante managed to intimidate the Genin Corpsman manning their desk into letting him fill out the paperwork later, and spent close to a quarter of an hour arguing with Anbu Wolf that he had to speak to the Acting-Hokage, that he had something of critical importance to report, likely to do with the assassination. It was only after Uncle Orochimaru came down from the upper levels of the tower, did he manage to get in, with the pale-skinned Snake Sannin vouching for him; though no one missed the unspoken threat when the man vomited up the legendary Grass Cutter and used it to direct Dante and Team Six up the stairs: If Dante - or even Hibiki and his team - tried something, he'd slice them _all_ to bits. Hibiki thought he caught an apologetic glance when he passed his uncle though, but he wasn't sure.

They made it into the Hokage's office, within which the former Elder Shimura was heatedly discussing something with an Anbu agent in a Panther's mask, and the Uchiha and Hyuga clan heads. The office went silent after Dante and Team Six entered.

Shimura was an elderly, heavily bandaged former shinobi - half of his face and his forehead was wrapped tight like a mummy, and one of his arms was encased in a thick looking cast. He wore a look that could kill - and Dante knew that, had the man had a Sharingan, he probably _could_ have killed with his look. The Acting-Hokage gave each of the four Shinobi and the lone Sannin an intense look masked behind his scowl. "Dante Uchiha. I was warned you were on your way. You have something for me." It wasn't a question, this man knew Dante through reputation, he knew the man wouldn't waste his time with useless nothings, _especially_ not during such an important investigation and discussion.

"Lord Shimura." Said Dante, with a closed fist on the chest and a bow, he bade his Genin to do the same, and they did. "Do I address you as Lord Hokage, or continued as Lord Shimura?" He inquired honestly.

"For now I act as the Fire Shadow, so you shall address me as such until a different decision is made." The bandaged Hokage stated.

"Understood, Lord Hokage." Dante stood up, followed by his Genin. "Whilst on mission, myself and my Genin were engaged by multiple Amegakure missing ninja, and a massive group of bandits."

"So report your B-Rank and begone." Shimura waved them away.

"Sir." Said Dante, "I captured the leader after he mentioned a very hefty price on Leaf-Village hitai-ate."

That got the Acting-Hokage's attention. It got _everyone's_ attention. "Continue."

"I interrogated the lead missing-nin, a B-Rank by the name of Had." Dante reported, "he was resistant, but broke under my stern gaze." Dante wasn't stupid enough to look at Danzo Shimura with an active Sharingan, but he did flash it briefly to let the man know what he was referring to. "He explained to me that he was hired through an agent of an agent, but was able to track the order to Sunagakure. His own investigations led him to believe that Sunagakure wished to unleash a surprise attack on Konoha so they could wipe us out."

"Why would _Suna_ wish to wipe us out?" The Uchiha clan-head growled.

Shimura responded, but Hibiki noted that Orochimaru had made to speak as well, "they have lost the favor of the wind Daimyo in the years after the second war. We have been slowly getting more jobs that would have once gone to Suna. We are steadily growing in economic and military power, and Suna does not want to appear weak to their former allies and their current Daimyo, if they were able to quickly wipe us out in a massive surprise attack, it would speak wonders for their potential power. Especially after they forcibly breed our noble clans into their own." He said with confidence.

"I had a similar theory, but it had more to do with the land of whirlpools." Said Orochimaru, which got Shimura's attention.

"We haven't had any correspondence from Uzushiogakure in some time. What do you know that I do not?"

"Uzushiogakure was wiped out. A great many of the Uzumaki clan are dead, and any survivors have fled. If Suna wished to take us down, Uzu would be a perfect springboard, and a perfect testing grounds for their strategies, as Uzu shinobi fight similar to our own, the difference being in their extensive sealing usage, as opposed to our ninjutsu." Orochimaru explained, before he swallowed his blade, obviously seeing no need for it. "I will speak with Jiraiya, his spy network might have information for us, and a few of his more elderly toads took up residence in Uzu, they might yet live and could have information for us."

The Acting-Hokage nodded, and rolled his chair back so he could turn to the window behind him, Hibiki paled at what he saw.

One, single, _clean_ hole, and a spiderweb crack surrounding it. That looked like the textbook definition of a sniper shot, someone with a _gun_ had made it into Konoha and killed the Hokage. Hibiki flashed his Sharingan so he could burn every detail into his mind - noting briefly that things seemed a great deal clearer than they usually were, in those few seconds he looked all around.

"One of Sunagakure's shinobi was capable of a magnetic release technique." Danzo pulled a book out from within his robes, "Rasa." He said after a minute, looking from the book to the pierced window. "His Gold Dust technique could have done this from a great range, but that would not explain the thunderclap." He contemplated silently, "Wolf."

The wolf-masked ANBU melted into the room from the darkness. "Yes, Lord Hokage?"

"Gather your two best assassins and journey to Sunagakure. I want you to find Rasa of the Golden Dust. If he is within the village, you are not to kill him, but you are to return and report. If he is not within the village, you shall wait two weeks for him to return, and then you will kill him, and you will not be found. If you must use ninjutsu, use ones commonly associated with Amegakure, but otherwise leave no possible evidence. Am I understood?" He gave the ANBU a fierce look.

"Perfectly, Lord Hokage."

"Then you are dismissed." Danzo turned his chair back to Team Six, "is there anything else, Dante?" He inquired, slightly kinder than he had been when they'd arrived.

"No, sir."

"Then you are released. Turn in your added B-Rank and then escort your genin home. Until midday tomorrow, all civilians and all shinobi under Chunin are under to remain indoors unless otherly ordered." He informed, before waving the team off with his good hand.

"Thank you, Lord Hokage." Dante bade his team to follow.

* * *

Hibiki's was the last stop on their quick trip between the Genin team's homes. Noboru and Suboro were both quiet and subdued as they had been guided home, just as the doubled-Hyuga guards had been stoically silent when they'd arrived, and the normally hectic orphanage was deathly silent. Everyone in the village was in shock, but no one more so than Tsunade senju, who was sitting still in the living room of her home, still in her hospital uniform, her hands still plastered with the blood of her sensei, her leader.

Shizune greeted Dante and Hibiki solemnly, she thanked Dante for his service and took Hibiki aside to speak to him. From the brief glance Hibiki had of her, and just one look at Tsunade, Hibiki knew that things were _bad._ Tsunade was just sitting there, staring at a wall, a few alcohol bottles on the table in front of her, but they were untouched, she was in too much shock to even drink. Shizune took Hibiki aside, into the kitchen, out of sight and hopefully out of earshot.

"How bad is it?" Hibiki asked the slug-Sannin's apprentice.

Shizune didn't even bother treating Hibiki like a child like she usually did, and Hibiki appreciated it, he knew she knew how smart he was, and he knew her first instinct was to keep him away from the intricacies of adult life, that she was speaking to him about this was an interesting development in their relationship, to say the least. "She was the one who operated on Lord Third." Shizune whispered, kneeling down to eye-level with the displaced man.

Hibiki noticed the bruise forming on her cheek and the dried, smeared blood. Had Tsunade hit her? _"Christ..."_ He breathed.

"He was dead by the time he got to us, but she just kept operating..." Shizune shook her head, "she was the one who declared him dead... She hasn't said a word since." She looked in the direction of the living room. "She put Jiraiya through a wall when he arrived to try to speak to her." Hibiki hadn't seen that part, there must be a hole somewhere in the house.

"And what did she do to you?" Hibiki asked, indicating her bruise.

"I..." Shizune looked away, backing up just a bit.

"Shizune." Hibiki could count on one hand how many times he properly tried to emulate his Old Voice in serious conversation, Back Home he had been told he could be pretty intimidating if he really wanted to be, his old voice having been rather deep and monotone, it could carry far and it could get _loud_ if he put power behind it. Here, emulating the voice meant that, due to his age, the effect wasn't as dramatic, but sounding like he had the stress and experience of years behind him caught those few he'd spoken to completely off guard, to the point that they divulged whatever information they were hiding from him. "Tell me." He didn't know what he'd do with the information, but he wanted it nonetheless.

The dark-haired medic-nin gave him a desperate look, her lip wavering. "I followed her home, and when she went for her sake, I tried to take it from her." She dragged her dainty fingers across the bruise, as she sat down on the floor. "That's when she got like she is now. She just froze... Sat down..." She felt tears threatening to come.

Hibiki nodded, looking down and backing up to lean on the wall as he thought deeply. If the village was in shock, then Tsunade was dead to the world she was so deep. The third Hokage had been her sensei - as close to a father figure as she could get before she looked to her own father. Hiruzen Sarutobi had helped mold her into the woman and the shinobi she was today, losing him, to her, would be something similar to what Hibiki went through when it started clearly registering for him that he was a long way away from home, and everyone he knew could be dead. 'In mourning' couldn't even begin to describe what state she was in.

Hibiki didn't know what to do. But he did know he had to talk to Tsunade. "I'll talk to her." Said Hibiki, as he began the long walk to the living room.

Upon entering, he found the hole Shizune had mentioned. About the size and width of Jiraiya, Hibiki was impressed at how _not_ shredded the wall was; Jiraiya must have been moving impossibly fast. He took one long look at Tsunade, the blood covering her hands and her hospital uniform, her hair still done up in a tight pony-tail, hands still twitching in her lap. The sake bottles on the table numbered at least six - three for each hand, one was unstoppered and had some liquid running down its side, it must have been the one Shizune had wrestled her over.

Hibiki walked over to the slug-Sannin, climbed up onto the couch and sat down next to her, she didn't even register his presence, just staring, wide-eyed at the wall ahead of her.

"So... Mom." He didn't often use the word 'Mom' to Tsunade, to him, 'Mom' was the plump stay-at-home woman from suburban America, who would always wake him up when they had something important to do, always the same way - first a few knocks on the door, and if he didn't groan in response, she'd open it slowly and peer inside, eternally thankful her son slept clothed, unlike her husband. After entering his room, she'd tap her son's foot a few times to get a response, and if the gentle approach failed, the 'Blast Motorhead right in his ears' _never_ did. Such final-measures usually woke up the entire house as an added bonus. He missed his real mother sometimes, but he had thought enough on their final conversation to vividly remember his last words to her, and so he took solace in that the last thing he'd said to his mother before he took the trip of a lifetime was 'I love you, see you next time.'

He saw in his peripheral vision that she jerked as if she'd been hit by something, but apart from that, Tsunade remained still and unresponsive. "You want to know something I've been thinking about, recently?" No answer. "Have you ever used the phrase, you're one in a million?" No response, he pressed on, pulling the pep-talk out of his ass. "Well, if you think about things mathematically... That means there are three people exactly like you in the Land of Fire alone. But a while ago, I thought of something interesting." He kept looking forward, but he leaned back and let the cushions overtake him. "You know how the stars in the sky twinkle at night? Well, I was wondering, what if our sun is one of those stars?" The New Hotness' astronomy was back-ass-wards, the most powerful telescopes known could barely see a few miles, let alone the other planets in the solar system - why make a big telescope when one could just as easily use a technique for far less resources? "And if our sun is one of these stars... That means the stars out there are suns too. So, if they're suns, does that mean they have worlds to shine over too? Because if that's true, that means there are countless... Endless worlds out there, just like ours."

Tsunade blinked, and ever so slowly started turning her head towards Hibiki, but he kept staring ahead.

"And if those other suns have worlds like ours, that means they have people like ours too." Not entirely, but it wasn't like she understood the concept of extraterrestrials and aliens, anyways, so he didn't have to go into the intricacies of evolution, xenobiology, and the like. "So, if you're one in a million, and all the stars in the night sky have planets orbiting around them, that means there have to be millions and millions of people out there just like you. And based on mathematics, that means that somewhere out there, there is someone perfectly like you, down to the hair style and the quick temper. So if there's someone out there, just like you, that means she's gone through the same things you've gone through. That means she's got an annoying little gaki giving her a real bad pep-talk too, just like you." He shifted his gaze upwards, towards the 'sky'. "I guess what I'm trying to say is... You're not alone in this." He said, slowly turning his head to look at the slug-Sannin. "You're not the only one who lost someone really close to you." He said slowly, looking right into her watery eyes as he spoke, "and you've got a lot of family and friends to talk to if the pain ever gets too much. You're not alone, Mom. Ever. You're not alone."

Even if he hadn't had a few decades of experience of reading people behind him, he would have been able to tell she was about to burst into tears. He braced himself for the bone-crushing embrace, and let her vent her sorrows as long as she needed.

* * *

Tsunade eventually let him go and sent him to bed. The next morning, after he woke up, got dressed, and went down stairs, he found that his pep-talk had worked, but not in the way he'd intended. Tsunade had opened up the alcohol bottles after he'd gone to bed, not to pour them out, or to throw them out of the blanket-covered hole in the wall, but to down them all - every alcohol bottle in the house was empty and tipped over. Tsunade was dead drunk and unconscious, and after a brief glance around the living room, Hibiki saw Shizune lying asleep on a chair, herself forgoing a blanket to make sure Tsunade was covered.

_Well... I'm not having that._ Thought the onyx-eyed displaced man as he stared at Shizune remorsefully, and Tsunade apologetically. He went back up to his room, and ripped off the blanket from his bed - sending a few scribbled on sheets of paper flying as he did, but he ignored them. He ran back downstairs and tossed the blanket over Shizune, she almost instantly grabbed it and curled up into a tight little ball.

Hibiki sighed, and turned around, now wondering what to do with Tsunade. Maybe if he were older - physically - he could have done something better, something _more,_ but no matter how wise his words may be, his physical age meant that they passed through Tsunade's 'kid filter', and they lost some of their meaning. He was her son, no matter what blood ran in her veins, and she was a bit too proud to take an eight year old's advice to heart, thus: The drinking. Hibiki shook his head exhaustedly, and strode into the kitchen, he didn't even react when he saw the snake-sannin sitting at Tsunade's table.

"Did you come through the wall, or the door?" Hibiki asked, as he rummaged around their drug cabinet, looking for some sort of bottle of aspirin for Tsunade to swallow whole once she woke up - ninja drinkers got ninja headaches.

"The door." Said his Uncle, lowly, so as not to disturb his sleeping hosts. "I assume you've heard the news." He said, giving Hibiki pause as the displaced man _swore_ he heard the snake sannin's voice catch slightly.

Hibiki put back a bottle of allergy meds - even in the Ninja world, people got allergies, and wouldn't you know it? Tsunade fucking Senju was allergic to pollen. "Yeah. The acting Hokage sent out messenger hawks to every out-of-village shinobi and made a total factory-recall." He explained, examining another pill bottle, and discovering to his dismay that they were morning-after pills, they went back in quickly. "Do you believe that stuff about Rasa?" He asked, wondering if it had been someone in Suna who had given guns to Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Gun, but knowing in the back of his mind that they were going to kill the wrong man, and praying that Rasa was home instead of out on mission.

Orochimaru nodded, to Hibiki's dismay. "His Golden Dust technique is the stuff of legends in the assassins community. During the second war, he was able to kill Konoha-nin from kilometers away. When paired with his third-eye technique, he is something approaching unstoppable." He said, as Hibiki stepped down from the counter - aspirin bottle in hand.

"But... Lord Hokage said something about a thunderclap. Did the Golden Dust technique ever make thunder?" He asked, grabbing a cup from the sink and filling it with water.

"No." Said Orochimaru, as Hibiki walked out into the living room and left the water and the pill bottle where Tsunade would see it. "But your chakra-less thunder technique did." He said upon Hibiki returning.

Hibiki nearly fell over. He sighed, and gave Orochimaru a blank look, thinking, _well, that answers the mystery of who took my gun, at least._ "It wasn't me." It also wasn't worth it to play dumb - Orochimaru was the smartest of the three Sannin, and having spoken to Hibiki like he did for so long, he knew all of Hibiki's tells, and had taught him how to hide them, so he knew what to look for when Hibiki was lying.

"I know. You left no clones behind when you went out on your mission." Said Orochimaru, as the eight-year-old man sat down in front of him. He leaned forward, speaking far more seriously than he had ever done before, "do you know who _did?"_ He asked, "your words could avert an entire war. Or... At least, change its target." He said, his golden eyes looking into Hibiki's onyx.

Hibiki shook his head, "I don't know who else knows how to make firearms." He said solemnly, "I wouldn't even know where to start looking to find the assassin." And given how tight village security would be for the next few months at _least,_ he wouldn't be able to start his investigation until after the funeral, and by then, the trail might be too cold. Hibiki sighed, "all I do know is that you're going after the wrong man. If Rasa's technique relied on some kind of magnet release, it wouldn't have made the thunderclap."

"What would have?" Orochimaru pressed.

"The sound of the gunpowder igniting and the bullet breaking the soundbarrier is what makes the noise. Either of those alone are loud as hell, but together, it's deafening." The first time he'd ever fired a gun - _ever! - _his ears bled. "The only way Rasa could have done that with sand..." His thoughts went to railguns, but he didn't even want to _consider_ that. People who could break the laws of physics on a whim, who had access to railguns? Terrifying. "It's impossible, to say the least." The only chakra-techniques he knew of that could create thunder were explosive and lightning techniques, and from what he knew of this 'Rasa of the Golden Sand', that didn't sound likely for this scenario.

Orochimaru nodded, and leaned back. He could tell from the look in Hibiki's eye that the kid knew as much as he did, so he let the topic go, for now. He looked out into the living room, then back to Hibiki. "How bad?"

"Bad." Said Hibiki, "I tried to help her yesterday... But it didn't work, apparently." Hibiki turned around and stared for a moment at the empty liquor cabinet. "Any ideas?"

Orochimaru was silent a moment, "leaches." He said, "if she ever gets very drunk, find leaches and they'll suck the alcohol out, then make her drink plenty of water." One didn't get teamed up with the greatest medical kunoichi in the world without learning a thing or two himself. "Else, no."

Hibiki nodded, "I meant suggestions about how to curb the drinking while we could, but that works too." He sighed, and sank into his chair. "Was what you said about Uzushiogakure true?" He asked.

Orochimaru blinked, "are you asking for Lady Mito's sake?" He asked, interestedly.

Hibiki shook his head, "the younger one, Kushina." He said, "she's a friend of mine, and a friend of my friend, too. I think Miss Mito can handle this news, somewhat. Kusina... Not so much." If the news about Uzushiogakure's destruction was true, then Hibiki would have to consider rounding up Minato and forming a plan, because Kushina would be _devastated._

Orochimaru nodded his head, "I sent a few snakes ahead of our scouts and spies. They came back yesterday, before your team arrived, and confirmed. There is nothing left alive in that village, even the chakra has left that place."

Hibiki sighed, "great. Just... Great." He leaned back and sighed.

* * *

Hibiki knew the route to Minato's foster-home pretty much by heart, it was barely a kilometer from Tsunade's place. Today, the journey felt a _lot_ longer, the lack of the late Hokage's presence weighed heavily upon the village, everyone was sullen and quiet, the colors seemed a great deal more grey, even the usual background noise was a lot quieter. He made the journey in the usual time - about ten minutes - but it still felt like it took hours, simply because of how sad and withdrawn the village was.

Hibiki knocked on the big wooden door twice, and as was the norm, Minato's foster-mother was there in a second. She started, for a moment, when she saw the headband, but when she saw the boy wearing it, she broke into a solemn smile. "Hibiki!" She said cheerfully enough, "how good it is to see you. Come in!" She ushered the eight year old man inside, calling for Minato as she did. "Did you just return home?" She asked.

"Yesterday. We got called back along with everyone else, when we got the news." Said Hibiki, as the thunderous footfalls of the blonde blur signaled his impending arrival. "How are you guys holding up?" He asked, turning to look at the dark-haired foster mother, who bore the aged look of a woman who raised children for a living.

Hana shrugged, "about as well as can be expected." She said, as Minato swung into the room, his face brightened up considerably when he saw Hibiki.

"Hibiki!" The blonde blur brought the genin into a bear hug. "Aw, man, I thought you'd never come home!" He said into Hibiki's shoulder, before he let the genin go. "How are you doing - Thanks Hana!" He said, his hand on Hibiki's shoulder, so he could guide them outside.

"I'm as good as can be, considering." Said Hibiki, truth be told the death of the Hokage wasn't really hitting him much - sure, the man came to visit every now and again, but Hibiki had never really been exposed to him that much, and this guy was the exact opposite of Hibiki's Poppy, Back Home. From his experiences with Hiruzen Sarutobi, the man was a wise, world-weary old man who liked to listen more than he liked to talk, Poppy, on the other hand, was a deep-voiced jolly-old-fat guy born in Italy and raised in the US, the two were polar opposites, and Hibiki liked his Poppy better; _Poppy's_ death, Hibiki had cried over, the fact that he'd been twenty four at the time be damned. "How about you?" Despite Hibiki's opinion, the Hokage was well loved and well respected by his people, the entire village was taking it hard.

Minato simmered down a bit, and shrugged his shoulders. "It hurts... Knowing the assassin got inside the gates like that, and killed _the freaking Hokage..._ But I'm managing well enough." He said, before he brightened up, "so, what brings you here? Got any good stories to tell?!" He asked, excitedly, as the two stepped outside.

Hibiki sighed, "seen Kushina lately?" He asked.

That gave the blonde pause, "no, not since the Hokage died." He said.

_Like ripping off a band-aid._ "Uzushiogakure was destroyed." He said, bluntly. "There weren't many survivors."

Minato blinked, "uh..." He slowly fell back onto his haunches, then finally onto his butt. "Oh." He said dumbly, as he tried to comprehend what Hibiki had just told him. "Destroyed?"

"Yeah." Hibiki sat down on the dirt too, "that's what Uncle O told me." He said, settling down and resting his arms on his knees. "So... What do we tell Kushina?"

Minato blinked, the dots finally connected. "Oh... Oh _Kami..."_ He breathed, "what _do_ we tell her?" He asked, eyes wide with concern. "Does she know?"

Hibiki shrugged his shoulders, "I don't know. I haven't seen Miss Mito, so she may or may not know by now."

Minato leaned back, eyes wide, simply sitting there, thinking and breathing. "Wow... First the Hokage, and now Uzu..." His tone spoke of how he just couldn't believe it. "We've got to tell her..." He said blankly.

"Yeah." Said Hibiki. "Who's she got for friends? We should probably bring one or two of them along." He suggested, but Minato shrugged.

"I don't know who her friends are... I see her talking to everyone." Minato shrugged again, "should we just... What do you say? Wing it?"

Hibiki stared at Minato blankly for a moment, "we're telling an eight year old girl that her entire village and likely most of everyone she ever knew, is dead and gone. And you want us to wing it." In all honesty, that had been what he'd planned to do, but he still had to mention the stupidity of it.

Minato shrugged helplessly, "I've never really done this before."

Hibiki sighed, and then hauled himself to his feet. "Well, we'll wing it. Just try to be... Subtle, alright?" He grinned and held his hand out for the blonde blur, "I know that's difficult for you."

Minato rolled his eyes.

* * *

Due to the fact that Mito had decreed that a man should escort a woman home no matter what sitution they find themselves together in, Hibiki had Kushina's home address _memorized._ Back Home, the then-man would have told the old lady off and ignored her - if Kushina had been of similar age to him at that time, then she would have had a car herself, she would have been _fine._ Here? She and He were eight, not in their twenties, and the woman he would have been telling off would have been one of the oldest women in his village, and she had a walking talking living demon nuke in her gut that gave her god powers beyond the reality-bending ones everyone else already had.

With Minato trailing behind him, Hibiki walked up the trail to Kushina's home, a large apartment complex. Despite how important she would become, according to Mito at least, the Leaf Village under Hiruzen had seen fit to only give her an apartment barely big enough to function for her needs, and hadn't given her any caretakers. They just looked at the eight year old girl, found her apartment, and said 'Good luck! Take care of yourself!'.

Shaking his head, Hibiki strode up to Kushina's apartment, number 33, and knocked thrice on the door. Given that it was before noon, Kushina was probably still asleep, or just waking up. There were a few moments of silence, but before the Senju-heir knocked again, they heard a light voice announce she was coming. Hibiki and Minato stepped back, and a minute later, a sleepy Kushina, still garbed in her pajamas, opened the door, rubbing the sleep out of her eyes with the back of her arm.

"Hello?" She mumbled, before she got a good look at her company and perked up a bit, obviously enthused at the concept of getting visitors, even if she was only acquainted with one and almost friends with the other. "Oh, Hibiki-san." She said, groggily, running a hand through her bright red hair. "And... Minato Namikaze." It took her a moment, "how are the both of you?" She asked, wondering if they were here to ask how she was doing after the Hokage, or if it was something else.

Hibiki was the one that spoke, "hey, Kushina." He said, his tone prompting her to think that it was something else. "Can we come in? We've got something to tell you... It's kind of sensitive."

She blinked a few times, before standing aside and allowing the two entrance into her Spartanly decorated, still somewhat dark, apartment.

The entire apartment building would be woken up by her cries.

* * *

_AN:_

_Before you think 'well, that was short.' Go back and read it again. There's a **lot** under the surface. _


	12. The Beginning

_AN:_

_I know it's a bit early, I'm graduating highschool in two days and I got my license yesterday. I'm feeling generous._

* * *

Chapter 11

* * *

Three weeks passed after the death of the Hokage, today was the day of the funeral. Nothing was said between the three Sannin and their adopted child as they met early in the morning, before the sun graced its world, to make their way to the burial grounds. They walked from one end of the village to the other in complete silence, and it was a gray morning when they arrived at the burial grounds. They three sat in front of the small stage that had been built for the speech to be given by the still-acting-Hokage Shimura. Ever since the Third's assassination, Konoha had been in a state of pseudo-war against an unknown faction, to the point where _all_ of the Genin teams and squads of Chunin brought the anvil down on pretty much every possible roving gang of bandits within the land of fire. 'Bandit Country' didn't exist anymore, and all of the recently graduated teams had combat missions under their belt to prepare them for the inevitable war. Hibiki and his team had to have taken down three bandit camps, two on their own, one with another Genin team, netting them all three more B-Ranked missions under their belt.

Hibiki looked up at the dark grey sky, it was going to _pour_ soon, that much was absolutely certain. Even the skies had seemed somber and sad these last few weeks, mourning the third of Konoha's leaders just as its villagers did. Each of the Sannin had taken it especially hard, Tsunade had sobbed well into the night of Hiruzen's death, to the point where she just collapsed from exhaustion and ended up sleeping on the couch. She stayed somewhat silent for the first week after his death, only speaking when spoken to, and trying to find a great deal of solace in the bottom of a bottle - which Hibiki had no counter for, he just made sure an aspirin and a glass of water were waiting for her whenever she woke up.

Jiraiya had buried himself in his work, both in training Hibiki and building his spy network. With all the work Hibiki saw him pouring into that damn network, he had to be something approaching a Spymaster by this point. Unfortunately, he kept that part of his work separate from basically everything that wasn't involved - Hibiki only knew of this spy network's existence, because the man himself had dropped the hint. No, Jiraiya's primary involvement with Hibiki had come in him taking a far more active role in Hibiki's training - _one_ word from Hibiki about how, on his first mission, he'd learned his fighting style was unsustainable after more than a few minutes, and Jiraiya was putting the man-kid through such strenuous physical and stamina training that sometimes Hibiki had thought he was ready to die again. Worse for Hibiki was that he couldn't delegate this to clone duty - muscle memory transferred between clones just fine, but not muscle development, so if he wanted to build up his stamina, or his natural strength, he had to go through all of that on his own. Jiraiya didn't talk much about Hiruzen's death, he tried to look strong for Hibiki and Tsunade's sake, but Hibiki could tell he was hurting, and didn't want to show it.

Orochimaru had taken things uniquely, but not in the sense that he wasn't mourning. He'd retreated within himself, he talked less than he usually did - even to Hibiki, whom he tended to tolerate due to the child's young wisdom - and often went unseen for days on end, with today being the first time Hibiki had seen the pale-man in six days, straight. He had called off Hibiki's training until after the funeral, instead giving him a half dozen scrolls to go through in his spare time.

Hibiki's ears twitched, and he looked down from the skies, he saw Minato and his foster-family making their way towards the burial grounds. Hibiki nudged his mother in the side, she nodded blankly, barely even registering his silent request, simply silently going along with whatever it may be; Hibiki thought, morbidly, that in this state she would give him her blessing to go steal a car and rob a liquor store, she was just so out of it. Hibiki had once considered bringing up his new bloodline with his mother, but it was just too inappropriate right now, maybe when things had calmed down and things weren't so dark and glum, and she wasn't so drunk or hungover. Hibki stood up and jogged over to Minato, who, like Hibiki and everyone present, was dressed head-to-toe in black. He had even tied down his normally wild, unkempt hair.

He looked up when he heard Hibiki come by, he nodded to the Genin. "Hey."

Hibiki slowed down and fell into pace next to his friend. "Hey." He said, before he offered similar greetings to Hibiki's foster family. "How're you holding up?" With the massive up-scale in the crack-downs on bandits within Fire Country, Hibiki hadn't had much time to socialize outside of the Ninja ranks, and even then, he didn't get to do much - _everyone_ was mourning, his own team included.

"It's hard." Said Minato, he slowed to a stop, and the two watched as his foster family found their own bench. It would be a few hours yet until people started showing up in earnest. "The academy told us that we were strong... That this kind of thing can't happen, not in the heartland... But..." He sighed and shook his head. "One clap of thunder and the most powerful man in the Land of Fire is dead, and we don't even know who did it." He leaned back, "it's getting to a lot of us... The Academy's accelerating its education schedule. It would have taken us another four years to graduate had this never happened, now I think we'll be done in two." He grinned lightly despite himself and elbowed Hibiki in the arm. "Then we'll really get to have some fun when we spar. I bet my Jonin will be able to beat _your_ Jonin."

Hibiki doubted that, Dante was something of a badass. "How's Kushina doing?" The girl had pretty much shut herself in Miss Mito's home after the news from Uzu had been given to her, and when coupled with the Third's death, the only time Hibiki - or anyone, really - saw her was when she showed up for her fuinjutsu instruction. "Talked to her recently?"

Minato shook his head and turned around, hands going into his pockets as he looked up into the grey sky. "I keep trying to talk to her, but she won't let me in whenever she's at her home. And I'm not allowed in Lady Mito's home without a summons, so I can't follow her there, either."

"You two talking about Kushina?" Said a new voice, Hibiki turned around and saw Shikaku, Chouza, and their recently acquired friend, Inoichi Yamanaka, with their parents meeting up in the background and making small-talk. The three meshed well, surprisingly so, so Hibiki didn't find it surprising at all that they were thick as thieves, now. "How's she doing? She's been missing from the academy for days."

"She's mourning." Minato supplied.

"Uzushiogakure, Lord Third, and Miss Mito's not long for this world either. It's all piling up on her." Hibiki sighed, it felt like that, with the death of the Third, the entire world was ready to come apart at the seams.

"Maybe we should see her when the funeral's over. Not take no for an answer?" Minato suggested, but he got a shaken head from Inoichi.

"Not the best of ideas." Said their new blonde, "not the worst, but not the best, either. It could go either way, so we may just want to give her some space." He suggested.

Hibiki agreed, and he had his own reasons for not wanting to do anything after the funeral today. It wasn't that he didn't want to be there for his friends, but he'd been conducting his own investigation into the Hokage's assassination, because unlike the other Shinobi, he knew what to look for. He had a general area within which he was looking for evidence of a sharpshooter, and that area was getting smaller and smaller every day; best case, he would find an abandoned gun, worst, he'd find spent shell casings or maybe some other clue that he could drop somewhere to set the ANBU on the right trail. He hoped that the 'Rasa' they had mentioned earlier had already been in his village when Wolf and his squad had arrived, else Leaf may be going to war with the wrong people.

The group lapsed into an uncomfortable silence for a while afterwards. It was only broken periodically when other friends arrived, though the only ones that were able to stick around were Hibiki's teammates - Fugaku had to stay with his clan, and so too did the Hyuga Twins. Noboru was given leave to stay with his team for obvious reasons, and Suboro wanted to be there for his allies if they needed him; the bond between the genin had deepened in the last three weeks, their mutual grief and their combat together had all helped to do so.

Unlike some groups in the steadily growing crowd of mourners, Hibiki, his squad, and his friends didn't make idle chat. After exhausting their earlier options, they simply stayed silent. When noon struck, the procession began, and the Leaf's top Jonin guarded their former Hokage's body as they carried its open casket through the assembly and towards his burial spot. Men, women, and children alike began to weep, and so too did the sky, it began to lightly sprinkle and then turn into a steady rain as time went on. No one spoke a word as the Hokage's body was brought to his grave and lowered. Three feet of dirt was methodically placed back atop the corpse, before a seed from one of Hashirama's ironwood trees was planted atop the freshly dug dirt, and then buried in the final three feet. No chakra was used during this burial, it was considered disrespectful, and the denizens of Konoha believed it would spoil the process of the soul leaving the body to inhabit the baby tree.

When the burial was completed, the Acting-Hokage Danzo Shimura took the stage, flanked on both sides by the heads of Konoha's clans and the village's elders; Hibiki even noticed Miss Mito standing there, elegantly as a woman who was dying from a massive tumor could. He cleared his throat, "three weeks ago, today, Konohagakure lost a great man, a powerful leader, a wonderful husband... And I lost a close friend." He began, "he was assassinated by enemies yet unknown. He led a good life, he saved many lives during the first and second world wars, and led and defended his village with the utmost honor. We can never replace the void carved in all of our hearts with his passing, but we can take solace in that he is now at peace." Danzo spoke with pride and with passion, but also with a tremolo of age and sorrow. "It is hard to believe that such a powerful man was taken from us so soon. It is hard to believe that he never bore children, and his bloodline has died with him." Hibiki saw Hiruzen's wife barely succeed in keeping it together at that point, "it is hard to believe so many things... But not one. We will find whomever it was who killed our leader. We will kill him. We will find the holes in our defenses. We will fix them. The Third Hokage's death will not go unavenged, that I promise you." He took a deep, shaky breath, and sighed.

"Hiruzen Sarutobi. Third Fire-Shadow. We here in the mortal realm do hereby lay you to rest." He said solemnly, "we pray to the Sage of Six Paths that you find peace and love, even in death, and that your legacy shall remain true, now and forever. Goodbye... Friend."

They spent five minutes in the pouring rain, silent save for the thunder and the rain smacking into the ground. No one spoke, no one moved, everyone - even, after a while, Hibiki - wept. Hibiki found it harder and harder to believe that this was all some kind of illusion as time continued stretching on, because if this world was some sort of coma-induced hallucination, then how could the pain he was feeling in his chest feel so real? How could he feel so sad, for his people, for his leader? It made him want to tear his hair out, it made him want to be sick, but most of all, it made him just want to be in his mother's arms again. She would have known what to do, book smarts may never have been her forte, but that woman was street-smart, world-weary, and wise beyond anyone Hibiki had met Back Home or in the New Hotness.

Hibiki felt tears openly flowed down his face as he realized that he would, in time, forget this Hokage's face as he had forgotten his mother's. As he had forgotten his father's. As he'd nearly forgotten his own. Who was he? Was Hibiki some kind of thorough hallucination, or was he the body of a child he'd stolen? Was he a reincarnation? Or perhaps a demon? How did the lore of the anti-christ go? Why did he remember all of the things he did? Why did he get brought back? Why couldn't he learn, once and for all, _what the hell he was?_

Why couldn't he use what he knew to help make his home a better place?

None of these answers came to the grieving Genin's mind, even after the funeral was signaled concluded by the departure of the Acting-Hokage.

* * *

Team Six and Hibiki's academy friends, sans Fugaku, all ended up going to an Akimichi restaurant after the funeral was concluded. Chouza was recognized almost immediately, and he managed to convince the folks keeping the place clean that day to turn the stoves on for him and his friends. Chouza was respected by his clan, even for a boy as young as he, they all seemed to like him and many respected his opinion; one wouldn't guess by looking at it, but the boy was pretty intelligent once one got to know him.

They sat in silence as they ate their various foods, Hibiki had a large plate of pasta and sausage in front of him, which he was idly spinning around with his fork. "So what do you guys think is going to happen?" He asked, already knowing the answer.

"We're not going to war until we get a new Hokage." Shikaku said firmly, as he bit into his pork. "But we are going to war. This won't be taken lying down."

"Who do you think did it?" Chouza wondered.

"While we were in the Hokage's office, a lot of fingers were being pointed to Suna." Suboro mentioned.

"I don't want to fight in the sand." Minato sunk down in his chair.

"We might not have to. Suna's strong, but they're a phantom of what they were before the second war." Said Noboru, "especially with the wind Daimyo outsourcing a great deal of work towards us. They can hardly afford to keep up a large standing army. Those they do have are strong, but quantity is a quality all of its own." He wiped his mouth of his teriyaki steak. "I cannot think as to who will take on the mantle of fourth Hokage, though."

"Probably one of the Sannin, right?" Inoichi wondered, all eyes went to Hibiki.

Hibiki shook his head, "Uncle Orochimaru is too enigmatic for is own good. He's loyal to the village, but his skills are less leadership and more killing. Also, not much of a people person." He imitated one of his admittedly favorite things about his uncle: Whenever he wanted to get his way, he'd just start extending various parts of his body, usually his neck and tongue, and waving them around as if they had no bones. Everyone smiled, "and while Jiraiya might seem like a natural choice, he's not much of a leader type either. He likes the hands-off approach, and I doubt people would take a self-proclaimed Super Pervert seriously as a world leader." He explained.

Shikaku nodded, and folded his hands atop the table, resting his chin on them. "So, Lady Tsunade?"

Hibiki hesitated, but again shook his head. "She could do it, but not anytime soon. Lord Third's death hit her hard, and she's been trying to find comfort in the bottom of a bottle. Her apprentice, Shizune, even let slip a few times that she's been seen gambling away her inheritance at a few of our seedier gambling halls." He gave them all a quick look, "but you didn't hear that from me."

They got the message, "so... If not the Sannin, then who?" Minato asked.

"Dante-sensei?" Suboro suggested.

"I'd sure as hell hope not. I blow shit up, I don't tell others to do it." Said the familiar voice of Team 6's Jonin-sensei, as he entered eyesight and earshot. He gave a nod to each of the academy rookies, "hello, hello."

"Good evening, sensei." Said Noboru, "would you like to join us?" Most everyone was half finished, but it was impolite - and pretty damn stupid - to not invite a Jonin to dinner if he arrived in the middle.

"I would, but I actually need to speak to my team alone." Said Dante, before he looked at the academy students apologetically. Hibiki just now noticed that he didn't notice any smear lines of dirt on the man's face from the rain - and his hair didn't look unkempt and raggedy. _This man had actually bathed!_ For a moment, Hibiki doubted whether or not their sensei was in front of him, but the smell of mints wiped away those doubts.

Chouza's stomach protested loudly, and Dante grinned. "Tell you what, you let me have some time here to talk shop with my team, I'll take the lot of you out to a buffet next week. My treat, all you can eat."

That got everyone's attention, the words "my treat" said in regards to food, and in the presence of an Akimichi, was an economic death sentence - one of the richest men in the land of Rice Paddies had actually gone bankrupt this way. Soon enough, everyone agreed, and after they bade their farewell, Dante took Team Six out on a walk. Suboro tried to speak once, but a fierce look from Dante told him to stay quiet until he got to wherever they were going. After a quarter of an hour, they found themselves in a small tea-house, operated by a short, gray-haired old woman, garbed entirely in black. She saw Dante and smiled with a kind nod, before Dante and his team took a seat and ordered some tea.

"So, to what do we owe the pleasure, sensei?" Noboru asked kindly, as his cup arrived. This had to be something important, if Dante cleared out the rookies - he usually had enough respect for them to allow them to sit in.

"An S-Rank black ops mission." Noboru spit his tea out, and Hibiki dropped the cup that was halfway to his mouth, which Dante caught effortlessly. Suboro was staring at him agape.

Hibiki swallowed through a suddenly dry throat, "care to run that one by us _Genin_ again, sensei?"

"Certainly." Dante grinned, "you all were there when we started pinning evidence against Suna. And I've been cleared to let you know that Rasa of the Golden Dust was assassinated fourteen days ago." Hibiki felt his heart skip a beat, "but in light of all of this, we still do not have enough proof to go after open warfare with Sunagakure. Nor do they, us - our ANBU are the best, Suna is convinced it was Amegakure that did in their prospective Kazekage." He explained, after casting a quick glance over his shoulder and towards the entrance to the restaurant.

"What does this have to do with us, sensei?" Noboru asked calmly, though inwardly he was just as intrigued - and terrified - as his teammates. Hibiki was visibly trembling.

"Well, Sunagakure no Sato is hosting this year's Chunin exams. And given your exemplary performance in the first four weeks as a team, I decided to put your name in." Dante said amicably, "but... This is where the S-Ranked mission comes in. I need to know, right here and right now, if you as a team accept or deny it, else I will not go forward any further." He said seriously, his Sharingan briefly signalling just _how_ serious he was.

The three looked at each other, silently debating between themselves. Eventually, Hibiki spoke, his voice barely cutting through the relative silence and sudden cold of the formerly warm and quaint teahouse. "Alright, what is it we must do?" What must three _Genin_ do that would warrant an S-Rank?

Dante grinned, "information retrieval. You three will be uniquely placed within Suna to do... Well, most anything you desire, within reason." Said the Jonin, "we want your particular skills in this mission, because you are the only Genin squad of your particular skillset."

Hibiki blinked, "we're a combat team, sir. I know we're Shinobi first, but stealth isn't truly our specialty..."

"That is true. So you shall be working with -"

"Err, sensei?" Suboro suddenly piped in, "should we be talking about this in such a _small teahouse?!"_ They weren't speaking loudly, but their four voices could carry, especially given the size of the teahouse.

Dante smiled, stood up in his booth, turned to the elderly woman, who herself had her back turned, and cupped his hands over his mouth. _"HEY! IF YOU BREATHE A SINGLE FUCKING WORD OF ANYTHING YOU HEAR TONIGHT, I WILL BURN YOU ALIVE AND FEED YOUR CHARRED CORPSE TO AN INUZUKA WARHOUND! DO YOU UNDERSTAND ME, YOU OLD BAT?!"_ He roared loudly, his voice cutting through the silence like a cannon.

The woman didn't move, she didn't even twitch, she just kept washing her table - it was as if she hadn't heard him at all.

_"I SWEAR TO KAMI, ANSWER ME OR I WILL BURN THIS ENTIRE TEAHOUSE TO THE GROUND!"_

Still nothing.

_"THANK YOU!"_ Dante screamed, before he turned back around and stared at his bamboozled Genin with a wide smile on his face.

"What?" Hibiki said flatly.

"I thought you were our resident sealmaster?" He pointed at the carving on the table, barely noticeable. "There are secrecy seals painted all over the place, and even carved into the very wood by an Uzumaki sealsmistress. There will be no one overhearing our conversation." He said confidently. "So, as I was saying, you shall be working with a team whose specialty _is_ stealth. They too will be taking the Chunin exam, alongside three other Konoha Genin teams, so it would be in your best interest to make sure they advance as far as you do." He explained, before his head snapped up. "That would be them now." He smiled broadly, and his three Genin turned around.

Coming into the teahouse was a tall, lanky Jonin wearing a vest two sizes too large, and with his headband wrapped tightly around his thin leg. He held the cloth-flaps open for his own small team of Genin, who were, in order, a curious looking hooded Aburame, whose headband was tied firmly around his head, a sleepy Inuzuka - puppy lying curled up in the hood of her own baggy jacket - whose headband was loosely hanging from a beltloop on her pants, and a calm-looking Hyuga girl with her headband helping to keep her hair tied up in a tight bun, and many bandages wrapped tightly around her forehead.

The skinny Jonin guided his team to Team Six, and he drew a table together so they could speak. "Dante." He greeted.

"Eiji." Dante nodded, "boys, this is -" He indicated everyone in turn, "Akane Hyuga, Aoi Inuzuka, Dai Aburame, and Eiji Nil." Each of them nodded kindly, "team four, this is my team, Six." He pointed at his boys, "Suboro Nil, Noboru Hyuga, Hibiki Senju."

"Noboru-san, I am honored." Akane bowed her head in respect.

"It is nice to see you again, Akane." Noboru responded.

"You two know each other?" Hibiki tore his eyes away from the white-eyed girl, to look at Noboru, who shrugged.

"A branch-member. She used to serve us, before she got called upon to serve a different main house." Said Noboru, "I was unaware you pursued a Shinobi life." He said honestly, giving her a polite smile, with a hint of pride.

"It was not a decision I made lightly, but it was one I made myself." Said Akane, her soft voice filling everyone's ears.

"So, Team Six." Said Eiji, "care to take a guess as to what my team's specialty is?"

Suboro spoke up instantly, as the elderly woman served everyone another round of tea. "Stealth, pursuit, and information retrieval?" He guessed.

"Spot on." Said Eiji, with a thankful nod to the elderly woman. "And why would the first, the one and the only Genin shock-trooper team be brought in on their mission, despite such wildly different skillsets?" He looked at each of the genin with his dark green, sunken eyes, interest filling them.

Noboru answered this one, "they need protection during their mission." He surmised, "it would be too much for them alone, but they would be noticed too easily if they worked together. So if they worked in two-man-teams, they could be far stealthier, and with combat specialists, they would be far safer than if they were to be on their own."

The skinny Jonin smiled creepily, "Dante, you chose wisely." He said, putting down his teacup. "Indeed, Noboru. While my Genin are unmatched in their year in their stealth scores, very few people can stay completely undetected in an enemy village in groups even as small as just three. I know this personally." He shared a knowing grin with Dante, who rolled his onyx eyes and took a long swig from his tea. The man spoke with a calm, even tone, that served to unnerve Hibiki, but he couldn't tell why, it was almost as if the man's voice was as dead as it was alive, was loud as it was calm. It completely lacked any and all emotion. The only thing about the man's voice that fit his visage was how light it was. "So, when the Acting-Hokage approached me with this mission, I asked if I could bring in some specialists, in order to increase our chances for success."

"But why two teams of Genin?" Hibiki asked, "why not some ANBU infiltration squads?" He pushed aside his cold tea and looked at the skinny Jonin intensely.

"Sharp." Said Eiji, "because Suna would be prepared for ANBU infiltration squads. Because they are expecting us to send our best."

"So you're sending your worst." Why did Hibiki take on this mission? There was no way he'd live through this.

"On the contrary, we're sending the best positioned, best-placed team for such a mission." He explained, "an Inuzuka warhound, even one as young as little as Kyo-kun, can smell trails as old as two months. If we paired his owner with a Hyuga combat specialist, they two could scour an entire village for scent trails - such as those of the technique used to kill a certain Hokage - in scant days, as opposed to the weeks it would take otherwise. An Aburame beetle colony can track massive tracks of land and would go unnoticed or uncared in even the most secured of positions. Imagine what this girl could do if we paired her with a Sharingan-user, who would be able to detect even the smallest of any possible discrepencies in the environment, and could memorize entire scrolls simply by glancing it. If such a Sharingan wielder were a hard-hitting speed-specializing shinobi, they could sprint through entire rooms and have entire libraries memorized in mere hours, as opposed to the years it would take to sift through potentially useless details otherwise." He explained in his dead monotone, "and Hyuga Byakugan can see through walls, in nearly perfect three hundred sixty degrees of vision, and if they focused, they could see dozens of kilometers in a single, specific direction. Imagine what this Hyuga child could search for and focus on if she had a Genin with a natural talent for genjutsu, and an unparallelled protective instinct, keeping her safe and secured?" He wondered aloud.

None of the men of Team Six responded, though Hibiki did give the Aburame a second look. That was a girl?

"You see my point, then." Said Eiji, with a light smile that didn't reach his eyes. "This is an incredibly important mission, thus the rank. Because dependent on your findings, Konoha may or may not go to war with Suna."

"What the deado is saying is that, if you find proof that vindicates Suna, we'll focus our investigation into the Third's death elsewhere. But if you don't find anything, or find too little, and we'll go through with Plan A."

Hibiki felt his heart slow down, "plan A?"

"Full-scale surprise assault on Sunagakure. Both from outside, and from the inside." Dante explained, "the Acting-Hokage was not kidding when he said we would find vengeance."

_The problem is, you might be going after the wrong village._ Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Gun came to mind, he'd never figured out who they answered to. Hibiki had to play the devil's advocate, "and what if we find nothing, you attack, and it turns out they had nothing to do with it? Wouldn't the real culprit take advantage of our weakness and attack us while our numbers are low?" He asked.

"We're considering every option, Hibiki." Said Dante, "but that is why it is imperative you succeed in your mission before the final tournament. We _will_ make our strike if that time comes and no evidence has been given." He stated, firmly.

Hibiki sighed, and ran a hand through his thick brown hair as he thought over his sensei's words. It was high time he figured out storage seals, because he needed heavier artillery than his handgun. "So... From what Eiji-sensei said earlier, would I be right in assuming Suboro will be with Akane, Noboru with Aoi, and I with Dai?" He concluded.

Eiji nodded, "yes. You will be training together and apart for these exams, they will begin in three months, and you will receive your summons in two and a half." He said.

_I feel a lot of shadow clones in my immediate future._ He also needed to dedicate a lot of time to experimenting with his Bone-release kekkei genkai, he had to find out its limits, its strengths and weaknesses, what all it could do, where the Healing Factor worked and didn't work, etc. "Okay... What else do we need to know?" He asked.

"Little else. I would advise you train harder in the next three months than you've ever trained in your lives, because it could very well mean the difference between life and death." Dante advised solemnly.

* * *

"So... Dai." Said Hibiki, as the Senju and the Aburame stood outside the teahouse. Everyone else had paired off and run off to get to know each other better, and Hibiki was standing here without any idea on how to get to know Dai. Well, he had _one,_ but he wasn't certain how the Aburame lady would take to it. Nothing ventured, nothing gained, he reasoned, before he continued speaking after she gave him a silent look that seemed to say 'go on'. "How good are your beetles at detecting really old scents?"

She blinked, slowly inclining her head in what Hibiki hoped was an interested gesture, as opposed to a confused one. "Kikaichu beetles selectively breed themselves based on the needs of their masters. I prefer to have at least a few colonies of any given skillset, at any time." She said, he voice far lower than anyone of her age had any right to be. "To answer your question... They are very good."

"How good specifically?" He was wondering if they'd be able to smell the explosive residue from the gun that had been used to kill the Hokage, then they'd have a reference for when they were in Suna, and they might be able to find clues while they were still home. "How far back can they effectively smell?"

"The lasting record is a scent six months old. My beetles' record is only four weeks." She let out, her brown eyes twinkling with interest. "Why so curious?"

"I've got an idea on how the Hokage might have been killed." Hibiki admitted, as he shoved his hands in the pockets of his black pants, he turned to the gray sky, it having stopped raining a while ago. "How bad will the rain hinder your beetles?" He made a 'follow me' gesture with his head, and the two began walking.

"How strong should this scent be?" She asked, "what scent should we be looking for?" Her tone was thick with intrigue, she had pegged the brown-haired Senju with a Sharingan as an oddity the moment her beetles had taken some of his chakra and let her sample it, it was good to know he was intelligent as well, but the question would be how good would he be in a fight? Unlike what many Uchiha thought, having a Sharingan didn't instantly guarantee power and victory.

"You know how the air smells after fireworks go off?" Hibiki asked, "that ozone-smell, like something was set on fire." The word ozone alone was almost completely foreign to the Common Tongue, so he doubted she'd even know what it was, but unless he wanted to play his whole hand right off the bat, he had to try and at least _look_ like he was grasping at straws; this girl struck him as far more intelligent than she let on, and with every word she spoke, Hibiki's suspicion only deepened.

Dai blinked, "I know of the smell." She was rather fond of the Formation Day festival, the fireworks were magical and she always stayed up far past her parents and most of her clansmen to watch them. "You think the God of Shinobi was killed by fireworks?"

"I think he was killed by something more terrifying." Said Hibiki, as he flipped on his Sharingan. They were approaching the academy, which itself was connected to the Hokage's office - even though both of them were out of eyesight currently, with Hibiki's partially matured dojutsu, he could see chakra more clearly, and there was a _lot_ of ambient chakra always floating around the academy. "Alright, send a few beetles around the Hokage's office, tell me what they find." He'd tried to calculate trajectories and such when he'd begun his investigation, but had killed that line of thought after he realized that his new home's gravitational force, acceleration due to gravity, Coriolis effect, and so many other factors, could be off from what he knew from Earth - and he didn't know how to test it without looking it up on a computer, which he didn't have. So he'd had to eyeball it and go from there, but with Dai's beetles, things should go a lot smoother, instead of a general area, they'd know exactly where to search, and Hibiki knew exactly what to search _for._ Shell casings, scorch marks, the actual rifle, if he was lucky, but he doubted it.

As Dai's beetles flew out from the confines of her dark, mourning jacket, he decided to ask a question that had been sitting in his mind a while now. "So... Isn't Dai a male name?"

"It is." Dai didn't even flinch, though she made direct eye contact with the Sharingan wielder, "isn't a Sharingan an Uchiha dojutsu?"

_And this bone thing isn't **anyone's** bloodline._ "Apparently so." He liked this chick. "I'm starting to think that my mother's keeping some things from me, though."

"What makes you say that?" She brushed some errant brown hair from her face, her eyes briefly going back to the sky, watching for her beetles. In response, Hibiki held up his right hand and extended his claws; what experimentation he had done so far with the Wolverine-Release - and he refused to call it anything but that - had shown him he could make pretty much anything he could think of with his manipulable bones, including swords, knives, and _armor,_ but the comic-book, manga, and video game nerd hadn't been left on Earth when Hibiki had died, so Wolverine's claws would always feel like something of a natural choice for his ability. Dai's eyes visibly widened, but only by a few centimeters, this girl wasn't phased easily, it seemed. "I've never seen something like that, before."

"It doesn't exist in this village." Said Hibiki, before the claws crumbled to dust and flowed away on the wind. "So unless my mother slept around, she's got some explaining to do." He put his hand back in his pocket.

"I see." Dai withdrew her own hand and held it in the air, now thoroughly interested in the story of the boy in front of her. A pair of beetles landed on her hand and started buzzing about, making gestures in their flight patterns and apparently _speaking_ to her. "It seems your theory is right. It is weak, but the scent of black powder and sparks. Ozone, you called it? It sounds appropriate." The beetles retreated back into her jacket, and a moment later a small swarm of somewhere between fifty and one hundred flew out.

"Where are they headed?" Hibiki asked, only slightly pleased that he'd been right. That meant that the honorable Acting-Hokage had killed the wrong man for the wrong reason, and they were getting ready for a war against the wrong people. _Not. Good._

"In the direction of the scent. They said it is old, and very spread out, but when it was young and fresh, the scent 'line', so to speak, was very thin. As if whatever made it was moving as fast as a body-flicker." She pumped a little chakra into her legs and leapt up onto a rooftop, about ready to make use of the 'Ninja Express'. Hibiki followed her, and the two continued their leisurely walk, only breaking pace to jump between roofs. "So what gave you the idea to look for black powder and ozone?" She asked, one beetle crawling up her face as she did so.

_I'll never get used to that._ "A hunch."

"A very specific hunch." She pointed out, not buying it. "I do not think even an Inuzuka tracker hound could have made that connection in the first place, let alone having had the idea to _look_ for such a thing." She gave him a measuring look, "what do you know, Hibiki Senju?"

_Astronomy, Physics, Engineering, how to kill a man with a knife that's sticking through your hand, the Konami Code._ "A lot." He said. _How to create an army of revolver-wielding shadow clones who will, technically, never run out of ammunition. How to rip my shoulder blade out of my very body and use it as a freakin' sword. How to build a house of cards._ "You're a sharp one, aren't you?"

"I don't like not knowing things." She said, before they took off and landed again. "And I can tell just by looking at you, that you know far more than most elderly people have seen." And then there was his _very_ odd chakra nature, it was almost _dead,_ but livelier than any she had ever leached before.

"Hm." Hibiki grunted, "maybe if we find what I'm looking for, I'll let you know more."

"And what are we looking for?"

Hibiki reached into the weapons pouch attached to his left thigh, and pulled out a single magnum round. "Something like this, but without the top. Or scorch marks, explosive residue... Anything, really. I'll know it when I see it." And he knew he'd see it when he knew it - his Sharingan would guarantee it.

"That is a very odd knife." She commented, as Hibiki stowed the bullet back in the pouch. "Does it go with the device you have stored in your pants?"

Hibiki slowly looked at her, a dirty joke coming to mind. "You've had your beetles scout out my _pants?"_ Just how old was she, again? "How old are you, again?"

"Technically, it doesn't matter. We are both adults." She mentioned, as they made it further into Konoha, the largely empty streets passing by underneath them. The entire village was slow and still, like a teenager waking up before school on a friday morning, only this lethargy was more from mourning and less from an almost religious desire to sleep just another five minutes.

_Oh boy._ Hibiki cleared his throat, "you're pretty forward." He commented, not sure what he thought of a twelve-year-old coming on to him.

"Many people in my clan are." She said, "you are rather reserved, yourself. You have a great deal to hide, and you convince people you are hiding nothing by revealing smaller secrets to mask the larger ones." She grinned so subtly that, without the Sharingan, Hibiki wouldn't have noticed. "And you know far more about what goes on and how, than you could possibly let on."

"How do you do that and you're twelve?" Most _Yamanaka_, who literally read peoples' minds, couldn't read someone that well, and here Hibiki was thinking he was good at hiding things.

"How do you do the things you do and you're eight?" She pointed at his shoulder, Hibiki looked and saw the beetle that was sitting there, not a care in the world. "You are good at keeping yourself straight-faced and calm voiced, but pheromones give everyone away every time." She explained, before adding, "we are here." After they landed on another roof. "The Kikaichu say the scent only gets weaker the further away from this point we get." As she spoke, a great majority the beetles returned, but many stayed out searching. "So, what do you see, secret-keeper?"

Hibiki grinned, it was interesting seeing the contrast between when he first met her - not even an hour ago - and what he knew now. Originally, he thought she'd be one of the few stereotypical ninja from Back Home he'd ever meet: Stoic, calm, not prone to talking unless they had to. Oh how wrong he was. He turned around and examined the rooftop, they were high up, and in the distance he could see clearly the Hokage's office, focusing a bit let him know that they did have a line of sight for the office itself.

"Hey!" And therein lied the problem Hibiki was struggling with, as he turned around and saw a Chunin arrive on the rooftop. "What are you two doing up here?" He looked at both of them, his hand resting on his flak-jacket.

"We are mourning, sir." Said Hibiki, "we thought this would be a nice rooftop to rest upon, and gather our thoughts." If a random Chunin would find them not fifteen seconds after they landed, how could a sniper set up his rifle, take aim, wait for the shot, pull the trigger, and escape at top speed, without _anyone_ noticing? "I thought the curfew went down two weeks ago." He looked to Dai, who nodded in agreement.

The Chunin gave the two of them a look, he didn't _not_ believe them, but two boys standing around on a rooftop wasn't all too entirely an innocent thing, especially when the both of them had headbands on. "Genin don't typically use rooftops." He stated suspiciously, only seeking to further confirm Hibiki's hypothesis. "What are you two really doing up here?"

"We _were_ going to have sex, but I am beginning to think that may be a bad idea." Said Dai, Hibiki had to exercise extreme self control to not chuckle; he _really_ liked this chick.

The Chunin looked stunned, to say the least. He could tell just by looking at them that they weren't even teenaged, how the hell could two boys their age - he shook his head, _not_ a thought he wanted to pursue. "Use the training grounds next time." He groaned, before leaping away to continue his patrol.

There was silence for a few moments, "so, I think the assassin was inside the building when he did the deed." Said Hibiki, as he walked to the edge of the roof and stepped onto the wall, his chakra keeping him standing firm, despite gravity trying to work its magic on its defiler.

"How can you tell?" Dai followed him to the edge of the roof, but didn't go over, she simply watched him inspect the wall and the windowsills from above.

"We were here for ten seconds and someone found us. If he did what I think he did, it would have taken him a lot longer." He doubted that even Marine Snipers could have set up, locked and loaded, aimed, fired, dismantled, and fled, in ten seconds. He doubted the Flash could have done it that quick. He stepped lightly on the wall, searching for anything he could, until he found it.

_Interesting... Technique, I guess is a word._ Thought Hibiki, as he stared through the lone open window, which had upon it a long-since-dried set of scorch marks. Some closer examination showed him scuff marks as well, the man had fidgeted and changed his stance multiple times, and had used some kind of stand - maybe a bipod, or a tripod - to steady himself. "In here." He stepped inside, and was rewarded handsomely.

A rifle, of a model of similar make to those made before the American Civil War, was laying discarded in a pile of refuse. It had under its barrel a bipod, hooked onto its sight a scope, and a hammer that had yet to be pulled back. What kind of shinobi could successfully assassinate a Hokage, but left his rifle behind? Hibiki crouched down in front of it and picked it up as he heard Dai enter the abandoned apartment. The rifle was obviously far more advanced than what he'd seen Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Gun packing, if anything, it looked like something he could have picked up at an Army/Navy store Back Home, or at least seen in a museum, anytime after the Civil War era guns. He shouldered the weapon and looked down the sight, it used a bolt-action and was breech-loaded, but looked like it could only store one bullet.

"Is this what you were looking for?" And there was the bullet, Hibiki turned around and saw Dai holding for him a cartridge, he nodded and took it from her, comparing it with the gun he had in his hand. If it hadn't been fired, it would have been a perfect match.

_This... Is not good._ Tweedle-Gun's supplier had jumped from 1600's Matchlocks to Civil-war era cartridge weapons. He checked the rifle's barrel, but found that it still lacked the rifling most modern guns - and his own revolver - had. It also, upon further inspection, was completely missing any kind of safety mechanism, and like Tweedle-Gun's matchlock, had random bits and pieces sticking out. It wasn't elegant, but it obviously worked. It, however, hadn't been cleaned once - Hibiki could tell that, even before the rifle had been fired, whomever had trained with it hadn't been taught proper maintenence, the barrel was dirty and had some dirt and powder crusted onto it. The stock was covered in dirt and grime, and the entire thing was covered in scratches and dings.

"Hm." But for all of its obvious power, whoever had fired it had left it here, abandoned. What was he missing?

"What did you find?"

"The murder weapon." But this faced him with another problem: He couldn't right well give this to the leaf village. Not only would they begin to suspect him for how he knew exactly what to look for, but this assassination - and the handling of the weapon afterwards - just proved his point that people weren't ready for this kind of thing. That begged the question, though: _Who gave it to them?_ Hibiki placed the gun back down on the ground and put the spent cartridge next to it, before he stood up and looked around the room. It was covered in trash and had obviously been abandoned for some while, only serving as a temporary base from which the assassin could do his deed.

"And what does it tell us?"

"Give me a minute." Hibiki saw two sets of footprints, that weren't his or Dai's. The first set came into the room, milled around, and then made it to the window sill. This set at the window sill was heavy, clearer than the others - he had taken a lot of time to set up his rifle, he must have brought it in piece by piece, explaining how he got it past border patrol: They only saw random bits and pieces of metal and scrap, not mankind's best murder weapon. The scrapes on the window sill told him that the assassin had taken time and shifted his aim repeatedly, while he tried to find a good, clear shot. Actually, all of the dust in the area around the window sill, now that he thought about it, looked disturbed, the shockwave must have been large to disturb all of it, and that would explain why everyone spoke of a thunderclap - the damn thing was _loud_.

After the man fired the rifle, that was probably where this next set of footprints came from. They were far more panicked, spaced out, than the first set; he had sprinted out, and if the drag marks on the floor before refuse pile he had found the rifle on were any indication, he must have just abandoned the weapon altogether. Had he been frightened of it? Or did he do it deliberately?

Hibiki sighed, prompting another question from Dai. Hibiki narrated to Dai what he had concluded, but when he came to the actual firing of the gun, he had to dance carefully - because he knew that she knew if he would lie, so he had to _not_ lie, but not tell the truth, either. He ended up spinning a tale of an explosive technique that took no chakra, and she drew the comparison to an explosive tag - a pre-prepared technique, all it needed was its initial spark. She wasn't wrong, but she wasn't right either, so he said she was right just to throw her off his scent a bit.

"So who do we turn this weapon in to?" Dai asked.

Here was Hibiki's biggest problem, he had to speak carefully. "We can't." He said, which got him a raised eyebrow from the Aburame genin. "You said it yourself, I have a lot to hide. Consider this something I have to hide... At least until I have all the facts." Like where it came from, who made it, how they jumped ahead two hundred and some-odd years in as little as eight.

Dai gave him a good, long look as she considered what he said. "Do you know what the punishment for treason is?" She asked calmly.

"Death." Hibiki looked at her from the corner of his eye, he saw no flare in chakra or any rustling beneath her coat, so she wasn't getting ready for an attack, she was making a point. "Or a life of torture, followed by death."

"And you do not fear such a punishment?" She inquired.

"I do. But not because I'm a traitor, but because if people find out about this, they'll think I am." And he didn't have the whole story - not about him, not about this gun, not about _anything,_ and he couldn't go to anyone with this for that very reason.

"Hm..." She looked at him a bit longer, "alright... I'll trust you for now. But if I feel you are being treasonous, I will reveal to our Hokage - whomever that may be - everything I have learned today." It was an interesting choice of words, Hibiki thought: Everything she had_ learned,_ not everything he had _said._

"Can I trust you to hide this for me? Somewhere only you could ever find it?" He asked.

This got her to incline her head, "and why would I do this, when you have _so_ much more experience than I do?" She asked calmly, intrigued.

"Because I'm still under a little heat for a stunt I pulled a while back." He said simply. "I'll come back for it when I can hide it better, but until then, I'll just have to trust you with it, won't I?" And, he didn't add, he wanted to make something _better. _Several hundred rounds per minute, better. All he needed was to figure out seals.

That meant it was time to train hard, and study harder.


	13. Preparation

_A/N:_

_And we're back, with out regularly scheduled canon-killing OC/I_

* * *

Chapter 12

* * *

Hibiki's training schedule had effectively been turned on its head. With Tsunade forcing herself out of commission, no matter what Hibiki tried to get her to stop destroying herself, he was largely on his own wherever her training had been concerned. Orochimaru was also somewhat out of commission, he was rarely seen these days, and the only things he donated towards Hibiki's training were ninjutsu scrolls and an apology, which meant Jiraiya, Dante, Miss Mito, and Hibiki himself were the only ones he could rely on for training, and _boy,_ had he learned things in the last three months. Three things specifically, actually, and he would start with the lowest one on the totem pole: His Wolverine-release.

In order to help facilitate his training, Hibiki had created an extra set of three clones, whom would stay with his various teachers and do little else but regenerate chakra, so when the training clone eventually - inevitably - popped, the generator clone could make a new one and give the new training clone more chakra, increasing its longevity and freeing Hibiki up from the responsibility of having to run around the village whenever a clone popped. This freed up the Alpha Hibiki to experiment on his own with the Wolverine-release. The first thing he'd learned was that anywhere on his body where there was a bone, he could manipulate it and weaponize it, his only limit was his imagination. He had been able to give himself Hellboy-esque devil horns, a fully dextrous tail, and a Vegeta-esque armored chestplate, all through sheer force of imagination, and all serving to make him question whether or not he'd _really_ been an adult in his last life. The problem, however, was with their durability - they were bones, so they were obviously designed to take punishment, but they were still breakable after a certain point, which led to what was probably the second most important discovery about his new bloodline: How tough he could make his own skeleton, and the weapons he spawned from it. He couldn't quite explain the process of strengthening his bones, but the end result was his bones being as strong or as weak as he wanted them to be - to the point where they were tough enough to scratch the steel of his kunai. His bones could be stronger than tempered steel, and it only led credence to the name adopted from Marvel's most well-known mutant.

Hibiki's bone-weapon of choice was still the Wolverine Claws, but he had dedicated some time to making a few other weapons and getting used to the process of making them, so he could call upon them on the fly. The first weapon he'd made had been a simple longsword, made from his spine and 'drawn' from his neck, the second - appropriately - being a shield, which grew outwards from his forearm, and then a bone-made kunai knife. Never would he have to worry about running out of knives again. He also rather liked being able to make what basically equated to Assassin's Creed's Hidden Blades on a whim, through his thoughts alone. There were a great deal of applications for his Wolverine bloodline, and he still wasn't done recording everything he'd learned about them. For instance, he'd learned on a hunch that he could control how sharp the weapons he sprouted were - to the point where they could come out so sharp that when they cut skin, they cut it so cleanly that he didn't even feel the pain of them slicing his skin open; in many sci-fi books he'd read back home, the term 'monomolecular' was tossed around a lot when it came to knives and surgeons' tools, which made Hibiki vow to experiment on exactly how sharp he could make his bone weapons, because if he could get them down to a cutting edge just a molecule wide, literally nothing could stop his swings. Much like shadow clones, it all had to do with intention - if he wanted a blunt baseball bat, he'd get it, but if he wanted a sword sharp enough to cut through a tree as easily as it would cut through paper, he'd just have to wish it. What interested Hibiki the most during his Wolverine experiments - which he amusingly had begun to refer to as the Weapon X Program - was how little chakra it took to make these weapons. He wondered if it was a bloodline thing, that natural skills took no chakra, while taught skills took the most, because his most powerful techniques, the Sharingan and the Wolverine-release, both took astonishingly little chakra to train, to master, and to utilize.

Then there was the healing factor, afforded to him by his newly awakened bloodline. This one was a bit more finicky than his bones, but it took about as much chakra as creating bone weapons did. It seemed to prioritize the injuries made by the bone weapons, for instance, if he cut himself with a kunai, and then made a kunai from his skeleton, the bone weapon's resultant injury would heal before the steel weapon's injury. It was a difference of scant seconds, but those made all the difference in the world, and that led to him realizing he could expedite the process by focusing on it - turning seconds into instants. However, as his chakra waned, the damage repaired was prioritized to his vital assets: His organs. If he was running out of chakra, his healing factor would turn inward and would stop healing his outward injuries - explaining why he was still bleeding after awakening the bloodline the first time, he'd been drained almost _bone dry._ And when he ran out of chakra to use, the healing process simply stopped, and it was back to regular bodily functions. Interestingly enough, despite a lack of chakra, his bones would still heal from damage, so he wondered if it was a biological thing as opposed to a chakra thing - maybe as he got older, his body would get more used to its new bloodline, and it would be able to heal even on low chakra.

Thinking on the subject of chakra brought Hibiki's thoughts to Jiraiya's new training regiment. The man had been _pissed_ when he'd learned that Tsunade was shirking her duties, and Orochimaru was more or less MIA, so to compensate, he'd promised to teach Hibiki the art of summoning, but the only way he could do so was if he had chakra stores twice the size of the ones he had now - and in order to do that, he needed to work, both physically and metaphysically, which meant Hibiki Prime spent a lot of his time with Jiraiya, from that point on. Already a month and a half in to his training, and Hibiki could feel his chakra pools deepening and his muscles getting stronger, and more spry. Jiraiya promised Hibiki he'd be ready to sign a contract before he left for Suna, but he told Hibiki that _he_ would have to choose whether he signed on with Jiraiya's toads, or went a different road. As it turned out, Jiraiya had found the toads not through the scroll being handed down, but instead by being reverse-summoned by them, he explained that if one used the summoning technique before they signed a contract, a signal would be sent out to all of the summons' realms, and whomever the summoner matched the most would then call him back to them. It was then wholly on the summoner whether or not he convinced them to open up a contract with him, or lost the opportunity forever.

Hibiki had been considering for a while what he would do as a summons - if he even wanted a summons in the first place, as Dante-sensei had offered his two cents and said he'd skipped summoning because it took too much chakra, and relying on an animal to have your back in a warzone wasn't too bright. The toads seemed like a wise choice, but they seemed more geared towards brutality and strength, and Hibiki liked being a jack of all trades more. The problem was that he didn't know where he would end up if he tried summoning himself to the summons' realm, so he could either take a known option that might not work out, and screw himself over, or he could take a leap of faith and get set up for a potential permanent failure - because once one was reverse-summoned, one was tied to wherever they were summoned to, they could never go to any other summons realm, _period,_ unless being accompanied by that realm's summoner.

Hibiki still had time to consider his summons, though, right now he was putting the finishing touches on his most proud experiment - or, should he say, his clone was putting the finishing touches on _him._

He'd tackled fuinjutsu with a fervor that had surprised Miss Mito, and had started absorbing the information she handed to him at an ever-increasing rate. Once he'd gotten his penmanship and the art of pouring chakra into ink down, things came a lot more naturally - Mito said he might catch up to Kushina in a few years, but he didn't have a few years, he had three months. So, Hibiki did what he did best, and improvised. He dipped into his bank account to buy himself a few storage scrolls, and had set a few dozen clones out on copying them down and getting a feel for them. It had taken them all a while, but after the first clone got it done, two clones got it done, then two turned to three, turned to four, turned to every Hibiki being able to create his own copied storage seal flawlessly. A few clones had been blown to pieces during the learning process, but that was why he delegated the _clones_ the duty - they could risk death and not have to worry about Dead Is Dead.

So, after being able to copy a storage seal down flawlessly, he'd then turned to penning his own, and holy hell had it been hard. He'd tried just writing 'Seal' in English on a scroll and then trying to seal something in it, he'd gone through five clones before he figured out that wouldn't work. It took him nearly the entire three months - there were only two weeks left before the Chunin testing teams would be put back on the available-for-hire roster and sent out to Suna - but he'd managed to do it in that time. In a long process that basically boiled down to using his not-at-all limited English vocabulary to its fullest extent, Hibiki had learned that he had to be _very_ exact, but also _impossibly_ flexible when creating his own seals. He had to provide clear, but very concise, usually one or two word, instructions on what he wanted to do. He wanted the seals to be able to store his guns - yes, plural, but more on that in a minute - without any kind of aging when they were in the seal, so they had to be space/time seals. He wanted to be able to access the guns without needing to physically place his hand on the seal and channeling chakra to it, so he had to connect them to his tenketsu. He wanted them to respond to his chakra and his chakra only, so he laid down a few traps within their scripture so anyone who knocked him out and tried to dig into his seals would get a nasty surprise. Finally, he also wanted them to be compact - the one he'd had inked on his right wrist, for example, was about one and a half times the size of a Silver Dollar - so he had to write in a few lines of instruction such that they would compress themselves when finished.

The end result meant that he would no longer have any uncomfortable duct-tape restricting the blood-flow to his left foot.

He felt a pat on his back, "alright, you're good." Said his clone, after he lifted the brush and wiped some sweat from his brow.

Several days ago, Hibiki had inked the first seal on his skin, that one held his revolver on his right wrist, and on his left wrist was a storage seal holding a pouch filled with bullets. The previous midnight, he had begun the process of inking a seal on his back, because he now had a new weapon that would level _any_ playing field, especially the evolving one that was being made by Tweedle-Gun and the Assassin's supplier. It wasn't perfect by any means, nor would it fool anyone from Back Home, but it was a good enough imitation of an M16 that it would work for what he needed it to: Single-shot, burst, and automatic fire. Getting the materials for it had been a nightmare, making it - and its first bullet - had been worse, but the end result had been worth it when it fired reliably. He'd Something-From-Nothing'ed himself enough bullets and magazines to arm a small militia, and had a Cyclical Seal - meaning it only spit out one item per usage - on his left thigh that would spit out its magazines. The rifle itself was going onto a seal just below his right shoulder, an inch to the right of his spine.

As his clone picked up the world's currently most unrivaled killing machine, Hibiki knew that now would have to be the time he stopped making these things - the only one he would make after this would be a magazine-fed pistol, to replace his revolver, but that wouldn't be for a few years at least, and _maybe, maybe, **maybe,** _a shotgun if he seriously needed it. He was already shaking things up by catapulting this unready world into the age of automatic gunfire, he didn't need to be spawning more weapons than he could keep track of. He had plans for other seals on his body - the most important of which being the seals that would forever hide his notes from this world, but his success with his own storage seal had spurred him to go to Dai and pick up the Assassin's rifle, which had been sealed on his right bicep.

Thinking of Dai, Hibiki recalled the few times they'd trained together these last few months. Dai hadn't lied when she'd said her skills were more useful in information retrieval than in combat - she could fight, but her style was almost entirely defensive. One falcon punch had taken down a quarter of the beetles she'd summoned to shield herself with, she would need a lot longer than three months to become as combat-oriented as Hibiki was becoming. That wasn't to say she couldn't fight - her beetles had the nasty ability of being able to drain chakra, track opponents no matter where they hid, and could pump them full of poisons and neuro-toxins that could do anything from killing them to paralyzing them - but she was just more suited towards stealth than combat. To that end, a great deal of their 'training' consisted of them breaking in to various stores in broad daylight to steal random items, or breaking into random civilians homes to see what they did when their husbands or wives weren't home. What she lacked in combat ability, Dai certainly made up for it in stealth _prowess - _she was a natural with it, and with her beetles informing her of incoming guards or bad ends, she pretty much had herself a living, breathing Byakugan, with no blindspots to speak of.

Dai wasn't the only genin he trained with, though - Hibiki, to test his abilities, trained with his squadmates regularly. If Minato was on his Vegeta, routinely staying on his level and always proving to be his rival, then his squadmates were the Movie Villains who were almost routinely one or two steps above him. Suboro and Noboru were _beasts_, able to take as much as they could dish out, and they were smart, too - Hibiki could never try the same trick twice when he was fighting them. They pushed him to try new things and create new concepts, but unfortunately for them, one trick seemed to always work on them: The Solid Shadow Clone trick. Nine times out of ten, he'd make a Shadow Clone before their fight, he himself would transform into a rock or something easily hidden, and then the Shadow Clone would fight them until it popped, leaving them tired and him ready for an immediate round two. That was where many of his victories came from, that and his Falcon Punch - he knew that one day he'd be able to punch a hole through Noboru's Revolving Heaven, he _knew_ it.

Where team Six's Genin were fighting each other to improve, Team Six's Jonin was almost always providing pointers and sending them off in the right training direction when they weren't fighting. They all had a healthy level of low-cost combat techniques, and were working on learning both of their nature affinities so they could figure out what to specialize in, and what to defend against. Hibiki knew he had a lightning affinity, and was beginning to suspect that the paper wasn't just burning apart because the sparks were catching it on fire, but he had to know for sure. Unfortunately for most of them, molding elemental affinities into techniques wasn't something they could just _do - _most of their techniques were already elemental, so they had nothing they could add without making the technique volatile, but Hibiki was a special case: His falcon punch didn't require any special chakra element, it just needed _chakra._

So, lo and behold, one day he charged his chakra-coated fist of fury with as much lightning chakra as he could, and he nearly set an entire forest on fire in the resultant explosion. If the regular Falcon Punch had a damage output of seven out of ten, then the Lightning Falcon Punch had a damage output of eighteen; all it needed was fire chakra, and the thing would be a _real_ Falcon Punch - and god help anyone he hit with the real deal. Unfortunately for Hibiki, Dante put his foot down and outlawed the Lightning-Release: Falcon Punch except for life-threatening situations, it just did too much damage, and generating all of that lightning chakra in the middle of battle could exhaust him quickly.

A brief flash of light, the sudden appearance of smoke, and the brief tightening feeling on his back, as the storage seal compressed, and Hibiki knew that the assault rifle had been successfully sealed. Now, he really was a walking arsenal.

_Yea though I walk through the valley, in the shadow of death, I shall fear no evil._ Thought Hibiki, as he threw on a plain black shirt and his clone vanished. _For I am the baddest motherfucker in the valley._

Hibiki grabbed a light wind-breaker coat and threw it on, wondering what he would do with the rest of his day. A few of his academy friends - and several of the genin that had graduated in the same year as him - had said he was focusing a little too hard on training for the Chunin exams. Something could be said for how right they were, but Hibiki rationalized that he may very well be the man that fired the opening shots in a Konoha/Suna war, so if he trained under the assumption that these exams were just something he could take again later, he'd get himself killed. But, their words did have merit, and he _really_ wanted a day off to cool down - he'd had a great many clones working on overdrive to master the combat and defensive techniques Dante was teaching him, the seals Mito was teaching him, his own machinations and techniques, _and_ he had to train twice as hard as all of them, every day, to make certain his muscle mass, stamina, and physical development could match all of the muscle-memory he was getting.

To be frank, he was worn out, and now that he had a pistol sealed into his right hand and a rifle sealed onto his back, he felt safe enough to say that he could use a day off. His clones were still working, of course, but the Alpha Hibiki would take today to just do whatever. Or, he _would_ have, had Jiraiya not shown up on Tsunade's doorstep just a moment after Hibiki left the home, just a moment _before_ Hibiki was going to reflect on how quiet the home had gotten since Tsunade had taken to drinking - he _had_ and still _was_ trying to help, but his help wasn't doing anything.

Jiraiya grinned broadly, "hey, kiddo. What're you doing today?" He asked.

Hibiki shrugged, "I was hoping to not do anything, to be honest." It would take an hour or two, but his back would progressively get sorer as time went on. The same thing had happened to his wrists and thigh when he'd inked them up, he didn't know if it was something that was wrong with his process, or it was natural when one sealed hammerspace onto their damn _body._ He wondered if this was what video game characters felt like - being able to carry essentially limitless amounts of equipment with no consequence.

"Well stop it, you're going to do the summoning technique today." Said Jiraiya, with a broad grin. "Come on."

Hibiki grinned and followed the white-haired Toad Sage. "You're done trying to get me to seal the Toad contract, Uncle J?" A small part of him, before 'Uncle' J stuck, had wanted 'Mister' J to be the white-haired Sage's title, but he'd never gotten around to saying it before Jiraiya announced he and Orochimaru to be his uncles.

Jiraiya nodded his head, which translated to a bobbing mane of spiky white hair, as Hibiki was behind the man, and they were walking to the Senju Compound's Training Grounds. "Much as I think the Boss Toad would let you in on sight alone, it's your choice anyways." And, he didn't say, Hibiki would be stuck to Jiraiya's contract - he couldn't write his own terms - and it was probably a wiser decision to find his own summons and write his own contract, even if he wasn't going to get in with one of the Noble Three. "I'm surprised you refused the Lion contract, though. I know the guy who found it, could've gotten it for free." He mentioned.

Hibiki shrugged as they went deeper into the iron wood forest. "If the Lions think I'll be a match, they'll bring me through the seal." He said.

"Indeed." Jiraiya looked around and placed his armored hands on his hips. "Well, this is as good a place as any." He turned to Hibiki and indicated a clear patch on the ground. "Just work your magic and you'll be good to go." His proud smile faded into a very serious scowl. "If I don't see you in two hours, I'm coming to get you with the Toads. I very much doubt it will happen, but there have been stories of some summons clans who broke the sacred laws and attempted to harm a Human."

Hibiki blinked, "I thought the entire point of summons was to summon them to do whatever their summoner wanted?"

Jiraiya nodded and sat down on the ground as Hibiki called to mind the handsigns for the technique. "It is. If their summoner wants them to kill, they'll kill. If he wants them to steal, they'll steal. Heal, they'll heal, so on and so forth. But within the Summoning realm, and especially towards a potential summoner, it is a sacred law to not harm a Human being. Doing so is ground for inter-summons warfare."

Hibiki was intrigued, even the animals liked to kill each other, here. "How many times has that happened?" He wondered.

Jiraiya shrugged, "Ma and Pa wouldn't say. The toads aren't proud of their wars." He nodded to the ground, "now stop stalling and meet your animal overlords."

_Ape shall not kill Ape. _Hibiki shook his head, breathed in deep, and performed the technique.

The summoning sign burst forth from his hand the moment it impacted the ground, he flared as much of his chakra as he possibly could, and just a moment later, the summoning sign seemed to come to life and it _dragged him inside._

* * *

Hibiki was shot out of the other end of the summoning sign, and he collided with the ground after a moment of flight. _"Oh... Fuck, that hurt!"_ Hibiki groaned in his former language, it felt like he'd been squeezed through a two inch thick concrete tube before being thrown back into reality.

Around him, first and foremost, was a great, tall, massive, and thick forest. Looking at it for a moment, he realized that he hadn't even been dropped on the forest floor - he was sitting, bouncing slightly, in an enormous nest on a massive tree-branch. The air was also warm and humid, and he thought he could hear splashes nearby - was he near a lake, of some sort? Where was he?

Hibiki stood up, noting how surprisingly sturdy the massive nest and how immobile the tree branch was. He walked to the edge of the nest and peered over the edge, and in the distance he saw an enormous lake, the air was thick with birds, and he could see some dive-bomb into the lake and come out a moment later with a fresh feast. Hibiki was about to flip on his Sharingan, when the air shifted and a bird as large as a two-story house exploded into view. Its massive wings, covered in a deep brown set of feathery plumage, beat at the air to keep it aloft, massive gusts of wind whirled about and tried to make Hibiki lose his footing. The enormous avian creature lowered its head from its skyward gaze, but it was right in front of the sun and it was cast in a shroud of back-lit shadows.

It gazed at him for a few moments, before it flapped its wings again and landed behind Hibiki. Now with his own back to the sun, Hibiki got a good look at the creature, and recognized it after a few moments of racking his brains - he was being given a death glare by a Bald Eagle the size of his old house, Back Home. Hibiki suddenly wished he'd broken out his Brown Pants for this one, but he didn't let that defocative fear show on his face, he kept his expression straight and stern, just as the Eagle did as it continued sizing up the eight year old boy.

"Who are you to call upon my kind?" The Boss-Eagle asked in surprisingly clear Common, despite its complete lack of lips. "How do you have power enough to be sensed by myself, my mate, and my Elders?"

Hibiki swallowed his suddenly dry throat and spoke clearly, "my name is Hibiki Senju." He said, "I am a Genin of Konohagakure no Sato, training to be the best I can. I wanted to learn the art of summoning, and my teacher instructed me to perform the technique without a prior contract, if I wanted the best possible summoner-summoning pair." He explained, "I do not know from where my power and my blood comes, those secrets have been kept from me since my birth, but I hope to learn everything I can about my power and my history as I age." He didn't know if he should bow, get down on one knee, or ca-caw, to show his humility towards this _enormous_ creature, so he instead stood his ground.

The Eagle stared at him intensely, before leaning down to the point where his face - itself about as big as a car - was mere inches from his own, its massive eyes narrowed as they studied him. "What makes you think you are worthy of a contract with the Eagles? The most powerful of the avian summons?" Hibiki blinked, was it just him, or was there a catch in the Boss' voice when he'd proclaimed their power?

_Oh... If there's trouble in paradise, I can fucking use this._ Hibiki didn't back down, especially not now that he had an advantage over this thing. "What do you know of the concept of Physics?" He asked, "I know things. A great, great many things. The physics of flight, of speed, how things work and how they can be made to work better." He'd loved watching documentaries on air-planes when he was a kid, and the eidetic memory afforded to him by the Sharingan would allow him to get all of the lessons he'd learned in a heartbeat. If there was some kind of trouble in paradise, it was likely some kind of war - there wouldn't be a doubt of the Eagles' power without one - so he could teach them what he knew about avionics, how they could fly faster, perhaps he could give them the idea to use Chakra as pesudo-jet-fuel, he had many ideas, but he couldn't focus on just this one thing, these things literally lived in the air, there was all the possibility that they already knew everything he could show them. "But those things might not be good enough, and I understand. I also have access to knowledge about basic first aid and remedies." Sure, a lot of his knowledge from Tsunade and from the EMT school Back Home wouldn't apply to _Animals,_ but there were some universal things. "Things that require no chakra to set up. While you yourself admitted to my possession of great power, my greatest asset is my mind." He had no idea how to split an atom, but he knew how to make a gun! "If you sign a contract with me, and I with you, we would only benefit." He decided he would save the trouble in paradise card for now, see if he couldn't get through without it.

The Eagle kept staring at him intensely. "What do you know of the relationship between summoners and their summons?"

Hibiki sighed thankfully as the Eagle straightened itself. "I know that not many summons have contract holders, and that having a summoner instantly elevates the position of power of the summons, in their hierarchy." He kept his expression neutral, but made his intentions clear with: "I also know that... Should a _conflict_ arise between two summons vying for power, having a summoner with them would tip the scales dramatically, almost like a deterrent for violence." There was a god damn reason that Human beings were at the top of the food chain, and even if animals could spit fire and fart thunder, that wouldn't help them at all, Humans were just too damn hardy.

The Eagle considered Hibiki's words. "What you have concluded is true. My people are at war with the Hawks, who have been steadily gaining power and numbers as of recent generations, and as such they believe _they_ should be the Noble Avian clan, and not us. My terms, therefor, will be simple: If we call upon you to help us in our war with the Hawks, you will answer. There will be a margin for error as I know how many conflicts Humans get in to, and that sometimes you will simply be unable to answer... But I expect you to have a very good reason should you ever ignore a call. Furthermore, after the cessation of hostilities - either by their total defeat... Extinction... Or surrender... You will then assist in protecting and guiding our people. In exchange, we will answer you when called, for whatever you call us for. Your secrets shall be ours, your missions, your morals, your desires and your goals, we shall share them all as you shall share ours; as is our duty, and as will be yours. Do you agree to these terms?" The Eagle gazed to the sky for a moment, its perfect eyes locking on to some distant cloud or flying Eagle.

Hibiki considered the avian's terms, they were fair, but he couldn't seem weak to this creature. "I can accept those terms, but I ask for one addendum."

The Boss blinked its massive eyes and gazed down at Hibiki, "and this is?"

"A mutual exchange of information. You ask for it, and if I know it, and it is possible, I shall teach it to you. I ask for it, and if you know it, and it is possible, you shall teach it to me." He set forth, "that way we each benefit from the knowledge of the other. Power granted by chakra is one thing, but when the chips are down, a sharp mind is far deadlier than any blade, and more powerful than any ninjutsu." He bowed his head slightly, not breaking eye contact with the bird. "Can you accept these additional terms?"

The Eagle stared at Hibiki for a moment, its pure white head tilting to one side as it thought. Eventually, it nodded, "I can accept those terms." It reared its head up and its throat began convulsing, Hibiki narrowed his eyes in slight confusion, before he saw a bulge travel up the eagle's throat, and it vomited out a massive scroll, the exact same size as the one that hung from Jiraiya's back. "You seem to already know _how_ summoning works, so I will not explain to you how your chakra levels or the power of the pulse factors into the Call. Sign the contract in your blood, and the deal shall be made, and your name added to our wall."

Hibiki nodded, and removed a kunai from his weapon's pouch. "This scroll is similar in size to the scrolls of the noble summons. But I have never heard of your kind." He mentioned conversationally, as he unfurled the scroll, found a decently sized blank spot, nicked his thumb, and began signing.

The Eagle seemed morose as it spoke his response, "we once _were_ one of the Nobles. There used to be six Noble Summons, and we ruled second to one. But the noble summons dwindled to three, for all the same reasons: No summoners." He explained, taking a few steps around the massive nest as it spoke and Hibiki signed in his best hand. "The birds were the first to fall from grace. Starting with the lowliest of our hierarchy, and eventually reaching us Eagles as well. We have been without a summoner for many hundreds of years, and the Hawks believe that it is us who are at fault for that." He explained sorrowfully. "Perhaps with a summoner now signing his name to us, we will be able to regain our name and our honor." Hibiki nodded, that sounded reasonable enough. "Tell me... Who was your teacher?"

"Jiraiya of the Sannin, he who holds the Toad contract." Hibiki lifted his thumb and sucked on it as his Kaguya blood healed it up, his name gleaming on the sheet of thick paper. "My mother is the summoner of the slugs, and my other uncle, the snakes."

The Boss-Eagle looked genuinely surprised at this, "you rejected any one of the Noble Three, for a noble who fell from grace?" It didn't believe its ears.

Hibiki shrugged, he didn't really have any real answer for it, but he could tell - at least on some level - why he'd been called to the Eagles: they reminded him of home. "What is your name? Or should I just call you 'Boss'?" He was going to save the Metal Gear comments for Orochimaru's snakes - meeting 'Sorrido' for the first time had almost had him in stitches.

The Boss gave Hibiki another look, "I am called Washita." He said, before he gave Hibiki a nod. "I welcome you, Summoner Senju, to the home of the Eagles, Amerigen." He said, as the wind picked up and Hibiki was physically pulled back through his seal. "We will judge when you are worthy to walk upon our sacred grounds once again. Until such a time... Fare thee well." And Hibiki vanished.

* * *

And as was appropriate, the last two weeks of Hibiki's training before the Chunin Exams in Suna were spent with the Eagles, learning how they fought, what the various eagles' skills were, the works. He had nowhere near enough time to teach them his skills or for him to learn their skills - even Shadow Clones and his Sharingan could only be stretched so far in so little time - so instead of that, he simply learned the quirks and the nuances of being an eagle summoner.

Of course, after he gave Jiraiya the low-down on everything he'd done in Amerigen, which sounded familiar as a word, but Hibiki couldn't pin it down on any specific memory - the first guess was obviously 'Holy crap it sounds like America!', but there was no precedent for the New Hotness sharing anything with Back Home, save for the presence of Humans and the similarities between Common Tongue and Japanese. He'd look into it later, but regardless, Jiraiya had been impressed with who Hibiki had signed on with - he'd heard of the Eagles from Ma and Pa toad, who openly lamented how far they had fallen. In their prime, the Eagles were the second most powerful of the Noble Summons, they were the ones who ruled the sky unchallenged, all avian summons bowed to them - and many still did - and because Hibiki had signed with the top, he could feasibly call on any bird summons, save for the Hawks who they were warring with - they would ignore his summons altogether. Jiraiya gave him the usual warnings about summons, and then told Hibiki to use his best judgement when using the eagles in combat - strong, though they once were, a lot of time had passed between then and now, and they likely wouldn't have had any experience fighting in Human conflicts for centuries at best.

After Jiraiya had left Hibiki to his own devices, did Hibiki start his own work. Like with the Kaguya bloodline, the Sharingan, and the Shadow Clones, Hibiki began experimenting. He had to be far more careful and a lot less intrusive, given that each of the eagles - save for the ones who responded to the lowest possible chakra calls - were as sentient and as alive as Hibiki was, and would likely object to being used as cannon fodder - even if it was For Science! Obviously, they excelled in wind techniques - even the youngest eagles could create chakra blades from wind that could slice apart solid stone. With their perfect eyesight - Hibiki was considering arguing that their eyes were better than his Sharingan, but he knew from Dante that his Sharingan had a little ways to go before it was at its best - they were exceptionally good for reconnaissance, and it was mandatory, in their culture, for the ones who grew larger than the average size, to learn a 'steel wing' technique that formed an exceptional defensive barrier behind a layer of wind and a layer of chakra-hardened wings.

Speed was also their shtick, they could hit hard, but their game was moving fast, in and out. It reminded Hibiki of what he was trying to do, to hit hard and fast, as opposed to Suboro's hit harder, and Noboru's hit faster. They had some problems with how they flew, but from what Hibiki saw, they knew well how to use Chakra to help them get faster - with a little later help from science, they'd likely become living jets. Their usage of chakra seemed also to be somewhat ingrained, as the youngest chicks used chakra to fly before their wings were strong enough, and this revelation made Hibiki wonder if _he_ could fly, but he had been running low on time at this point, so he instead just continued training.

There were a great many eagles with a great many specializations - there was the Combat branch, who specialized in exactly what it sounded like, and the guardian branch, the hunter branch, the scout branch, for almost any specialization, there was a branch of eagles who specialized in it, and Hibiki had made it a point to at least get to know _one_ eagle from each of the most important branches - Combat, Guardian, Scout, and Hunter - as he felt those would be the ones he would need most in Suna. Learning to fight with the eagles had been tough, and he was nowhere near as good at fighting with them as Jiraiya was with the Toads - he was a Lightning affinity, and a probably fire secondary, whereas they were all wind - but he was at least able to fight alongside them and not get in their way, and vice versa.

So, after three grueling months of non-stop training, Genin Teams Six, Four, Nine, and Three assembled at the gates, their Jonin all with them, waiting for their paperwork to clear with the triply enhanced border security. They were on the road not just to advancing their rank, but also - beknownst only to teams Six and Four - on the road to _war._ A great deal was riding on their shoulders, the pride of their nation, the potential fate of the known world, the lives of countless millions, it all rode on what would happen in Sunagakure, it all rode on the eight year old displaced man.

Hibiki sighed deeply, and not a moment later, all of Konoha's Chosen sprinted out of the village, determined to make it to Suna in a respectable amount of time. It was time for the Chunin Exams, it was time for war.


	14. Exam Season: The First Test -I-

Chapter 13

* * *

The previous times they'd been outside of Konohagakure, Hibiki and Team Six had left at a leisurely pace, they walked or jogged wherever they had to go. To get to Sunagakure? They _ran._ Tree-climbing and running through the trees had taken Dante a good week to get them used to, but Hibiki attributed it to riding a bicycle - now that he knew how, he'd never forget, and similar to riding a bike, it made travel time a lot faster. In half of a week, leaping from tree to tree at chakra-enhanced speeds, and only stopping at night to rest for only six hours, they'd made it to Konoha's borders. The differences between the forests to the north and the rapidly thickening quarries and deserts to the south was like the difference between night and day, the moment they left the area influenced by Hashirama's iron wood, they _knew._

Obviously, they went slower now that they had no trees, but they still moved at shinobi speeds, with Dante promising to teach them the body-flicker when they got back to Konoha. It took them another week to make it to the desert, and two days after that to find Sunagakure. During this time, Hibiki learned that it was only his and Team Four that had an ulterior mission beyond 'humiliate everyone else', Dante had made it clear that no one else knew what Teams Six and Four were doing. Teams Three, Four, Six, and Nine traveled and slept together, and met no resistance during their trip, and Hibiki learned through the brief snippets of conversation between the Jonin - all of whom knew that something may very well happen during the exams - that Konoha was waiting a full month before the exams officially started, before they'd send their own forces to Suna. That gave Teams Six and Four one month at the least to complete their objective, and when they arrived at the Village Hidden in the Sand, he knew that their mission would be very difficult, far moreso than he had initially predicted.

If Konoha border security had been strengthened after the death of the Hokage, then Suna border security had to have been sealed up tighter and harder than a nuclear bunker after Rasa's killing. They'd been checked by six different teams of ninas, searched thoroughly, had to provide three different forms of identification and two confirmations that they were there for the Chunin exam, signed personally by their leader, there was so much and so many hoops they had to jump through that Hibiki thought they could have taught the TSA a thing or two. It took them three hours to finally make it into the sweltering hot village. They'd traveled through the desert at high speeds, to the point that the heat had largely been defeated by the wind that beat at their bodies as they ran, but now that they were sitting still, in the middle of the desert? Hibiki was very glad he was wearing desert-gear, Team Three had neglected to do so and they were all leaking water like a broken pipe.

"Alright, kiddies." Said Dante, taking the lead and standing in front of the assembled Genin and their Jonin sensei, "we got here a bit early, so that means we've still _two days_ before the exams start properly. Myself and Eiji will be heading to their missions building to get instructions on where our training grounds will be. Hibiki -" He tossed Noboru a small scroll, "that's a map of the village that I may or may not have stolen from their ninja while they weren't looking. Distribute it to everyone else, we're all in the empty compound near the western edge of the village. You'll see Konoha's sigil on our building. Aside from that, there isn't much else we need, don't get into trouble, keep yourselves hydrated, stay safe until the exams start." He leaned back and cracked his back, before he leaned forward and ran a hand through his disgusting hair, he'd made up for that one shower on the day of the funeral in _spades._ "Oh, and don't trust any foreign ninja. I think that goes without saying, but I'd rather be safe than sorry, in this instance. Understood?"

"Yes, Dante-Sensei." Came the affirmatives of twelve Konoha genin, as Hibiki surreptitiously Something-From-Nothing'ed the map, making one copy for each team.

With that affirmative, they all made their separate ways, Teams Three and Nine separated, with Three looking for the bazaar and Nine looking to set up in their apartment, Four and Six stayed together and began walking, seeking out specifically a densely packed area so they could speak freely. It was a risky move, talking about their mission in public, but going to a secret, secluded spot, would be worse - _especially_ if they were being tailed. They acted as any ordinary Genin team would - reserved, but curious, in that inexperienced, eager way. They stopped at shops, tried a few local foods, took in the sights, and all the while they had brief snippets of conversation that, alone, would have been nonsense, definitely mistaken for references to things that happened back home, but put together, was much more sinister and, in the eyes of some, war-worthy.

"So... Two days, the exams, and a month." Noboru said, "that does not offer us much time." He spoke quietly, but a subtle genjutsu Suboro cast over them helped to funnel out the excess noise, so they could speak quietly, not be heard over the dull din of the Sand Village, and not have to hear that dull din; Hibiki couldn't help but revel in how much of a _natural_ Suboro was with genjutsu, like it was in his blood.

"So we start working immediately?" Asked Aoi, her dog lazily snoozing in her arms. "Or do we wait for a little suspicion to die down first?"

"We _are_ being followed, after all." Akane noted after she pulsed her Byakugan briefly. "But they are bored, our act is working."

"I say we begin our work now." Said Suboro, "we don't want to miss anything, and if we waste time, we will have to work faster, and faster work means hastier decisions... We will in effect, miss something, and that may be the vital piece of evidence." He looked to the desert sky and took in a breath of dry, arid air.

"We mustn't coordinate our actions." Dai said, to the nods of Aoi and Akane. "We will only meet together and update each other once at the end of every week."

"And what if we find something vital?" Hibiki asked.

Around this time, they had been strolling past a particularly long string of restaurants and food-joints. Dai grinned impossibly lightly, "we shall treat our sensei to lunch." She said, specifically eying the rice-stands. "Is there anything else?" She asked, she received no response. "Then I suggest we all break into our cover stories, the sooner the better." Without giving Hibiki time to even consider the fact that he had no idea what she was talking about, and that they'd never discussed cover stories, she wrapped her arms around one of his, her grip so light that for a moment he thought she was specifically _not holding on._ "Why don't we visit the library?" She asked, subtly pushing him away from his squad as everyone else paired up and separated. "Hibiki?" She pressed, giving him the out he needed for his pause between her question and his answer.

_Roll with it, motherfucker!_ Hibiki shrugged, "do you think they'll even let us in there?" He asked, as they left the confines of Suboro's noise-dampening genjutsu, and the din of the restaurant district washed over them. "We don't even live here." And, he didn't add, foreign ninja looking through a local shinobi library, when tensions were high, was a _very bad idea._

She huffed lightly, "not the ninja library, baka." She said, somehow managing to play her role and not budge an inch from the stereotypical Aburame. "The public one."

Hibiki thought he caught onto her train of thought, but he wasn't quite sure. He shrugged regardless, his team was the team that specialized in killing people, he'd leave the stealth and espionage stuff to the team that specialized in that. "Alright."

Dai hummed, "you are very bad at this." She said, breaking her gaze with the road to give Hibiki a brief, conspiratorial look.

Hibiki fought off a grin. _So, she's going to be one of **those...** Okay._ "What, dating?" He knew victory - for now, at east - was his when she broke his gaze and rolled her eyes behind her glasses. "So how do you keep your glasses on your face?" He asked, silently wondering how he'd have to go to get her to let go. "I've seen you walk upside-down, get blasted a few hundred meters and through a few trees, swim, and sprint like a madwoman, and yet they never move."

"Acidic beetles. They secreted an acid onto the sunglasses' pads that burns the skin and keeps it raw and sticky." She said with a serious face.

"Hm." In other words, it was a trade secret. Hibiki was starting to think he'd like working with this girl.

* * *

"So, we are looking for the same kinds of scents we found in Konoha?" Dai asked, as they sat down in a secluded corner of the library, behind a pile of history books and books on the local flora and fauna - specifically, Hibiki found rather convenient, the local bird species. Dai had objected slightly to being stuck in a corner, but then Hibiki reminded her none too subtly about his 'fists of fury', and he said that he doubted that any of the stone walls in Suna could take one of his punches.

Hibiki nodded, "that would be the most damning." He said, knowing that, conversely, the lack of those weapons would also do nothing for his suspicion that Suna was innocent in all this. He had made the suggestion that he could send an eagle or two out to scout out any potential areas of focus, but she shot that down - eagles weren't too terribly common around here, and that given his scouts tended to wear goggles, they'd be called out as summons instantly.

She nodded her understanding, "and what of your project?" She asked.

He shrugged, "not too much progress." Dante's earlier comment about making more chakra than his genjutsu used had inspired him to try and make his own transformation technique, similar to what Tsunade did. Unfortunately for him, the idea had come in the last two weeks he'd had in Konoha, and as such he'd had to dissect _everything_ about the technique in less than fourteen days; he'd made a lot of progress, but some things just weren't possible. "I'd have a time limit." He whispered almost inaudibly, as he grabbed a book about desert birds. "'bout six hours per try." He'd seriously lessened how much chakra it took to make each transformation, but his plan - to turn one of his Shadow Clones into a beetle, so it could hitch a ride on one of Dai's kikaichu - relied on essentially ripping away ninety nine percent of his clone's mass, and that took a fair bit of chakra to maintain. At absolute most, he could sustain ten clones for six hours each, and stay combat ready, anything after that and he risked his own safety, were he to be engaged in combat.

Dai nodded, adjusting her desert-coat a bit and letting a few beetles out at a time. She couldn't just pour out beetles, like she was able to in combat, that would attract attention, so the plan was to drop one or two every few minutes, and because Hibiki had figured out how to noiselessly - and smokelessly - make shadow clones, that made stealth deployments all the easier. "It will take a while for them to report back to me. We should only stay here for an hour."

Hibiki nodded, and settled in for his bird book. He would admit, as he watches his transformed shadow clones fly off with Dai's beetles, that getting used to turning into another species entirely - and then _flying the fuck around - _had taken a great deal of getting used to. He still got uncomfortable shivers down his spine when the sensory and muscle memories of the clones came back, after they'd been flying around as beetles for a while. He made a mental note to learn how to block out certain types of memories from Shadow Clones.

_But... At least they can use their Sharingan._ Thought Hibiki, as Dai leaned forward and grabbed her own book, Hibiki noticed a small beetle crawling up her face as she settled in to read.

* * *

One hour they went to the library, they left with a cursory knowledge about Sunagakure's flora and fauna, and a half hour after that, they realized they were being followed, thanks to one of Dai's beetles watching their back, and Hibiki confirming it by making a pass behind them with his Sharingan. After leaving the library, they simply traveled the village, taking in the sights and sounds, and meeting up with a few other foreigners and getting the lay of the land - suffice to say, everyone treated each other as if the last war had never ended, no one liked each other. The Kiri ninja who had come to attend were outright hostile to any Leaf-nin they ran across, so Hibiki and Dai kept far away from them.

Three hours after they went to the library, the sun was dipping low in the sky, and Hibiki and Dai made their way to their temporary apartment. Teams Six and Four were sharing one, and though Suna would claim that it was for space reasons, it was for their more seditious ones, too. They entered and were greeted by the assembled shinobi, Dante gave them a brief glance as they came in, to confirm that he knew they were there. Team Six had their lodgings and their beds on the left side of the room, Team Four, on the right. Hibiki meandered his way over to Suboro and Noboru, and Dai to Akane and Aoi.

Hibiki plopped down on his bed, "find anything interesting?" He asked in a low voice, as he cast a brief glance at the Jonin, both of whom were staring intently at something that had a pretty thick genjutsu cast over it. If Hibiki had to guess, they were looking at their orders, or at classified blueprints of Suna's various secret buildings and classified areas.

"Nothing out of the ordinary." Said Noboru, "we first tried sniffing around for any konoha blood, but that ran into a dead end. So we tried sniffing around for leaf scents, but given we are here right now and... You _know,_ that was a dead end from the start." He explained, "so, initial findings say we might be facing a dead end, but we're going to have Suboro and Akane search for... _His_ body, so we can sniff that out. If it smells like it's been in the leaf, or has any trace of the third's blood, we'll have something to work with." He explained, in low, almost inaudible tones.

Hibiki nodded, and looked to Suboro, who shrugged his shoulders. "We're just trying to get our bearings right now. We're walking the streets, checking the sights, looking for the interesting places and keeping them for later. Tomorrow night is when we'll actually start looking at specific places." He shrugged again, "what about you?"

"We're waiting on the beetles to come back. We're running on a few hunches of mine..." He glanced back at Dai, who was having a hushed conversation with her own team, he silently wondered if she was going to let slip just what his hunches were. "Though, to be honest, she's kind of quiet about what she does and how she does it." He turned his head back to them, a slightly humorous look playing across his face as he brushed his hand through his hair. "Almost as if she knows how gold my blood is, and doesn't want to figure out we're related." He said with a light chuckle, which his teammates humorously repeated.

Hibiki leaned back and felt, almost in rapid succession, his clones pop. All of Dai's beetles were heading back, and from what Hibiki got from his clones, they'd learned a whole lot of nothing, though that might change when Dai got her report from her beetles.

_Great..._ He sighed, "we doing anything interesting, tonight?" He asked, glancing around the room.

Noboru shook his head, "outside of our initial evaluations, we are not." He said, "tomorrow we are going to scout out our allotted training grounds, and our Jonin will receive our orders for the first exam on wednesday." He yawned reservedly, and rubbed his tired white eyes.

* * *

The two days before the exams whizzed by like a flash of lightning. The only interesting things that occurred were Team Six meeting up by chance with a local Suna team taking the exams, which hadn't gone well, but hadn't gone badly, either, and Dai reporting that one of her beetles caught the faintest scent of gunpowder, but it would take a while to narrow down exactly where it came from - she had to have found the very edge of the area in which it was held. Teams Six, Four, Three and Nine all left for the first exam's location separately, and when they arrived, Hibiki could say he was thoroughly interested.

He had been expecting some sort of three-phased exam, first a written test to weed out the dumb, then a survival scenario to weed out the weak, and then a fighting tournament to weed out the ill-equipped. To go along with that, he thought the first place they would be going for would have been a building meant for taking examinations, but instead, they'd been taken to the absolute edge of the village, atop of one of its walls. There had to be close to two dozen groups of three ninja waiting for the proctor to begin speaking, and when they arrived, Dante bid them farewell and wished them luck.

"Any guesses?" Hibiki asked, glancing around with half-lidded Sharingan eyes. There were no Suna Jonin around, save for the ones keeping everyone in the same general area.

"They're throwing us to the desert." Said Noboru, determinedly. "For what, we will soon learn. Someone is coming." He looked to his right, Byakugan activated, and true to word, a Jonin appeared soaring above the outer wall.

He landed with a flourish, straightened up and, after he took a swig from his canteen and then tossed it over the wall, grimaced at the entire group. His tone was curt, and his words were short and sharp, "you all have come here to take an exam to prove that you are what your villages think you are - a cut above the rest!" He shouted, adjusting his shemagh and affixing them all with a deep glare, his deep voice cut through the windy air. "Your first examination is to prove to us that you are not wasting our time. Out there in the desert are fifteen scrolls, hidden, buried, defended, what have you. Your goal is to get _one_ of them, protect it until this time saturday evening, and bring it back here with your entire squad. This means that of all thirty squads here, only _half_ of you will even make it to the second round. We do not care if you kill each other, but remember that that is not your goal - your goal is to prove you have what it takes to become a Chunin! You will be watched at all times, but we _will not_ help you! You must find your own water, your own food, your own scrolls. You must fight your own battles and you must keep yourselves safe and alive." He yelled out, his voice so loud that it wasn't even muffled in the slightest by the shemagh. "There will be no questions. As a Chunin, you will be expected to act on a moment's notice and with no preparation. I hope you are ready, because _The Chunin Exams have begun!"_ He vanished with a loud bang and a poof of smoke.

There was silence and stillness for several seconds, before there was a mad-dash for the Genin to get off the wall and down to the desert below, to begin searching for the veritable needle in the hay stack. Suboro made to run too, but Hibiki stopped him. "Wait for it." He said, nodding at the sprinting, jumping, and falling Genin. "They said somewhere in the desert. And we have a Byakugan user." Hibiki looked to Noboru, "please tell me you eliminated the Jonin as an option." He almost _knew_ that the Suna-nin would be audacious enough to have one of the scrolls hidden on the examiner, he was, technically, in the desert.

Noboru blinked, "I hadn't even considered that." He said, as they soon became one of only two Genin squads still on the wall, the other being a Mist squad that was loudly debating whether or not a scroll could be in the village. Noboru bowed his head in shame, "I am sorry, Hibiki."

Hibiki shrugged, "don't sweat it." He turned to the vast desert. "So... How do they expect us to find one single scroll, in that vast desert?" He wondered, walking forward to the edge, but not leaping off just yet. "Any ideas?" He'd rather save his energy until they had a plan of attack, as opposed to just winging it.

Noboru suggested, "we could search the desert by sectors. My Byakugan can reach five kilometers in every direction, and I see through Genjutsu."

Hibiki shook his head, "do you know how big wind-country desert is?" He asked, "that would take us more than three days, even if you stretched to twenty kilometers." He sat down on the wall and let his legs swing freely. "I'm thinking that the method is as much of a test as is the acquisition." He flipped on his Sharingan and started gazing lazily around, the Kiri team thundered away towards the village.

"Do _you_ have an idea?" Suboro asked, walking up behind Hibiki.

"Hm." He was considering Bare-Minimum clones, but that would require a great deal of them, and would take up a lot of chakra. Summoning a scouting eagle or two would definitely help, but he ran into the chakra limit again - good as his stores were, he wanted to save them and his trump card for as long as he could. Could anything from Back Home help him? He thought hard, and two things came to mind - easter egg hunts, and video game fetch quests. In both cases, the prize was often hidden in plain sight, but in a place they wouldn't consider looking. The problem in both cases was, he wasn't being given an easy time by stupid priests and coddling parents, nor did he have an objective marker, or mini-map.

_It's so overt, it's covert._ Were the immortal words of Sherlock Holmes in his second outing. Hibiki looked at the ground below him. _It can't be that simple, can it?_ He focused his eyes, but while his second-stage Sharingan's vision was damn good, it wasn't anywhere near the level of perception the third stage had - where it was basically surpassed by none save for an eagle's eye. Hibiki couldn't see what he was looking for.

_It cannot be that simple._ Hibiki looked over to Noboru, and nodded his head down at the ground, "what do you think?" He asked, pantomiming taking a swig from a water canteen, and then throwing it over the edge.

Noboru's shoulders slumped and his face slackened, before his Byakugan flared and the veins bulged. "No..."

Suboro was clueless, he blinked dumbly. "What? What do you see?"

Hibiki grinned as he saw the realization dawn in Noboru's white eyes. _Damn_ if the Suna-nin weren't clever, but _he'd_ be damned if Hollywood wasn't cleverer. He dropped from the wall and fell for a good few seconds, before he landed in the sand, chakra keeping him from doing any damage to himself. He was joined a few seconds later by Suboro and Noboru, the latter of whom immediately dashed over to a small, dark object lying forgotten in the sand.

"I still don't get it." Said Suboro, as he and Hibiki followed Noboru, who had upended the canteen to empty out its contents - it still had water in it.

"Suboro, why the hell would a desert ninja waste a perfectly good, and still half full, water canteen?" Hibiki asked, Suboro blinked, it was slowly dawning on him.

"No... Way..." He looked to Noboru, who was shaking the canteen - and something was rattling inside. It sounded thick and heavy, and wrapped in plastic.

A few minutes of struggle later, and Noboru had in his hands a scroll wrapped tight in a plastic bag, to keep it safe from the water that had just been poured out onto the scalding hot grounds. No one could believe their luck, least of all Hibiki, who too couldn't believe that Hollywood had saved his ass again. He sincerely hoped this wouldn't become a trend, as he reached inside his scrolls pouch and retrieved a storage scroll which had in it a set of fuinjutsu materials. "Noboru, gimme your hand." Hibiki ordered, as he unsealed the paintbrushes and the inkwell.

Noboru blinked, "what are you doing?"

Hibiki showed Noboru his right fist, the one with the gun sealed inside. "I've been learning fuinjutsu from Lady Mito. First thing I wanted to do was figure out how to make storage seals, and ink them on my body. We're going to seal that scroll into your left hand."

"Why my left?" Noboru thought, as he gave Suboro the scroll, and Hibiki his hand. "Why my hand?"

Hibiki grinned, "it will be so overt, it will be covert. Just like how this scroll was hidden." He said, as he summoned a clone, unstoppered the inkwell, and got to work.

As time went on, he silently wondered whether or not it would be possible to set up a printing-press for scrolls. Or, at least, maybe a stamp-type-deal, so he could just whip out the inscribed stamp, ink it up, stamp, and boom! - instant seal, ready for use. In a quarter of an hour, Noboru had a new seal on his hand, and poof went the scroll. Now there were three sweating Leaf genin, standing in the open sun, in the desert, their mission partially accomplished.

Noboru examined the seal, slightly wary of it, but trusting of Hibiki when the latter said it should wash off when they were done with it. "What now?" Noboru asked.

Hibiki looked out to the desert, "first we find some shelter. We mark our base camp. Then we'll make it up from there." He wanted to say 'then we'll help Team Four', but they were literally right next to what was essentially enemy territory, he had to be careful. "Let's go." They sprinted off, Noboru's Byakugan blaring as he searched for a place that could be used as shelter.

* * *

It took them close to an hour to find a single, solitary, lonely red rock. Hibiki would have been willing to skip it, but Noboru said that the rock was hollow and opened up into something of a cave system underneath it.

As they stood before the looming red rock, the massive desert surrounding them on all sides and the unforgiving sun beating their covered flesh, Hibiki had to play Devil's Advocate for a couple of too-willing twelve year olds. He found that sort of ironic, given he was eight, "how do we know this isn't some kind of trap?" He asked, knowing he couldn't say 'Genjutsu' since two of the three of them could literally see straight through such a thing, and the third of them was starting to specialize in the art. "The Suna-nin might have dropped a scroll down there and then we'd have to worry about another team finding it." He paused a beat, "actually, regardless of whether or not there's a scroll down there, we will have to worry about another team finding it. It's a big ass rock in the middle of the desert, and it opens up into a cavern below. This is prime real-estate."

Noboru looked at Hibiki, his face mostly covered by the desert-gear he and his team had donned earlier. "Hibiki, I think this once I am going to veto your logic. We need shelter, and the possible threat of other shinobi finding it shouldn't scare us away from it." He said, somewhat apologetically, but very firmly. "Let us explore it, I shall make certain if there is or is not a scroll, and once we're situated, we shall head out again and find Team Four." He said with a firm nod, and a conciliatory raised eyebrow - as if to say, he wouldn't back down on this, but he still appreciated his teammates' opinions.

Hibiki and Suboro nodded, the former knew that both he and Noboru were definitely right, but he still didn't like the risk they were taking by taking the first, rather promising shelter they found. It was almost _screaming_ 'come get us passers by!'. They entered the rock, but not a second later, Noboru's head popped up, the air going still as he stared off into nothing - Hibiki knew what he was doing almost instantly: He was focusing on seeing something with his Byakugan. Just a second later, he turned back to his team, "one squad, Mist hitai-ate, they saw us entering."

Hibiki gave Noboru a somewhat snide 'what did I tell you?' look, before he shook his head. "Two options. Flee down into the cave, or fight them." Each had its merits, each had their weaknesses.

Suboro shrugged, "I'm good for either one. Hibiki, there's a bug on your nose." He pointed to the exposed bridge of Hibiki's nose.

"Noboru, is there another exit in this place?" Hibiki asked, picking the bug off of the bridge of his nose and tossing it away without much thought.

Noboru shook his head, "there is not. There are, however, many places in which to hide. I vote for that." He said.

"Then here's what we'll do, I'll leave three shadow clones here to keep them busy and to gauge their strength, we'll run deep inside and hide. Noboru, check and see if there's a scroll in here, we'll want it if there is. We might be able to bargain with it if they're stronger than us." He nodded, "good?" They both nodded, "good. Break." They dashed down the winding, steep cave-path, and Hibiki left three shadow clones to guard them.

* * *

The Kiri team halted when they met the three copies of one shinobi, each one having shed his desert gear so as to be more maneuverable. The center one seemed to be the leader of the three, "I don't suppose you'll be willing to just turn around?" He asked, knowing that he had the advantage over them, because in order for them to use their water techniques, they would have to waste their own precious supply, whereas his techniques relied on his chakra supply, which each of the clones had been given a generous amount of.

The three mist-nin, none of whom were even decked out in desert gear to keep them somewhat safe from the elements, looked at each other, then back at the clones. The clones' Sharingan let them see what they were about to do before they even did it, and the Hibikis drew their own kunai to deflect the ones the Mist-nin threw. The clones were fast, but not fast enough - one got out unscathed, one got a bad cut on his shoulder, and one shattered the kunai he'd been deflecting and took some shrapnel to his cheek, bewildered temporarily about how that even happened.

The mist-genin surged forward, chakra pouring through their limbs. Hibiki knew that they had the advantage in close quarters, and the only way he could take that advantage back would be to use his gun, and it wasn't the time for that, yet, so the three threw up their dukes, heavy amounts of chakra coating both of them, and all three of them let out a declaration of their greatest offensive technique.

_"Falcon PUNCH!"_ Roared the three Hibikis, as they three surged forward with their flaming blue fists.

The Kiri-nin saw the attacks coming, but weren't prepared for how fast Hibiki moved. Hibiki had long since learned just how easily dodgeable his attack was, and ever since he'd started work on building up his speed, he'd worked on making the attack faster and harder to dodge. The end result was two successful impacts, which sent two genin flying out of the red rock at break-neck speeds, and one glancing blow, which had the unintented effect of blasting the unfortunate genin sideways as opposed to frontward, and into the rock itself, creating a great crater and a loud noise.

Two of the clones rushed outside to keep the genin on the back foot, and the third stayed behind to make sure the Kiri genin was out cold. The Kiri-genin, who wore thin, light-colored clothes and was covered in a thin layer of sweat and debris, wasn't at all unconscious, and engaged the clone the second he extricated himself from the rock. The mist-genin unleashed a water-bullet technique that exploded forth from his now shattered water canteen. The water-bullets hit like a ton of bricks and also managed to burn whatever skin they hit, but the clone kept itself alive and decided on a suicide tactic: It jumped up, latched his feet onto the cave-wall, and leapt forward. The ninja didn't see his tactic coming and didn't have the time to dodge, which let Hibiki latch onto the genin and hit himself with a lightning technique. Thanks to him _and_ the mist-genin being covered in water and sweat, they conducted electricity beautifully, and thanks to the clone pouring all of its remaining chakra into the lightning-palm technique, it popped and its opponent fell to the ground, twitching uncontrollably as he fell into unconsciousness.

Outside, the two Mist-ninja got to their feet just as they hit the ground, only to be met by two lightning zaps from the hands of the Hibiki clones. One dodged by leaping hastily to the side, but the other got a facefull of lightning. He wasn't down for the count, and though he was able to shake it off through sheer force of will, being stung by something akin to a taser hurt like _hell. _It almost hurt enough for the ninja to miss the superman punch from the sprinting eight-year-old, _almost._ He caught the wild, chakra-enhanced punch and pulled, taking the clone off-balance and giving him time enough to knee the boy in the gut and throw him out into the desert. He whipped around and saw his teammate battling another one, this one angrily pummeling his opponent at blistering speeds with precise blows.

The mist-ninja's eye twitched in annoyance, he flipped through the handsigns for the water-bullet technique and vomited up three razor-sharp bullets from the water he'd chugged earlier in the day. The three bullets slammed into the clone's back, drawing blood and shredding muscle, but oddly enough, not even scratching the bone. The clone burst into smoke just a second later, and his partner roared out, _"dodge!"_ Without another moment's hesitation, he leapt forward, as far as his chakra-enhanced muscles would send him, and just like that, the two clones that had come to try and annihilate him with their exploding chakra fists instead hit each other, one bursting the other's chest and the other blowing apart the first's head in a shower of blood, gore, small bits of bone, and soon, smoke.

The mist-nin groaned as he got to his feet, his partner came and grabbed his hand. "How did a trio of eight year olds get so lethal?" His teammate asked irritably, as they dusted themselves off.

The first shook his head, and wiped his hand across his sweating, sand-covered forehead. "I don't care. I just want to kill him." He paused, "and Zin. That fool let himself get knocked out. Once we're done with the leaf-nin, we're killing him." He nodded toward the red rock.

His partner shrugged, "fair enough. Can't we at least wake him up?" He asked, as they started walking. "Even during the genin exams, we all get fair tries."

The first shook his head and rolled his eyes, "shut up."

* * *

Hibiki shook his head and pressed a hand against his chest. He knew from experimentation that falcon punches _hurt,_ but ever since he'd figured out how to make his bones stronger than steel, it just hurt _more!_

_Note to self: Figure out how to make the clones more coordinated. Having them off each other is counter-intuitive._ He thought, as he shifted weight from one arm to another. His position was, admittedly, not entirely _good,_ but it was the best one available, people - even ninja - never looked up.

He just hoped he'd have enough stamina to keep himself aloft for the time it took, with both of his arms and both of his legs splayed out like a star, chakra keeping him stuck fast to the ceiling, quite like a ninja from the movies of his home, only now, it was for real.

_Maybe... Just maybe... Hollywood wasn't as full of shit as I thought._ After all, twice now - at least - his beloved movies had saved his freakin' life.

He stopped breathing when one of the Kiri Genin passed under him. They were heatedly discussing something, as they checked everything. "I saw the sand symbol while we were coming in. I'm telling you, this is one of those outposts they made during the second war. There _has_ to be a scroll in here. _Has to be!"_

"What I'm more concerned about are the Leaf ninja in here. You know our orders, kill all leaf-nin." The leader of the two admonished, smashing his foot into a clay pot and shattering it, revealing no one inside.

"Well, yeah... But that _one_ kid - who's smaller than all the others, mind you - managed to hold us off and take down Zin, and those were clones. So how bad will the real thing and his team be?" He asked, his voice quivering somewhat as he spoke.

"That's why we have the equalizer technique." Said the ninja, as they continued walking.

_"I thought it was a weapon..."_ Muttered the second ninja as his voice got more and more distant.

Hibiki turned his head in the direction of the walking ninja. _Equalizer..._ He thought, frowning. _They can't mean... No... Can they?_ He wished he had a radio, or a phone, he could have called or texted Noboru and told him to use his Byakugan and look for a gun. That _alone_ would vindicate Suna - especially when he, upon getting the gun, sent instructions to the Clone in Konoha, who was guarding the seal with the Assassin's rifle stored in it.

He fought with his thoughts for a few minutes. His plan hadn't extended far beyond 'run and hide!', so now he had to make a judgement call - go and take the fight to them, or head to the entrance and hope Noboru was watching him with his Byakugan. The decision made itself, to be honest - if those two, by saying 'equalizer', meant they had guns, that meant Hibiki was the only one who could fight them on equal terms, he'd know to expect their worst trick. If 'equalizer' meant anything else, that just meant that Hibiki would have to pull a few tricks out of his own sleeve, but he didn't want to go using his kekkei-genkai or his summoning technique just yet - for all he knew, the village that had sent Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Gun had sent Genin to this exam to look for him, and if he started popping bones and copying techniques, that would reveal him wholesale.

_I need to invest in some sunglasses. I bet if I pressed, Dai could help me with it._ He sighed inaudibly, and dropped from the ceiling and landed with barely a sound.

Hibiki decided that his best course of action would be to follow the Mist genin, try and get the drop on them with an explosive tag, and take them out with a Falcon Punch to the face. He crouched down low and started down the path they had taken, his Sharingan flaring so he could make certain he wouldn't miss any detail of the trail they left. It wasn't hard to follow them, even without the sharingan, this cavern was old and filled with the sand that had blown in from the outside, and their footsteps left deep impressions in the dark beige bits of earth. The cavern itself was wide open, with high roofs and wide walls, and there were pots that would have once been filled with a great many weapons and/or rations at one point, but now were filled with either dust or nothing at all.

_If this is some kind of base, they let it go to the dogs astonishingly fast... There's got to be more to it than this._ And, he didn't add, there would pretty much have to be another scroll here - it would be the perfect place, because if this was a shinobi base, then that meant that there had to be more and more traps and tests the further in they went.

One of the mist-ninja screaming out in surprise and pain confirmed Hibiki's theory, but didn't hasten his pace. When he reached a fork in the road, he turned left - the way of the footsteps, but a voice stopped him.

_"Hibiki!"_ He heard Suboro whisper, Hibiki turned and saw Suboro slowly raised his head out from being buried under the sand, revealing his position.

Hibiki blinked, "how -"

"Hiding Like a Mole. It makes no disturbance in dirt, it will make less of a disturbance in sand." Said Suboro, "what do we do?"

Hibiki nodded his way, "they're going this way. If we hurry, we can catch them by surprise." He whispered.

Suboro nodded, and followed Hibiki down the left path, they crouched low and kept their heads on swivels - the voices of the enemy Genin had gotten very faint, almost silent. Hibiki frowned and pulled out a kunai, pre-wrapped in an explosive tag, all he had to do was throw it and it would light, no pins to pull. They rounded a corner and both came to a frozen stop, finally understanding why they'd gone silent: They both were _dead._

The leading Kiri-nin had a half dozen massive, thick stalagmites of earth jutting into and out of him at various angles, each one covered in blood and gore, all of them dripping blood, one even had some bits of intestine, shredded up, still swinging freely in the light air. The second Genin had made it a few feet, but had had his legs chopped off by what had to be some kind of pressure-activated swinging blade. Hibiki had to assume on that last bit - because there was no blade still swinging, it had to be back in its wall, now. The legless mist-shinobi had crawled forward a few inches our of desparity, but died of bloodloss, likely very soon after his legs had been cut off. They both were dead, rather brutally.

Hibiki, however, called bullshit, and flipped on his Sharingan - _bingo._ Flipping the Sharingan on revealed the entire thing to be a genjutsu, the Genin were waiting for them on the other side of the hallway, hidden, but not well enough to mask their flowing chakra and the disturbances they'd made in the environment. Suboro stood up, and Hibiki did too, but Hibiki tapped him on the shoulder once and made eye contact with the boy - silently telling him that they were being played. Suboro got the hint and stretched his arms, "well... That takes care of that problem, then." He raised an eyebrow, as if to say 'what now?'.

Hibiki gazed around, and saw what warranted a genjutsu trap: At the end of the hallway was the scroll, seated upon a pedestal. The pieces started falling into place for the displaced man: The Kiri Genin had seen the traps previously set up by the Sand ninja, and instead of avoiding them or springing them on purpose, they laid a genjutsu on the surrounding area and hid themselves. This would convince the Konoha shinobi - _them - _that all the traps had been sprung, and they could go for the scroll unabetted.

"Hm..." Hibiki hummed, while slowly realizing how much time they were burning right now - Dai's team could be in trouble, and here they were tangling with a bunch of Kiri shinobi. "Let's fall back." He said, swinging the kunai around on his finger. "Link up with Noboru." He hoped Suboro was getting the message - he was going to throw the kunai through the illusion, and hopefully stun one or the both of them.

Suboro nodded, "sounds good. On you." Hibiki threw the kunai, the Kiri shinobi figured out what was happening a second too late.

One popped out of a pot, and the other unburied himself from the sand - the former was the unlucky shinobi to get hit with the brunt of the explosion, which shattered his pot and sent him flying. A great deal of sand blasted out and cascaded over the recently unburied Genin, and he leapt up and onto the ceiling to avoid as much of the blast as he could, but that gave Hibiki and Suboro time enough to leap through the corridor - bypassing most of the traps in the process - and right to them. Hibiki shot out a bolt of lightning at the Genin on the ceiling, stunning the Genin and frying him - which made him briefly lose focus on his wall-walking technique. He dropped to the ground, and smashed into Hibiki's chakra-coated fist.

It wasn't a Falcon Punch, but it certainly hurt, and the Genin flew a few feet away from where he'd been hit, coming up short of his partner. Suboro landed, feet-first, on the throat of the zapped shinobi, and leapt off of him towards the recovering pot-Genin. When the still conscious Genin looked up, he saw a Konoha Genin flying towards him, fist-forward, and was far too stunned to dodge the fist as it slammed into his gut, sending some blood flowing up into his throat and out of his mouth.

Suboro landed, stumbled a bit, and then stood back up to observe his handiwork. He looked impressed, and turned around to look at Hibiki, who offered the shaved genin a grin and a thumbs-up, both of them somewhat surprised that they had won so quickly. It was a few minutes after they recovered did Noboru join them, apologizing profusely about his absence, but saying that he'd had his Byakugan on them the entire time he'd been trying to get to them; the underground base was, it seemed, _very_ large.

"Alright." Hibiki snatched their second scroll from the pedestal l it had been placed upon. "Next order of business: Find Team Four."


	15. Exam Season: Leaf vs Rock -II-

Chapter 14

* * *

Stepping outside, Noboru took point. "My Byakugan extends just about five kilometers in each direction... And this desert extends for thousands." He said, folding his hands behind his back and gazing intently around the desert, he and his teammates all staying firmly within the deep shadow of the large red rock. "What is our plan of action? Even with the Byakugan, simply combing the desert would be horribly inefficient." He turned to his friends, hoping one of the both of them had a better idea. His was doable, but it would take a great amount of time, which they likely wouldn't have after a few hours had passed - they didn't know how good the other shinobi were.

"I've got an idea, but it'll take a _lot_ of chakra." Said Hibiki, who had something of a solution to his chakra problem, but he didn't want to use it so soon into the exams.

"Finding Team Four takes priority. We're three combat specialists and they three trackers. If you fall out from chakra exhaustion, we shall keep you covered until you are back on your feet." Noboru assured him, to which Suboro nodded. "What are you going to do?"

Hibiki shrugged, "something stupid." He pulled out a kunai - he had no fucking clue how Jiraiya and co. were able to draw blood with their teeth, he'd tried once and it just hurt, so he decided he'd go the classic way and just cut himself. With blood flowing freely from his thumb, Hibiki ran through the requisite handsigns and slammed his hand into the desert sand. The contact-seal burst out, coating the sand with the chakra-formed ink. The revelation that contact seals _existed_ had Hibiki's mind flowing with ideas, but he'd had no time to experiment before the Chunin Exams came about.

There was a sound of a balloon popping and smoke burst forth from the contact-seal, and once the smoke cleared, an eagle was revealed, wearing a flak jacket over a wind-breaker shirt, with goggles secured firmly over his eyes. The white-headed eagle blinked once in response to the rapid change in lighting and temperature, but fired off a salute upon seeing its summoner.

"Hibiki-san!" Came the loud, almost comically high-pitched voice of the scouter eagle whom Hibiki fondly called 'Geoff'. "To what do I owe the pleasure?" He asked cheerfully.

"Hey Geoff." Said Hibiki, "we need you to find someone for us. It's real important we find them before someone else does." He explained, "you remember I introduced you to Dai, a few weeks back? We need to find her and her team." He said, running a hand through his hair and wiping the back of it across his forehead as he spoke.

Geoff, whose eagle name was one that Hibiki couldn't even pronounce, let alone remember, hence the nickname, bobbed his head up and down in affirmative. "Anything specific? Message, tracking assistance, scouting, anything like that?" Hibiki shook his head, telling Geoff once again that they just needed to find them, and that while the eagle was out, they would be conducting their own search as he flew, but they wouldn't cover nearly the same ground he would. Geoff nodded again, "alright, IIIIIIII'M OFF!" He extended both wings and flapped them powerfully, and with a gust of wind, a cloud of sand, and the briefest, almost unnoticeable bursts of chakra, the eagle-summons took off into the air, cawing loudly in his native tongue as he flew off unnaturally fast.

Noboru, Hibiki, and Suboro all stared after the eagle. "Your eagles aren't much for stealth, are they?" Noboru wondered aloud.

"Combat summons for a combat specialist." Said Hibiki, as he dusted some sand off of his desert gear, and drew his tan-colored hood; though he would admit he liked picking the eagles' brains more than when he was figuring out how to fight with them. Befitting of the stereotype Back Home, the eagles were an astonishingly smart people, and it had taken Hibiki a while to get used to the fact that they were as 'human', as it were, as he was. "It looks like he's heading..." Hibiki leaned out into the sun and stared at it for a second, it was still rising. "North. So let's go south." Noboru and Suboro stared at him, Hibiki stared back. "What?" He asked.

"How the hell did you know that that was north without looking at a compass?" Suboro asked, staring at Hibiki as if he were a wizard.

Hibiki stared at Suboro as if he were a neanderthal, "the sun. It rises in the east and sets in the west. Hardest time to tell the directions is high noon, where the sun's highest in the sky." He said, how bad _was_ astronomy here if they didn't know _that?_

They continued staring at him, "how did you even figure that out?" Suboro asked.

"A hunch I confirmed one day with a compass and a lot of time to kill." He said, making it up on the spot. "Does it matter? He went that way -" He pointed north, "so let's go that way." He pointed south. "Noboru take point, Suboro to his left, me to his right. If he doesn't find anything, he'll be back before nightfall. If we get separated, we come here. Sound good?"

Deciding to forget his display of knowledge, Hibiki's teammates nodded and they took off, with Hibiki silently lamenting that he couldn't fly. If he could do that, then most any search/rescue operation would go by twice as fast.

He sighed, _if only._

* * *

Four hours passed, the sun was high in the sky, and though it wasn't yet noon, it was hotter than the innermost circle of Hell itself. In his old life, Hibiki frequented rock concerts at all times of the year, and in Georgia, that meant that, at some point or another, one would go to Mayhemfest. In the middle of August, that meant dealing with hundred plus degree weather, with water that cost too much money, surrounded by anywhere from dozens to hundreds of similarly hot and sweaty metalheads. Hibiki had once thought that would have been the worst heat he'd ever deal with, but now he stood corrected: _This_ was the worst heat he'd ever dealt with. He prayed to every god he knew, whether or not his reincarnation disproved their existence, that he would find something that vindicated Suna, because he did not want to fight in the desert.

Hibiki counted himself lucky that Dante had reminded them to stock up on desert gear, else he'd be twice as hot and red all over, too. He and his team were taking a break, sitting in the paltry shade of a long-dead, shriveled up, sun-bleached tree, resting their slightly sore legs and trying to come up with a new gameplan, because their current one wasn't working too well, as the only one of them not suffering from chakra fatigue was Suboro. Hibiki was too thankful that Summons didn't constantly drain chakra, like he'd once thought, else he would be out cold by now.

Hibiki heard a loud calling caw, and lifted his hooded head. In was flying Geoff, who was approaching at a steep, fast dive.

_That doesn't look good._ "Everyone up." Hibiki said, getting to his feet.

Geoff cawed loudly, Hibiki instantly saw some of the blood running down his beak, and the limp he had when he landed and tried to take a step forward. Hibiki rushed forward, silently cursing his adopt-a-mother for taking up the bottle before she could have taught him medical techniques. "Suboro." Hibiki pulled a scroll out from his pouch, "pump some chakra into it and grab some bandages." He tossed it to Suboro, who caught it and unfurled it as Hibiki pressed his hand firmly on Geoff's head. "Geoff, what happened?"

Geoff's accent came in thick, but he still managed to speak in Common for Hibiki and Co.'s sake. "I found your friends. They're under attack." He said thickly, Hibiki swore his accent sounded somewhat familiar, but he had more important things to focus on. Suboro approached with bandages, but Geoff waved them away with his wing. "I'll be fine. Once I get home I'll be seen by the medics, natural chakra's better than Human remedies any day." He said, shaking his head a bit to get Hibiki to let go of him. "They're about ninety eight kilometers northeast -" He pointed his wing in that direction, "you'll see the smoke before you get there. It's bad, they stumbled onto a fight between two other groups and now they can't get out... Something about a maw."

Hibiki nodded, not thinking to wipe the blood from his hand. "Then how'd you get that?" He gesticulated with the bloody hand.

"One side had summons of their own, hawks." Said Geoff.

Hibiki blinked, "_the_ hawks? The ones you're at war with?" He looked to the sky, he didn't see anyone flying after them. "How'd you get away? Where are they?"

If Geoff had had lips, he would have smiled. "There are reasons us eagles were once noble, Hibiki-san." He said, "but there were three of them and one of me, I didn't get away scot-free." He shook his head, shaking a bit on his feet. "That explains why they're acting so bold back home, though. They've got themselves a summoner..." He sounded disgusted, there must have been something to this that Hibiki wasn't seeing. "I'm sorry, Hibiki-san, but I'm not built for combat. I've got to go home, make sure no sand got in this." He rubbed the bloody head on his wing, and Hibiki nodded.

"Go on home. Let Washita know what you've learned. For what it's worth, I'm sorry you got hurt, Geoff." Said Hibiki, as he and his group got up.

"Don't be, it's our job. Besides, ladies love scars." Said the eagle, before he vanished.

Noboru took charge now, "so we're dealing with two fighting factions, one with summons, and Team Four is in the middle and trapped by some sort of 'maw', ninety kilometers that way." He looked to the northeast. "What will be our plan of action?" He asked.

"Going in headfirst and without a plan would be a very bad idea." Said Suboro, stretching his back as he did. "I think it would be best if we go to the edge of this Maw, then use Noboru's Byakugan and scan for Team Four. Once we find them, _then_ we go in."

Noboru nodded, "a surgical strike, as opposed to a head-on assault."

Hibiki shrugged, "sounds good. Let's go, we don't have much time." The three took off, sprinting as fast as they could in the direction Geoff had indicated.

* * *

Back home, 98 kilometers would have taken an hour or two by _car._ If Hibiki had been told to run it, he would have smacked whomever had told him to do so. Here? With Chakra, the old rules were thrown out. Team Six crossed almost one hundred kilometers in a quarter of an hour.

Hibiki fucking _loved_ chakra.

When they crossed over one of the countless dunes that covered the desert of Wind Country, Team Six stopped wholesale, none of them quite able to describe what it was they saw. Back Home, Hibiki had been a great sci-fi fan, so when Prometheus had been released, he'd been one of the first to go see it, and since his father had been a _huge_ fan of Aliens, they'd ended up seeing it together. Near the beginning of the movie, someone said something that had stuck with Hibiki and had provided something of a motto for him, whenever he was looking for something out of the ordinary: God doesn't build in straight lines.

So when they found a massive expanse of flat desert, Hibiki knew they'd found the right place. When he saw that these flatlands were covered - literally _covered _\- in a spiral pattern of various bladed throwing weapons, from senbon to kunai, and no corpses, he knew that they were stepping into something they really didn't want to be stuck in. Hibiki flipped on his Sharingan, the area was saturated with Chakra, but it was dilluted, no intense concentrations, this area they'd found had at one point been a trap, as opposed to an actual attack. The people who'd tripped the trap had escaped it, unharmed given the lack of blood and bodies. Hibiki looked at the horizon and saw smoke, thicker concentrations of chakra, and he heard the sounds of thunder.

_Oh yeah... We've found the right place. But is this the maw?_ Hibiki thought, staring around. A maw was a kind of jaw, or an opening. Maybe that was where the flat lands came from? But that didn't explain the knives.

"What do we do?" Suboro asked.

Hibiki looked to Noboru, whose eyes were narrowed and Byakugan was bulging determinedly. "I see them. It is bad." He finally said, "they are fighting an Iwagakure team. Akane is unconscious and bleeding, Dai is seriously low on chakra, they all are surrounded by dead beetles, and Aoi and Kyo are fending off hawks and the Iwa Genin giving them orders." He reported, fist clenched.

Hibiki blinked, "Iwa shinobi? Rock village? How did they even get that contract?" If Hibiki would have guessed, given the area that Iwa was supposed to be in, that they would have gotten moles or rhinoceros, something big, tough, and strong enough to break rocks. Hibiki shook his head, "it doesn't matter. We've got scrolls enough for both of us, so we just need to get in, grab them, and get out. Suboro, you grab Akane. Noboru, check on Dai, I'll back up Aoi and meet you two at the red rock. Got it?"

"You want us to split up?" Noboru asked.

"It will make it harder for them to pursue us. And if I keep the attention of their birds, they _won't_ be able to track us... Especially if Suboro takes you all underground with his Mole-man technique." He said.

"Okay... But what do we do about the Maw?" Suboro asked.

"Deal with it when it comes." Said Hibiki, "we don't know what or where it is, so we'll just have to wing it."

The two didn't have any real argument for that, so they sprinted forward. It took them two minutes to reach the edge of the battlefield, they split up the moment they came within eyesight of Team Four. Hibiki channeled as much chakra into his legs as was safe, and catapulted himself into the air. His target wasn't the hawks, but he made every indication that that would be the case, so when the hawks noticed his presence, they all began evasive maneuvers and took defensive postures, almost immediately clearing away from an exhausted, injured Aoi.

Hibiki grinned as he reached the arc of his flight, and smashed his chakra coated hand into a chakra-coated fist. He hoped what he was doing would work, and given his studies, he had no indication that it wouldn't. Hibiki hollered out the name of his strongest attack and, after he located the Iwa shinobi engaging Aoi and Kyo, he thrust his fist forward. Whatever chakra did to increase the force of his attacks, and however the Falcon Punch itself worked, it worked wonders by hauling him forward, almost exactly like Thor flew in the comics and the movies - the great weight. Hibiki hurtled towards the Iwa Genin, who noticed too late that someone was coming for him. The Genin turned around just in time to see Hibiki's fist as it smashed into the boy's nose. The explosion of chakra sent the boy straight into the ground, creating a surprisingly deep crater, and it simultaneously unleashed a powerful shockwave, it was all the exhausted Aoi and her pet could do to stay on their feet.

The Genin, however, was tougher than he looked. He had to be, if he and less than half of a dozen hawks were able to take on three clan-kids and a war dog, with no visible injuries to account for. After he took a second to recover from Hibiki's explosive attack, he caught the next chakra-enhanced blow before it could hit his face. Hibiki, not willing to let that stop him, tried a left, but that too was caught, so he smashed his forehead into the Genin. With Hibiki's bones stronger than steel, the only damage he would suffer would be the pain of the impact, nothing more.

The Genin was stunned by Hibiki's blow, and Hibiki used this distraction to wrench his hands free and pin the Genin's hands to the walls of the crater, while he placed his knee to the Genin's throat and pressed. The Genin tried breaking free, but Hibiki wasn't budging. As the Genin's eyes started to glaze over and his consciousness started fading, the hawks interfered. One beak pierced his back, one head slammed into his side, and then a third hawk managed to smash into his chest, providing upward and sideward momentum to fling him out of the crater.

The coughing and sputtering Iwa Genin climbed out of the crater. "kami-damned feathered rodents... Where were you twenty seconds ago?!" He demanded, smacking one away when it came to try and help its contract-holder. He looked up at Hibiki, who was getting to his feet, face clenched in pain as blood oozed out of his back. "I've got this guy, you focus on killing the others." He ordered angrily.

_"Hibiki..."_ Groaned an ailing Inuzuka, as she tried to keep up her combat stance, seeing the hawks recover and soar into the air, and knowing they would be coming for her. "Be careful, he has a bloodline." She warned.

Hibiki nodded, as he got into his own fighting stance, Sharingan blazing. _Well then... That's not good, now is it? But what does _he_ do?_ Wondered the Genin, who knew he couldn't ask Aoi - the hawkss were taking her on. With a frown, he summoned three combat-ready Shadow Clones, severely cutting into his own reserves, but also making it so he wouldn't have to fight a war on two fronts, and protect Aoi _and_ fight the Iwa guy at the same time.

The three clones dashed off to protect Aoi and engage the enemy birds, while Iwa removed himself from the crater and gazed hard at Hibiki. "That was an interesting trick, using chakra to mimic my -" Hibiki took his advantage and dashed forward, lightning covering his arm in a modified form of Dante's zap-technique. Hibiki feinted left and the Genin fell for it, giving Hibiki the opportunity to smash his lightning coated fist into the Genin's face.

Blowing the Iwa Genin's head off in the process, showering them both in a large cloud of sand, stone, and debris. Hibiki backed up, fists still raised, eyes wide and blinking confusedly. _What the fu -_ His thoughts were cut off by two hands emerging from the sand beneath him and dragging him down.

He came face to face with a savagely smiling Iwa genin, who slammed a rock-covered fist into Hibiki's gut twice before catapulting himself upwards and out of the choking sand. With his eyes stinging and his lungs burning out of a need for air, Hibiki tried clawing his way up, but found himself weighed down heavily by two massive, sandy stones encasing both of his feet.

_Shit, shit, shit!_ Hibiki thought desperately, trying to come up with a plan. _Oh... To hell with it._

* * *

Noboru was next to Dai almost a second before Hibiki flew through the air and smashed his falcon fist into the Iwa shinobi. She was shaking on her feet, bleeding from multiple wounds, and from the looks of her insides, was almost completely void of her beetles. Given how many dead beetles were surrounding them, she must have been using them defensively, like his own Rotation, but far more wastefully.

"Dai, are you okay?" He asked of her, as she barely took notice, her sunglasses slowly slipping down the bridge of her nose.

"No, Noboru-san." Said the Aburame, "that Genin commands explosions with his bloodline." She grunted, her arm unconsciously wrapping around her aching chest. "Even Hibiki is out of his league, alone."

Noboru grinned, "Hibiki knows what he is doing, friend. Right now we must retreat." He offered her his hand.

She took it, but cautiously. "You are going to leave him?"

Noboru shook his head 'no', "it is rather a tactical retreat. I am going to bring you to Suboro and we will take you to where we have been hiding. This is his plan."

Dai used Noboru's shoulders to support herself, but still glanced warily at the battling Genin, "are you -" Hibiki sank underground, and barely two seconds later, the damnable Iwa Genin popped up like a weed. "Oh no..."

"Come, Dai. We must hurry." Noboru grabbed ahold of her side and dashed away.

"But what about - " The ground that Hibiki had sunk into exploded violently. Both Noboru and Dai knew almost instantly that it wasn't the same kind of explosion made by Hibiki's punch, it was a true _explosion._ Even the clones that were battling the hawks paused a moment to stare in wonder, as Hibiki dragged himself out of the ground, a great, pale, circular shield literally sprouting from one arm, and the other shredded by the explosion and bleeding freely.

"Are you _sure_ he can hold his own?!" The bug-user demanded as they flew over the flatlands, not noticing that one of Hibiki's clones was busy grabbing Aoi and her dog and retreating with his friends.

"Yes!" Noboru responded, though he was considering whether or not he should grab Suboro and join in.

* * *

When seals went wrong, invariably, they exploded. When seals went right, sometimes they still exploded, it depended on how skilled was the sealsmaster. Hibiki was something of a seals _practitioner__,_ he was skilled enough to ink his own and draw them on his body, but he was _not_ a master, it would be a while before he could call himself that.

But in the realm of contact seals, he wasn't even a practitioner, he wasn't even a novice or a beginner. He had no experience with it, but just now, he had to try and pray for the best. He poured chakra into his hand and, drawing on the feeling of making a summoning seal, spread it out through the sand he was surrounded by. His only defense was the shield he made with his Wolverine-release, and while that kept a great deal of his core safe, it didn't do anything for the hand that made the horribly bad contact-seal. It was shredded from the elbow down, and he could see some of the _bones_ in his fingers. Even with his healing factor, it hurt like hell.

_Never... Do that... Again._ Thought the heavily breathing Senju-heir, as his bone-shield faded to dust and he poured chakra into the healing factor. He climbed out of his self-made crater, most of the stones on his feet had been blasted apart by the ink-stained sand.

The Iwa-Genin was suitably flabbergasted. "How did you do that?!" He demanded, "tell me!"

Hibiki would have flipped the Genin off, but his hand was in too much pain. He paled as he realized that, until his hand was healed, he was limited in what techniques he could do. Not good.

The enraged Iwa-Genin growled, "I said... Tell me!" He thrust his hand forward. Hibiki saw it happen just an instant before it happened, and through a feat of pure luck, was able to avoid the very air exploding. What the hell just happened? First the air got saturated by chakra, then all of that chakra, in a tight beam, exploded, from Iwa to Hibiki.

_Did he just Kamehameha?!_ Silently demanded the Senju-heir, whose fiery eyes were blazing towards the Iwa-genin.

"You shouldn't have been able to do that you Konoha filth... _How did you do it?!"_ The Iwa demanded.

Hibiki felt the muscles sewing themselves together on his hand, which was hidden behind his back so the shinobi wouldn't see him heal. He wanted to save the revelation that he could still fight for when it was needed.

_I might as well stall..._ "Do what?" He grinned, "blow stuff up?"

The Iwa-genin growled ferally, livid that the Konoha Genin wasn't giving him his answers, and even had the gall to toy with him. "Just..." He pulled his hand back, "_DIE!" _He thrust it forward, and another explosive wave soared forth.

Again, Hibiki saw the briefest of delays between the the hand halting and the explosion itself, during which chakra shot out of his hand in a conical shape, towards Hibiki, and then finally exploded. Hibiki wasn't able to dodge this one as well as he'd dodged the last one, and some of the sand tore into his side and his shirt, blood seeped out for a moment, but with his healing factor being consciously accelerated, those wounds sealed themselves up fast enough. As the sand and smoke settled, Hibiki lifted his hand and examined it. He saw the skin grow around the muscles, finishing the healing process, and silently wondered if he could do the same thing.

_It was conical, and it shot out kind of like a jet engine..._ Hibiki turned his hand towards the Iwa-genin, who couldn't see him through the raging sands. _But how did the chakra ignite... Fire, maybe? Lightning?_ He channeled chakra through his hand and pushed it towards his palm. It built up and was compressed inside his hand as the sand died down and revealed him standing there, palm outstretched. The pressure built up higher and higher, and as if he flipped a switched, the chakra shot out like an engine, in the same shape he'd seen from the Iwa Genin's hand. An instant passed after the chakra reached Iwa, and then the air and ground around them an exploded like dynamite, sending him flying.

Hibiki pulled his hand back slowly, an innocent expression on his face, his eyes wide in shock. He stared at his hand again, then at the Iwa shinobi, who was pulling himself from the ground, clothes shredded and his body bleeding profusely from multiple injuries. He was livid, his face contorted into such visible anger that, if looks could kill, Hibiki would have been as dead as the desert.

_How the fuck did I do that?_ Hibiki thought to himself, blinking.

_"How the hell did you do that?!"_ The Iwa demanded, angrily.

Hibiki looked up at the enraged Iwa genin and shrugged, before he assumed a combat stance. This would be something to experiment with later, and with the chakra he burned to make his clones, stumble his way through a contact-seal, heal his arm, and literally _wing_ an explosion-release technique, he was running low. He did _not_ want to use one of his trump cards, but if things kept going like this, he'd have to.

_So... He's got earth-style techniques and can blow stuff up with his chakra. He's really goddamn fast and I can barely dodge his blasts when at range. He survived a Falcon Punch-to-the-face and a point blank explosion. And he's got hawks that will make fighting him harder when, if, they kill my clones. Answer: He's fucking invulnerable. Problem: How do I take him down?_ He asked himself, as the angry Iwa took his own combat stance. _So... Solution? _Iwa launched himself forward, roaring as he did.

Hibiki, assisted in the endeavor by his Sharingan, dodged three sloppy, angry blows, but caught a fast right jab in the gut. He grabbed onto Iwa's fist and brought his own down on his wrist with a brutal chop. Hibiki felt the bones crack but there were no breaks; Iwa smashed Hibiki's face with a chakra-coated fist and twisted his arm out of Hibiki's almost literal iron grip. Iwa leapt back a few feet and dashed through some handsigns, Hibiki only made eye-contact with the man's hands halfway through, so he had no opportunity to steal the technique for his own.

_"Explosion Release, Raging Earth Technique!"_ He shouted before smacking the ground with two open palms.

_Oh shit. _Thought Hibiki as he saw the ground get saturated with chakra. _This is gonna suck. _He leapt into the air to try and dodge the worst of it, but when the ground exploded sand started flying in all directions, he knew he was going to get hit hard.

He felt sand and shrapnel cut across his skin and his clothes, cutting him an innumerable amount of times. The shockwave carried him a few extra feet into the air before he finally started falling again, the Senju-heir landed with a grunt and a weak declaration of pain. The only silver lining came in the brief pulse of memories he got from the clone who evacuated Aoi - Noboru and Suboro were taking over the retreat. Now was the time to find a way to end the fight, but if what he was seeing from his other clones was any indication, that might be easier said than done. There were two clones fighting a half dozen hawks, and they were in about as good shape as Hibiki. There was a reason, after all, that the rules of warfare went 'he who controls the sky controls the land'.

Hibiki groaned and hauled himself back to his feet, feeling the blood stop flowing as his healing factor dealt with the injuries. He was glad that the factor itself didn't take much chakra unless he consciously accelerated it, but he was still feeling a significant strain on his reserves. Stealing the man's explosive technique and then using it without any practice had taken a lot of chakra from him, less than he'd expected, but more than he'd been prepared for.

_Solution..._ He thought, bloody eyes narrowed in the direction of the Iwagakure Genin. _Wait... I have a new problem: Where's this guy's team?_ He briefly scanned everything in eyesight, and in the distance he saw a lot of ambient chakra floating through the air. That must be where the rest of Iwa's team and the mystery third team was doing battle. _It's not a problem yet, but it could become one... Okay... Solutions..._ He looked back at the Hawks, who were being accosted by his clones' lightning techniques, the only mid-range/aerial ones he had. _Hm..._ A plan was forming in his head, if he could get this man to take down his hawks, he could free up his clones to help him take down Iwa. He briefly looked to the ground, summoning a combat-eagle would solve some problems, but that would put him very low on Chakra, not a good thing. He looked back to Iwa and had to stop thinking - Iwa began flipping through handsigns.

Hibiki committed them to memory, but leapt out of the way to dodge the man's technique, trying to get the man to face his hawkss. Unlike the last technique, which saturated a specific area with chakra and then detonated it, this one spread throughout the entire floor, evenly, and far more thoroughly. When Hibiki hit the ground, he saw the sand almost instantly turn bright blue as the chakra thickly concentrated around him. He saw what was happening an instant before it happened, but was unable to stop it from happening - the crazy Iwa made himself a minefield, and whenever anything touched the ground, it detonated.

_Oh SHIT!_ Silently screamed the surprisingly-still-intact Senju-heir as he was tossed into the air by the explosion. _Think fast, think fast, think fast!_ He ripped into his weapons pouch and retrieved a kunai. He threw it at the area of the ground he thought he'd land on, and after it detonated - sending sand blasting onto him - he landed, safe for the moment, but the chakra quickly saturated the ground again. If he even twitched wrong, he'd get sent back into the air.

Breathing heavily and bleeding almost as badly, Hibiki noticed that _these_ explosions weren't anywhere as near as bad as the first one - the one he'd fail to steal. Was Iwa trading quality for quantity?

"Ha ha ha!" Shouted the gloating Genin, "now you're _stuck. _Welcome to my ultimate technique, the Treacherous Grounds technique!" He yelled out, a feral smile plastered over his tan face.

_No, screw you, this is the Minefield technique until further notice._ But Hibiki didn't have time to argue semantics with the Genin, he had to take him down.

The Genin continued gloating, "if you even _think_ about moving, you'll get blown to bits! No one has _ever_ escaped this technique alive!" He laughed

Hibiki glared at the Genin, but noticed that the Genin himself wasn't moving. It seemed that the boy wasn't exempt from his own technique, or he was smart enough to make Hibiki think he wasn't. Either way, Hibiki was getting some ideas. This Genin was able to saturate the ground and the air with his explosive chakra, and from Hibiki's ill-concieved, hastily performed, and rather stupidly performed experiment, Hibiki learned that he could too. Without the ability to move, Hibiki couldn't hit the guy and make him blow himself up, but maybe he didn't _have_ to move.

_Oh dear, sweet, baby Jesus, if this works..._ Thought Hibiki, as he ever so slowly flattened a palm on the sandy ground, which itself was a bit more solid than the dunes in the distance. His movements here didn't set off the mines, which he was thankful for, but he didn't want to push it any further than he was.

The Iwa Genin had no idea what Hibiki was doing, he gloated loudly, "you Konoha _filth..._ Four of you! I've taken down _four_ of you so far! And you have the gall to call yourselves _powerful..._ Your prime has long since passed!" He shouted out, as Hibiki pressed his chakra into the ground.

His Sharingan let him see the progress his chakra made. Compared to the pale blue saturation of the sandy ground he laid upon, his own chakra was darker, like the night sky. He pushed it downward, beyond the bottom layer of Iwa's chakra, and then pushed it outwards, towards Iwa himself, in a thin line. He didn't want to disturb Iwa or give him any indications that he was pulling a fast one.

"Look at you, too scared to even move!" Iwa looked to his hawks, "stop playing around you damned feathered rats, kill those clones and come here and kill him!" He yelled out, and not a second later Hibiki felt memories come back, now one clone was fighting on his own. _Not good._

The sudden reappearance of his memories disturbed Hibiki's concentration, but didn't break it. Hibiki gained a little chakra from the popped clone, but that clone had used a _lot_ of it to take down two of the six birds. The hawks weren't dead, but they were out cold. Hibiki pressed the chakra forward, and once it was situated under Iwa, he started pushing it upwards, towards the surface.

_Problem... Problem... Problem!_ The second clone popped, having its throat ripped out by one of the hawks while the other two held its arms in place. _Fuck it!_ Hibiki had to try now, else he was dead and gone, again. When he'd been training with his Wolverine release, one of the first things he'd learned was that to make new bones - like the claws, or the shield, or a sword - he had to visualize it first, and then they would start growing out. His creation of the bone-shield told him that he wasn't limited to _just_ pointed protrusions from his skeleton, as long as he could think it, he could make it.

Now, though, he was experimenting as much as he was attacking. He was trying to sprout bones not from his body, but from the ground saturated with his chakra. He could hear the birds cawing and gaining altitude - they were going to try and divebomb him. It was now or never - he visualized a pair of bones, like an alligator's jaw, sprouting up from the ground and snapping shut on Iwa. Before he realized what was happening, the odd feeling of mass being stolen from his bones, added back to his bones, and then traveling through the stream of chakra on the ground told him it was working. Just a second later, exactly what he'd wanted to happen, happened - a _massive,_ car-sized jaw, sprouted out from the ground and startled Iwa, oddly enough not detonating the minefield, but that didn't matter, because when the jaws went to snap shut, Iwa leapt out of the way.

Iwa realized his mistake just as Hibiki figured out his unintended advantage, and as Iwa lost his upward momentum and started falling back to Earth, Hibiki pulled upwards on the chakra he was pumping right below him, and formed a _massive _protrusion of bone in the shape of a small mushroom, propelling him up a few feet above the ground and keeping him suspended safely above the minefield. He could now see the proper extent of the minefield - it extended three meters in every direction, and the bone-jaws were its center.

_"Wind Release - Air Bullet!"_

_Fuck!_ Hibiki forgot about the hawks!

Four bullets made of compressed, chakra-filled air slammed into his back, each with the force of a semi-truck, and the size of a baseball. Two managed to go straight through his back and rip apart his insides as they continued forward, exploding out of his chest and sending out blood, gore, and bits of bone, as Hibiki flew forward. He was carried by the raging winds and his own momentum for a grand total of three seconds before his dwindling chakra reserves ran out entirely, and he burst into smoke. Out from the smoke came a rock, traveling at the same velocity as the now thoroughly deceased and vanished shadow-clone, and the moment the clone's memories hit him full-force, Hibiki undid the transformation, and his momentum kept him going to just a few feet outside of the minefield. He hit the ground hard and bounced once, before rolling to a complete stop in the thick sand.

_Gottamovegottamovegottamovegottamove!_ Thought Hibiki as he scrambled to his feet, the hawks were distracted, trying to get their contract-holder out of his self-created minefield. Hibiki sprinted away as fast as his chakra-enhanced legs could propel him. _That's one trump card drawn._ Thought the exhausted shinobi as he escaped the small battlefield, but as he approached the edge of the flatlands, in the direction he remembered the Red Rock was, he saw a small gathering - it was his team. He couldn't keep his Sharingan on as long as he usually could, but a brief flash confirmed it.

Noboru was the first to see him come running, he waved his arms frantically, _"no, Hibiki, wait!"_ But Hibiki was running too fast to stop, and his momentum carried him right into the edge of the Maw.

The invisible wall caught him, hoisted him high in the air, and before anyone could blink, electrocuted Hibiki so much and so violently that when he was finally shot back inside, the boy was _smoldering._ Suboro, who similarly had burns all over him - he'd been the first one to trip the trap - scrambled over to Hibiki and felt for a pulse. "Noboru, he's unconscious!" He called out, "why isn't he dispell-"

"He already did, there are no rocks anywhere on him. This is the Alpha." Noboru got to his feet and dashed over to Suboro and Hibiki, "grab his legs, get him over to Aoi and Akane." The only conscious members of their group were Dai, who was pretty much out of commission anyways, on account of her severely depleted bug population, Suboro, and Noboru. "Grab his medical scrolls, bandage him and yourself up and spread the burn ointment."

"Noboru, that's _half of us! _How do we get out of here?!" Suboro pleaded, resuming the conversation that Hibiki had literally catapulted himself into.

"I don't _know!"_ The Hyuga repeated somewhat irritably, "the chakra walls close in on each other, like a damn _maw!"_ He said, "we can't jump it, and we've already figured out we can't dig under it!" Aoi's dog had paid that price, how it was still alive was something of a miracle. "We can't break through it, because it's not a physical barrier, and my rotation -" They set down Hibiki with a grunt, and Suboro almost immediately dug through Hibiki's seals pouch, looking for the scroll he'd grabbed and resealed earlier. "- can't dispell it long enough for us to get through."

"But Hibiki's eagle got through!"

"And Hibiki's unconscious! He can't summon him and ask how he did it!" Noboru retorted, his Byakugan bulging as he tried desperately to see some sort of way out of this trap they had foolishly tossed themselves into.

Suboro quieted down, retrieving the scroll and pumping some chakra into it, which summoned Hibiki's first-aid supplies. He tossed Noboru the majority of the bandages, and Noboru got to work on Aoi and Akane, while Suboro got to work on spreading the ointment on Hibiki's burns, wrapping them up, and then working on him. It was as he was halfway through wrapping up his right arm, did he notice the ground shaking.

"Noboru, did you feel that?" He looked about, the sun beating on his burned flesh.

"Feel - _MOVE!"_ But he was too late, and two Iwa Genin, one heavily injured but still ready to fight, and the other, save for some bumps and bruises, still as good as new. They both burst forth from the ground in a great geyser of sand, knocking Suboro out of the way and unintentionally into the damnable barrier, electrocuting him and finally knocking him out cold. The uninjured Genin who'd performed the geyser technique threw his partner up into the air, and the livid, airborne Genin collected a great deal of bright white chakra in his hands.

_"DIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIE!_ Roared the airborne Genin before he threw the soccer-ball sized orb of explosive chakra downwards.


	16. Exam Season: Gambit Roulette -III-

Chapter 15

* * *

_"Rotation!"_ Roared Noboru, as chakra poured out of all of his tenketsu and he deflected the explosive orb of chakra. It smashed violently into the rotating chakra dome, grinding against it with a loud metal-on-metal noise and several blinding rays of light spreading out from the point of contact. After a few moments of struggle, the Hyuga noble won out and deflected the orb, which shot a few meters into the air before it exploded violently, sending a shockwave over all present.

The bloody airborne Iwa landed on his feet, which dug just a few inches into the sand. He was breathing heavily and bleeding even moreso, but was so enraged and livid that he barely noticed his pain. His friend, who was covered head to toe in dirt, sand, and desert-gear, only had skin showing on his eyes. They both wore Iwa headbands.

_That's two... But if they're here..._ Noboru shifted his gaze to over their shoulders, _who's fighting over there?_ _And worse... How powerful is he who can fight three other genin with no backup?_ His eyes turned back to the two Genin, and his Byakugan flared to life. _The bloody one... He's the one Hibiki was fighting... This new one, is he the one keeping up the Maw? He has to be, that's the only good explanation for why he isn't fighting._ Noboru glared at the two.

Blood pointed dangerously at Noboru, "GET OUT OF OUR WAY!" He roared, "I'M GOING TO KILL HIM!"

"That is all the more reason to stay in your way." Said Noboru, cheekily.

"Then we'll just kill _you."_ Growled Dirt.

"I welcome the challenge." Noboru responded, assuming his gentle-fist stance. "One of you could barely survive against an eight-year old. How well do you think you will do against a Hyuga _noble?"_ Sure, this eight-year old was probably just as, if not, more powerful than, he was, but he wasn't going to let _them_ know that.

Dirt smiled underneath his face-mask, "Hyuga, eh? I thought I recognized those eyes... You know, our Tsuchikage has a rather high-standing bounty for Hyuga eyes... And if you're a noble, that means you won't have one of those seals on your head, like that girl over there, will you?" He gave Blood a look, who returned it with a vile grin.

Noboru didn't respond, they were goading him into attacking first, they wanted to see his skills. He wouldn't fall for it, his best bet for victory would either to be to get one of them to take the other out, or to use their Maw against them. He also had to keep them from hurting his friends, so he had to move this battle, even if only by a few meters. Thinking fast and acting faster, Noboru retrieved three kunai and threw them all at the Iwa Genin, both of them leapt back to dodge the flying knives; Noboru leapt forward and thrust his palm towards Dirt's chest. Dirt deflected the blow as best he could, but couldn't dodge Noboru's free hand, which smashed into four of the man's tenketsu with lightning-speed, and because Noboru hit the joints on the man's arm, the entire thing was crippled.

With a heavy strike to his stomach, Noboru sent Dirt flying towards Blood, who caught him but didn't keep him held, he simply tossed the Genin to the side so he could recover on his own. Blood thrust his hand forward, and the explosive chakra surged forth. Noboru only needed to see the chakra flying towards him to know that this Genin meant him no good, so he leapt to the side and avoided the exploding chakra. Noboru landed on his hands and flipped to his feet, and the moment they touched the ground he was sprinting forward, his goal now to cripple this Genin by removing his ability to circulate his explosive chakra. His first instinct was to use an Eight Trigrams technique, but with Dirt recovering and liable to attack in the middle of him performing the technique, he had to settle for a simpler method of attack. Noboru dashed inside Blood's defenses, and before blood could react, Noboru's hands surged forward, slamming into one of the tenketsu points on his left arm. Six more attacks, six more tenketsu closed, and with Noboru's eighth attack he touched a nerve in the arm that made it go limp; Blood wouldn't be moving that arm for an hour, at _least._

Noboru's Byakugan alerted him to Dirt sprinting in behind him, and without even looking, Noboru knew he was positioned perfectly for his plan. He attacked Blood once more, hitting a tenketsu on his stomach - one of the impossibly vital ones - before he leapt to the side. Dirt's stone-covered fist smashed into Blood's gut, and the strength of the attack sent blood flying, right into the Maw.

Noboru didn't watch Blood as he soared through the barrier, was intercepted by it, lifted into the air, electrocuted and thrown back inside. He turned to Dirt and surged forward, silently marveling at his chakra control, if the boy was able to perform a ninjutsu with only one arm. The Iwa Genin, however, was in crippling pain, his arm felt like it was on fire, and none of his training was making it easier to ignore it, so he was just a second too slow in evading Noboru's retaliatory clan-technique. Sixty four blows at lightning speed, all slamming into and forcibly closing the earth-user's tenketsu and temporarily crippling his ability to mold chakra and use any sort of technique, the last blow sent the man flying back, away from the maw, but it didn't matter - he was no threat, now, especially since his hand was still encased in rock.

However, with all of his speed, Noboru wasn't able to dodge the surprise attack from the explosive-user. He saw it coming, his dojutsu granted him that, but he wasn't fast enough to react as a micro-explosion with a deceptively great force exploded on the small of his back. It was mostly concussive, meaning that there was little heat or shrapnel to speak of, but it still hurt and it sent Noboru flying. It was through sheer force of luck that he himself didn't hit the maw.

Noboru, sore and convinced one or two of his ribs had broken, hauled himself to his feet. Blood was smoldering, his skin burned and electricity was still crackling across his body. He was angry, but he was also shaking terribly on his feet. He was barely even able to give Noboru a livid glare before he fell to his face, unconscious.

A heavily breathing Noboru stared at the Genin warily, expecting another attack, but got no such thing. He turned his gaze to Dirt, who was still awake, if crippled. Noboru strode over to him, and grabbed his shirt, to bring him face-to-face with the angry Hyuga main-family member.

_"How do we escape from the maw?!"_ Noboru demanded.

Dirt spat blood in his face.

Noboru slammed a palm into the junction under the Genin's shoulder, a very sensitive spot that hurt a _lot_ when forcibly closed. Dirt yelled out in pain, but was silenced by a rough back-hand by Noboru.

_"Tell me, or I'll throw you to it!"_ Noboru's Byakugan had deactivated of its own accord, he still had chakra enough to fight, but he knew he shouldn't be wasting it. He'd taken the time to look at the Maw with his Byakugan though, it was like an enormous wall of solid blue, and whenever someone was caught in it, it flashed a blinding white. Dirt growled out the word 'fuck', but the rest of his curse was cut off by Noboru slamming his palm into his groin. _"One... Last... Chance!"_

When Dirt finally stopped yelling from pain, he leered at Noboru, who needed only to look at him to let him know he wasn't playing around. Dirt finally conceded defeat when Noboru hauled him to his feet and was stopped just short of letting him go flying at the barrier. He made a handsign and after Noboru flashed his Byakugan, the barrier fell, but Noboru saw something else, which made him draw a Kunai and press it to Dirt's throat. The third member of their team arrived, and she - unlike her teammates - had not a scratch on her.

Noboru glared at her with a scowl that would have made most Uchiha jealous, his Byakugan just a twitch away from flaring to existence. The girl was about a year older than him, and two older than her teammates. Her hair was paper-white, her skin pale, and her eyes were blood red, and Noboru saw that, despite how hard she'd obviously been fighting earlier, she had chakra to spare, and was more than ready to fight him. He also felt a chill run through the hot desert air, she wasn't just ready to fight him, she was leaking killing intent, she was ready to _kill_ him.

"If you take so much as one step towards me I will open his throat." Noboru warned, noticing that she tried to cast a genjutsu on him without even moving, but his Byakugan saw straight through it.

She grinned upon her realization that her favorite trick wouldn't work. "Now... You wouldn't want to do that, would you, Konoha?" She asked, as the sounds of flapping wings and cawing hawks reached the Hyuga's ears.

Noboru scowled, and took one step back as several hawks landed around the girl. Was she the contract holder? "To get myself and my friends out of here, I will do anything." He pressed the knife to the genin's throat just hard enough to let some blood seep out.

The albino frowned and let her shoulders sag, as a hawk landed on her shoulder. "No, you really wouldn't want to do that." She said, firmly, her light, almost _kind_ voice leaking as much killing intent as was already saturating the air.

That was when Noboru saw it - the flecks of gold in her blood. This girl had a bloodline, but what? And worse, she wasn't _wrong - _if Noboru killed the boy here, which he _was_ prepared to do, he would lose his bargaining chip. He stayed silent.

The girl's grin replaced her frown, "good, you're learning. I heard Hyuga were wise, I'm glad to see you fit the type." She said conversationally, stretching her bare arms behind her back as she spoke. She briefly looked into the sky, Noboru noted with some disgust that her pupils didn't even contract when they were hit by the sun - was she blind? "I'm not blind, I'll have you know." She added, as if reading his mind. "Just... Insensitive, is a word, towards light." She yawned, "I'll tell you what, Konoha. You've caught me in something of a disappointed... Negotiable mood, and a little birdy is telling me that, unlike those Kusagakure Genin I just took down, you and your team actually _do_ have a scroll." She glanced at the unconscious form of Hibiki, whom Noboru was silently thanking - if they hadn't sealed one of their scrolls into Noboru's palm, they would be risking _both_ scrolls. "So, if you give me that scroll, I'll let you and yours run away to worry another day." She said, "but if you refuse me... I'll get mad. And you _really_ don't want to see me get mad..." Her chakra started raging like an inferno, the killing intent multiplied exponentially, and perhaps scariest of all, her chakra turned _red_.

Noboru narrowed his eyes in confusion and concern. What the hell made chakra _red?_ He'd heard of the white chakra that shinobi from Samurai clans could use, and he knew of the green chakra that legends said Sages could use, but _red_ chakra? Was her bloodline of fire, or lava? Noboru swallowed through his suddenly dry throat, he couldn't give up their second scroll - that would mean that Team Four wouldn't get on past this test, and if they didn't have two scrolls by the end of the night, that meant they would _have_ to fight another team, and with their injuries and chakra depletion, that wasn't a good idea at all.

_Think, Noboru... What can you do to get out of here?!_ His all-seeing eyes were searching desperately for anything he could use. Was this girl a sensor type? That was his only option - a retreat, it might work if he dropped _all_ of his smoke-pellets, but he couldn't carry _five shinobi_ on his own.

Dirt started chuckling in his arms, "you should just give her -" He was silenced when Noboru pressed the knife against his throat, reminding him that his life was in his hands.

The girl's grin was slowly melting away. "With me, you get three chances. This is your second. I _want_ your _scroll..._" The hawks around her were getting restless, a great many of them had blood on their beaks, they wanted to taste Noboru's. The girl's red chakra started permeating through her blue, to the point where it was so concentrated that it was leaking visibly into the air. Were her pupils changing shape?

"We only have the one." Noboru said, trying to see if he couldn't use the Red Rock as a bargaining chip. "But we know where you can find another."

"Then you'll have to go there to get another one." Said the girl, whose grin was turning to a scowl. She extended her hand, "third chance. Give me your scroll, or I'll have my hawks pretend they're crows."

Noboru frowned deeply, there wasn't any real way out of this, she had him at every disadvantage, and he didn't want to learn what her red chakra meant. "I want... Assurance... That you'll let us leave."

Her killing intent vanished on the spot, as if it had never been there. "I'll take Don and Tsuga away _myself._" She said gleefully, like a child.

"Then stay there... I'll give it to you." Noboru literally only had the one chance, and it all banked on her being too arrogant in her strength. _Please, dear, Kami, let this work... _He let Dirt go, and the earth-user fell to the ground with a huff, receiving no help from his kunoichi teammate.

Noboru fell back, walking backwards, not breaking eye contact with the girl. When he reached Hibiki, he turned around and reached inside Hibiki's scroll pouch. Fast as Dante getting out of a bath, Noboru performed a transformation technique on one of Hibiki's storage scrolls - the one Hibiki had told him held his unfinished explosive tags. It transformed without the poof of smoke, and looked like the same sandy-colored scroll that the Suna Jonin had shown them. Noboru poured a great deal of chakra into the technique, it would last for six hours if it wasn't dispelled.

Noboru retrieved the scroll, stood up, turned around and tossed it to the kunoichi, who caught it without trouble. She giggled and smiled with her eyes closed, "see?" She asked, unknowing that she was stunning Noboru with her stupidity. "Was that so hard?" She looked down to one of her hawks, and ordered the biggest one to grab the explosives-user, while she hauled Dirt onto her shoulders. "I really hope I see you pass to the second exams, I'd really like to fight you!" She called out, before she dashed off, her birds following her.

Noboru watched them leave, and once they got out of his maximum sight limit, he let his Byakugan drop, and himself drop to his knees. He sighed deeply and ran his hands through his hair. He felt blood seeping through some wounds on his back, and his entire body was sore from battle, but they'd survived, and now he had perhaps a quarter of an hour to retreat before the Iwa team figured out they'd been had.

* * *

Hibiki awoke, his entire body sore, but healed enough during his sleep. He saw above him the roof of the cave they'd adopted earlier that day, and he could hear the sounds of a crackling fire. With a loud, pained groan, Hibiki lifted himself to his elbows and looked around. Around him were the unconscious forms of Team Four, Suboro, and a small distance away, sitting above a pot situated above white-hot coals, was Noboru, who was stirring their dinner.

"Good morning." Said the bandaged Hyuga, as he reached up with his ladle and sampled his breakfast, it wasn't quite ready yet.

Hibiki groaned, noticing that he was bandaged too. "What morning is it?"

"Friday. You have been out since Wednesday afternoon." Said Noboru, who Hibiki now noticed had bags under his eyes. Had he even slept once? "Are you hungry?"

"Famished." Hibiki slowly hauled himself to his feet, and - careful to step around his friends - made his way to Noboru, and sat down on one of the sturdier looking pots. "Soup for breakfast?" Hibiki chuckled, reaching inside his scrolls pouch for the seal with their dishes.

"I already grabbed that scroll." Noboru reached behind his box and held Hibiki's scroll aloft, "I apologize. And yes, it is left over from dinner yesterday. Akane woke up, and Dai had been shifting in her sleep before then, so I made dinner for three, in case." He explained.

"Hm." Hibiki nodded, he ran a hand through his dark brown hair. "Didn't we leave an enemy team down here?" He wondered, briefly flashing back to their first fight of the Chunin exams.

"They were gone when I returned." Said Noboru, as he stirred their soup. "And I set up several traps from the entrance to here, making sure to lead them on a false trail so they would think we were somewhere we weren't."

Hibiki nodded with an affirmative grunt, "so, that zapper thing was the Maw, eh? Can't believe we missed that." He scratched his head as Noboru tasted the soup again.

The pale-eyed ninja nodded twice, confirming Hibiki's assumption, and also signifying that the soup was edible again. "Neither of us had our dojutsu activated when we entered the flattened desert. And I believe you as well as I expected the circular Kunai to have been the Maw, not a massive barrier." He said, unsealing the dishes and retrieving a bowl for himself and Hibiki.

Hibiki nodded, and accepted his food, digging in soon thereafter. "So..." He said as he slurped up the noodles. "How'd you break through?"

"I beat the explosive-user unconscious and forced his teammate to dispell the barrier. By the way -" He grabbed a nearby shard of pottery, and wrote in the sand. "I had to use the scroll with this seal written on it -" He spelled out 'LAUNDRY', Hibiki nearly did a spit-take. "- to get their kunoichi to take away. You said it contained explosives, so I hope you do not mind."

Hibiki was choking on his noodles, "Noboru." He coughed, through his laughter. "Dude... You misheard me. That was the seal with my dirty laundry in it. Remember, on the trip down here, I ate that bad fish and had to change my pants? I said that seal had explosive _diarrhea_ in it, not explosive tags."

Noboru stared at Hibiki, white eyes as wide as Hibiki's bowl. "Oh..." He said, managing not to laugh. "So..."

"You transformed a shitty scroll into the one everyone's looking for, and gave it to an enemy team." Hibiki laughed loudly and genuinely, "_god, damn..._ That's fuckin' funny." He chuckled, before he shook his head and went back to his soup.

Noboru swallowed, but was finding it hard not to smirk under the assault of Hibiki's laughter. "I pray I do not face the Genin with the red-chakra's wrath."

Hibiki shook his head again and slurped up the last of his soup, "got enough for another round?" Noboru nodded, and ladled Hibiki some more ramen. "Red chakra, huh? She negotiate with you?" Where had he heard of red chakra before?

Noboru nodded, "yes. I was exhausted after fighting the explosive-user and the earth-user, I didn't want to fight her and her hawks."

Hibiki nodded, "sounds fair. But... How did you drag us all in here before she noticed?" He asked, counting heads. "There are five of us."

Noboru grinned lightly, "there are some things you may not want to know, my friend." He filled his own bowl, and then put the top back on the pot. "How are you feeling?" He asked, changing the subject.

Hibiki shrugged, "sore... But after I figured out the bone release, most injuries go away after a good night's sleep." He said, "how 'bout you?" He gave Noboru's bandaged mid-section a look, "look pretty beaten up."

"The explosive-user got me in the back, but the wounds are superficial." Said Noboru. "When you are finished eating, you should get some more rest. Build up your strength and your chakra, we will want to leave for Suna tonight."

Hibiki nodded, "so we've still got both scrolls?"

Noboru hummed, "the one in your pouch, and this one." He raised his palm, which still had the seal upon it. "I say we give the second one to Team Four when they awaken." He suggested, to which Hibiki agreed.

When Hibiki finished the last of his soup, and drank the broth, he wiped his hand with a shredded robe, making a mental note to switch out to his spare desert gear and to change his clothes. "So, how do you think the other Konoha teams are doing?"

Noboru shrugged, "I've no -" They heard a deep groan, and both looked over in the others' directions.

Suboro was getting to his feet, a blanket fell off of his chest. "_Oooooooow..."_ He groaned, "that sucked..." He said, after seeing his teammates awaken.

Hibiki grinned, "you know, Suboro, I think that's another fight you've gotten knocked out for. You better watch out, friend." He said, as Suboro stumbled over to them and sat down heavily. "You might fall behind."

Suboro smiled at Hibiki's jest. "I'll take on the next fight, then." He said, "besides, I did save your butts from those bandits, a week ago."

Hibiki rolled his eyes, "I hadn't eaten in two days and Noboru was sick, that one doesn't count." He reached forward and poked Suboro in his stomach, "besides, ya big softy. If you'd just jump in the fight like he and I do, instead of hanging back, maybe we'd give you less flak." He handed the shaved-genin a bowl regardless, Noboru ladled some soup into it.

Suboro rolled his eyes, "just because I like genjutsu more than punching people doesn't mean I'm a softy." He said for the umpteenth time.

Hibiki, as par for the course, responded with, "you dream people to death. We punch 'em." He pantomimed a Falcon Punch.

Suboro rolled his eyes again and began eating.

* * *

Several hours passed before Team Four awoke again. First came Akane, who was shaky on her feet but receptive to Hibiki's first-aid. She ate on her own and gathered more strength as time passed. Aoi awoke around lunch time, but refused to eat until Hibiki - 'medic boy' - checked on Kyo. Though he was no vet, he was able to tell that Kyo's heartbeat was strong, he was just unconscious. She ate some then, but wouldn't eat a full meal until Kyo awoke around dinner. Dai wouldn't wake up until well past dinner, and she was the weakest of all. Throughout the day, Hibiki pieced together the story from Akane and Aoi; Team Four had quite literally _stumbled_ into the fight between Kusa and Iwa, and the Explosives-user had been called off by the Albino to deal with them. That had been when Albino _and_ Explosive had summoned hawks, confirming they both signed the contract. Aoi had been the one engaged by the hawks right out of the gate, as she was the most combat-capable of the team, Dai tried protecting them all with the bug-shield techniques she'd shown Hibiki during their training, but that had drained her faster than she'd prepared for, after Explosive revealed his trump card. Akane had been hit worst of all - unlike Noboru, she didn't know the Heavenly Rotation technique, so any explosion she couldn't dodge, she took the full force of. Eventually, Dai had been drained of her beetles and Aoi was being swarmed on all sides, which was around the time Geoff came in and provided a distraction that lasted long enough for Team Six to arrive, but didn't explain how he got his head wound, or how he escaped the Maw.

When Dai woke up, she was paler than usual. Akane panicked and called Hibiki in, who'd nearly Falcon Punched his way through a solid stone wall, thinking they were under attack. Dai explained calmly to them both that she was just low on chakra - Kikaichu beetles fed on their wielder's chakra as much as they did on the chakra of their enemies. Until they reached normal population limits, she would be a bit less solid on her feet. She could still fight if she absolutely had to, she stressed, but she wouldn't be at peak until her colonies finished reproducing.

After the brief panic with Dai, and once she had been settled in with her own food, Team Six and Team Four sat down to discuss strategy. Night had fallen, and midnight was fast approaching.

"First order of business..." Hibiki reached inside his scroll pouch and pulled out Team Four's. "Akane, you can take it." He tossed it to her, and she caught it deftly. "Second order of business, getting back to Suna." He said, leaning back. "These last few hours of the exam will probably be the most bloody. The people facing failure will be waiting for us anywhere between here and Suna, and they'll want to ambush us, kill us, and take our scrolls." He explained, "so our plan should be a straight shot from here -" He leaned forward, and drew the leaf-village symbol in the sand to represent them. "- to Suna." He drew the Suna symbol. "Fast as we can make it. Don't stop for anything."

"What if we are attacked?" Dai asked, peering at him over her glasses as she shoveled food in her mouth. "If we are caught in another Maw?"

"Shake it off." Said Hibiki, with a shrug, "none of us are at a hundred percent. If we get stopped and caught up in combat, we're dead. It's that simple." He leaned back up.

Aoi shook her head, as she held some food in her hand for her lazy dog to eat. "This seems too simple, medic-boy." She said, as she idly scratched at the red markings on her cheeks.

Hibiki shrugged, "the simple plans are the best ones. They allow for the most improvisation on a case-by-case basis."

Aoi stared at him, then looked to Noboru. "Please tell me you have a better one, Hyuga."

The Hyuga in question saw the ever-so-subtle jab the Inuzuka had made, and didn't fail to retort cheekily. "Technically, Aoi-san, I should defer to Hibiki. After all, the Senju were the ones who had the foresight to create the hidden village systems."

Hibiki almost snorted, but kept his laughter to himself. Aoi crossed her arms and grumbled to herself, scowling as she broke eye-contact with the three.

Hibiki pressed just a bit further, "but if you've got a better idea, I'm more than willing." She stayed silent, and Hibiki chuckled, "Okay. So, I say our best shot would be to leave after the sun sets and once the moon's above the horizon. Like I said, if we just beat feet and sprint there, don't worry and don't stop for anything, we'll do just fine." He nodded, "any questions?"

No one had any.

"Good."

* * *

They waited until it was a few hours after dark. They were wrapped up tight in their desert gear to keep the biting cold winds from eating at their skin, the only parts of any of the six Genin that were visible to the world were their eyes and the bridges of their noses. They weren't going to split up, they were going to stay in one tight group - that would make them more visible to sensor-nin, but it also made certain that they all had eachothers' backs. Noboru took point, Hibiki had their backs, Akane and Dai were in the center, with Aoi and Suboro heading up the sides. None of them were up to one hundred percent, but they were as prepared as they could be.

"Are we ready?" Noboru called out over the shifting winds, everyone called affirmative. "Alright... Do not stop for anything. Three... Two... One... Go!"

They exploded forward, Noboru set the pace and everyone else matched it. They sprinted forward at blistering speeds, the desert below them and their legs as well both blurs of motion. They all knew what was at stake, they more than anyone else. They _had_ to pass this exam, they had to move onto the next stage, lest they fail and get kicked out of the village, unable to continue their investigation, unable to prevent _war._ Noboru's Byakugan was bulging and Hibiki's Sharingan was flaring brightly, they had all blindspots covered and could see everything the other couldn't; even with the desert a blur around them they missed not a detail, and more than once specifically took a roundabout path to avoid enemy Genin lying in wait. The Suna Jonin had said only half of them would pass, and that was at maximum - there was every possibility that only a handful of them would actually get scrolls in the first place, the desert was a _big_ place.

They actually managed to make a lot of progress before Noboru found that someone was heading directly for them. Hibiki's eyes caught it after they entered his line of sight, Noboru's had them the moment they got within his five kilometers. Three Genin, each of them from Suna, each of them looking desperate enough to fight superior numbers if it meant they'd get a scroll. The Konoha group, however, had been somewhat prepared for this, and Suboro unleashed his best area-of-effect genjutsu. He said quite honestly that he had no idea how he'd managed to make it, but the genjutsu worked by making him an anchor for it, and anyone within fifteen feet of him was affected by it. It made them invisible to everything but a dojutsu; Hibiki wondered if it worked by bending light around him like a force field, but didn't really care to find out _now._ Noboru had to pump all of his available chakra into the technique, it understandably took a great deal to keep six Genin moving at great speeds invisible no matter what.

The six Konoha Genin quite literally jumped over the halted, confused, Suna Genin. Hibiki heard a 'what the fuck' while he soared over them like the Hulk, but that was all he heard from them, as when Teams Four and Six hit the ground, they kept sprinting. By the time two hours had passed from their beginning, they'd made it to Sunagakure, there were several Genin from various climbing the massive stone walls, all of them sure of their victory. Teams Four and Six joined them, and though it took them a while - Suboro nearly fell unconscious from chakra exhaustion, Hibiki had to carry him the rest of the way - they made it to the top, where a trio of Suna Jonin were waiting on one side, and all of the visiting Jonin were waiting on another.

Hibiki suddenly had a very bad feeling.

They waited for an hour, and the moment one of the Jonin's clocks struck midnight and their alarms went off, the head Jonin - a burly man with his muscular arms exposed to the open desert air, his face wrapped up in a tight balaclava - clapped his hands, the sound of which could be heard clearly on the other side of the village.

"You may be thinking to yourselves that the time limit we set was harsh, but you would be wrong. As I speak, a sandstorm will begin forming over the exact area we cleared out and prepared for this first test of the exam. Anyone who didn't make it here by midnight tonight will be caught in that storm and they will most likely die before our scouts can find and retrieve them." He called out loudly, his voice augmented by some sort of ninjutsu. "I see eight groups with scrolls. Of the fifteen scrolls we set out, that is acceptable, but disappointing. I want you all to open your scrolls right now, you will see a number on them, that number will correspond to the test building you will report to immediately for your second exam. As shinobi, you will not be asked, you will be _expected_ to be able to spend entire days awake and moving with little to no sleep at all. This second test will thin the ranks and decide who is physically and mentally fit for the final round. Be ready, because you've _one hour_ to make it to the location of the second test." He said with finality, before he and the other Suna-Jonin vanished in large poofs of smoke.

Noboru already had the scroll unsealed from his palm, and was looking at it intently. "We are in testing location -"

"Six O' Clock." Said Hibiki, who was looking over Noboru's shoulder, at an absolutely livid albino girl who was practically leaking killing intent in such quantities that Tsunade would have looked twice.

"What?" Noboru looked up, saw where Hibiki was looking, whipped around, and paled when he saw the Iwa kunoichi stomping her way to him and his friends.

While Albino knew she was stronger than every one of the Genin in front of her, the fighting part of the Chunin exam was over and done with, for now, and thus she couldn't pick a fight jut yet. She could, however, make very clear and very concise threats, and it was with that in mind that she drew a weapon from her weapons pouch and got in real close to the Hyuga bastard, close enough that her Sensei wouldn't see that she'd drawn the weapon, but far enough away that Noboru - and, damningly, Hibiki - could see it and feel it jammed against his chin. She _wanted_ to use it, she desperately wanted to use this weapon, but it was for life, death, or imminent capture emergencies, and she was under strict orders from the Tsuchikage himself not to use it unless those conditions were met.

She leaned in real close, to the point where her mouth was mere inches from the Hyuga, who was unable to back up due to all of his team and the assembled 'might' of Team Four being at his back. "If you do not pass onto the third round, I swear to Kami and back, I will find you and end you." She growled, backing away slowly so as to make eye-contact with the white-eyed Hyuga, hers filled with rage and his filled with his usual stoic appearance, with a hint of confusion bubbling underneath.

Before Noboru could retort, she withdrew the weapon and had it back in its pouch, turned on her heel, and stalked away, the killing intent leaving with her. Suboro and Hibiki came to Noboru's sides, Suboro was the one to speak, Hibiki was in shocked silence. "Noboru... I think you made a friend." He grinned and patted his friend and teammate on the back. "So, where are we going?" He asked, looking at the unfurled scroll in Noboru's hands.

Noboru blinked, and shook his head clear of the lingering effects of killing intent. "Testing building six." He said, turning to Suboro, then to Hibiki, but finding Hibiki missing. Noboru turned around and saw Hibiki speaking hurriedly with Dai.

"That team." Hibiki's voice was shaking, but from what, Noboru, Suboro, and Dai couldn't tell, but the lattermost swore she heard fear. "Track them. Send your bugs on them. We cannot lose them." He swallowed thickly.

Dai blinked her tired eyes, which were staring intently at the younger Senju-heir behind her glasses. "Why?" She asked, noting the severity of his tone but needing of information.

Hibiki rubbed his right wrist, "trust me and do it." He didn't want to be right, he didn't want to confirm that that girl had had a revolver that looked like it had been ripped straight from a Civil-War flick, he didn't want to suddenly be presented with an educated idea of where Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Gun's supplier came from. He didn't want to know, he didn't want to know.

But he did know.

Iwagakure no Sato had access to gunsmiths. Konoha was going to go to war with the wrong village, and if he could work it right, he could prove it. But the horrifying thought wasn't that he knew who else had guns and who'd killed the Fire-Shadow, it was the question of why did they send gun-wielding shinobi to Suna?


	17. Exam Season: Tournament Prep -IV-

Chapter 16

* * *

As it turned out, sending several chakra-exhausted, somewhat sleep-deprived Genin to hunt for a building they'd never seen before wasn't enough, the examiners hid the place under several thick layers of genjutsu. Suboro had been the first to suspect something, saying that 'his nose started itching' when they'd been caught in the genjutsu's web. Noboru had more chakra than the three of them - Team Four having gotten Test Building Three - so he'd been the one to test his dojutsu, which confirmed that they were, indeed, under a very thick and complicated genjutsu. It was a genjutsu powerful enough to the point where the only real way to see through it without dispelling it - which in and of itself would have taken about as much chakra as the three of them had altogether - was to use a dojutsu, and even then, they still heard, smelled, and felt everything the genjutsu wanted, they only _saw_ through it. It took them nearly a half hour to get into the building and through the illusory technique, which got them through the worst of it. Inside there was a thin genjutsu on the room numbers, each of them marked one higher or one lower than they truly were.

Eventually, they found their way to their specific examination room, and past all of the genjutsu. Inside was one Suna-Jonin, a lanky one with deeply tanned skin.

He gave the three a brief look, and nodded, slightly impressed. "I'm impressed. Six other Genin have all entered this building, you're the first ones to make it here." He looked at them deeply, and after he noticed their Konoha headbands, he nodded again. "Konoha, I get it." There weren't many villages out there with Dojutsu _period,_ and Konoha had two users of the legendary three. "Sit down, they'll make it in here before the hour's out. You'll find your seat with your name on it."

The three Konoha Genin found their seats, they were on three separate tables, far removed from each other. It gave Hibiki a few minutes to reflect on what he'd seen barely an hour ago, that albino Iwa genin had a gun. It wasn't anything like his revolver, it was older, it looked like it had been ripped out of...

He blinked, _ah shit... What was that movie, with Matthew Roderick? _ He scratched his head, _Civil War... Dude was the commander of the first ever Black battalion, or something like that... Wait, was it Roderick or Broderick? Fuck..._ Regardless of his diminishing memory of movies he'd only watched once or twice, the gun Miss Iwa had held looked like it had been ripped right out of the eighteen hundreds, but even then there was something different about it, there had been odd, random bits and pieces sticking out like spare parts. Were their guns even mass produced? Did Iwa have access to interchangeable parts? What was the purpose of the spare bits? Did they have a purpose?

Hibiki paled, did Iwa find some way to charge their guns with _chakra?_ _Jesus Christ..._ Hibiki ran his hand through his hair, _Chakra bullets. That's the kind of shit that'd make God himself do a double take. Breaking the sound-barrier, having enough force to pierce tanks, rip apart Human beings - make them fucking explode! Not enough, we need them to explode lightning and radiate fire, and God help us if they figure out how to give 'em the more complicated stuff... Bullets with precharged ninjutsu. Water-shark bullets, ground dragon bullets, fireball bullets... Suddenly I feel very inadequate with just my assault rifle._ There he was thinking he could get along fine - _better than fine! - _with warfare technology from his world, but now he was being faced with the suddenly terrifying possibility that this technology, via stagnation, had flown past him faster than a rocket. If people in the New Hotness had chakra bullets, or ninjutsu bullets, he doubted he'd last even if he had a _tank,_ or a battleship. The argument could be made that he might win if he had a nuke, but ignoring the fact that he couldn't even get his hands on one, and didn't know how to work one in the first place, people in the New Hotness wouldn't even understand the concept of a nuclear weapon, so Nuclear Deterrent wouldn't even work on them.

_Okay... Calm down, think about this_ _rationally. _Thought the displaced man,_ the way I see it, there are two possibilities. The first, that Iwa is just behind and they're making guns wonky, explaining the spare parts. All that means is that they've just got guns that lag behind mine. The second, they've got guns that can channel chakra, _possibly_ explaining the spare parts. This means that, while they're lagging behind mine technologically, they've blown past me in destructive capability. So what do I do about this? Bring us forward again? Make a bigger gun? Or try and counter magic with magic? But how would I do that? Fuinjutsu? Contact-seals? Or maybe chakra-reactive metals?_

_"Psst, Hibiki!"_ He heard Suboro faux-whisper over the silence of the room, _"stop worrying about it! We'll do fine!"_ He leaned back as a few other Genin began entering.

Hibiki turned forward, shaking his head slightly, _Maybe it's simpler. How did we make different bullets? We just packed 'em in with cooler stuff. Incendiary bullets had... What, white phosphorous in 'em? Explosive rounds had some kind of explosive in them... Maybe Iwa's found a way to turn chakra from an energy source, from an internal source into an external substance. But then the question is how would they do that?_ He lifted his hand, wanting to channel chakra through it, but _not_ wanting to scare the shit out of the Jonin in front of him. _If you channel a lot of chakra through your body, the excess radiates outward like fire, and then it just dissipates through the air. But more than that, with some earth techniques, the chakra goes from this massless substance, to physical fucking rocks. Hell, Dante's lightning zapper technique, nothing first, then, all of a sudden, freaking lightning! Maybe they did that, created some kind of technique that turns chakra from an internal source to an external substance... From vapor to gasoline. Chakra to... What'll I call it, then?_ He looked around, the room was filling up kindly. _I guess that'll be for another day._ He sat up straight, the Jonin was doing the same.

Three minutes passed, and after the final second before the hour's limit, the door slammed shut and locked. The Jonin was no longer the laid-back man he'd been when they'd entered, the man was a killer now like he was a killer on the job. "You will all be seated and you will all be silent unless I give permission otherwise." Everyone who had been previously standing, or sitting on a table, got into their chairs. "In the many elemental nations and the many shinobi villages, there exists only one commonality between their many interpretations of the Chunin exam." Without warning, a second Shinobi arrived, this one with a comically large stack of papers held in both hands. "The written exam."

_So all I have to do is pull an Agent J and I'll be fine._ Thought Hibiki, as the new Shinobi began passing out surprisingly thick stacks of papers.

"Now, for this test, there is only one rule. **Don't. Get caught. Cheating."** With every word uttered, a group of three shinobi appeared alongside the left side of the classroom. "In other villages, you get three chances. Here, you get _one._ If our men catch you cheating even _once,_ you and your entire squad will be failed immediately and escorted out of this room." He stated firmly, almost angrily.

_So... Obvious solution: Don't get caught._ Thought Hibiki, as a test was deposited in front of him and he gazed at the shinobi lining the room. They all wore Suna headbands, had thick-rimmed glasses, and had notepads and pencils in hand. They all were staring pointedly at the various national Genin, and Hibiki's eyes ended up making direct contact with one of them, who immediately looked down and jotted something down. _This is going to be fun._ He looked down to his test.

"You will have three hours to finish your ten questions. But make no mistake about it, your grades count for the whole team. If even one of you fails, the entire team flunks out and you'll get escorted out of the village." The Jonin exclaimed, loud enough that he could have outyelled a cannon.

_Jesus Christ this is worse than the Engineering exam in highschool..._ This test was throwing out terms and formulas that Hibiki hadn't even thought of in _years,_ and he had the advantage of a 21st century College Education, he had no fucking clue how anyone else would pass. _Unless..._ He looked around, the guy was still talking so it wasn't test time yet. _Those are some old looking Genin..._ He thought, looking at a few eighteen year old Suna Genin, one of whom was seated right in front of him. _And... _He looked up, seeing mirrors. _Son of a bitch... The test isn't the questions on the paper, it's how well we can cheat the system while under close watch. It's designed to be failed on its own, so we have to draw on the knowledge of everyone else around us by cheating, without being caught. Why the hell else would there be mirrors on the ceiling, old-ass Genin positioned around the room... A Jonin saying not to not cheat, but to not get caught cheating. They're not even hiding this shit!_ Hibiki suppressed a grin, wondering if Suboro and Noboru would catch on as well.

"I hope for your villages' sakes, that you're all ready, because the second round of the Chunin exams has now begun." The Jonin stated, before he leaned back on the desk behind him.

Hibiki looked down at the test below him, grabbing one of the supplied pencils and almost immediately resorting to tapping it on his chin as he read the questions. Eight years without any _academic_ stimulation left his mind rusty, and while Chakra studies certainly helped, his mathematics relied on everything he'd learned in his old life and the highschool level stuff he'd gone through in the Academy. Here, though, they were throwing physics, sciences, mathematics, everything he hadn't thought of in nearly ten years, right here for him to suddenly have to remember.

He flipped on his Sharingan, staring at the paper intently. _I'm calling bullshit, there's no way they actually expect us to know this._ He looked up, seeing one of the teenaged Genin writing away, the pencil-movements going so slow to his copy-wheel eyes that he could mimic them without even trying. _There's no way that **this** asshole knows what **he's** doing..._ He narrowed his eyes, but didn't physically lift his head to get a better view, he didn't know what all constituted as cheating in this situation. _So let's assume that he **does** know what he's doing, when the educational system here doesn't even supply the ability to find the answers. How could he know what he's doing? The guy's literally writing away, not even looking, not even pausing. _Hibiki blinked, _does he know the answers already? That's it! - This asshole knows what he's doing, because they gave him the goddamn test already. _He pushed his paper forward an inch or two so he could look at it, and the guy's pencil with his dojutsu-enhanced, near-perfect peripherals. _But now we wonder, how do we decide which question he's on?_ He sat up and leaned back, staring intently at the test. _The mirrors..._ He leaned his head back, making it look like he was just staring off into space, eyes still narrowed so as to not give away his dojutsu. He stared at one of the ceiling tiles, the mirrors in his peripherals. _There he is... Answer to question one, about to move onto question two._ Hibiki leaned forward and wrote as fast as he could from what he saw of the man's answer to the first question. He caught up after a minute, and started mimicking everything he saw from the man's pencil from question two onwards.

He was gambling everything on this man knowing the answers already to the question, but he felt he wasn't entirely baseless in his gamble. The guy was writing like a man possessed, he didn't pause but to move his pencil down a line or to the next question; even Phill - the guy in College who literally spent his life studying, was valedictorian, all that stuff, he needed a minute or two to remember what he was doing, but this guy? He didn't pause for even a second - he already knew.

A kunai flew past Hibiki's nose, slammed into the test of the Kusagakure Genin right next to him. "That was your one chance, Kusa. Get your things and get the hell out."

Kusa stood up angrily, "what the hell are you talking about?! I wasn't even cheating, I -" Before he could finish, the Jonin at the front of the class was in front of him, a fist covered in stone, and smashing into his stomach.

The boy was unconscious before he hit the ground, the Jonin stared at Kusa's paling teammates. "Pick him up and get out. You'll be escorted by Chunin once you leave. Everyone else, get back to your tests."

Everyone's noses were back on the grindstone faster than the Jonin could blink. Hibiki was back to his routine of copying everything the 'Genin' in front of him wrote. After two hours passed, they hit the end of the test packet. Question _nine._

Hibiki blinked, and turned the test over again. There was no question ten.

_What the fuck?_ He pushed his test forward and put down his pencil, flipped off his Sharingan and looked around the class. First to Suboro, who looked to be struggling, but was near the end of his test, so he wasn't too scared for him. Noboru, though it was a little hard to tell, had his Byakugan bulging, so the boy was either cheating off of someone else, or off of Hibiki. Testing this theory, Hibiki rubbed under both of his eyes - basic sign for 'Eyes on?', Noboru nodded ever so subtly.

_Nice._ Hibiki turned back around.

The rest of the exam passed rather uneventfully, a Kiri team and, unfortunately, a Konoha team, both got sent out for cheating. When the time was out, the Jonin clapped his hands.

"I know what you're all thinking: Where is question ten?" He asked, rhetorically. "I'll tell you something, and this one separates us from every other test out there. Our question ten is as much of a test as the one you just took. I ask you all to remember what you've done in the last week alone. You've all fought harder than you've ever fought in your lives, had to live in harsh conditions and survive on little provisions. You've fought, you've hurt, you've almost died, and this was all just to potentially qualify to be _considered_ to be a Chunin for your village. Just consider that. To be _considered,_ you've had to fight men and women to the death, and from the looks of it, a lot of you look like you barely won, if you won at all. This here is your one and only chance to back the hell out of a life of suffering, pain, and death." He stated, "a life in which you may very well be killed as easily as you yourselves kill. I am giving you an out. You have your one and only chance to get out of this life." He pointed at the door, "leave. Surrender for yourself and for your whole team, get out and go back to the easy life in the Genin corps." He leaned back and crossed his big arms, "one chance. Do not waste it."

Hibiki looked around, first at Noboru, who shook his head, and at Suboro, who looked nervous as all hell, but also shook his head. Everyone in the class seemed to be doing the same thing, and after a few minutes passed, the Jonin nodded solemnly. "I guess that's that, then. Hand your tests in right now, we will decide here and now who passes and who doesn't."

Hibiki breathed in deeply, and exhaled. He stood up and handed the test in, sat back down at his chair, and waited. Everyone else, all the nationals from the various villages, they all did the same, and eventually all of the tests were handed in. The Jonin nodded, took one look at the papers, and shredded them all with a wind technique.

"You all, each and every one of you, have passed. The point of this test was not to test your knowledge, it was to test your ability to perform silently and stealthily under a watchful eye, under stress, with a lack of sleep, and under intense pressure." He explained.

Hibiki spoke up, itching under his headband as he did. "So the goal of the test actually _was_ to cheat."

The Jonin grinned, "caught that, did you?" He asked, "you're not wrong. The goal of the test was to pass. The way you did it was up to you, however the easiest path to victory here would be to steal the knowledge of your opponents. Here we gave you a test you couldn't possibly pass on your own, and even if you drew on the knowledge of your opponents - if you _cheated - _off of each other, you couldn't have done it on your own. So to make the process a bit easier, we positioned Chunin in the room, who've taken the test before and were given the answers already. Some of you, we noticed, caught on, but that was the problem - we _noticed!"_ He thundered, "the goal was to cheat, but to do so without being caught. During your lives as ninja, you'll be placed in situations where everything you do will be done under the watchful eye of people far more powerful than you, so what will you do, follow their rules? Do what they say? _No!_ You're ninja, you'll do what you want, but in such a way that they think you've been following their rules the entire time! _That_ was the goal of this test! And everyone in this room passed with flying colors." They'd begun with fifteen boys and girls, five squads, and now there were six of them, not including the pre-placed Chunin.

"So where do we go from here?" A Suna-Genin near the back of the classroom asked, "do you really expect us to keep going on no damn sleep?" He demanded.

The Jonin shrugged, "I don't give a rat's ass, if we want you to keep going on no sleep, you'll keep going on no sleep. But, fortunately for you, the last test is a tournament, another commonality between all villages." He answered, "in two days you will report to the center of the village. For our local Genin, you know the building I'm talking about, for the foreigners, it's tradition here for our decisive battles, be they tournaments or be they fights over the fate of whatever it may be at the time, to be fought in our grand arena. Ours is a small village, so unlike others, we only have the one, but it's big and it will serve our needs. This last phase of the exam, if our estimates run true, should run through in one, maybe two days, in a single tournament. This tournament isn't one that guarantees promotion on victory, but rather promotion on performance. So do your damn best, your careers are on the line." He nodded, "now go get your sleep. I'd say you've earned it." He said, his voice significantly less deep now that the time for his shtick was over.

* * *

Arriving back at their temporary apartment, Team Six had about a half hour before Team Four arrived; it was pitch black outside and Noboru and Suboro were too exhausted to keep going, but Hibiki stayed up out of necessity. He silently wondered where Dante and Eiji were, but after a few moments it clicked that they were two Jonin almost literally in war's backyard, they were probably outside the walls coordinating with Konoha, though the _how_ of that escaped Hibiki. He was glad they were through two of the three tests, but they'd been in Suna for less than a week, and they were supposed to be here a month - so how did Suna expect to draw out this tournament for a _month?_ Elimination rounds, then a final tourney?

_Who knows..._ Hibiki shook his head and lowered it into his arms, which were wrapped around his knees, but his head popped right back up when the door to their apartment opened, and in came Team Four, looking haggard, but celebratory.

"You guys passed?" Hibiki concluded.

Dai nodded, "we did." She stretched, but could tell from the look in Hibiki's eye that it wasn't time for sleep, yet. "Why did you ask me to track that Iwa team?" She asked.

"Because they might be proof that Suna didn't kill the Hokage." Hibiki looked to Noboru, wondering whether or not he should wake the boy up - because he'd need a Byakugan for this, he doubted he'd be able to sneak into Iwa's apartment and confirm they had a gun.

Akane seemed to notice and pick up on what Hibiki was thinking. "Will you be requiring a Byakugan during tonight's search, Hibiki-san?" She asked.

Hibiki looked back to her, she seemed trustworthy enough, but did he really want to spill the beans to her, too? He looked to Dai, silently asking her the same question, and she nodded her head. Hibiki shrugged, "if you're willing, Akane."

Akane smiled faintly and bowed her head in a respectful nod. "I am more than willing, Hibiki-san. If it will avoid war, I will be glad to help." She straightened back up.

Hibiki nodded, "alright. Let's wait an hour, then we'll head out. Dai, your beetles tracked them down, right?"

Dai nodded, "I know where they are. We can go straight there, but it would be best if we stay under the radar as we do."

Hibiki shrugged, "you guys are the stealth experts, I'm just tagging along to make sure we find what we're looking for." He said, before they slunk outside.

Hibiki found, during his brief time here in Suna and his late-night 'walks' during, that stealth games like Metal Gear and Splinter Cell hadn't been _wrong, _but they hadn't been entirely right, either, especially when Chakra was involved. At night, most villages had sensor-nin and Jonin patrolling the rooftops and the village interior, so keeping out of sight was only _half_ of the battle. Fortunately for Hibiki, this was where his old games hadn't been entirely wrong - he knew the usual things, stick to the shadows, pick the best cover but not the most obvious, stay out of the enemy's line of sight, duck - and his training in the academy only made things easier. The tricky part was compressing and masking his chakra so it wouldn't bleed out and overwhelm what was the equivalent of background radiation. This was a skill that most Chunin in Konoha still hadn't acquired, but Hibiki had come down with a good method after a few days of effort. For Hibiki, what he did was envision his chakra like a second skin, only underneath his normal layer; a big blue aura inside his body. He then pictured this aura slowly compressing, tightening down to his gut, until it was a superdense ball resting inside of his stomach, and boom - stealth mode. Jiraiya was able to do this and also keep up transparency genjutsu - effectively making himself to visual and sensory perception - but Hibiki had no idea how he managed to do it.

Moving through what was essentially an enemy village, in the dead of night, had been scary for those first two nights, but now that Hibiki had two tests under his belt and knew exactly what he was looking for, he felt more confident. Still anxious and paranoid, but confident. Dai and Akane made a great duo, with Dai's beetles keeping both her and Akane's chakra levels down, while also checking scent trails and such to predict sentry patrol patterns, and Akane's dojutsu keeping them up to date of everything around them. Given a very visible difference in skill between these three and the Jonin and sensors they were dodging, they took their sweet time and more often than not erred on the side of caution when it came to hiding, and whether or not it was safe to move. They could have made their destination in seconds if they'd taken the Ninja Express, but that was tantamount to suicide, practically broadcasting to the whole village where they were, and where they were going.

After an hour of sneaking around and staying out of sight, they made it to the Iwa team's apartment complex. Akane activated her Byakugan and searched their room, as indicated by Dai and her beetles.

"Okay... They are all in there, they are all sleeping." Akane reported, "what am I looking for? If it is a book, I will need time to scan each page." She informed him, but Hibiki shook his head and pumped a minute amount of chakra into the seal on his right wrist, producing his revolver with a brief puff of smoke.

"It isn't this specifically, but you're looking for something like this." Hibiki stated, holding it up just enough so that she could see it with her own eyes, not her Byakugan.

Akane picked it up, and Hibiki didn't miss the brief, questioning glance from Dai. "It is heavy..." She upended it, "what are those things in this... Cylinder?" She asked, pointing at the cylinder and indicating the bullets.

"Projectiles." Said Hibiki, seriously. "The thing you're looking for should have something similar, or just the powder and metal balls, probably in a sack not too far away." He explained, "it had bits and pieces sticking out, wasn't as sleek as this one." She nodded and handed him the pistol, he sealed it back in his wrist.

"I will be focusing on the room, so I will not be watching our backs. Be on the lookout for Jonin." She warned, to the nods of Hibiki and Dai, who took up opposite positions. Three minutes passed in relative silence, before Akane spoke up. "I have found it. Get me a piece of paper."

Hibiki blinked, but grabbed a blank scroll and a pen, which Akane grabbed, unrolled, and started scribbling on, blindingly fast with brief strokes, reminding Hibiki of Sunny from I-Robot, for a moment. After a minute, the drawing came together - a surprisingly detailed side-view sketch of the Albino's revolver, down to the tiniest detail. "This is what you are looking for?" She deactivated her Byakugan.

Hibiki nodded, solemnly. "Dai -"

"It does, it smells powerfully of your black powder." She nodded, "almost exactly like it smelled in Konoha, only stronger."

Akane blinked, "what are you two talking about? What do you know?" She asked, concerned.

Hibiki took over, "I had a hunch on how the Hokage was killed, because it reminded me of my own weapons experiments." He half-lied, lowly, so as to not be heard over the low background noise of the windy desert. "We were in Konoha and we found the murder weapon, but my own experiments were known of at the time, so I needed proof that someone else had them before I could bring it up. Now we have that proof - Suna is vindicated." But the problem still remained that all of Konoha wanted war, if he wanted to get their sights set on one village in particular, as opposed to the entire freakin' world, he needed to get ironclad proof of an Iwa ninja, with a gun, and witnesses to its use.

In other words, someone had to get shot before these Chunin exams were over.

He needed to know - _needed_ _to know - _who was fighting the Albino, or at the very least, how to goad her into using a gun on her opponent. Noboru had pissed her off enough that she'd outed herself as a not-so-open carrier, maybe if Hibiki rigged it so he and her fought first, he could tell Noboru to do everything he could to piss her off. She would pull the gun and fire, and as long as Noboru used his Revolving Heaven technique the _moment_ she drew the gun, he'd be safe, hopefully - Hibiki didn't know if a bullet could pierce a rotation. It was possible it could and possible it could not, the Rotation was an ironclad defense, but it wasn't without weaknesses.

"Hibiki?" Akane prodded him with the rolled up scroll, Hibiki snapped out of his thoughts.

"We need to fall back, for now. We have a target and we can at least tell our sensei that we've enough to vindicate Suna, we just don't have enough to change our target, yet."

"Yet?" Dai asked, "what do you plan to do?"

"We need to put Iwa in a no-win situation, we need to make them use their gun." Hibiki made a 'follow me' gesture with his head, they began sneaking back to their apartment. "The best place to do such a thing would be at the tournament, so I was thinking we see if we can't rig the selection, get one of us to fight Albino first, and piss her off enough to use it. Dante and Eiji-sensei should both recognize it the moment she uses the weapon - not many weapons these days make thunderclaps without any chakra at all." That reminded him, "Akane, did you see any chakra in those weapons?" He asked, nervously.

Akane thought a moment, but shook her head.

"Any way to channel chakra?"

Another shake of the head, Hibiki let out a deep sigh of relief.

"Good." He breathed, "that's one less thing to worry about." But now he had three people - Dai, Akane, and Orochimaru - who knew about his guns, two of whom were probably deadly curious about what they were, and why Hibiki seemed to fear them so much. He'd have to head this off at the pass, sometime soon, but for now?

For now, Hibiki would sleep. He'd just averted a war, he'd earned it.


	18. Exam Season: The Hyuga Fights -V-

Chapter 17

* * *

Convincing Dante and Eiji, as it turned out, took a little work. The day after Hibiki had gotten his proof, they had - as they'd agreed earlier - taken their sensei out to lunch at a local rice restaurant. Both Suboro and Eiji pulled off a genjutsu that made them inaudible to anyone nearby, and they'd all done well to keep their mouths covered as inconspicuously as possible, as often as possible. Hibiki had to dodge or craftily answer a great many questions, but he had managed to convince the two in the end that he had proof enough that could vindicate Suna. What he'd done is spin it up like a hunch - he'd let out a little information, that he'd experimented with firework powder before, as a propellent in a 'kunai launcher', as it were, but had had to let the project go due to lack of results. When he'd heard the story about how the Hokage had been assassinated, he'd followed a gut instinct and recruited Dai to find the murder weapon - and when it had been demanded of him why he hadn't turned it in, he simply asked Dante if _he_ would have believed him at the time, to which Dante admitted he wouldn't have, and if he wouldn't have, Danzo Shimura _certainly_ wouldn't have.

After doling out the details and covering all of his bases, they then broached the subject of how to get _direct_ evidence that more readily tied Iwa to the Hokage's assassination, which Hibiki had had to word carefully. He'd told them that if the weapons worked like he thought they did, then the only way to truly pin it on Iwa would be to make one of their Genin _use_ it, and their best bet would be the Albino, who - from their brief encounter - seemed hot-headed and not used to not getting her way. Noboru affirmed this, but also added that she was immensely powerful, and had a cold side to her anger as well, which threw a small monkey wrench into Hibiki's plan, but didn't stop it entirely.

Hibiki made triply clear to Noboru that, if he wanted to go through with this - as he was the best positioned, given his dirty bomb - he could be putting his life on the line. The few 'results' he got from his 'kunai' experiment let him know that when they were propelled, they were propelled _fast,_ there was a reason people were calling it a 'thunder' technique, after all. He told Noboru that he would have to start a Revolving Heavens technique the moment she drew her firearm, as that was his best defense and was the only way he could feasibly save himself. Noboru understood, but wondered how they would rig the selections - they didn't even know how they were being paired up and matched.

Surprisingly, it was Eiji who saved them on that one. It was a simple drawing, slips of paper with names on them, very easy to rig, and they would get it done, the Genin had done enough, and if they were really going to be fighting each other in the tournament, they'd need all the rest they could get.

That led to where they were now, the center of the village, right in the middle of a large coliseum that seemed ripped straight out of some gladiator movie. Team Four and Six were all gathered with the seven other finalist Genin teams, which left twenty one people fighting, some lucky bastard would be able to skip the initial bouts and go straight for the second round. Whoever it was would not only be fresh-faced and ready for round two, but he'd be able to study and work out a strategy for his opponent. They were waiting for the selections now, as it was a tournament, the preliminary match-ups would be chosen first, and then the fights would start.

The burly Jonin with no sleeves, from earlier, was explaining to them the rules. While they were allowed to kill during the first test, here they were not - any death meant a fail for the survivor and the recently deceased. While there were barrier techniques set up to protect the civilians - who were slowly starting to fill the arena seating - any techniques that could potentially hurt, maim, kill, or otherwise seriously injure noncombatants had to be reigned in or just thrown out entirely. Victory only came through the opponent's admission of defeat or being rendered unable to fight - and that did include permanent disabling, just no killing.

_So we can cripple each other, we just can't kill._ Thought Hibiki, as a small pot, about the size of his head, was brought in, and the burly man reached inside.

_"First match... Akane Hyuga of Konohagakure, and Dorian Nil of Sunagakure."_ He called out, to the brief applause from the audience, mostly from those who knew Dorian, and Dorian's team themselves.

Hibiki looked over to Team Four, Aoi was holding Akane tight, Hibiki narrowed his eyes, and leaned a bit further back to see Dorian, and figured out why - the guy was a _beast_ of a child. This twelve year old was about as big as a full-grown Hibiki had been Back Home, and had to have twice the amount of muscle-weight on him. Hibiki could almost tell what they were saying - brains beat brawn every time, this 'boy's' tactics would likely rely upon brute forth and wind techniques, all she had to do was close off his tenketsu with the Gentle Fist and she'd win for sure. Hibiki caught Akane's eye, she raised an eyebrow, as if questioning what he thought. He gave the guy another look, then looked back to her, and gave her a big old grin and a thumbs up, she'd do fine.

Three more fights were scheduled before the next familiar face came up. _"The fifth match... Emi Miu of Iwagakure, and Noboru Hyuga of Konohagakure."_ He called out.

Noboru inhaled deeply and sighed, nodding firmly. "I hope your plan works, Hibiki."

Hibiki turned to Noboru and grinned, to assuage the Hyuga noble's nerves. "Just close her tenketsu and then do everything you can to piss her off, once she uses the weapon, then you put her down." He said lowly, before he patted the man on the back. "And if the worst happens, Suboro and I'll just have to kick her ass in revenge, alright?"

_"The sixth match - Hibiki Senju of Konohagakure versus Don Shiro of Iwagakure."_

_"YEEEEEEES!" _Screamed out the Iwa-Genin in question, who, after Hibiki gave him a look, recognized as the guy who flung explosions around. Hibiki blinked, the guy looked like he was brand new - did they have a medic-nin on their team?

"Hibiki, isn't that -"

"Yeah. Boom." Hibiki's shoulders sagged, the guy already knew how he fought, so how was Hibiki going to put him down? He had to do it fast, too - when and if Hibiki won, he'd still need to be battle-ready for a second round, and with his luck, he might be the unlucky schmuck that gets stuck fighting Fresh n' Ready.

"From what I saw of him, he is proud and angry." Said Noboru, "you could simply outlast him. You are faster and stronger, and with your clones -"

"But he'll be expecting the rock trick." And Hibiki _had_ prepared said trick before he'd come into the coliseum, it was his best slight of hand, after all, and it gave him an instant advantage. The problem was, if his opponent was expecting it, it lost half of its use right then and there. "Best I can do is fight him as hard as I can and get him so angry that he'll forget he's probably fighting a clone." But even that meant he'd have to spend the clone's entire store of chakra, meaning he'd be half exhausted for the second fight, though that was largely countered by his second, yet-to-be-used trump card.

"So what's your plan?" Suboro asked, "if he's expecting some of your tricks and you've both fought already, you should have something of an idea, right?" He asked.

"I'm working on something." How many Hibikis did it take to kick the living shit out of a guy who could make stuff explode with his mind? He might want to preemptively draw that trump card he's been holding, he _did_ have two more where it came from, though any more than that and he was scared of what might happen; the rule of threes, and all that.

_"The tenth match, Suboro Nil of Konohagakure, versus Daichi Ayumu of Sunagakure." _Called out the Burly Jonin, _"and the eleventh match, Dai Aburame versus Tsuga Taco of Iwagakure."_

"And there is the third of the Iwa trio." Said Noboru, worriedly.

"Tough guy?" Hibiki asked.

"He knocked Suboro out with one hit."

"Well, that's not too hard... He's been skimping out on major fights, recently." Hibiki grinned as Suboro started fuming, "I bet he'll even find a way out of his fight here."

"Shut it, Hibiki!" Growled the orphaned Genjutsu-specialist. "I'll show you, I'll have this guy so stuck in his own mind he'll think he's a duck!" He proclaimed.

Noboru grinned, "you know, boasting is a sign of the weak."

_It's also a sign of which anime character will become a badass._ But Hibiki wouldn't tell him that, he liked riling Suboro up too much. "I'm thinking Daichi might not even have to lift a finger, they'll just call the match 'cause he won't show up."

Suboro was angry, but he was grinning too, he knew it was all in good fun. "Man, Hibiki, I hope we both win, that way we might be able to fight each other! Then I'll show you!"

"Show me what, just how good my dojutsu is at nullifying three quarters of your arsenal? Or how good my clones are at taking hits?" He laughed.

"Can your Farukonpanchi pierce genjutsu?" Noboru wondered aloud.

"My wha - yes. Yes it can." Hibiki wasn't too used to the Common-tongue translation of the technique, he'd been saying the English form for the entirety of both of his lives.

"Then I'll _make_ one that it _can't_ break!" Suboro boasted.

_"The eighteenth match, Aoi Inuzuka versus Wakana Nill of Kusagakure."_

"And that rounds out the bunch." Said Hibiki, who nodded his head back to the stands. "Let's go find our seats." He walked towards Team Four, who were making similar plans. "Akane, you alright?" He asked, shoving his hands in his pockets and yawning deeply, "you feeling confident about your fight?"

She nodded, "yes, Hibiki-san." She said, her voice shaky. "I believe I can defeat my opponent."

Hibiki raised an eyebrow, and looked at Noboru, who was looking similar, in his own way. "Really?" He asked, looking at Dai and Aoi, who were doing a better job of hiding their incredulity. "What's your plan, then?"

She grinned, lightly. "You shall see."

Hibiki chuckled, "I think I like her, Noboru."

Noboru nodded, "as do I."

_"Would all noncombatants leave the arena. The first match is about to begin."_ The burly man shouted out, firmly.

Hibiki stretched his arms and his back, groaning as he did, a habit he'd _never_ lost from his old life, before he patted Akane on the back. "You'll do fine. If all else fails, hit him in the nuts." He grinned as her eyes widened and a blush formed on her cheeks as it dawned on her what he'd suggested.

* * *

After all of the Genin, both foreign and domestic to Sunagakure, vacated the arena, Akane and Dorian were standing on two separate sides of the battleground, with the burly Jonin in the middle. Akane drew her coat tighter to her chest, and tightened the bun in her dark hair, Dorian stretched his thick, muscled arms and sighed deeply, thinking to himself that he'd be done soon enough, all he needed to do was land one strong blow. He wasn't necessarily _wrong,_ and that was what Akane was worried about - her being a Branch house, many of the Hyuga techniques that her cousin Noboru knew were lost to her, but she did know the Gentle Fist, and if she could cripple this man's ability to manipulate chakra, she would have him.

The Burly Suna performed a quick few handsigns, and then tapped his throat, before he cleared it, his voice now thundering out from his vocal cords, silencing the entire assembled crowd. "You two already know the rules, but I shall restate them once and only once for everyone gathered here today. There will be no killing of your opponent, victory will only come through surrender, loss of consciousness, or permanent crippling." He looked to Akane, his voice still echoing outward. "Akane Hyuga, are you ready?" She nodded, firmly, and he looked to Dorian, "Dorian Nil, are you ready?"

"More than ever, sir."

"Then _BEGIN!"_ The Jonin leapt back and vanished in a swirl of sand.

Dorian thundered forward, chakra pouring through his legs and a large explosion of sand and debris following each footstep. He was going for style as opposed to function, Akane thought, as her Byakugan bulged into existence and she assumed a jyuuken stance, lightning fast. She could see each and every one of his three and a half hundred tenketsu, all begging her to be forcibly shut. When Dorian came within striking distance, he used his superior height and leapt into the air and threw a wild superman punch.

_Fast!_ Akane thought, ducking the punch and barely missing it, she threw her open palm forward, chakra surging forth from it. It smashed into his gut, and before he could blink, she spun around and closed three more tenketsu on the boy's back, which caused him great pain, but this served to backfire on her as this pain made him angry, and in his anger he made a hasty, unpredictable decision, and instead of whirling around and trying to punch her like she'd predicted, he rammed his elbow into her face, drawing some blood and sending her stumbling backwards.

Now with room, he whipped around to face the Hyuga Branch member, who managed to flip around in the air and land on all fours. With her Byakugan, she saw what the Sand-Genin was doing, and instead of surging forward for an attack, she started sprinting away.

_"Wind Release - Slash!"_ The Genin swung his massive hand, sending chakra laced wind blades which combined to form one single, massive blade of pure wind chakra. To everyone without a dojutsu, it simply looked like a shockwave speeding through the air, but to Hibiki, Noboru, and Akane, it was like a massive blue scythe flying through the air, and all of those who could see it knew that Akane, despite her best efforts, wouldn't dodge it. The best she was able to do was to leap out of the way and get clipped by its edge, the blade shredded her clothes and drew blood from her side.

Up in the stands, Hibiki's face fell, "aw, shit." He sighed.

Noboru looked at him, concernedly. "What?"

"Dude's figured it out..." Said Hibiki, leaning forward in his seat and resting his hand on his chin, absently chewing his knuckle in thought. "Ten seconds and he's got her number... That's... Not good."

Suboro, surprisingly enough, got it before Noboru and the others of Team Four did. "He already knows she's a melee fighter, literally all he has to do is keep her out of range." He leaned forward and got Dai's attention, "does she even know any mid/long range stuff?"

She shook her head, "outside of clan techniques, the only ones Eiji sensei have taught us were stealth and defensive techniques."

Hibiki was rolling his eyes, "you guys seem to forget that she had a plan." He said, watching Akane get to her feet, holding her bleeding side. "She's a smart cookie, do you really think she would have failed to plan for the fact that her main offensive style would be countered?" He nodded down to the fight, her opponent had already dropped his guard, expecting his victory from that blow.

Akane got to her feet, grimacing, but otherwise not showing any reaction from the cut on her gut. She kept her head inclined, but had her all-seeing eyes firmly on her opponent, wondering how she could pull victory from this. Her best chance was stealth, but to do that she would have to disappear, first. The obvious conclusion was that she had to get him to use another wind technique, but it would have to hit the ground and launch its heavy coat of sand into the air, blinding everyone _but_ her. The problem, however, was in goading him to do so, and dodging the technique so as to not incur further injury.

She set her jaw, and frowned just the slightest bit, swallowing as she came up with a plan. Quick as a flash, her hand dipped into her weapons pouch and withdrew three kunai, one of which was wrapped in an explosive tag. She ducked low to the ground and sprinted forward; Dorian immediately got back into a combat stance, and when he saw her bend her arm back to throw the weapons, he ran through the handsigns for another wind technique, which blasted forward and hit the weapons, at an angle, long before they reached him. The wind technique impacted the ground and sent a huge geyser of sand and debris into the air, and the detonation of Akane's kunai scattered it all. The Suna Genin realized too late that he was blind, and swung his arm in a wide-arc, expecting the Hyuga to have rushed around. Much the opposite, she'd predicted his wild swing, and had instead beat feet for his front, which, thanks to his attack, was now his back. Quick as lightning, the Jyuuken-user collapsed a dozen of his tenketsu, and nailed a particularly vulnerable pressure point on his right arm, before she vanished into the sand, still hanging thick in the air.

Dorian fell into a defensive stance, intriguing both of the Hyuga in the stadium with the fact that he could still move his right arm, but they both were able to tell it was stiff and even the slightest movement caused him a great deal of pain. Quicker than last time, Akane appeared on Dorian's weaker side and closed several more tenketsu, before she smashed her chakra-enhanced palm into Dorian's ribcage, breaking several and sending him flying a few feet. Dorian landed on his back, growling in anger. He flexed his hand and tried channeling chakra through it, but found that whatever the Konoha kid had done, his arm was effectively crippled.

_Alright... Let's try this..._ He formed a one-handed sign, only good for simple techniques, and poured a large amount of chakra into the technique.

"Wind-release - " He inhaled deeply, and exhaled a violent torrent of wind, "_Great breakthrough!"_ He roared, clearing the air of the sand, to reveal an empty arena.

Akane had vanished.

Dorian blinked, his jaw slack and his eyes wide with rage. "Well... What... What the fuck?!" He called out, looking to the burly Shinobi proctor, "does this mean I win?!" He demanded.

The Burly ninja remained silent, and Hibiki and Noboru quickly realized why - just behind Dorian, buried under the sand, was Akane. She was waiting for Dorian to position himself in front of her, and the moment he did, she struck - bursting forth from the ground in a large display, and brutally jabbing her palm onto the Genin's neck. The effect was instantaneous - he fell out with a loud thump.

Hibiki couldn't help himself, he burst out laughing at the spectacle. Big, powerful Genin, unconscious and out freakin' cold in one blow, it was almost literally an example of brains over brawn. He started clapping, the other Konoha-nin joined him, the other ninja began applauding, and soon enough the entire stadium was applauding what was essentially an anti-climax. Hibiki couldn't have been happier with the turnout. After the burly Jonin confirmed that Dorian was out cold, he called in a few medic-nin and they escorted both the conscious and unconscious genin from the stadium.

The Jonin cleared his throat, _"we will begin the next match immediately!"_

Hibiki cracked his neck, "do we know these guys?" He asked, as two shinobi leapt down from the stands and into the stadium.

Noboru shook his head, "we do not."

Hibiki nodded his head, "then I'm going to check on Akane, make sure she's alright." He noticed Suboro giving him a raised eyebrow, and Hibiki shrugged. "That was a pretty bad hit she took to her gut. Might not know any healing techniques, but I'm _pretty adept_ at First Aid." Even with Chakra changing most everything he knew about Human physiology, everything he'd learned in his AEMT course Back Home still rang true. He rarely did so, but the few times he'd visited Tsunade at the hospital, he'd helped out a bit with 'natural remedies', and as such had a small reputation outside of 'Tsunade's Kid'.

It took him five minutes to find the infirmary. To avoid post-battle hostilities, each village had its own section, with enough beds to accomodate all of the participants from said village. The Konoha section was in the back, with six beds, Akane was occupying the one closest to the wall, a medic was bandaging her stomach. Hibiki walked in nonchalantly, hands in his pockets, and stayed a few feet from the medic as she did her work.

Akane, however, took the initiative. "Hibiki-san -"

"Whoa, lady, stop it with the honorifics." Hibiki warned, his American 'blood' telling him that anything beyond 'sir' or 'ma'am' was just excessive; such was mostly the reason he tuned out the honorifics in conversation. "Just call me Hibiki, please." He was glad he had nearly nine years of experience being called Hibiki, that it was mostly natural to tell people to call him such; he missed his old name - and made it a point to never forget it - but he had gotten used to the new one. "So how're you holding up?" He asked, nodding at her gut.

She waited for the medic to finish before she answered. The nurse told her that there was no serious damage, but she might not be fit to fight her next match. Akane shrugged, both to the nurse and to Hibiki. "It appears that, in victory, I have been defeated." She said, wistfully.

"Bah." Hibiki waved it off, "you kicked that guy's ass and you only took a nick in the side for your troubles. We've got guys from our Chunin Corps writing down everything about our matches, I think they liked what they saw." He stretched his arms, yawning. "How do you _think_ you did?" He asked.

Again, she shrugged, "fine, I guess..." The ground shook, "I guess the second round fighters are having some fun." She commented, causing Hibiki to chuckle.

"So how do you think Noboru's going to do?" He wondered, leaning back on his hands. _'Cause if Lady's got a gun, even if he pins down her chakra, she'll still have options._

Akane chose her words carefully, though Hibiki didn't know it, she was still well aware of her place in her clan. "I think he will do as we hope he will. Noboru-san is a talented Genin."

Hibiki gave her a ridiculous look, "okay, so now we know what your clan thinks. What do _you_ think?" He asked, eyebrow raising.

She blinked, "it is as I -"

Hibiki shook his head, and rubbed his forehead. "How do I say this?" Back home, they had a saying for impossibly strict family standards - they lasted up until the Atom Bomb was dropped. There were still a lot of traditionalist families back where he came from, and in other parts of the world, but they had largely been evolved out of society, by the time Hibiki had died. "I understand your clan, its hierarchy and all that..." Or, he knew what Noboru told him, at least. "But there's this concept out there called the freedom of speech, and I subscribe to it. So whenever we're alone like this -" He gestured around to the empty infirmary, "feel free to say whatever you want, I won't think any less of you."

Akane blinked, staring at Hibiki as if he'd been speaking another language. "I... Think that Noboru might not win his fight, but he will do what we hope him to." She said, slowly, as if she didn't even know if she wanted to. Hibiki was honestly just surprised that it hadn't taken any more prodding to her her to speak her mind. "That girl, she fought an entire Kusa team alone." She explained.

Hibiki gave an impressed grunt, "Noboru might not be capable of going up against three ninja alone... _Yet,_ but he's a genius, and he's something of a badass, he'll figure it out." He said with a grin and a nod, only to receive a blank, confused stare from Akane. "What?" He said after a moment.

"What did you say he was?"

"A genius?" Hibiki blinked.

"No, after that..." Akane was stupefied.

"A badass?"

"Yes, what is that?" She asked, with such innocence that it made Hibiki burst out into uproarious laughter. "What? Did I say something?" She asked, as Hibiki wiped tears from his eyes.

"No... No..." He laughed, "uh... A badass... Wow, okay..." He leaned back, a wide smile on his face. "Um... A badass is..." He rubbed his chin, trying to come up with a good example. "Okay, you remember the stories about Madara Uchiha? About how he would go up against hundreds, or even thousands of enemies, and win? And he'd never really think twice about it?"

Akane nodded her head.

"Madara Uchiha was a badass. He was powerful beyond reason, and didn't even blink when going up against suicidal odds." He explained, "now, Noboru might not be going up against _suicidal_ odds, but he's still pretty badass in his own right." He shrugged, "make sense?"

"No."

"Ah well. He's very strong, and even if he doesn't win, he'll put up a damn good fight, don't you worry." But Hibiki was pretty certain that Noboru wouldn't get put down by some two-bit Iwa Genin, gun or not. He nodded back outside, you want to head out there, or stay in here?"

She shifted her position, "I would rather watch the fights." She said, before Hibiki slid from his claimed bed and he walked over to her. He helped her get off the bed and stay steady on her feet, and after she was ready, the two went back to the stands.

* * *

"Hey guys, Akane's fine. I miss anything good?" Hibiki asked, after the two rejoined their friends.

"The second fight went to some Kusa guy through surrender, his opponent didn't even fight for a minute. Third fight went to a Suna Genin." Suboro summarized, "and my money's on the Suna-nin winning this one, Ame's only got lightning techniques, and Suna's kicking his ass with wind." He explained, just seconds before the Suna genin launched a low-caliber wind-bullet that smashed into the Ame Genin's face, knocking him out cold, prompting Hibiki to finally notice how there were techniques named after _bullets._ Wind bullet, water bullet, fire bullet, earth bullet, it just now clicked that the word 'bullet' existed in the Common tongue. Perhaps the existence of guns wasn't _that_ surprising, after all.

The burly proctor called out the fourth match's victor. The medics came running in to escort a badly injured Ame out, and a brief cursory examination revealed only minor bumps and bruises on Suna, so they didn't even bother with him. Suna exited the battlefield, to the applause and cheers of his people, and after he gave them a minute, the deep-voiced, tree-trunk armed proctor called out the fifth match.

_"The fifth match will now begin. Noboru Hyuga, and Emi Miu, please enter the stadium."_

"Damn... Time flies." Hibiki commented blankly, giving Noboru a pat on the back. "Stick to the plan, play it safe, you'll be fine." He said.

The Hyuga exhaled deeply and nodded, "okay." He muttered, getting to his feet and making his way down to the stadium at a leisurely pace, whereas Emi simply rocketed out of her seat and landed in the battleground, ready to fight from the word go.

Noboru, meanwhile, took a grand total of five minutes to make his way down to the arena. With each second that she wasn't fighting, the albino Genin with a gun got less excited, and more still. By the time Noboru entered the stage - to the cheers of the crowd - she was in a state of cold fury. Twice now, Noboru had mocked and insulted her, first with his 'dirty' bomb, and now by being so rude and arrogant in the prelude to their fight. From way up in the stands, Hibiki could feel a cold feeling creep up his spine, and a brief flash of his Sharingan let him know that this woman wanted to _kill_ him, there was so much killing intent leaking into the air. It silenced the crowds outright.

The burly ninja cleared his throat, _"ready... BEGIN!"_ He had no more than uttered the final word than did Emi launch herself forward, chakra building around her hand in an almost cloak-like aura, but more than that, it seemed that she was using some sort of bloodline, as _blistering hot_ chakra was radiating off of her in intense concentrations, distorting the very air around her.

Noboru had seen the tense in her legs as the Burly Ninja had stepped forward, and had predicted she would rush him. The heated chakra came only as half of a surprise, as he'd detected a bloodline within her during their first encounter. He dodged the chakra-cloaked fist and whipped around to her back, slamming his palm into five tenketsu before she swung her leg around and smashed it into his hastily raised arm, sending him flying.

In the stands, Hibiki blinked. Just before impact, Emi had done something with her chakra, he'd seen that much, but it had gone by so fast that it had been a blur to even his Sharingan eyes. He leaned back and over, dodging Dai to speak to Akane, who sat between Dai and Aoi. "Akane, did you see that?"

Akane blinked, "Hibiki, Byakugans drain chakra at a constant rate, they are not like Sharingan." She explained, "I cannot use them as you do."

"Well you're just not trying hard enough." Came the familiar voice, accompanied by the minty smell, of team six's Jonin sensei. "Just watch closely, Hibiki. Focus your eyes, you'd be surprised what they can do." He said with a light grunt, as he and Eiji sat down behind teams Four and Six. "Consider it some light training." He nodded forward, his greasy hair falling in front of his blood red, three-tomoed eyes.

Hibiki turned forward, and the fight was on again.

Noboru was on the defensive, dodging swing after swing from the chakra-cloaked albino. He was searching for an opening, but the cloak was _growing_ across her body, acting as some kind of barrier against his Gentle Fist techniques. He was fast enough to dodge her fists, but as time went on, she got angrier, her chakra got livelier, and she became faster, slowly but surely bridging the speed gap between them.

_Alright, let's try this!_ Noboru let Emi get her next hit in, but as her cloaked fist passed his defenses, he pumped chakra out of all of his tenketsu and began rotating. The chakra-cloaked fist smashed into the Revolving Heavens technique with a horrendous grinding noise, and for just a moment, Noboru feared she would break through. However, he persevered, and deflected the fist, which managed to disrupt the cloak, which rippled violently like a lake after having a stone thrown into it. His Byakugan flared, and in his all-seeing eyes, the environment went pitch black as an eight-trigrams circle extended outwards from him.

He poured everything he physically could into every strike, the first two shattered the cloak and closed two tenketsu, the second two closed another two, then four, then eight blows faster and harder than the first eight, sixteen doubled the number again and dispelled the cloak entirely, and the final thirty two closed the total sixty four chakra points, and with a strong step forward, the Hyuga noble sent the albino Iwa genin flying backwards. This, however, lasted only scant seconds, before the Genin amazed all present who held knowledge of the sixty-four palms technique, as red chakra exploded out from her core, forcibly opened all of the previously smashed shut tenketsu, and with an enraged roar of unbridled fury, she sprinted forward, chakra coalescing in her hand to make a ball of molten magma. She fired forth the fireball so fast that Noboru had no chance to dodge it, and it exploded on his chest, stunning him, burning pieces of his robed shirt to ashes, and blistering his skin.

"Oh Kami..." Hibiki heard Eiji mutter coldly.

"No... Way..." Even Dante was stunned, as he leaned forward and stared closely at the battle unfolding. "They didn't... I thought they'd sealed it into a man..."

Noboru recovered just in time to see Emi's clenched fist soar for his gut. Hibiki, out of a lack of any other ideas, squinted his eyes and focused intently on the girl's flying fist. Time itself seemed to slow down as his speed of perception increased dynamically, and he saw this time, what he'd missed last time - just an instant before the albino genin's fist hit Noboru's gut, a massive burst of chakra funneled out from her core, up through her chest, to her arm, down the length of it, and into her fist, exponentially increasing her striking power and causing the smallest of bulges to follow the path of chakra travel. The bone-jarring impact smashed into Noboru's gut, and Noboru vomited out blood as he flew back and hit the wall behind him. Miraculously, he recovered, shook his head clear of the stars, and with his all-seeing eye, he saw what was coming.

The smoldering Hyuga genin dislodged himself from the wall and fired off a Rotation as fast as he could. The chakra-cloaked Genin smashed her fist onto the chakra dome, it was violently deflected, but she learned from her last attack, and simply kept wailing on it for as long as Noboru could keep it up. Unfortunately for her, Noboru had at least somewhat planned for an assault on the rotating chakra dome, and called upon and old trick to send her flying away, and explosively forced out more chakra from his tenketsu, expanding the dome and sending the unprepared, enraged albino flying.

Noboru slowed down, not dazed, but winded. As Emi dislodged herself from the stadium wall, he flew through everything he knew to try and come up with a plan. Forcing her tenketsu to open like that not only should have been impossible, but should have essentially emptied her of her stores, with what Noboru estimated it would have taken. Yet, from what he saw with his Byakugan, it seemed like she wasn't losing chakra, but much the opposite, she was gaining more - and her cloak had so much excess that it was distending near her derriere, in the shape of a tail.

_Okay... How do I do this?_ Wondered the Hyuga child, as the enraged albino set back on her haunches, making ready to dash him again. _Her cloak can be disrupted by my rotation, and I can outpace her with my eight-trigrams technique... But her tenketsu don't stay closed, and this thunder technique Hibiki tells me she has, this bloodline of hers seems to eclipse it, and without the ability to remove her chakra from play entirely, I cannot force her to use that weapon._ Worse, he couldn't try to outlast her - her chakra stores were only deepening, whereas he'd used a quarter of his own by now.

In the stands, Dante's shoulders sagged, as he placed a hand on Hibiki's shoulder. "You've got to make it to the final round."

Hibiki was tempted to ask the Jonin why, but he was slowly reaching the same conclusion that Dante and Eiji had reached already.

_If she has this kind of strength, and this kind of chakra simply waiting to be used, that means she is more than strong enough to fight her way to the finals._ Thought the Hyuga, through his quickened breathing. _From what I've seen of the other genin here, they are smart, but not wise. Talented, but **not** powerful... There are no prodigies here, strong enough to fight and defeat her. Her ascendance to the final round is guaranteed, and her overall victory is a given... Even I cannot hope to match this kind of blood-given strength..._ His eyes narrowed as a plan formed in his head, a plan that hinged on one fact above all. _But there is one person in here who has the wits and the strength to go to the top. She relies on one plan and one alone, and relies on her strength and force of chakra to see her through... He plans for improvising better plans, and relies on his 'Murphy's Law'. I may not be able to make her use her weapon, but Hibiki can._ He swallowed deeply, though even though he knew that Hibiki was a good second, the Senju heir had placed his trust in _him,_ so he'd be damned if he wouldn't do his own damnedest to make sure that faith wasn't misplaced.

Noboru and Emi launched forwards, Emi made a wild swing for Noboru's face, Noboru ducked under the angry fist and sent both palms forward and into the girl's chest. The massive burst of chakra from his tenketsu disrupted the cloak and sent her stumbling backwards, but didn't break the barrier or injure her in any other way. Noboru, undeterred, improvised a new solution and sprinted forward; taking inspiration from Hibiki's Falcon Punch technique, he collected a great deal of chakra in each hand, and 'leeched' the chakra from his left into his right, but the similarities ended there. With concentration unheard of in the middle of combat, Noboru rotated his fist one hundred and eighty degrees. The momentum of his spinning fist, and the timely application of shape-transformation, began spinning all of the chakra to a point just in front of his fist, forming a blindingly-fast drill of pure chakra, which Noboru launched forward and into Emi's cloak.

There was a deafeningly loud grinding noise, like metal on metal on nails on a chalkboard, as Noboru's Rotating Drill technique clashed with Emi's chakra cloak. For two whole seconds, the two genin held their ground and struggled against their opponents, but then - amazingly - Noboru's technique won out and pierced the cloak, carving a deep gouge in her chest before the chakra dissipated and his technique died. Emi leapt back as her cloak regrew, and Noboru leapt back as he realized he'd done a Hibiki, and improvised a surprisingly effective, if _very chakra intensive,_ solution in the middle of combat.

Then, the wounds on Emi's chest began steaming, as if the blood and sweat itself was boiling, and before he even knew what he was seeing, the deep, previously gushing blood wounds healed before his and everyone else's eyes. In seconds, Emi was as good as new. Noboru sighed, though he was glad he'd identified her bloodline - a chakra cloak that protected her totally, multiplied her chakra stores, and healed her wounds totally. An enraged Emi screamed at the top of her lungs and braced herself for a fast, short-range sprint, but before Emi could fly forward, the Hyuga noble had his right hand in the air.

"I give in."

* * *

_A/N:_

_Now, I know that we blasted through two Chunin Exam fights in one chapter, and some may consider that pretty fast. _

_I am aware, and there is something of a reason for that - Naruto, like Dragonball Z, heavily abused cinematic time. From what I remember, there was nothing as infamous as Frieza's 'Five Minutes' in Naruto, but you could still see it if you looked closely.  
And, think about it like this, these aren't fights to the death, they are essentially high-stakes sparring matches... **And, **everyone is expecting to have more fights later on, so they're going all out from the beginning to end fights early, and have more strength/stamina to spend later. _

_And I know the Noboru/Emi fight's ending was a bit anti-climactic... Least, it felt that way for me, but I promise I'll make up for it soon. _


	19. Exam Season: Kikoho -VI-

Chapter 18

* * *

_**"WHAT?!"**_ Roared the Albino Genin, her voice unnaturally deep, thanks to all of the chakra funneling through her system. _**"YOU CAN'T DO THAT!"**_

"I just did." Noboru said with a straight face that hid the pain he was in, as her chakra cloak dissipated.

_**"UNDO IT!"**_ She was, in a word, livid. Despite the chakra cloak's dissipation, her eyes were still very different, all of the ambient chakra turning their sclera bright red, and her irides and pupils both as white as a Hyuga's.

"I cannot." Noboru egged her on, his all-seeing eyes stuck firmly on her weapons pouch, within which he saw the weapon described to him by Hibiki.

Emi was shaking with rage, breathing hard through her nose, _trying_ to calm herself down, but Noboru's efforts were bearing great fruit. "_**WHY?!"**_ She demanded, "_**I...** I know_ you have more fight in you. _Everyone_ knows!" She indicated the entire stadium.

"I do indeed have more fight in me. I have half of my chakra stores left for use. The problem, however, is that even if I used that chakra, I would lose. I would also likely be grievously injured, or even crippled. Therefor, the smart thing to do would be to surrender, and live to fight another day, as it were. I can always take the exam again next year."

"But... But _I _want to fight you _NOW!"_

"You _did_ fight me _now."_ Noboru smirked.

Emi roared in fury and threw several kunai, but before they even made it two meters away from her, several other knives hit them and sent them scattering to the ground. The burly Jonin stepped onto the field, clearing his throat. "The winner is Emi Miu of Iwagakure. The next match will begin. Don Shiro and Hibiki Senju, please enter the stadium." He called out, as Emi's sensei forced her out of the stadium, and medics escorted Noboru to the infirmary.

Hibiki leaned forward to hoist himself to his feet, but Dante placed his hand on his shoulder. "Hibiki." He said, deadly seriously. "You _have_ to win. This just got a lot bigger than you realized."

Hibiki turned to Dante, whose Sharingan eyes were blazing brightly. Out of the corner of Hibiki's own eye, he saw Don Shiro, the explosive kid he'd fought days ago, rushing to the stairs, ecstatic that he was going to be able to settle the score. "What do you mean?" Hibiki asked, his own Sharingan eyes slowly spinning into existence.

"Lady Mito has informed you as to _what she is..._ Yes?" Dante asked, none-too-subtly.

It slowly dawned on Hibiki what the man was saying, "oh... _Shit."_

Dante nodded, "I know you, Hibiki. You've got a lot of potential, more than anyone here... Except her. If you want your proof, you _need_ to make it to her, else the worst case will come to pass." The unclean Jonin let Hibiki go, "if you have anything up your sleeve... Do not hesitate to use it. You cannot draw these fights out, it will only help her."

Hibiki raised an eyebrow, and said, "alright." Before he stood up and made his way down to the arena.

* * *

With little fanfare, the burly Jonin called for the fight to begin. Don formed a soccerball-sized orb of explosive chakra, and before Hibiki could blink, he launched it forward. Hibiki had those precious extended seconds, thanks to his Sharingan eyes, to come up with a plan, and he grinned evilly when one popped into his mind. Taking a cue from Dragonball Z, Hibiki coated his arm with chakra and smacked the flying explosive blast into the ground in front of him. Immediately, a massive sandscreen covered the arena, and before anyone could blink, Hibiki's above-average chakra stores doubled, and were accompanied by a whispered declaration.

_"Multi-shadow-clone jutsu."_ And barely an instant later, Hibiki's chakra stores tanked straight back down to its regular levels. Before he had even left Konoha, Hibiki had spawned three shadow clones, and they all had specific instructions: Build chakra. Hibiki had essentially created three oil wells, with the intent of drawing from them if he ever got stuck in a bad spot and needed an oil change, or a new tank of gas, instantly, and in this situation, his doubled chakra stores provided him enough chakra to create one hundred and fifty shadow clones with enough chakra to perform a small handful of techniques; had he done this without the chakra from one of the clones in Konoha, he would have killed himself, but with that added chakra, he could afford to spend it.

With the smoke-screen still thick in the air, all of the clones vanished in a loud poof of chakra-made smoke, transforming into sand and blending in with the environment. Mere seconds later, as the sandscreen died down, it seemed as if Hibiki had done nothing but stand there, gloatingly. The clone inhaled deeply, and used the thinning sandscreen to his advantage. To him, to Don, and to the shinobi watching the fight, it was clear he was pulling something, but to the much more populous civilians, all they heard was the sudden screaming noise of lightning.

In the stands, Dante's face fell from serious, to bemusedly amused. "I... I don't think I meant _that..._ But okay!"

Eiji looked to Dante, "what is your Genin about to do?"

"Something I told him not to do... But technically told him to do anyway." Dante nodded down, the shadow of Hibiki was sprinting forward, and Don was assuming a defensive stance. "Can't wait to see what Iwa does with this."

_"Lightning Release -"_ Hibiki roared as he came within striking distance of Don, and dodged a wild, defensive swing from the boy, which left his gut wide open for attack. _"FALCON -"_ He smashed his right fist into his left hand, both of which were coated in all of the chakra the clone had available. As fast as he could, which was a blur to anyone without a dojutsu, Hibiki breached Don's defenses and smashed his fist into the boy's gut. _"PAAAAAAAWNCH!"_

Don, not having heard the name of the attack the first time he'd been on the receiving end, but knowing that something bad was coming, leapt back and to the side. This let him dodge the full-force of Hibiki's punch, but Hibiki hadn't aimed for the boy's face, he'd chosen the bigger target: His core. Hibiki caught the side of Don's gut, and his electrified, chakra-coated fist exploded in a shower of lightning and smoke. Don was sent spinning away, and Hibiki's fist snatched back from the recoil, stinging as if he'd just built up a lot of static electricity and touched a doorknob. Hibiki heard the 'thunk' that came from Don smacking into the wall, but he also knew that this kid was tough, and a glancing blow - even from an electrified Falcon Punch, which couldn't be more badass unless it was a _real_ one, with fire - wouldn't be enough to take him down.

_But..._ Hibiki thought, taking a look at his smoking knuckles, and then turning his head and his narrowed eyes to Don, his Sharingan letting him pierce the dying smokescreen as if it weren't even there. _Even so, all of that electricity running through his body... The explosion... The force of the blow... I might have ruptured a kidney, bruised his stomach... If I'm lucky, I might have cracked his spine or broken a rib... But I hit a lot of flesh and no bone, so there's room for error._ His eyes widened fully when he saw a bolt of explosive chakra flying towards him.

Acting on instinct, Hibiki dived out of the way. He landed on his hands and pivoted on them, before he launched himself into the air. Hibiki grew three kunai from his bones, and threw them all as hard as he could, as his momentum died and he started falling. Two ended up smashing into two more chakra blasts, showering the area in shockwaves and shrapnel, while the third kept flying and grazed the Iwa's cheek. Hibiki hit the ground and Iwa flew through the shockwave technique's handsigns again, unwittingly Giving Hibiki the key he needed to replicate it. Hibiki leapt out of the way of the exploding ground, and as he sommersaulted to an upright position, he gathered as much explosive chakra into his hands as he could, and then compressed it as tight as it would go, before he shot it out at the Iwa. He visualized, appropriately, a Dragonball Z energy blast, but he had no idea how they'd made them fly in the show, so what he did to do so was the same attraction/repulsion principal he'd learned with the leaf, that had led to the Falcon Punch. The golf-ball sized bolt of compressed explosive chakra flew out from his cupped hand as fast as an arrow from a compound bow the moment he was upright.

The Iwa couldn't dodge the chakra bolt, but Hibiki hadn't had the time to aim as properly as he would have otherwise, and as such instead of hitting his head or his chest, he hit the ground just a few inches from the feet. With the force of a bundle of hand grenades, the bolt exploded on impact - causing Hibiki to make a mental note to see if he couldn't make them air burst, otherwise he'd be losing a lot of explosive force to the ground. Don flew to the side, scratched and cut all over, but largely fine, once again _amazing_ Hibiki at how durable humans were in this new world. Hibiki took his advantage and dashed forward, firing off a few lightning-zap techniques at the airborne Genin, who couldn't dodge a single one.

_I need more fire techniques. Don't the Uchiha have a fireball technique? Mental Note - ask Fugaku._ Hibiki decided now was a good time to chance another Falcon Punch, and he collected the chakra required to do the technique.

The moment he got within range, he threw his first forward, and just as Don came a few feet above the ground, upside-down relevant to Hibiki, he unleashed all of the chakra he'd been gathering in his hands in one massive conical explosive wave. Hibiki's punch, greatly weakened by his more powerful explosion, still managed to smash into Don's chest, both Genin subsequently were sent flying back.

Before Hibiki even flew a foot away, he burst into smoke, the clone's last thoughts being, _Do not hesitate to use it._ Barely a second later, a new clone burst into existence, undoing his transformation and going from a grain of sand to a full-formed eight year old. Unwittingly, he created momentum by effectively multiplying his size several times and adding ninety nine percent of his mass back onto his body. Hibiki rolled with it, however, and added a spin to his upward leap, all of the clone's chakra streamed into his fist as he decided it was time to experiment a bit. He remembered, earlier, that Emi's chakra cloak seemed to stay largely rigid and the same, until just before she hit Noboru, when it blasted out in one massive burst, seeming to increase the force of her impact; now, Hibiki had a feeling that a lot of her strength came from her chakra itself, but he decided it wouldn't hurt to at least try it for himself, so in those few seconds he had before he smashed his fist into Don, he gathered all of his chakra within his core. With his Sharingan blazing to give him all of the time he could perceive, he knew exactly when he should send all of the gathered chakra into his fist.

The results of the impromptu experiment yielded wonderful, if briefly painful, results. His impact was comparable to a low-yield Falcon Punch, and it sent Don flying into the air with a pained yelp. The clone was near absolute-zero for its chakra, but it kept itself from dispelling so it could watch the Genin fall back down to the earth, so whichever of the clones he landed near could know to dispel themselves. When Don came just a few feet from the ground, the first clone popped, and a new clone sprouted from the ground, the memories from the first clone warning it to the brief upward leap that would occur. It spun around as fast as it could and, with its momentum, strength, and as big a burst of chakra as the previous clone, kicked Don as hard as it could in the gut, sending him flying towards another clone, who sprinted full-tilt torward the flying Genin, arm outstretched. Don, far too disoriented from the multiple kiloton punches, didn't even know what was happening as the third clone clothes-lined the Genin in the throat, sending him straight and fast into the ground.

The clone coated its hand in lightning-chakra, and latched its hand onto the Genin's face, shocking Don with thousands of full-strength volts of electricity. The clone kept this up for several seconds, before its chakra stores depleted and it popped, Don was unconscious, twitching as random arcs of electricity danced across his body.

A new Hibiki appeared from underneath the sand, buried, much like Akane had buried herself earlier. He shook the sand from his hair and brushed it off of his arms, and stopped to stare at Don's unconscious body for a moment. He inhaled as deeply as he could, and sighed it all out.

_"Fuck."_ The ground all around him exploded violently, bursting several disguised clones and sending sand and Hibiki flying into the air.

Don had pulled a Hibiki, and an Earth Clone with a substantial amount of chakra had been fighting in his place. As its last defiant act, the earth clone channeled all of its chakra into the ground and the resultant explosion had grievously injured Hibiki and had sent him flying into the air; the real Don shot out from the stands, so fast that he was able to tackle Hibiki in mid-air. Don smashed a chakra-coated fist into Hibiki's face before he threw the Konoha Genin to the ground, as he himself lost his momentum and began falling.

Hibiki hit the ground, his body was ripped to shreds and he was bleeding chakra _fast_ so his healing factor could keep up. _Ow... Okay... New plan._ Hibiki popped, revealing that the 'Hibiki' Don had just drawn his trump-card on had, in fact, been _another_ shadow clone.

Don, suitably, was angry, and when he shot to his feet, he shouted out, for Hibiki and for everyone else to hear, _"HOW MANY CLONES CAN YOU MAKE?!"_

With no noise and no poof of smoke, another Hibiki clone undid his transformation behind Don, while another popped into being in front of him.

The two stared at each other, as two more clones burst themselves to distribute their chakra to the fighters. The Hibiki in the light grinned evilly, "enough."

_"FALCON PAAAAAWNCH!"_ Triumphantly screamed the Hibiki clone behind Don, before its chakra-coated fist smashed into the small of Don's back, and the explosion of force sent him flying forward, where the second Hibiki raised an outstretched hand, and caught Don by the throat, skidding back a few inches in the sand thanks to the momentum of the flying child. Don immediately tried wrenching Hibiki's hands from his throat, but Hibiki had hardened his bones to the degree where his muscles were no longer capable of manipulating them, so not only were they indestructible, Hibiki literally had a steel grip.

Hibiki grinned, "I'm going to admit this right now... It wasn't my first choice. Hell, it wasn't even my second... But my first is one I want to learn how to do on my own, and the second I need a lot more practice doing before I'm willing to unveil it. So you'll just have to settle for the bronze medal." Hibiki shrugged, and added, apologetically, "sorry..."

And up in the stands, ironically not even six feet from where Don had been hiding, another Hibiki stood, Sharingan ablaze, and hands pressed together in a vaguely diamond shape, with his thumbs overlapping.

"Oh, by the way, I wouldn't be able to do this if it weren't for you, so thanks for that." The Hibiki in the arena smiled, and closed his eyes.

_"KIKO**HO!"**_ Roared the Hibiki in the stands, before a wave of raw, explosive chakra shot forth from his hands and smashed into the clone and the Iwa Genin, exploding far more violently than anything seen that day, and carving a deep crater in the ground.

After a few moments, the smoke cleared and revealed Don, who was on the ground, bleeding and unconscious, and the Hibiki clone, who was grievously injured and in many places his flesh and muscle had simply been shredded off, but his arm was extended and he was largely shielding the Iwa clone. The rules were, after all, that they couldn't kill each other, and Hibiki _really_ hadn't wanted to take a chance, especially since this was not only the first field-test of the technique he had shamelessly stolen from one of his favorite human characters from Dragonball, but it had been the first time he'd used it _ever._ The Hibiki in the stands had been watching the entire battle with his Sharingan active and copying _everything,_ the Iwa Genin with the explosion-release kekkei genkai had unwittingly taught Hibiki everything he'd needed to know about forming his own chakra blasts and attacks. His heart had initially been set on the Kamehameha, but watching the explosion release in action taught him that it just wasn't right for the technique, and while it might be good for a Big Bang Attack, he wanted to train with that first, before he really tried it out. So, out of options, Hibiki had gone for the 'bronze medal', as he'd said, and stolen the Tri-Beam.

_Anywhere else, and that would have been cheesy as hell._ Thought Hibiki, as he walked forward to the wall, stepped onto it, and skidded down it so he could take his place in the stadium. _Hell, that probably was cheesy as hell **anyways**... But it's not like anyone here has watched Dragonball Z, so I'm good._

The burly Jonin appeared in the stadium, and was kneeling down next to Don, green chakra coating his hands in what Hibiki recognized as the diagnosis technique. He kept it up for a few seconds, before the chakra faded. _"He is okay. He is not dead. The winner is - Hibiki Senju of Konoha!"_

And the crowd went wild.

Hibiki smiled, allowing himself a few moments of self-indulgence as he soaked it in. It was, after all, his first real victory against a shinobi from this new world. Any one of these people could have likely _conquered_ his world, they were practically gods, but here? The display shown by Hibiki and Don was almost exactly what was expected of two Genin - perhaps more, though Hibiki didn't really know that.

* * *

The next fight went underway as Hibiki slumped back into his chair, Suboro was on him like white on rice in a glass of milk on a paper plate in a snowstorm not a second later.

_"Hibiki! How did you do that?! Since when could you do that?! Can you show me?! Are you a clone?! What **WAS **that?!" _He shouted off in rapid-fire.

Hibiki grunted, with a shrug. "Hello, I don't know, for a few minutes, maybe, probably, it's called the Kikoho."

"Tri-beam." Said a bandaged Noboru, "an interesting name... But the only place I have seen an attack even remotely similar was from the opponent you just defeated."

Dante leaned forward, "you played a lot of cards in that fight." He noted, as he scanned the child of the Sannin over with his Sharingan and noted that his Chakra levels were far below where they should be. "What's your play?"

"I showed everyone here that I'm different." He said, stretching his arms and getting comfortable in his seat, as two children fought eachother in the stadium below. "The name Senju already holds a great deal of sway all over the world, but if you look closely, a lot of people here doubted whether or not an eight-year-old could live up to the family name. I just soundly defeated a Genin who possessed one of Iwagakure's most powerful bloodlines... By using one of my own to mimic it exactly."

"The Sharingan cannot mimic bloodlines..." Dante noted, slowly interlacing his fingers and leaning back, giving Eiji a look, which the skinny Jonin reciprocated with a shrug, as if to say that it wasn't his Genin, so why should he even know?

"Then that's another thing to talk to dear old mom about." Hibiki thought aloud, only half paying attention to the discussion and the battle, his mind was elsewhere - trying to come up to a solution to how he, with a five gallon tank of gas and only two spares, could outlast Emi, who had a twenty gallon tank and a thousand gallon spare. "But back to my point. I showed everyone here that I am powerful, and I have a great deal of varied ninjutsu at my disposal... As well as a mastery of one of my village's kinjutsu, and a massive chakra pool. If I fight again before my bout with Emi comes up, I'll be pleasantly surprised." He saw it like a game of chess, his opening moves were a massive blitz against his opponents' pawns with his queen, his rooks, and his bishops, while he kept his knights and his pawns back to protect his king. He was displaying power, whilst keeping a sizable backup to get him out of a tight spot if the need arose. "So, Dante-sensei, do you have any advice?" Hibiki asked, "anything you can clue us in to, that we haven't already seen?" He asked, his voice briefly overpowered by a clap of thunder from the battlefield below.

"On The Iwa Genin?" Dante asked, to Hibiki's affirmative. Dante shrugged, "I have to admit, Hibiki, while I fought in the last war, I only ever fought one of... Her 'relatives'." He said cryptically, "and he remains to this day the most powerful opponent I've ever fought in my life. He was the reason I got sent to indefinite recovery leave - he shattered all of my bones, ruptured my stomach, nearly shredded my lungs, pierced my heart, pulverized my ribs, cracked my skull in more places than I could count, and he almost tore out my eyes. And we hadn't even fought for three minutes."

Hibiki blinked, and looked back at Dante, who wore a nonchalant look, betrayed by his onyx eyes. "How the _fuck_ did you survive that?" He asked, slipping into his native language briefly for purposes of the profane.

Dante grinned solemnly, "eh... One of these eyes aren't mine." He said, itching his unkempt scalp. "In our clan - or, well, my clan, yours by bloodline - there exists an impossibly forbidden kinjutsu. I won't go into detail about it here, but suffice to say using it can allow you to cheat death, but it burns out one of your eyes permanently. I used that technique and another, still forbidden but less so, to put the man in a position where he could either kill me and die, or spare me and live. Needless to say, he chose the latter, and I had to use a donor to get a new eye."

Hibiki sighed, "sounds like there's a lot more story behind that."

Dante chuckled, "there is. But you're nowhere near skilled enough in your Sharingan to start looking into those techniques, so for now, stick to the basics. Once you've matured a bit more, I'll start teaching you the fun stuff. _But,_ that being said, my best advice for you is to try and suppress her chakra, or steal it entirely." He explained, "it's easier said than done - I myself was only able to live because I knew a very... Unique, is a word, way of suppressing it, that you don't have access to yet - but it can be done." Said Dante, "other than that, try not to get hit... And if you have to get hit, try not to let _yourself_ get hit, I know your tricks Hibiki, I can tell." He smiled widely.

"You can't tell when we're training." Suboro said, turning around to look at Dante with an evil grin.

"Uh, well, I was... Going easy on you!" Said Dante, with a straight face that told everyone he was looking at that he was lying, and he really had been tricked by a Genin during a training exercise. "Have to build up your confidence, you see."

Dai was staring at the three with a look of disbelief, "how do you four ever get anything done if you just sit there and bicker all of the time?" She asked.

Hibiki turned to her with a grin, "we _don't,_ that's part of our charm, quit fucking it up." He, Dante and Suboro laughed, Noboru smiled.

* * *

Time passed agonizingly slowly for Hibiki, but astonishingly quickly for those of the Genin that weren't hastily trying to add a new tool, that they wouldn't be able to test until it was past the point of no return, to their arsenal. The first fight after Hibiki's ended with a double knockout, the second with a surrender after one of the fighters' arms had been broken, and the third had been rather lengthy - two genjutsu fighters trying to one-up eachother for nearly an hour - and the fourth had been settled after the first fighter had sliced the hell out of the second with a wind technique, and the loser had been forced to capitulate so he wouldn't bleed out on the stage.

Before they knew it, it was Suboro's turn.

_"The next match will now begin. Suboro Nill and Daichi Ayumu please enter the arena."_ Called the burly Jonin.

"Suboro, it's not too late to back out now and skip this fight." Hibiki grinned.

"Your opponent looks rather tough, perhaps you should sit this one out." Noboru egged him on.

Suboro growled, clenched his fist in front of his chest and leapt to his feet. "I'll show you! Just you watch me beat this guy!" He said, before he leapt from the stands and down to the arena.

Hibiki blinked, "uh..." He said, "that's a ten meter drop." Not a second after he finished speaking, Suboro figured this out, and started started flailing about in the air as he fell, barely managing to somersault to safety upon landing.

He skidded to a halt in front of his opponent, and not a second later the burly Jonin called out for the fight to begin. Hibiki was thoroughly impressed when the bald genjutsu-specialist managed to dodge the foot that would have cracked his skull had it not moved. Suboro flipped around on his hand like a break-dancer, and launched himself into the air from his spinning handstand, dodging another hit. While he flipped through the air, he flew through several handsigns and cast a custom-made genjutsu that Hibiki was familiar with.

Suboro clapped his hands together, _"vertigo!" _He thrust both palms forward, and immediately Daichi's chakra went into a state of flux as his world began spinning.

Daichi tried to keep his balance as everything shook, twisted, and heaved under his feet. The tan-skinned Genin was valiantly holding back vomit, but he fell to his face after a few moments. Suboro landed on the ground and flew through another technique, this one made the tan-skinned Genin experience a sudden, massive bottomless pit forming in the sand beneath him. The Genin screamed in fear as vertigo combined with a sense that he was falling, and Suboro stood up straight, not a single bad of sweat on him as it became clear he was winning.

The Genin tried launching a technique to get him out of his 'freefall', but with his chakra sent into flux and his sense of balance thoroughly destroyed, he couldn't concentrate long enough on anything. He condensed his chakra and pulsed it out of his coils in a characteristic dispelling technique, perhaps out of fear or desperation that this was all just a dream. Fortunately for him, that killed the bottomless pit, but it did absolutely nothing against the Vertigo technique. Even Hibiki's Sharingan did little against the Vertigo technique - he saw straight through it, but he had trouble walking whenever it was cast on him, like the liquid in his inner ear, that told him whether or not he was falling, was always screaming at him that despite what his eyes told him, he was falling and twisting and turning and he needed to do something about it. The Vertigo technique had been what convinced Dante to teach him almost exclusively in Genjutsu, because some _masters_ couldn't make something that so thoroughly trumped a Sharingan.

Now at least suspecting that his opponent was a genjutsu specialist, Daichi tried dispelling himself again, and again, and again, but nothing got rid of the vertigo, so he instead tried to brave it and forced himself to his feet. He grimaced tightly, focusing on Suboro desperately wanted to gloat, but was actually taking a leaf out of Hibiki's pragmatism - who himself had taken the entire concept from the Evil Overlord's checklist. Hibiki hadn't had the thing memorized entirely, but a lot of what it said he took to heart - especially now that he was in a situation where a lot of the rules applied. Like, in this instance, rule number six: I will not gloat over my enemies' predicament before killing them. The goal here wasn't to kill, of course, but it still applied.

Daichi concentrated hard and ran through handseals for a wind technique - unwittingly giving Hibiki more ammunition for future battles, not like Hibiki was going to reveal that, though. The blast of wind sailed forth like a vertical scythe, and Suboro dodged it easily, but got a few scratches for his efforts. Suboro flipped once and landed on the ground before he flew through some more handsigns and ripped out a few kunai and threw them at Daichi, who didn't simply see three kunai, but rather hundreds - thousands, even - all flying at him. He clenched his fists and scowled deeply, convinced that all but one were illusions, and instead of guarding against the attack, he leapt right into it.

Suboro hadn't anticipated that, and though it took some chakra to do, he managed to change the illusion a bit and instead of the kunai simply passing straight through him, he made it so that each and every one of the phantom kunai that pierced him felt real and drew as much blood as the one real knife that pierced his thigh. Of course, everyone only saw the fight from the outsider's perspective, so they saw only the three knives and the weirdly acting Suna Genin; some were starting to boo them both.

Suboro started breathing heavily, the only genjutsu he had that didn't constantly spend chakra to stay up was the vertigo, all of the other ones took a great deal to keep up, and even more to change, as was the case with the last one. He needed to end this fight now, if he wanted to be in any condition to fight again, later.

_I guess I'll have to try it out, then._ Thought the Genin, as he called to mind those warm feelings in his blood he got as he crafted genjutsu on the spot. He'd been saving this one both for a rainy day - or a really bad fight - or for Team Six's next 'no-holds-barred' sparring match, so he could teach Hibiki and Noboru a thing or two. While it took a little focus to start up the Vertigo technique, and a little more to switch it off, his 'mold' technique - better name pending - tapped into his mind on an almost constant level, and was supposed to be as hard to break as Vertigo. This technique, by tapping into his very mind, called to reality everything he thought, but it required an anchor, else it would just dissipate, so he'd experimented with many anchors - paintings, kunai, seals, even a few swords - but had ended up, quite accidentally, figuring out that the best anchor for his technique would be he himself.

Suboro braced both feet behind him as Daichi tried to get to his feet and start his counter attack. He clasped both hands together in tight fists, and chakra started flowing through his body like a raging river, snapping out with thin tendrils and spreading into the air. He clenched his eyes tightly, and when he opened them, the Genjutsu was cast, and Daichi fell straight into it. Before Daichi even realized what was happening, he was surrounded on all sides by horrifying dog-like creatures. Some seemed to be made of a thick, dripping, tar-like substance, some were skinned alive, some were on fire and clearly in pain, but they all had blood-lusted, dark red eyes, and all of them were staring longingly at him, baring their teeth and growling deeply. Worse than that, the ground around him was falling apart into a massive ravine, the stadium itself was rotting away like fleshy rock, and two islands were the only respite in the massive fissure, his and Suboro's. Terrifyingly, at the bottom of the ravine were creatures that had no detail - they were man-shaped beings with no color, no voice, no blood, no anything, and despite their blandness, their very being set Daichi on edge, they terrified him, they emanated so much _cannot be,_ so much _should not be,_ so much malice and hate, they clawed their way into the boy's very mind and sat there, chilling him to the bone and horrifying him to the core.

That's when he heard the screams. The unending shrieks of the damned, they pierced his skull, and when he tried to cover his ears, they only grew louder. It was as if the entire world was in pain and was begging him and him alone to help, to end the pain, to make them better, to save them.

Outside of the illusion, protected by the barrier techniques and, cases permitting, dojutsu, the two Jonin from Konoha exchanged glances, silently having entire conversations in the span of just a brief moment. They looked back down to the arena, where the boy was trying to keep his balance, and trying not to fall off of the platform, or into the waiting dogs.

Suboro's muscles were clenching, and a vein was popping in his forehead. Something was wrong, he could feel it - it was as if something was trying to wrest control of his own technique from him. He concentrated hard and managed to overpower this presence, but it took all of his willpower to do so. He had to scare his opponent into thinking that they would die if they didn't capitulate, so he conjured up the most horrifying things he could think of before he made his demand. _"**SUBMIT!"**_ He yelled, his voice booming over the cries of the damned and the barks of the hellhounds.

The Suna-Genin was trying to dispell the technique, but every time he tried, it only got worse. The first time he tried, the blue sky shattered in two, and demons flew in from the broken cracks in the sky itself, invading the world and killing everyone they found. The second time he tried, the horizon disappeared under the advance of endless hordes of monsters, all calling out for his blood and all moving as fast as they could, leaving rivers of blood dripping off of their bodies.

_It's just a genjutsu!_ Thought the boy, as he powered through the illusions and took a step forward.

That would be the straw that broke the camel's back, as with that footstep the dogs were released and they all leapt forward. Two tar-dogs and two flaming hellhounds grabbed his limbs in their maws and held him aloft, their sharp teeth grinding into his legs and his wrists. Outside of the illusion, the Genin was on the ground, and wounds were opening up on his immobilized legs.

Someone in the crowd noticed this, and started calling for a cessation, as something was either wrong, or Konoha was going too far. Soon, a majority of the civilians were shouting out, screaming, begging for the fight to be halted, especially as his hands started showing signs of being burned.

In the ninja's stands, Eiji turned to Dante, who had both hands on the arms of his seat, he was about to step in and stop things before they got too out of hand.

Inside the illusion, things were only getting worse. A titanic creature of immeasurable size emerged from the ravine, and in his hands was a massive butcher's knife, easily as long as its own body - which made it hundreds of times larger than the boy himself. Its face was covered by a seamless, ovular porcelain mask with rectangular black holes for eyes and no mouth. It looked down upon Daichi, and Daichi truly wet himself as he realized what it was about to do.

Fight be damned, genjutsu or not, Daichi was scared, and he just wanted this to end, he opened his mouth, but one of the colorless, void creatures from below suddenly grew from the ground beneath him and wrapped its bony arms around his neck, cutting off the airflow, and clenched a hand over his face, ceasing his ability to speak.

Suboro blinked, he didn't do that. What was going on? He had to stop this, he cut the chakra flow to the illusion, but that made him black out. His eyes rolled into the back of his head, but he didn't fall unconscious, much the opposite, something far more sinister took his place, as the Executioner lifted his butcher's blade.

_"Dante!"_ Eiji had no more than finished his call than did Dante vanish from his seat and appear in the ring.

In less than a second he had his hands on Suboro's temples, he forced Suboro's eyes open and saw the bloodshot orbs limply staring upwards, the boy was out cold but he was still casting the technique. Dante had little time, and he had fewer options, so in just a second, his sharingan eyes flared into existence, and morphed into a different shape, one of a flower made of several interlacing circles. Before anyone could blink, all of Suboro's chakra tanked to its bare-minimum level for sustaining life, the illusion vanished, and Daichi fell unconscious. Almost instantly, the Burly Jonin was in front of Dante, who held a limp Suboro in his arms, and whose eyes were bleeding from the tear ducts. His Sharingan quickly morphed back into his tough onyx eyes, and the smell of mints slowly faded away.

"You've disqualified your Genin." The Burly Jonin stated, as if he didn't even care about the bleeding and burned Genin from his own country, not ten feet away.

Dante, who felt the lethargic pull that came with the use of those techniques, kept up the fierce look on his face, not backing down an inch, despite the fact that, as he was now, he may very well lose a fight against this man. "There were special circumstances at play." Said the unwashed Uchiha.

"You were made aware of the rules of this exam."

"He was going to kill him."

"He would not have, lest he be disqualified."

Dante bit his tongue on that one, but huffed as he took a split second to come up with a different response. "I forfeit in my Genin's place, and yours is unable to fight any longer. This is a draw."

"I do not think Daichi's Jonin would agree..." Said the Burly Jonin, as another Jonin, this one covered in thick desert-gear, appeared on the stage, practically sweating killing intent. A single hand from the Burly Jonin froze him in his tracks, and he instead picked up his own Genin and rushed him to the hospital. The Jonin looked back to Dante, "tread lightly... Demon Dante. This has made you many enemies more than you made in the war." He performed his voice technique, _**"this battle is a draw."**_ He walked past Dante, purposefully bumping into him as he went. _**"The next match will now begin. Dai Aburame and Tsuga Taco, please enter the stage."**_ He roared out, after Dante disappeared in a puff of smoke.

Hibiki looked to Noboru, who looked as confused as he did. "The fuck was that?" Hibiki asked.

"I do not know... Come, let us check on Suboro." The Hyuga noble stood up, grimacing as he irritated his burns and his injuries, but he powered through it and the two of them made their way to the hospital, as Dai made her way to the arena.


	20. Exam Season: Mind over Matter -VII-

Chapter 19

* * *

Dante Uchiha sat in the Konoha section of Suna Stadium's medical ward, staring intently at the unconscious body of his Genin, countless scenarios and reasons running through his head. He wanted to avoid the truth on this one, but he knew he couldn't, and that the reality was he really had picked up an orphan out of _that_ clan. A lot of things about this kid made sense, now, though there was one thing plaguing Dante's mind that he couldn't answer, especially not without knowing his parents, which was doubly impossible.

Dante's ear twitched, and just a second later he heard a familiar set footsteps. Soon entered Dante's other intrepid Genin, both of whom almost immediately started softly interrogating their sensei.

"Dante-sensei... What the fuck?" Or, not-so-softly, in the case of the Senju clan's heir. "Unless I'm mistaken, Suboro was winning."

"Indeed." Said Noboru, as he strode over to Suboro and felt his head, which wasn't warm. "Even with out other goals, I thought the point of this exam was to show what we were capable of?" He questioned, as Hibiki sat on the bed to Suboro's right, and he stood to Suboro's left.

Dante sighed, "do you two know why we assign some orphans the name 'Nil' and some keep their family names?" He asked, to the surprise of the both of the Genin. "Because some orphans are just... Left, anonymously. No parents to donate their names. So the foster parents give the children their given names, and their last names are 'Nil', nothing. No family name, because they have no family." He explained, "obviously, that makes it very difficult to determine from what families orphans hail from. Sometimes, as is the case with Uchiha and Hyuga clan orphans, they are easier to identify than others, and they can keep their family-names, but other clans are less lucky, and they require the resurgence of a bloodline to identify."

Noboru blinked, and activated his Byakugan. "He has a bloodline?" He asked, "I see nothing."

"His clan has a very... _Specific..._ Bloodline, and I'm not surprised you don't see it." Dante explained, "what do you two know of the Kurama clan?"

Nothing from either of the Genin.

Dante shrugged, "I'm not surprised. The Kurama clan used to be a noble one, and at one point had been considered more powerful than even the Uchiha, thanks to their bloodline. The long and short of it is that they can craft genjutsu on the spot, and their genjutsu are so powerful, so realistic, that they fool their target's brain into thinking that it is _reality,_ and as such their bodies take on any injuries accrued in the illusion."

_There was so much bullshit in that statement it hurt._ Thought Hibiki. "So... You're saying that Suboro can make up a genjutsu where his target gets stabbed... And despite the fact that it's an illusion, his target's mind _makes_ it real?" _Like the Matrix, but without Keanu Reeves. _Hibiki blinked, and suppressed a grin. _Holy shit, the Matrix! I haven't thought about that movie in forever... Damn, I miss TV._

"Yes." Said Dante.

_Oh, okay, sure. So, in this world, our minds have the ability to... What, open up wounds because they think they're being stabbed? Perception is Reality? I'm calling bullshit, but I don't know jack diddly about this bloodline, so I've got to go with what this one says. _Hibiki nodded, "okay."

Dante nodded, "the problem, however, is that few Kurama have the ability to fully control this power, and as such they unconsciously regulate it, and this has led to them creating a very extreme case of split personality disorder." He explained, "to the point where this second personality takes over completely, and goes on a slaughter spree, trapping everyone around him in an inescapable illusion, where the only conclusion is their death."

Hibiki caught on with a sigh, as his head slowly slumped forward. "You don't know whether or not it's Suboro sitting there, or his..." He thought a moment, "executioner." He shrugged.

Dante nodded, "myself and Eiji have fought with, and against, Kurama clansmen before, but that was when we were children, during the very beginning of the war. We haven't had to deal with any Kurama bloodlines since, because they've become... Well, extremely rare, ever since their arrogance led them to alienate anyone who bred outside of the clan and 'dirtied' their bloodline."

Noboru's face twisted into a disgusted look, "they _inbreed?!"_ He couldn't help but shout out.

Dante nodded again, "this made their bloodline go from one every few children, to one every few _generations._ Suboro here is a rarity, and it is likely that it is because one of his parents was from outside of the clan, and donated 'fresh' blood to his genes. So while Suboro is a halfbreed Kurama, the fresh blood vitalized his clan blood and awakened his bloodline. The only answer I cannot grasp is why he did not go insane when he was a child, as Kurama bloodlines commonly manifest alongside chakra."

"Uh... Shouldn't we be worried that Suboro will wake up, and it'll be the Executioner listening to us?" Hibiki asked, "I mean... We're all kind of... Immune, to what he can do... But still."

Dante shook his head, "Suboro will be unconscious for quite some time. I used one of my most powerful Sharingan techniques to enter his mind, leech his chakra, and knock him out." Saying this, Dante rubbed at his bloody eyes for the umpteenth time this conversation.

"You alright, Sensei?" Hibiki asked.

"Hm." Dante nodded, "using those kinds of techniques takes a great deal out of me, and puts an even greater strain on my eyes." He shook his head clear of the fuzz that was growing in it, and added on, "I pray that I never have to teach you how to use these techniques, but in the lives we live, that may be an eventuality." He nodded to Hibiki, who blinked in confusion and innocence. Dante shook his head, "regardless, this problem with Suboro is an issue we cannot solve here in Sunagakure. We must wait until we return home and can speak to the Kurama clan's head and learn what he knows."

"Are we sure it's the best idea to tell a clan of arrogant inbreeders who can kill people with their minds... That we have someone from their clan, who can kill people with his mind... Who has fresh DNA for them to breed?" Hibiki asked, to which he got stares from Dante and Noboru. "What?" He looked from Dante to Noboru, "_what?!"_

"What is DN-" Dante was interrupted by Dai being escorted in by a medic; her arm was horribly broken, but otherwise it didn't seem like she'd taken too much damage.

"Jesus fuck... You okay, Dai?" Hibiki asked, as the Medic's hands glowed green and the arm was forced back into position so it could heal properly.

"I am -ergh." She grunted as her arm was set, "fine. My opponent merely caught me by surprise... I did not expect her to be able to operate so efficiently without her chakra." She bit through the pain and managed to force up a grin, "but, I did manage to steal victory." She said, as her bones were knitted and her bruised flesh stopped swelling. "We've a few fights until Aoi's, and then the next rounds should begin." The medic stood up and examined her healed arm, cleared her for her next match, and left the room without further delay, muttering something about having to deal with a Genin with dog-bites. "So why was Suboro pulled from the match?" Dai asked bluntly.

"He's got a bloodline he didn't know about that can kill people with genjutsu." Hibiki summarized.

Dai nodded, "oh." That made enough sense, she supposed. "Is that good or bad?" She looked at the three of them in turn, Hibiki shrugged, Noboru stayed silent as he stared ponderously at the floor, and Dante didn't even budge; the conversation was clearly over.

After a few minutes of silence, Dante bade the three Genin to leave, he'd stick back and keep an eye on Suboro.

* * *

They came in the middle of some random pairing of Genin's fight together. Aoi looked nervous, sitting in her chair, and Akane was trying to console her. Hibiki sat down and shrugged his shoulders, feeling the pull of chakra exhaustion; Dai noticed.

"Are you tired?" She asked, her tone suggesting that she didn't believe that the boy was as tired as his posture suggested, given how fast his fight had gone, and the fact that he'd been able to go for hours at a time during training.

"Hm." Hibiki grunted, but he leaned forward and watched the fights nonetheless.

"Why don't you sleep?" Dai inquired, brushing some hair from her face and drawing her hood. "Your next fight is not for a few hours."

"I'm thinking." Said Hibiki, "and I'm already sleeping." He nodded down to the stadium. "The energy I make up from about a hundred naps will be more than enough to make up for the energy I'm spending here." Hibiki shrugged his shoulders and flipped on his Sharingan.

"What are you thinking about?" Dai asked, knowing that his 'already sleeping' comment was in reference to a plan already in motion, and she decided that she didn't want that spoiled for her.

"How to piss off Emi before we fight." Hibiki said, leaning back and angling his head towards her, that way he could speak quietly and not have her need to strain to hear him. "Remember her fight with Noboru. She was pissed, and she basically started burning through her chakra." Like a car from Back Home that got two miles to the gallon. "Her... Special circumstances mean she has more than enough to replace it, but remember that that extra pool isn't necessarily _hers._ Her roommate, so to speak, might get pissed if she keeps burning through his rent and demanding more. So the way I see it, if I piss her off now, she'll burn through that extra chakra to finish her fights before me at a faster rate. Then, when she gets to me, she'll be in something of a bad spot, might have to burn through her own chakra to keep fighting." He explained, "and I have... Something... Of an idea to fix the other problem, but I don't know if it will work." He was somewhat good at improvising seals, so if he could make a vacuum seal that sucked up all of her Tailed Beast's chakra, he could stun her to the point that she'd get desperate, and whip out her gun to try and end things.

"What if your plans do not work?" Dai asked, "you know what will happen..."

Hibiki grinned, "a wise man once said 'don't ask questions you don't want to know the answer to.'." Said Hibiki, "I've got one final backup plan." He had his two trump cards, and his end-all 'last resort' weapon; he knew that the locals called it something different, but he knew what it really was, and it made him wonder how many things in his new universe he could rip from Dragonball, and how far it would take him. After all, if he could win a fight against an arguably more skilled opponent with a Tri-beam proxy, what could - or perhaps the better word was 'couldn't' - he do with a proxy for Kaio-ken?

"And this backup will work?" He heard Eiji ask from behind them.

Hibiki turned around, looked Eiji in the eyes, and shrugged. "Probably." He said with an innocent look. "I know what's at stake, so you won't find me holding anything back." That being said, he wouldn't be using his own gun period, that would defeat the entire purpose of making Emi whip hers out and show everybody, and would put one hundred percent of the suspicion of murder on him.

* * *

Hours passed, and eventually they made it to Aoi's fight. As much as Hibiki wanted to watch her fight, however, he had a plan to lay. He'd decided that the best way to piss Emi off was to do exactly what Noboru had done to earn her ire in the first place: a dirty bomb. Unfortunately for him, he didn't have a scroll filled with shit-stained laundry, but he did have shadow clones and the transformation technique. A bit of chakra later, and there stood a perfect replica of a random John Doe Sunagakure, with a scroll of Hibiki's making in his hands. There wasn't any seal on it, but rather an antagonistic letter.

Hibiki nodded to the clone, and the clone was off. Hibiki knew that Eiji's eyes were on it as it left the arena and followed Emi, who looked to be on her way to the little jinchuriki's room. Eiji leaned forward, "what's your play?" He asked.

Hibiki grinned; he hadn't been known as the class clown in highschool and college for nothing. "Dear Iwalady." He recited from memory, as the clone took the scenic rout to find Emi. "I regret to inform you that you didn't beat your opponent, as the nobleman of the Hyuga clan of Konohagakure was not the one who decided to stuff ten pounds of shit into a five pound seal." He spoke, as the clone found the restroom and, with a brief flicker of his Sharingan, confirmed from the ambient chakra that the girl had walked in there; he waited. "You see, it was I who made that plan, and I told him to give that scroll to anyone who demanded one of ours. I admit I was surprised to see you fell for that trap hook-line and sinker, but to be honest, given the skill level of your team, I can't be too surprised. After all, the sparky-sparky-boom kid went down like a sack of potatoes." He said, as the clone heard a toilet flush; he leaned against the wall nonchalantly. "And your other teammate got his ass kicked by an illusionist, and given that you couldn't technically beat the Hyuga, I'm not impressed. Mildly surprised, but thoroughly unimpressed.

"Anyways." He said, as the albino exited the room and noticed the 'Suna' ninja laying on the wall; she demanded what he wanted with her. "Given that we seem to be the only two Genin of comparable skill level in this tournament, I cannot wait to see what you have hidden up your sleeve. I pray for both our sakes that it isn't more of my shit, because I think it would be even more disgusting going in than it would coming out. We will likely see eachother again for the final match, and make no mistake about it, what I showed during the fight against your teammate is not at all the limit of what I can do." There was a reason, after all, that he considered Terrans - that is to say, Humans from Back Home - generally more intelligent than the Humans from the New Hotness, prodigies notwithstanding. "Yours sincerely..." Emi lowered the scroll as she read from it, her eyes slowly morphing into a state not seen since her fight with Noboru, as rage and embarrassment radiated off of her in visible waves. "Hibiki Senju."

Eiji, Dai, Akane, and Noboru, were all dead silent. Despite the fight going on with Aoi below, and Kyo's feral growls and barks, one could have heard a pin drop.

_Or... As the case may be... A Mic._ Hibiki grinned.

"You did _not..."_ Said Noboru, jaw slackened from shock.

"Hibiki, insulting... A person like Emi is suicidal."

"One would consider assassinating a Kage to be the same." Said Hibiki with a shrug.

"Oh Kami you did." Noboru's usually squared shoulders slumped as his white eyes widened, "do you have a deathwish, Hibiki?"

Hibiki shrugged. _I've got to say, people should stop fearing death. I tried it, and look at what happened to me: I'm back and I'm kicking ass in a world with magic, wizard, ninjas. I've got so many bloodlines that would could make the argument that I was meant to be a super-soldier among superhumans. Death is overrated._ "She won't kill me." He said, rubbing his knuckles and alluding to his bone-release and the related healing factor.

"Do you have a plan for _that?"_ Dai asked, incredulously.

"No, but I get the feeling some day I will." Dante's cryptic words about his Uchiha-bloodline resonated as he said that.

"Hibiki, you're worrying me." Said Noboru, "are you alright?"

Hibiki snorted, "no, I just realized that I very plainly insulted a titan amongst giants. But, knowing that I'm not entirely out to _win_ the fight that will follow helps..." Hibiki looked at Noboru, and saw over his shoulders an irate Emi being physically held back by her conscious teammate and her sensei. "That doesn't look -"

_"The eighteenth match is over."_ Called the burly Jonin, attracting everyone's attention.

"I just realized something... Me, Dai, Akane..."

_"The victor is Aoi Inuzuka."_

"And Aoi. Four Konoha in a semi-final elimination-style tourney with... Five fights of two people." Hibiki leaned forward, "we may very well be fighting each other at some point." He chuckled, as Aoi and her injured warhound were escorted from the arena, while the unconscious, mauled Genin had emergency first-aid performed so he could properly be moved.

_"Combatants, listen up." _The burly jonin called out, silencing the cheering crowd and somewhat calming anxious Genin. _"There are ten remaining fighters. Their names are... Akane Hyuga. Zetsan Han. Talo Zorn. Nagi Heyfir. Emi Miu. Hibiki Senju. Dai Aburame. Aoi Inuzuka. Metaru Han. And the genin who did not fight, Zeke Santo. There will be no randomized drawing. As I said your names so will be the order in which you fight." _He yelled out, _"there will be no delay. Akane Hyuga and Zetsan Han please enter the arena."_

Hibiki had stopped listening after his last declaration, though; his face was visibly paled. "Uh... Please tell me I'm fighting Dai." Everyone shook their head, Akane even apologized as she strode past on her way to the arena. "Well... Fuck." This was like if God and Satan entered a martial arts tournament, and got to fight each other right off the bat. It allowed for a faster plot resolution, but _no fucking prep-time._ _"If there's a god... He hates me."_ Quietly blasphemed Hibiki in English.

Noboru, for his part, repressed a grin. "So... About the sanity of that challenge."

"Noboru."

"Yes?"

"If I survive this... I'm going to break your arm." The problem was, however, how in the hell he would survive in the first place.

Eiji didn't make things better. "Think of it this way, Hibiki-kun." He said in a fake cheerful tone, "now you don't have to reveal any more cards to your opponent." He offered a false smile that Hibiki didn't even see, let alone register.

"Yeah..." Said Hibiki, as he sank low in his chair. "Wake me up when it's time for me to fight." He said blankly, as reality slowly dawned on him, and a question formed on his mind.

_Did I just challenge god-Frieza to a fight, and get Satan himself to accept it for me?_

* * *

"Did he... Did he just fall asleep?" Dai Aburame blinked, not believing her lensed eyes.

The eight-year-old heir's teammate nodded, as he reached over and felt Hibiki's head. "I think he made a rash decision and was only just realizing it." He guessed, "as long as I have known him... He's been somewhat serious. As if plagued by thoughts he cannot share. Certainly, he makes humor, but he never... Did that... Went that far." He sat back in his chair, as the fight below went underway.

Eiji leaned forward, his voice low and his pale sunken skin hidden in unnatural shadows. "I think it is the stress." Said the man, in his typially blank, emotionless tone. "I mean... We know what is at stake, and we know that, of those of us in the position to do anything, he is the only one truly able to bring a force to bear upon the problem. Perhaps he's been neglecting the realization of that fact, and the local Jonin's announcement sort of..." He paused and looked down at the slumped-over Genin he was looming over. "Caught up to him." He settled upon, before leaning back.

Noboru sighed, "sometimes I forget we are all children playing an adult's game." He said listlessly.

"Like it or not, Noboru, you ceased being a child when you donned that headband." Said Eiji, as he fingered his own.

Dai leaned back, "so... What happens if he fails?" She asked, "is that it? We go through with plan B?" Invading Sunagakure in a massive surprise attack and potentially starting a third world war?

"Unfortunately so. But Hibiki doesn't strike me as a boy who would let something like that happen. Though it may come to it, I think the 'last resort' he spoke of will be the key in deciding whether or not we go through with Plan A, or Plan B." Eiji shrugged his skinny shoulders, "for now, I say enjoy the fights, and get your rest when you can, as he is. You may find it being a long time until you get any more."

* * *

The world in front of him was jet black, with brief splotches of white lighting up periodically; behind him was a field of light, and he stood in the center, in the solitary gray line that divided past, present, and future. Behind him, the light represented what he knew, and when he looked to the field of light he heard the sounds of cities, felt the textures of technology, remembered the feeling of knowledge and understanding. He also felt an incomparable wonder towards the sky above, as opposed to the unparallelled confusion towards the dirt below.

He looked down, at the gray line, the two meter wide and endlessly long field of gray grass that blew in an invisible, inaudible wind. Here there was only confusion, and a desparity for understanding where there could truly be none. Brief snippets of understanding here and there were overshadowed by titanic monsters of confusion, but underlying it all was power. Power from the confusion, power from the understanding, power from the past, power from the present, and power from the future, it all gave different feelings. The power of the past felt synthetic, impersonal, fake, yet commanding, daring, to the point, and piercing, like what it lacked in majesty it made up for with awe-inspiring feats once considered to be the realm of impossibility. The power of the present felt vast and untapped, begging to be understood yet screaming to not be studied for the secrets it held were not for mortal men, it held secrets that promised more strength and sang sweet songs of equal parts death and rebirth. The power of the future felt illimitable and unfeasible, almost godlike, yet within reaching distance, ripe for the taking, as if deity-hood was a challenge to be accepted and not a dream to admire. In the present was the odd mixture of the three concepts of power, past, present, and future, mixing and melding with perfection, the past cementing the present and the present granting the future; it was intoxicating, but to a mind unused to such things, it was terrifying - underlying everything was a sense of sheer terror, the fear of the unknown, the fear of the unknowable.

To the front lay the unending black field of the future. Pain, loss, love, friendship, it all yelled and screamed at him, tempting him, begging him to understand the secrets and lessons he had yet to learn. It was like the last pages of a book, begging to be read so as to spoil the rest of the book but also pleading to be kept secret so as to not ruin the adventure. He who spoils his gifts receives no surprise on Christmas morning.

While many things underlay the environment around him, several specific things stayed at the forefront of his awareness, questions the Past thought impossible to answer, the Present know not how to go about answering, and the Future tempted with a path laid out.

_Why am I alive?_ He had died, there were no other explanations for getting smashed by a speeding semi-truck. So how had he come _back_ to life, and why?

_Where am I?_ This world shared similarities to his home, yet was different in as many ways as it was the same. Where was he? Was he somewhere he could recognize? Could he find his way back home if he only had a single landmark to go by? Did such a landmark exist? Was such a journey possible?

_What is my power?_ Chakra, the life-force and energy source of everything and anything on this planet. The new black gold. Where did it come from? How could it exist? How could he acclimate to it despite having never experienced such things in his other life?

_Who am I?_ Were his memories of a previous life even real? Were they fake? Delusions of a schizophrenic, prodigious, impossibly intelligent and lucky child?

By dream's end, no questions would gain answers. The random thoughts and memories floating to the surface inspired other thoughts and memories, other dreams, all floating about this nexus of ideas and memories, all inspiring more dreams and more ideas and thoughts branching off indefinitely. A scattered brain makes for the greatest thinkers, the greatest problem solvers, after all, we're all mad down here.

Before his endless thoughts, interconnecting ideas, and stolen techniques could continue, the world heaved beneath him as muffled words thundered around him. In seconds, he awoke.

* * *

"Hibiki." The dark-haired, heavily bandaged Hyuga noble shook his teammate. "Hibiki."

The dark-haired Senju grunted, as he woke up early from an impromptu nap. _"The fuck do you want, Joe?"_ He mumbled tiredly, almost somberly_._

Noboru shook his head and gave Hibiki's shoulder a shove, excusing Hibiki's native tongue as sleep-talk and gibberish. "Hibiki, wake up."

Hibiki eventually did wake up, and he sat up, slouched over, rubbing the sleep from his eyes. "What?" He asked, "something happen?"

"It is time."

"Time for something to happen?"

"Yes."

"What's happening?"

"Your fight."

"My fight with who?"

Noboru pointed down to the arena, where Emi Miu, the albino jinchuriki, was just arriving. Hibiki nodded, and shook his head, clearing the cob-webs from it.

"Right. Frieza." He stretched his arms, "aaaah... I'm gonna fuckin' die." He yawned deeply, "wish me luck!" He stood up and made his way to the stairs.

Noboru tilted his head, but Akane was what one to speak. "In dying?"

Hibiki paused for a moment, but after another, shrugged. "Sure. Good luck means I'll be lucky in death and survive, bad luck means I won't die. Win-win."

* * *

Hibiki took his time walking the stairs and corridors down to the main arena, trying to come up with some kind of gameplan for the fight ahead. He couldn't go all-out right from the get-go, he didn't have enough stamina to match a Jinchuriki, even with his chakra-clones sitting in Konoha, waiting to give him their spare tanks of gas. He only had two of those left, and given what his chakra looked like right now, and some other factors in play, he'd be down to one soon enough. So the problem was how to make Emi burn through her seemingly endless amount of chakra.

_The Human body has a finite amount of chakra it can stand manipulating at any one point._ Hibiki remembered reading in one of Tsunade's books about the Eight Gates. _Training can increase the amount of chakra it can stand, but there is always a point which it cannot pass without harming itself._ Could that help him?

Hibiki blinked, as he hit the ground floor and started walking down a long corridor with a single open door at the end, which led to the arena. _That might, actually. Just because she has all of that chakra doesn't mean she can use all of it... At some point, all of that chakra pumping through her body would start injuring her and ripping her apart, like stretching muscles too far and tearing them. This gives me a goal to shoot for, but the problem is I don't know much about jinchuriki. I know that if they die, the tailed beast inside them dies, so it has to have some kind of safeguard against its chakra harming her body._

He laughed mirthlessly, his plan was slowly becoming 'make her use her all of her god power so she burns herself out and rips herself apart.'

As he passed the halfway point of the tunnel, he popped off a Shadow Clone and left it behind with silent orders, almost immediately it pulled out a scroll and a pen and started heavily improvising a seal that may or may not work. He entered the arena, to the cheers of the crowd and the Genin, and the leer of the jinchuriki at the other end of the arena.

_Problem: She's got a god in her gut and could kill me on a whim. Solution: Make her burn through her chakra. Problem: How the fuck do I even do that?_ He looked at the sand around him, grinning. _I almost forgot about that... Okay... I might have a chance with this._

_"Hibiki Senju... Are you ready?"_ The Jonin roared, to Hibiki's nod. _"Emi Miu... Are _you_ ready?"_ She nodded too.

The brief pause before his declaration felt like an eternity, as Hibiki's bloody Sharingan stared into Emi's morphed eyes.

_"BEGIN!"_


	21. Exam Season:Fist of the World King-VIII-

Chapter 20

* * *

_"BEGIN!"_

Emi exploded forward, leaving a small crater behind her; Hibiki leapt out of the way of her fast and powerful jab, gathering a ball of explosive chakra in his hand as he rolled into an upright position. He extended his hand and aimed at Emi and let the explosive wave fly. She got smashed by the explosive chakra and flew back, but flipped mid-air and clawed at the ground to stop her. Like some kind of ape, or a wolf, she bounded forward on all fours, red chakra leaking out of her body like boiling, billowing steam.

_Ooooooh shit!_ Hibiki did the first thing that came to mind and leapt back with all of his strength; his Sharingan was telling him exactly how outclassed he was: everyone else saw a small, translucent 'mist' of sorts of thin red chakra, but he saw it like a roaring bonfire, and it was only getting thicker and larger.

Hibiki created distance between the two and decided now was the time to experiment - Noboru had cracked her chakra cloak and injured her with his Chakra Drill, and while she didn't yet have a cloak, the chakra was thick enough to have an effect on the world around her, so he might as well try and Falcon Punch her in the face. Hibiki gathered and leached the chakra and ran forward; Emi grinned at the challenge and, without breaking stride, leapt onto her two feet and sprinted towards him, a large ball of magma forming in her left hand, as Hibiki's Falcon Punch formed in his right. Hibiki saw what she was trying to do, and decided against his better judgement to meet her attack - two rams, or perhaps a better allusion would be an Eagle and an Ape, butting heads and locking horns in a battle of strength.

Hibiki's chakra-streaming fist impacted Emi's swirling and revolving magma orb, and chakra exploded outwards at the point of impact as the two struggled to gain dominance. Hibiki's technique was more powerful, but Emi had more strength of chakra and more stamina backing her own technique, and her contempt for the Senju didn't hurt at all. Hibiki tried with all of his might, but his strength failed after a few moments of struggle, and the Jinchuriki's might won out - cancelling his technique, dispelling the chakra, and smashing into his chest with a burst of lava similar to a popped balloon. Hibiki yelped in pain as his chest burned, he ripped his shirt off and most of the lava went with it, he was only covered now by his unzipped windbreaker.

Emi noticed how Hibiki's wounds were healing just a bit faster than she could make them, to the point that every time they separated, he was back at full health. She narrowed her discolored eyes, was he a jinchuriki too? Could he just not take the chakra of his tenant? Or was he saving it for later? If so, that would prove to be the arrogant fool's undoing, she pressed her advantage and her chakra cloak began to form, first around her hand, making a claw twice as big as her fist. She slashed Hibiki's chest and blood flew, but Hibiki smashed his foot into her own chest and sent her flying back a few feet.

_Fuck, fuck, fuck._ Thought Hibiki, as he felt his chest stinging painfully and leaking blood. _Okay, here's her cloak. Problem. I need to see if I can't crack it. Fuck it!_ And with those silent words, he sent the signal to one of the clones in konoha, and it popped, topping him off and multiplying his chakra reserves one and a half times, while the rest went elsewhere.

Emi felt the force of Hibiki's sudden chakra increase, and her eyes widened - what beast did he have?! What beast was Konoha supposed to have?! Why wasn't his chakra _red?!_

Before she could answer any of these questions, Hibiki vanished and reappeared behind her. Once again, it was experiment time, but this time it was an experiment he felt much more confident doing.

_"Explosion release -_ _SHOOOOOOORYUKEN!"_ He channelled explosive chakra into his fist and leapt up in a spinning motion. With an impact similar to that of a shotgun firing rubber bullets from both barrels at once, and an explosion added in for good measure, Emi was sent flying into the air at breakneck speed.

Hibiki pressed his advantage and leapt into the air faster than she was flying, overtaking her with ease and channeling explosive chakra into both hands. It wasn't a fire-release, but it was a lot closer to the 'real' thing.

_"FALCOOOON PUNCH!"_ Roared the Genin before he smashed a doubly explosive fist into his opponent's gut, he saw the cloak had faltered from his previous attack and now it was wavering violently - but the damnable thing was still up, even when he'd burst-fired his chakra to make the impact _that much harder_. She smashed into the ground before he could blink, and he landed a few feet away from her.

_This is not good._ She was tanking explosions, point-blank, and was walking out fine. He was able to hit her hard enough to make her cloak waver, but he couldn't hit hard enough to shatter it and do damage - and that was assuming she didn't heal instantly like she'd done with Noboru. Worse, she wasn't even low on chakra, and he'd burned through a quarter of his surplus maximizing those attacks.

_I need a new strategy..._ The problem was, he only had actionable one trump card left - the clone in the tunnel wasn't done with his seal, and it wasn't even clear if he'd be done in time for the fight.

Emi was standing suddenly, having gone from laying on the ground to upright without use of her arms, like some kind of marionette.

_Oh shit._

She was in front of him before he even realized what had happened, and before her fist hit his chest, he saw one bubbling tail sprout out from her cloak. He was sent flying from the force of her hit.

_Fuckitfuckitfuckitfuckit!_ He needed to buy himself time - just five seconds, that was all he needed - so as he flew through the air, he threw both hands in front of him.

_"KIKOHO!"_ A diamond-shaped wave of compressed explosive chakra flew forward and smashed Emi into a crater before it detonated violently, and just a second later Hibiki landed.

_Desperate times!_ Hibiki clenched his fists near his hips and closed his eyes as he visualized a dam in his brain. Behind that damn, with the phrase 'One of Eight' written plainly upon it, was a torrential tidal wave of chakra being held back by unconscious limiters that could only be removed through an exact, meticulate process, that way they couldn't be removed on accident and kill the person. He'd read the books in his mother's extensive library years ago, and memorized them in the weeks before he'd graduated from the Academy. He'd never been taught the process or even had it described to him in detail - he'd figured it out just by reading about it.

The world around him knew it as one thing, but he'd recognized it as something else entirely. Chakra began spiraling around him as his muscles clenched so tight that his arms shook. He scowled and clenched his jaw in concentration, as he imagined a crack in that dam, one through which the tidal wave could break through. _"The first gate..."_ He uttered, _"Gate of Opening... KAIO-KEN!"_ He roared at the top of his lungs, before a shockwave burst through the air as the first of eight gates burst open, and his raw physical power was multiplied by a factor of five, and chakra began funneling through his muscles and his circulatory system with reckless abandon. The tidal wave in his mind burst forth before it hit a second barrier, and it took all of his willpower to know when to fold 'em and not break the second gate.

In the stands, Eiji's eyes shot open, wide as possible. "Oh... Dear... Kami." He muttered, dumbfounded. He reached forward and swatted Aoi, "go, go get Dante right now."

"What is going on?" Dai asked, as Akane gasped and Noboru slowly leaned forward.

"He just opened the first of the Eight Gates."

And just a second later, Hibiki exploded forward, his footfalls leaving cracks and breaks in the ground and sending sand flying. In a second he was in front of Emi, and his chakra-coated fist smashed into her gut before she could blink, and she hit the wall with a horrible 'thud'.

"What does that mean?" Dai asked, the phrase was familiar, but she didn't know what it entailed.

"The Human body can only handle so much chakra, even with training. The eight gates are formed when we are born to limit the chakra that flows through our body. Without those gates, we would burn out and die in mere minutes... Hours if we are lucky." Eiji explained, as Aoi dashed away, Kyo bounding after her. "The first of the Eight Gates... Kaimon... The Gate of Opening... It unlocks our physical strength, allowing us to use all one hundred percent of our muscle power, as opposed to the twenty percent limit. That limit exists because our muscles are strong enough to tear themselves apart and snap our very bones with ease." He leaned forward, not having blinked his wide-open eyes since Hibiki had unleashed the beast. "Hibiki is going to kill himself... But he's not that irresponsible. What is his game?"

Hibiki was in front of the pinned Jinchuriki in an instant, and he unleashed a massively powered up Falcon Punch into her gut, cracking and splintering the wall under the sheer force and sticking her to it in a spread-eagle crater. Not a second later he unleashed a flurry of punches on her wavering chakra cloak, blurringly fast.

"But what was that he shouted? 'Kaio-Ken?'..." Dai asked, "is that something to do with the First Gate?"

Eiji shook his head, "Fist of the World King... No, I've never even heard of it. It might be a technique he developed himself to coincide with the breaking of the first gate... It might be something he associated with the gate to make the opening easier. I do not know." As Eiji spoke, Hibiki smashed her with a double-handed punch, making the fissures in the wall deeper and longer, and sending some debris falling to the ground.

Emi recovered faster than Hibiki was ready for, and like a switch flipped, she stopped fighting him like she fought any other Genin, or any other Shinobi period, for that matter, and started fighting him like a Jinchuriki. That was the only possible explanation for such a massive, sudden increase in power - he had to be a Jinchuriki. Barely a second later, a second tail sprouted from her cloak, and she double-palm-striked Hibiki in the ribs, breaking a few of the bloodline-reinforced bones and cracking a few more, while sending him flying backwards.

Hibiki saw what she tried to hide by sprouting another tail, though - he'd broken her cloak, if only for a second. He flipped in mid air and jammed both hands into the ground, slowing himself down and skidding to a halt. His head whipped up and he made eye-contact with her in a Solid-Snake style pose, and he grinned. She might have doubled her power just now, but now he knew that she wasn't infallible - and whats more, the perfect, albeit not yet matured, vision granted by his blaring Sharingan showed him something she herself hadn't yet noticed - bits of skin were starting to flake off of her arms and dissolve in the cloak. Whatever this was she was doing to get the chakra, the more she used it, the more it hurt her. She had to be reaching a limit, all Hibiki had to do was push her towards it.

The problem was, he was reaching a limit too. He felt he could keep going with this first gate opened, his healing factor was doubly accelerated by the excess chakra from the Konoha clone and the chakra unleashed by the gate, so the damage he was doing with his untethered muscles was being repaired, and while it didn't take much chakra to do it, the little things would eventually add up. His grin turned to a scowl and he launched himself forward at the same time she did, they met in the center of the field and each smashed their fists into the others' face. Hibiki's tore open and started leaking blood and bruising instantly, Emi's cloak faltered and her head snapped back, providing Hibiki with the distraction necessary to grab both of her shoulders and leap forward, sending a flying-knee into her cloaked gut. The cloak faltered more but didn't break, not until Hibiki spun himself mid-air - hands still locked to the cloak - and smashed Emi into the ground. He noted in the back of his mind that grabbing onto the second-stage cloak had actually burned his skin, but he ignored it for now as the wounds on his face and on his hands healed. He popped his wolverine-claws on both hands, and started punching, intending to make her burn more of her tenant's chakra by healing multiple deep wounds at once, constantly.

He smashed his fists and claws into her gut, her chest, even a few into her legs and arms, as fast as possible and as many times as possible, his Sharingan as red as the blood that started to fly around in thick ropes. After a few seconds, his arms were grabbed by the tails she'd sprouted and yanked up and away from her blood-covered body. She curled up into a ball and sprang both legs forward, smashing Hibiki's chest like a bucking bronco and sending him flying away as she sprang to her feet.

Hibiki's chest hurt like he'd been kicked like a mule, but he knew that had to pale in comparison to what Emi was feeling, as her wounds steamed and healed quickly. The cloak continued to flicker, but eventually sealed back up and went right back to bubbling like mad.

_Still two tails..._ Thought Hibiki, as he wiped some thick red blood from his healed cheek. _Is that her limit of control, or just what it's taking to fight me? Should I open another gate?_ Can_ I open another gate?_ That he'd opened the first one now, for the first time ever, he attributed to the same miracle that had granted him a literal new lease on life, he really didn't want to test whether or not he could open a second gate for the first time in a pivotal fight.

It was now that Dante arrived in the stands, the moment Aoi had arrived he'd body-flickered up there as fast as he could. "What?!" He said urgently, looking from Eiji in his seat to Hibiki in the arena. "What happened?!" He looked to Hibiki's opponent, two tails and all, and a few pieces fell into place. "How long have they been fighting!?"

"Three minutes. When did you teach your Genin how to open one of the Eight Gates?" Eiji answered and asked.

Dante's neck nearly broke he turned to look at Eiji so fast. _"WHAT?!" _He screamed, "he opened the gates?! How many?!"

Eiji turned to look at Dante, narrowing his eyes at this revelation. "Just the one, so far. You didn't teach him?"

Dante shook his head and turned to look at the fight again, as Hibiki and Emi clashed once again in a furious blur of chakra-enhanced fists and kicks. "I've never even gone over the eight gates... You three are good, but I thought it would be a few years." He said, with a brief glance to Noboru. "How good _is_ this kid?" Even Tsunade hadn't said anything about the eight gates, Hibiki had truly done this on his own. Was this something afforded to him by blood, or was it his own skill?

Down in the arena, the battle raged. The tides turned as fast as the punches and kicks flew - one moment, Hibiki was blocking fists and feet as fast as he could, the next minute, he was throwing them himself. They both knew that this had to be a battle of will and of martial arts, as they both assumed ninjutsu would largely be useless, Hibiki because he knew that the first gate only enhanced his strength and not the power of his techniques, which still would be unable to pierce her cloak, and Emi because she falsely concluded Hibiki was in a proto-first-state Jinchuriki release, and as such her techniques would either be blocked or cancelled by his accelerated healing factor.

They both released from their clash and leapt back. They both were visibly panting with exertion, though neither was yet exhausted.

Or, at least, _visibly_ exhausted. In the case of Hibiki, he could physically feel the drain of the first gate and all of the chakra he'd been spending to fight on the level of a jinchuriki. He panted deeply, still in a battle-stance. _Oh... Oh shit._ He thought, staring deeply at Emi, who too was panting but didn't seem to be too worse for wear, outside from the gashes on her body from the skin shaved off and burned to continue powering the bubbling, boiling cloak. He still hadn't got an update from the clone in the tunnel, and it was too early to pop the last clone in Konoha. _Oh fuck..._ He swallowed deeply, as he saw a small stub form on her cloak, a third tail was beginning to form, but it was stunted, as if not ready, or not available. Hibiki clenched his teeth. _I've gotta do it... God damn it._ He inhaled deeply and clenched both fists tight.

_The second gate, the gate of healing, is like the first gate located in the brain. Opening this gate temporarily re-energizes the body and forcibly augments the muscles to handle more power. _ He remembered reading before a lengthy list of side-effects that essentially boiled down to 'whatever the first gate does times 'x''.

But, desperate times called for desperate measures, and all that, and if the lady in front of him was trying to go Super Saiyan Three, he had to go match it Kaio-Ken Times Two.

He grinned, _Double it... But go no higher._ Once again, there were many things he could resist doing, but there were also some things he just _had_ to do, no matter how stupid, how cheesy, or how asinine it was. He'd been given a second life, he might as well enjoy it.

_"Kaio-ken..."_ He muttered audibly, but lowly, as the chakra, and the air itself, suddenly stilled around him. "_TIMES TWO!" _There was a sudden outward explosion of chakra that swirled around him in a vortex, as his muscle-mass was forcibly increased by all of the chakra pouring through it.

In the stands, Dante had to take a seat. "The _second_ gate..." He barely believed what his Sharingan eyes were telling him. He'd told Hibiki to hold nothing back, and by Kami, the kid delivered.

"He's forcing her to draw more of her beast's chakra... He's dragging this fight out." Noboru realized. "He's using the eight gates to augment his strength and to allow him to fight on her level... But there has to be a limit to what he can do... He cannot keep opening them, he will die."

"He's shown he can open two so far, and _one_ allowed him to fight on equal terms with a two-tailed Emi. Perhaps two will allow him to fight against her in a three tailed form?"

"If he goes further, he'll do potentially irreparable damage to his body. _I know this personally."_ Dante said, his voice shaking with memory. "What is his play?!"

Down in the arena, Emi saw what was happening and scowled deeply, realizing that she _had_ to push it to her absolute limit if she wanted to keep the fight going. As Hibiki thundered forward, a third tail sprouted from her cloak and the speed at which her skin flaked off and blood floated to the surface increased, slowly turning her bright red chakra cloak bloody, almost as if it were a barrier from the inside as well as the out, and was filling with her blood as a balloon was filled with water. She sprinted forward with a savage, ape-like roar to meet Hibiki's sprint. Her fist collided with his open hand, and his fist collided with hers, so hard and so fast that they created a small shockwave. They were locked together in a physical grudge-match, and their strengths were arguably equal.

Hibiki's blood red Copy-Wheel Eyes were locked to Emi's yelow and white eyes, as the former spun rapidly and the latter slowly bled to pure white as her cloak filled itself blood-red. Neither were budging, they both had their legs braced behind them, they both were putting all of their chakra-enhanced strength behind it. Hibiki suddenly felt Emi slowly gaining ground on him, so he improvised the first thing he could, and headbutted her. The force of impact created a small crater, and the force of the second made the crater deeper; each headbutt forced them deeper into the ground and made her solid-red chakra cloak flicker violently.

Emi thought fast, and yanked her arms back - forcing Hibiki off balance. She hopped up and kicked outwards, sending Hibiki flying into the wall of the small crater he'd formed. She leapt on top of him and started beating on him savagely, like some sort of blood-lusted ape, screaming and shouting with each impact. Her own hits were forming their own shockwaves and deepening that part of the crater, they drew blood and cracked Hibiki's steel bones.

Thinking on his feet, so to speak, Hibiki used one of the techniques he'd stolen earlier and blasted a bullet of wind from his face. The hyper-compressed air slammed into Emi's face and stunned her, allowing Hibiki to punch her twice and then smash both palms onto her cloaked chest. The barrier flickered, but Hibiki noticed that this blow, which would have popped it like a balloon earlier, didn't break the barrier this time - its strength hadn't simply multiplied, it'd increased _exponentially._

Hibiki sprang to his feet and sprinted forward, chakra streaming from both hands as he prepared another Falcon Punch. Emi, however, landed on the ground and reacted fast enough to catch his right hand before it could slam into his left - halting the technique through use of her tails. Her fists were still open to use, but Hibiki acted fast enough to stun her again - and opened both hands and blasted her in the face with explosive chakra. This, however, while stronger than it usually was without the Eight Gates, was nowhere near strong enough to even cause a ripple in her cloak; the first two gates were almost solely about enhancing Taijutsu effectiveness, Ninjutsu strength - from what he'd read in the book - came with the fifth gate. It was enhanced anyways as a byproduct of all of the chakra channeling through his body, but the Eight Gates in general were taijutsu-focused, almost as if they had come before Ninjutsu had ever even entered the equation.

The stunning point-blank facial explosion caused Emi to lose her grip with her tails, giving Hibiki the chance he needed to unleash a Falcon Punch. This impact broke the barrier for a brief instant, which showed Hibiki's dojutsu all he needed - she'd practically shaved off an entire layer of skin. She was bleeding profusely, almost as if the blood was a source from which the cloak was powered. The problem was, this blood was replaced by the cloak at the same rate which it was burned, almost in a state of self-destructing and self-healing limbo.

_Come on... Come on!_ Hibiki forced himself forward, the second gate having revitalized him and replenished his stamina, giving him the strength to carry on. _"Break damn you!"_ He roared as he slid under Emi before she landed, whirled around on one hand similar to a break-dancer, and kicked her high into the air.

Dante shook his head, "holy fuck, he's going to do it!"

"If he's self-trained in the Eight Gates, how does he even _know this?!_" Eiji demanded of the air, as Hibiki leapt into the air and bodily snatched Emi out of it.

Hibiki acted on instinct and oriented himself and Emi so their heads were facing the grounds, and he used his legs to start a rapid, dizzying spin. They fell to the ground at blistering speeds, and smashed into it with a massive explosion, one so powerful that it made the barriers separating the fight from the people waver. Sand and smoke, both white and black, were thick in the air, no one but the Konoha-nin with dojutsu could see inside it.

In the center of a large crater were both Hibiki and Emi, whose cloak had broken, but still had red chakra leaking out of her and repairing her more grievous wounds. Hibiki was groaning and turning to his side, facing Emi.

_Urgh... Fuuuuuck._ Thought Hibiki, who clenched his jaw and scowled in pain. _What did I just do? That hurt... Oh fuck that hurt._ He exhaled shakily and clenched his gut, finding it very hard to move after a hit like that. _Nobody wins with a spinning headbutt of doom with the ground, fuck!_ His shoulders nearly slumped and his arms almost gave out on him when he saw Emi stirring; how much goddamn chakra did she have, and how much goddamn chakra could she pump through her body before she collapsed?!

_If I go further... Ah shit!_ He collapsed, his arms gave out from underneath him and he got a facefull of sand and rock. _If I go further I can keep going, I can break her cloak again, but that might come back to bite me in the ass!_ He turned his aching head and saw Emi staggering to her feet, the cloak was slower in coming back this time, but it did come, starting from her feet and crawling its way up.

Emi was in pain, not for the first time in her life, but still for one of the few significant times in her life where it was nothing but what she felt. She was in a state of conscious limbo, a lot of her actions driven by a combination of her primal battle instincts and the raging beast inside. She just wanted to finish this fight, she just wanted to kill this arrogant pest, she just wanted to go to sleep. She gritted her teeth and screamed at the top of her lungs, chakra exploding outwards in a torrential cyclone, the cloak reformed instantly and became a much darker shade of solid red. Her roar deepened in pitch and became deafening, as it sent shockwaves outwards. She roared so loudly that neither she nor anyone else heard the words from the genin beside her.

_"Fuck it..."_ Hibiki spat, _"TIMES THREE!"_ His own chakra exploded outwards, the raging winds cleared the air almost instantly. The increased bloodflow through his body almost instantly turned his skin dark red. With all four limbs he launched himself at the Jinchuriki, bodily slamming into her and sending them both to the ground again. His first were a blur as he beat the cloaked genin senseless, eventually breaking her cloak and causing bodily damage. This went on for a solid five seconds, before, for a brief moment, something snapped inside the Jinchuriki, and all at once her power pulsed outwards, creating dozens upon dozens of small, miniature orbs of chakra.

Hibiki was so focused on injuring the girl that he didn't notice what was going on until those orbs started gravitating towards her opened maw and coalescing in a single, dark orb. Hibiki's eyes let him see what was going on, and for a moment, he was mesmerized by the raw amount of chakra compressed into such a small place; for just a second, he felt a sense of familiarity..

After that moment passed, he was blasted in the chest by the bijuu-dama. The Senju heir was sent flying into the air in a wide arc, before he finally hit the ground. Body broken, skin red, three of the eight gates that kept him from destroying himself open, the tailed-beast-ball had done so much focused damage that it was all his healing factor could do to keep him alive. He could barely move anymore, it took everything he had just to turn his head, but what he saw made him smile.

The cloak was gone. Emi may still be healing, but she was channeling no more red chakra. She slowly limped forward, eyes livid and still morphed yellow and white. Her hair was swinging freely, having long since ripped out of its pony-tail. She was breathing raggedly, but unlike Hibiki, she was still on her feet. After a few seconds, the albino found herself standing above Hibiki, whose arms were spread splayed out to the side. She stared at him for a moment, furious, before she reached into her weapons pouch, and grasped something within.

Slowly, she pulled it out, and in the stands, everyone who was aware, held their breath. Agonizingly slowly, she pulled out her Equalizer, Hibiki's Vindicator, a six-chambered revolver with random bits and spare pieces jutting out from various points. Hibiki smiled.

"I..." She panted, "I don't care... That this will end my chances. Though I am sorry I will never face you... In true battle... When ours destroy yours." She said, pointing the gun at Hibiki's face, pulling back the hammer, and firing.

The explosion was like a crack of thunder, the bullet sailed forth and entered right between Hibiki's bloody eyes, piercing his red skin and coming out gorily from the other end, bits of skull, brain mater, and other such gore spread about the ground as the bullet shattered and tore a few gashes into the back of Hibiki's skull.

Eiji looked to Dante, whose jaw was slackening and his eyes were, for the second time that day, morphing into another shape entirely, almost of their own accord.

Emi grinned, people in the crowd started panicking as the echo of the gunshot wore off in the distance.

_"DISQUALI - "_ The burly Jonin began, before Hibiki burst into smoke, leaving no corpse whatsoever.

For a second, all was still. The crowds were silent, Dante's eyes widened, Noboru grinned, Dai gasped, Akane nearly fainted, and Emi blinked, the gun still in her hand, barrel still smoking, still pointed at where Hibiki's head had been.

"What?"

The ground exploded in a massive burst of pure white smoke. A great many of them had been accidentally burst since they'd been placed earlier, but seventy five clones still stood disguised amongst the sand. With the eight-gates chakra from the dispelled Hibiki topping them _all_ off, and the chakra from the clone from Konoha adding excess, it was as if seventy five true-blooded Hibikis had spawned. Worse for Emi, they all got the memories and experiences from the first clone, meaning they all knew their limits with the eight gates. In less than a second, a tornado of wind was sent flying as seventy four of them opened the first gate, and all of them sprinted towards Emi.

_"**SOMEONE GET THE GUN!"**_ A deep voice screamed out over the battle-cries of seventy four charging Genin.

Emi readied herself, but she was in a state where she could barely handle Hibiki in base form, let alone seventy four Hibikis with the first of the Eight Gates opened. Emi was thrown around violently, and in an almost coordinated dance of punches and kicks, she was beaten bloody, senseless, and unconscious by seventy four Hibikis with too much chakra and all of the power they could physically bring to bear. In thirty seconds, the clones began dispelling, until it was just her and the Alpha Hibiki, who stood without a scratch on him, not a single of the body-wrecking gates open, and without a hint of lethargy. Clutched in his hand was Emi's gun, barrel still smoking from when it had been fired.

Hibiki started forward, his Sharingan told him Emi was still conscious, but she was hanging on by a thread, she was more out of it than she wasn't. He stood over her, she turned her bloody, bruised head, raw skin and all, towards him. Hibiki knelt down, and sent a silent command for the clone in the tunnel to dispel - he didn't need him anymore, but he kept the memories it had made for later, he might need those.

Hibiki's Sharingan and Emi's human eyes locked in contact, before Hibiki pistol-whipped the girl and knocked her out.

He stared at her unconscious form for a few moments, before he looked up, at the silent crowds around and above him. They couldn't believe it, and to be honest, neither could he. How many times had he pulled this trick in the last week alone? He was surprised he hadn't been associated with it yet. Hibiki stood up, and spread his arms wide, deciding to have a little fun before he had to retreat and collapse from the collective exhaustion of one clone opening three gates, and seventy four opening one.

_"ARE YOU NOT ENTERTAINED?!" _He yelled out as loud as he could, silently cursing his eight-year old vocal chords.

And the crowd went wild, cheering his name, cheering the fight, just cheering in general. Hibiki allowed himself a moment to soak it all in, before he made for the tunnel.

_"The winner is: Hibiki Senju!"_ Shouted the Burly Jonin as multiple medics rushed straight past Hibiki and for the beaten Jinchuriki. _"The next match will now begin. Dai Aburame and Aoi Inuzuka, please enter the arena."_

Hibiki chuckled, as he got deeper within the tunnel, before he finally fell to his knees and let the last quarter of an hour wash over him.

He'd done it.

_He'd won._

To celebrate, he let himself fall out cold.

* * *

_AN:_

_Of all the fights I've written, this one holds a special place in my heart. _

_And trust me, we've only scratched the surface, thus far. _

_Something a **lot** bigger is headed our way._


	22. Siege: Trouble on the Homefront -I-

Chapter 21

* * *

Hibiki was unconscious for a week following his fight, he slept an exhausted, dreamless slumber as the world around him kept going on, more fights were fought, though it was unanimous that none were as explosive as Hibiki Senju's and Emi Miu's.

When Hibiki awoke, he felt stiff, but not sore, achy, or any kind of pain. It took his tired mind a few moments to make the connection and draw the conclusion, confirming that yes, even if a clone destroys his body with the Eight Gates, he himself would be fine. Good to know for the future.

He opened his eyes slowly, they were assaulted by the bright, sterile white light of the arena's hospital. He blinked hard and groaned, stretching as he brought himself to an upright position.

"Back in the land of the living, I see." Said a familiar voice; Hibiki squinted tight and saw Dante-sensei sitting in a chair in front of him. "That was a hell of a fight, kiddo."

The memories slowly came back to Hibiki, "right. Fight." He rubbed the sleep from his onyx eyes, "I won that, right?"

Dante nodded, "how the hell did you figure out how to open the Eight Gates?" He blurted out, as if he wasn't able to hold it in any longer. "And how suicidal are you to open them for a _Chuunin Exam fight?!"_

Hibiki shook the sleep from his head, finally able to associate what he felt now to a hangover from Back Home. "I had a plan, sensei. And it seemed to work, if I recall." He said, itching the bridge of his nose, where he remembered the bullet entering all those days ago. "I knew the Eight Gates had a very real possibility of shredding my body from the inside out. Boiling it, even. So I decided I'd experiment. I know that injuries don't transfer between Shadow Clones, and memories of pain only last for a brief instant. So, a clone is in a much better position to fight recklessly. I had my Shadow Army open the gates, because I knew that even the Alpha - the real Hibiki... _Me..._ Couldn't face a Jinchuriki in a straight-up slug fest. It was a calculated risk."

"A _stupid_ one! What if the clone couldn't open the gates?"

"I had a clone in the corridor leading to the arena working non-stop on a seal that would absorb Miu's chakra, so it would leave her crippled and unable to fight unless she used that weapon."

"And if _that_ didn't work?!"

"During the fight with whatshisname... Don? Sparky-Sparky-Boom-Man, I popped a clone I had in Konoha that was at full stores, doubling my own. I performed the multi-shadow clone technique and hid them all around the arena. A few of them popped during the fight with him, but they were all meant as insurance for future fights. In the case of Miu, if the seal and the gates didn't work, they would have _just... kept... coming._ Quantity is a quality all of its own." Hibiki explained.

Dante sighed, "Hibiki, you don't know how dangerous the Eight Gates are. You could have gotten yourself killed." He said, returning to the root of the problem.

"And you do?" Hibiki asked.

"Yeah, I do. I had to open seven of them just to _survive_ a fight with a Jinchuriki." He explained, "and that was when he was half-exhausted and nearly out of chakra himself."

Hibiki blinked, "and you're not dead?"

"No. And the reason I'm not dead, and the reason I'm still able to be an active-duty shinobi, are both due to sheer dumb luck, and knowing too much." Dante explained, "if I hadn't been crippled after that fight, I would have had to deal with a _lot_ of shit afterwards."

"Shit of what variety?"

"Breaking ancient and onset clan laws, utilizing multiple kinjutsu in one fight, and making an unsanctioned deal to keep the dojutsu of a deceased clansmen."

Hibiki crossed his arms, curious. "What does the Sharingan have to do with the eight gates, and why _I_ shouldn't use them?" He asked.

Dante shook his head and ran his hand through his hair, "it's... Complicated."

_Where I come from, we have a saying._ "So _un_-complicate it." He said, earnestly, but with respect for the rank. "How will I know what not to do if I don't understand?"

Dante looked up at Hibiki, and traced a line slowly down his left eye. "In the Uchiha clan, there's a technique. It is so impossibly forbidden that, if you're caught using it, you literally get your eyes ripped out and all of your chakra sealed up tight so you can never fight again." He explained, "and... Given your circumstances, I can't necessarily get around explaining it to you. I promise I'll bring you to the shrine when we get home, and I'll show you everything you need to know, but for now you'll just have to deal with my own knowledge on the subject." He promised; "the technique is called Izanagi. To make a long... Lengthy explanation short, it allows the user to cast a genjutsu on themself, so they can separate themself from reality, and rewrite it on a whim... But only for a few seconds, if that long."

_A genie in a bottle._ "Okay."

"The downside, however, is that it's a double edged sword. You get to rewrite reality, but the eye you use to cast the technique closes, and it will never re-open again." Dante's own Sharingan slowly activated as he said this, emphasizing his seriousness. _"Ever."_ He explained, "when I used it, I rewrote my own death. I undid it. I brought myself from the brink, but I was crippled almost beyond repair because of what I'd done with the Eight Gates. _That_ is how powerful, and how dangerous, those pathways to power are. The only thing that can save you after using them is a technique that you shouldn't even possess the _capability_ to unleash." He saw the gears turning in Hibiki's head though, and followed this up quickly with, "and I know what you're thinking. _Don't._ I will not teach you that technique. I will teach you everything else, but that is my rule. The costs are too great, and sometimes the reward isn't even worth it."

Hibiki gave Dante a disbelieving look, "sensei. You know me. I _don't_ use a technique unless I understand the ins and outs. The length and breadth. Unless I understand it like I understand myself. I won't _ask_ you to teach that to me... But I will question the validity of warning me away from kinjutsu... By enticing me with more kinjutsu." He grinned as Dante sighed, though a grin was growing across his face too; the man knew his point had been made on the youth. "What'd you think that would accomplish?" Hibiki asked with a chuckle.

Dante sighed again and shook his head, "kid, you're something else." Dante honestly wouldn't put it past Hibiki to find a way around the one-off nature of the Izanagi, the same way he'd found a way around the damaging effects of the Eight Gates, and the same way he'd found a way _through_ the Shadow Clone technique. "Aaaand, you won the tournament, too."

Hibiki blinked, he recoiled his head, "uh, what?"

Dante laughed, "damn it, I just lost three Ryo." He shook his head, "since you were out cold, they were going to hold off on your next fight until you woke up, but after your older display, your next opponent surrendered outright. Then so too did the guy after him, then Dai, who beat Aoi, and it basically got down to you and Akane."

"Akane won her fight?" Hibiki asked, to Dante's nod. "And she surrendered to me?"

"She had the same mindset as pretty much everyone else: why should I fight a man who just took down a jincuriki?" Dante asked, "everyone saw how hard you fought, and a few saw how you managed to open the eight gates, and one or two dissected how you got around killing yourself with them. Who in their right minds would voluntarily fight a boy as crazy-powerful as you?"

Hibiki burst out laughing; he just won a tournament with twenty plus fights, by fighting twice. "I'm..." He exhaled to calm himself down, "I'm kind of surprised I didn't get disqualified for being out cold for..."

"A week."

"A week. That Jonin looked like a hard-ass."

"A hard-ass he is, but the rules here are different than they are in Konoha. You won your fight, and the other won his fight, so by rights you two had to fight each other, and they would wait as long as they had to." Dante explained. "The problem, is that you're a Senju who lives up to the legendary name of his clan, and took down one of Iwa's pride and joy's _single-handedly._ Again, who the hell would want to fight that when they have a choice in the matter?"

Hibiki chuckled and shook his head, "alrighty, then." He yawned, "where's the team?"

"Packing up. We're going to head home tomorrow, now that you're awake."

Hibiki blinked, "what happened to the month?"

Dante winked at the Genin, "don't need it, anymore, thanks to you."

Hibiki suddenly remembered, "uh, by the way, about that thing I took from -"

"Yeah. Got it. I sent it back to the Hokage." Dante perked up, "by the way, I got word back a few days ago, they selected our new Hokage this past monday. Konohagakure's Lord Fourth is officially the Third's second, Lord Fourth Hokage Danzo Shimura." He said, with a nod.

Hibiki's shoulders slumped, "ah, man, that guy creeped me out when we met him." He said, sliding out of bed. "Can we get a recount? I think my mother was shirked a few votes."

Dante shrugged and patted his gloved hand on Hibiki's bandaged back, "ah, don't worry about it kiddo. When you get to know him... Well, he's still a dick, but he's less of a dick than he is when he doesn't know or care who you are." They shared a laugh.

* * *

They spent the rest of the day relaxing in their rented out apartment, celebrating Hibiki's victory and silently reveling in the success of their S-Rank mission. They'd just averted war, their Jonin's rationalized, let them rest, sleep, talk if they wanted, train if they wanted to do that. The relaxing day was also spent preparing for their journey back home where they would report their mission's success to their Hokage, reap the benefits, and, cases permitting, be given their promotions.

Hibiki got an update from Noboru on the Suboro situation - simply put, Dante hadn't told him, and had forbidden everyone else from telling him until they'd gotten home and to safety. An unbalanced, unstable mental state was very bad joo-joo when mixed with a boy whose kekkei-genkai could kill people with genjutsu. Hibiki understood, but he didn't like keeping this kind of a secret from his friend.

When they left the village the day after Hibiki woke up, they decided to adopt a leisurely pace on the road home, which netted them a two week's travel plan. They spent the time walking and talking, teams Four and Six got to know each other while their sensei caught up on old times and new. They all regaled eachother with stories of old missions and even got a somewhat unique opportunity for the more bird-wary of the group, IE Hibiki, to bird-watch and name off the species he saw, as a great many of them seemed to be heading south for the winter.

And west.

And east.

Hibiki blinked, after fourteen days on the road he was noticing more and more birds flying in various directions. There were mismatched groups of various species that certainly weren't adapted to solely-forest-fed life, flying deep in the woods in more directions than just south. Come to think of it, it was only the beginning of October, Winter was coming, but it would be a while yet, this world's summers were a lot longer than Earth's, so why were they all flying off?

"Oh... We may want to break out the camp early tonight." Said Akane, as she looked to the overcast, gray sky, thunder was rumbling through it.

"We're close enough to the village that we can leg it, can't we?" Suboro wondered, stretching his neck as if he could see over the treeline.

"_Was_ that thunder?" Hibiki asked, his face falling as he lifted an ear to the sky. "Didn't really sound like it."

Noboru chuckled light-heartedly, "what else could it be?" He asked.

There was another crack of thunder, it was quick and not as low, or rumbling, as it usually was. Hibiki swore it sounded familiar, but he couldn't place it. Aoi, meanwhile, suddenly had to struggle with Kyo, who started wimpering and crawling deeper into her coat.

"Kyo-kun, what is the matter?" She asked, cradling the white-haired dog in her arms. "It is just thunder."

Hibiki squinted his eyes and looked to the sky; the clouds were gray, but they didn't look like they were ready to let loose. There was more thunder as they got closer, Hibiki noticed how there was less of a pause between the thunderclaps, and how it was getting lighter, and sharper, almost like -

Hibiki stopped cold.

Everyone took a few steps before they realized Hibiki had stopped, they turned to see the paling Genin as he connected the dots, and more birds flew overhead.

"Hibiki, what is it?" Dante asked, slowly losing his jovial expression and growing concerned.

"How close are we to Konoha?" Hibiki asked dully.

Dante shrugged and sighed, "er... Two kilometers, perhaps."

"Noboru... Can you humor me for a second and look at the village for me?" It was starting to dawn on Dante and Eiji what he was suggesting; Dante's head whipped around to the North, Eiji's eyes widened as he looked to the distant birds.

Noboru's back straightened, and he confirmed what everyone was beginning to think.

"Konoha is under attack."

There was just a second of stunned silence, before they all sprinted for the village gates as fast as their chakra-enhanced legs could take them.

* * *

In thirty seconds they covered two kilometers, and in two seconds they leapt to the top of the walls surrounding Konoha, and they got their first look at a village not just under attack, but under _siege._ Buildings were on fire, summons - from the Hawks, the Toads, and the Snakes - were all running rampant, fighting each other, and people were running in terror; but what horrified Hibiki wasn't that his village was under attack, it was what he heard.

Gunfire.

All around the village there was gunfire, rapid automatic staccatos and slow bursts.

"Oh my god..." Said Hibiki.

Dante and Eiji were recovered in an instant, "alright, listen up kids - we're not kidding. Your goal is to focus on evacuation - Team Four." Aoi, Akane, and Dai sprang to attention at Dante's order. "You search the village for stranded civilians and evacuate them to the Hokage's monument, just like you drilled in the academy." He looked to his own team, "Six, you -"

Hibiki shook his head, forcing himself to snap out of it. "I need to find my mother. My uncles. Any of them." He said, slowly realizing that there was only one way Konoha could come out on top - and he didn't have anywhere _near_ enough chakra to do it with.

"Hibiki, don't act like a child! Everyone's families are in danger, but we need to focus on the - HIBIKI!" Dante hadn't even finished before Hibiki had vaulted over him with chakra-enhanced legs. Akane, however, was the one to notice that, clutched in Hibiki's hand, was a revolver.

Hibiki flew through the air for several seconds, getting a birds-eye view of the battle with his Sharingan, which wasn't going well for Konoha - there were a lot of Leaf shinobi lying dead or dying on the ground with bullet wounds in their chests. Hibiki, however, saw what he needed after only a few seconds of searching after he landed - a very familiar slug.

_"Katsuyu!"_ Hibiki sprinted for the slug-summon, vaulting over a smashed and burning barrel and dodging some burning debris, his gun clutched tightly in his hand as his Sharingan burned brighter than the fires that surrounded him.

Katsuyu's eye-stalks popped up when they heard the voice of her summoner's son, and she located the Genin in an instant. She split into two in less than a second, and had one of her multi-forms informing Tsunade of Hibiki's arrival, the slug-Sannin was almost immediately smashing her way to their location, dodging thunder techniques and healing what she couldn't.

Hibiki scooped up the slug and bodily slammed into cover. The slug immediately started speaking, _"Hibiki! What are you doing out here?! Our enemies are wearing leaf-village headbands!" _

"How do we identify them?!" Hibiki demanded, as he looked past his shattered wall and down a ravaged street, scanning for anyone that could be a threat, but only seeing the occasional civilian sprinting for shelter, and a ninja or two landing on the ground and then hopping away instantly like the Hulk.

_"They use thunder weapons instead of Shinobi techniques - you are holding one of them right now!" _Katsuyu spat out quickly, _"but you need to find shelter immediately, Tsunade is -"_

"No! Listen, I need to find mom, Jiraiya, Orochimaru, any of them!" He said, before the hairs on the back of his neck raised up, and he whirled around. His Sharingan caught the movement before even Katsuyu did, and without hesitation, he raised his revolver on the charging, gun-wielding shinobi, who was spraying the weapon wildly as he tried to close the gap between him and Hibiki.

Hibiki crouched low and aimed, before he fired his weapon thrice, three bullets slammed into the shinobi's chest, and just a second later Hibiki was crouching over the corpse, inspecting its former weapon. In the few seconds he had before Gunner's friend showed up and grazed Hibiki with a burst of his own slugs, Hibiki recognized the weapon almost with ease - _anyone_ who'd watched a World War 2 movie would know this weapon. Ignoring the spare parts, bits, and pieces jutting out and the oddly shaped, jagged magazine, the gun was the spitting image of an M1 Thompson submachine gun.

Gunner's partner had a slower-firing weapon, but one of the bullets grazed Hibiki's cheek before he scrambled to the side and dodged more gunfire. Hibiki crawled into cover and spawned a Shadow Clone with as little chakra as he could, deciding it was time to test whether or not he was right. He ordered the clone to spray and pray, to suppress Gunner-Two so Hibiki could maneuver around. The clone did that in spades - sealing up his revolver and spawning his rifle, before removing the safety and spraying the hell out of the wall Gunner was hiding behind. Gunner2 cowered behind his cover as the clone spat lead, and the Alpha-Hibiki sprinted around as silently as he could. He made it inside the building Gunner2 was next to, and discovered to his glee that Gunner2 was next to a window - one well placed shot to the head and Gunner 2 was down, a brief shout to the clone told it to run out and fight, find more Gunners and kill them - if they had a gun, they died. Shoot first, ask questions later.

Katsuyu, for her part, adapted quickly. _"Okay, Tsunade is almost - there!"_ Just a second later, the Senju head smashed through the wall separating her from her sun, and with no pause at all he was enveloped in a crushing hug.

_"Thank Kami you're alive!"_ She screamed over the fire and the flames, though Hibiki noticed that while she was very definitely sober, her breath still stank of alcohol.

_Topics for later._ "Mom - I need -" He stopped himself when he saw what it was his mother was doing, she had a larger form of Katsuyu on her shoulder, just as he had a small one on his. She was funneling her medical chakra through it and was healing everyone the slug came into contact with, evidenced by the fact that his own wound had vanished almost instantly after it had been made; he noticed that the diamond on her head was missing, replaced with some sort of intricate seal. He made a snap decision, "Uncle Orochimaru!"

Tsunade almost immediately let go, though she didn't loosen her grip on Hibiki's shoulders. _"Are you insane?! He's -"_

_"MOM, LISTEN TO ME!"_ Hibiki shouted, his Sharingan boring deep holes into his adopted mother's eyes. "I need chakra and I need a _lot_ of it, and I can't use you because you're keeping everyone alive, and I can't use Jiraiya because he'll be on the front-lines fighting." That is if he wasn't riddled with bullets, but Jiraiya was tough, he wouldn't be killed today. "You _need_ to trust me on this!" He begged, _"please!"_ He sounded as desperate as he was - he only had a brief encounter with the enemy ninja, but they seemed to be using the guns because they were chakra-saving quick-kill weapons, and while they knew how to use them, they were trying to adapt them to ninja tactics, and not the other way around, so all he needed was raw numbers - and he had a technique that would give him that, but he didn't have the chakra to _make_ those numbers. Orochimaru was the most scientific of the three Sannin, he _had_ to have a technique that would either boost a person's chakra or transfer one's own to another.

Tsunade looked deep into her son's cursed eyes, she saw now what she saw when he was a baby - an awareness not common in children of his age, but now she saw conviction, purpose. This kid, despite everything, knew what he was doing and had complete faith in his abilities. She clenched his shoulders tight, holding back a tear as she realized that she had to let him go for now. "Katsuyu, contact Orochimaru, get him to meet us at the safe-room in the Hospital. _Now!"_ She ordered.

She took Hibiki by the hand and in a second, they body-flickered to the Hospital, where she picked him up and shoulder-tucked her way through the front doors and dragged him to the secure, bunker-like room in the center of the building. This room led underground to an enormous cavern-like structure, it was meant to evacuate patients to in the event of an attack, so as to clear up the space for combatants, it was tough enough to survive a bijuu-dama from the Nine Tails.

The room was dark, though, with all of the fighting going on the main power had been cut and it was running on its emergency back-ups.

Tsunade placed Hibiki on the ground and turned him to her, looking straight into his eyes. "You do _not_ leave his sight, am I understood?!" She demanded, more serious now than she had ever been in her life. "If you die, Gaki, I will _kill you!"_

Orochimaru appeared just a second later, he saw Tsunade and saw Hibiki, gun-in-hand, and connected several dots, but not all of them. "What do you need?" He asked, looking from the sannin to the Genin.

Hibiki nodded to his mother and turned to Orochimaru, "I need chakra, I need a _lot_ of it, and I need it _now!"_ He said, before a brief flash from his clone - he'd taken down three enemy ninja, but had gotten surprised by a tag-team hawk/gunner combo and vanished into smoke soon thereafter. "I need it..." He bit through the brief flash of pain, "to create an army of Shadow Clones. I am the only one who can turn the tide of this fight without massive bloodshed. I need to be constantly spitting out clones and sending them to fight."

Orochimaru gave Hibiki a look as he mentally went over his options, "Hibiki, the chakra transferrence technique isn't even remotely capable of -"

"Orochimaru..." Hibiki said, as he retrieved a few bullets from the seal on his left wrist, "you're one of the smartest people I know. You _have _to have something I can use!" He said, as Tsunade silently watched the two speak, as the younger one reloaded the weapon she recognized as the chakra-less thunder technique from so long ago.

Orochimaru's face took on an uncharacteristically uncomfortable look, as if he had exactly what they needed, but he didn't want to draw that card. "Hibiki, you should leave -"

_"Do you have something I can use, or not?!"_ Hibiki was well and truly prepared to try and go it alone, so to speak, but he knew that soldier pills could only keep him going for so long.

"It might kill you, Hibiki!" Orochimaru finally blurted out, in a tone unlike his normal, raspy, snake-like voice. "And it's not even perfected it! I haven't tested it on anything alive yet, it might kill you!"

Tsunade intervened, Orochimaru noticed that the seal on her forehead was fading, "then he damn-well won't -"

"Damn it, Uncle O, we don't have the luxury of choosing the safe route! What do you need to make this work?!"

_"Hibiki!"_

Hibiki turned to Tsunade and pointed at her fiercely, unintentionally with his gun-hand, _"SHUT UP, TSUNADE!"_ He yelled in a tone he hadn't used since Back Home. He turned back to Orochimaru, who shook his head.

"I need you to allow me access to your pathway system... I need your neck." He said reluctantly, though Hibiki did notice his pupils dilate, almost as if he was hoping Hibiki would say 'yes' as much as he hoped he wouldn't.

Hibiki's wind-breaker was off in a second, and he had the collar of his shirt pulled down for Orochimaru. "Do it." Hibiki clenched his gut and held his breath, not knowing what was in store for him, but also not caring too terribly much - it wasn't as if he had to really worry about death, he'd tried it before and had learned that fearing it was overrated.

Orochimaru gave an apologetic look to Tsunade, who was still in shock over what Hibiki had done. "Tsunade... It is best you leave to do your duties. I will protect him with my life." He said, seriously.

Tsunade swallowed, swiping a blood-covered hand through her matted-down, golden blonde hair. "You..." Her breath caught in her throat as Orochimaru stepped forward and placed his hand on the Genin's shoulder. "You better." She urged, to the snake-Sannin's nod; she left shortly thereafter, giving Hibiki one last bone-crushing hug, before sprinting back up to the hospital above.

Orochimaru sighed, "Brace yourself, Hibiki." Without any other fanfare, warning, or preparation, he opened his jaw wide and clamped down on Hibiki's neck.


	23. Siege: The Monster -II-

Chapter 22

* * *

Hibiki had never considered the phrase 'mind implosion' until just now, because whatever was happening to him was the exact opposite of an explosion. Orochimaru bit through the base of his neck and injected some of his own chakra into Hibiki's coils, and barely a second later Hibiki felt as if his mind was imploding in upon itself. The pain was incomparable, it felt as if someone was taking a million-toothed cheese grater and slowly dragging it across each and every inch of his innards, before going back and ripping apart his nerves one by one. Hibiki fell to his knees, eyes bulging out and mouth hung open in a silent scream, the pain was intense, but he could feel something beneath it, something bubbling beneath the surface, something powerful, beyond anything he'd ever felt before, aside from maybe the eight gates.

Hibiki focused on that feeling, to the point where he didn't notice Orochimaru placing his hand on Hibiki's neck, as it oozed blood.

"I shall try and expedite the process, Hibiki." Said the snake-Sannin hurriedly, as he pumped his own chakra into the cursed seal, that grew across the boy's body in multiple, maze-like jagged lines. Hibiki felt Orochimaru's chakra pour in through the seal on his neck, it almost acted like a numbing agent, hastening the transformations occurring across his body and dulling the pain.

"What is happening?" Hibiki groaned, his voice strained and his face red as he kept himself from yelling out from pain.

"I created this seal as a catalyst for a senjutsu transformation. My body is too weak to be able to transform on its own, and during my travels outside the village I came across a clan of shinobi who were able to naturally make the transformation." Orochimaru explained hastily, "as it is right now, it is merely a seal that attracts the ambient natural chakra and acts as a converter... Transforming it from its raw state into something that can be used without harmful effects to the body. My end-goal was to create a seal that channeled and transformed my own senjutsu chakra, but this is a very early seal, and this is the first time I've placed it upon a living Human."

"Okay. Questions for later." Hibiki grunted, "what can I do with it _now?!"_

"Right now, think of it like a math equation. You plus this seal equals..." Orochimaru pulled a number out of thin air, "fifty..." He shrugged, "times your base power. Chakra reserves are amplified, you gain a new pool with which to utilize, your physical strength... It is similar to opening the Eight Gates, but it does so without shredding and crippling your body." He explained, "but it burns through chakra constantly. It amplifies your reserves, but it burns through those reserves as long as it is active."

_Save the Super Saiyan jokes for later, Hibiki._ Thought the Senju heir, as he brought his hands up and formed the Shadow Clone seal. _Time to test this out. _He decided he'd go for a low number, and spawned in ten bare-minimum clones.

With a loud pop and a burst of smoke, the ten clones appeared in the room, and were almost instantly sprinting back up and through the hospital, unsealing the rifles from their backs. Hibiki noticed that even with the previously exampled 'five' points it had taken to spawn each of those clones, he felt barely any dip in his amplified reserves.

_Alright... Set ground rules. Goal number one - find my friends. Goal number two - save and evacuate civilian noncombatants. Goal number three - find the enemy commander and kill him. Goal number four - kill enemy combatants._ Thought Hibiki, as he upped the ante and spawned twenty five clones, again feeling no dip in his reserves - he noticed now that he felt Orochimaru's reserves bolstering his own, as if the seal he'd been given was acting as a catalyst through which Orochimaru could channel his chakra; that had been what the man had said his end-goal was, so it wasn't too surprising. Either way, Hibiki respected the man a lot more now, he might not have chosen this as his first plan, but it was a damn good plan regardless.

Hibiki grunted, and spawned more clones, popping them in batches of twelve and sending them up and out of the hospital, it was time for Konoha to counter-attack, and Hibiki knew that the only damn way to win was through the quantity of his one-man-army, and the quality with which he fought, two things he felt he had in abundance over his comparatively untrained opponents.

* * *

It had been a _long_ time since he'd had an opportunity to flex his skills like he had right now. Dante's hands clenched kunai knives and his eyes were two bloody red Sharingan orbs. He sprinted through the village, ripping apart and frying everyone he came across, not stopping for a second for any reason, without the Sharingan, the fight would have been a blur of cut throats and stabbed heads. He couldn't stop moving, not even for an instant, the one moment he'd done so he'd taken a _bad_ hit to his gut, one so fast that even if he'd been ready for it, and had his Sharingan active, he wouldn't have even been able to dream of dodging it.

He was bounding across the ninja-expressway, making his way towards the Hokage's offices. His Genin had their orders, but he needed a set of his own, so while he smashed through enemy fighters, he did so with a momentum that brought him straight towards the Hokage's offices and the ninja academy. He had no idea how everyone had managed to get their hands on so many konoha headbands, but their had to be a way to identify these people faster than getting a look at their weapons. What scared him, however, was that none of these people were using chakra. They were shinobi, they had chakra they could use, but they weren't, almost as if they were waiting for something.

As he soared through the air, his senses picked up something and he immediately zeroed-in on a family in peril down on the ground. With a quick shadow-clone technique, Dante threw himself at the armed enemy; he landed on top of the man, who crumpled into a heap the moment his knife entered the base of his skull. He pulled the knife out and stood up straight, the family was terrified, and perhaps rightly so - no one knew who to trust right now.

He pointed at them and spoke sternly, "find your local MP's, follow their instructions to the letter." And he vanished a moment later.

He arrived on top of the Hokage's offices after a few minutes, and almost immediately he was surrounded by Anbu. His hands were in the air and the knives were dropped to the ground; "Uchiha Dante, I like pepper mints."

"He is fine." Came the deep voice of the new Hokage, who sat in the center of an intricate seal, his bandages wrapped tight around a bleeding skull. Dante noticed that the man was spending chakra, though on what he couldn't tell, he could only pray he was helping the war effort. "Dante, I trust you and the rest of the Chuunin hopefuls have arrived?"

"Yes." Said Dante with a nod, "I am sorry we did not arrive sooner. Where am I needed and what do we know?"

"What we know is that the village is under siege by enemies who use no chakra to kill our best. I have ordered Tsunade Senju's slug to instruct all fighting shinobi to slash their headbands with a kunai so we can differentiate between friend and foe. We will replace them when the battle is over." He ordered, and almost instantly Dante's headband had a gash in it. "I have people evacuating the civilians to the Hokage monuments and various safe places across the village, but outside of hit and run tactics we cannot directly engage the enemy. I am coordinating with our intelligence corps, our goal is twofold, first to find the breech in our security and plug it, trapping the enemy and cutting off their reinforcements, and second to find their commander and capture or kill him. In the meantime, I have decided that drastic measures must be -" He was cut off by the arrival of an Akimichi Jonin, clad in his family's thick samurai armor.

"Lord Hokage, I have news." Said the thick man, whose other clansmen were rampaging across the village, using their size expansion techniques to protect civilians and smash the enemy shinobi.

"Speak."

"A new element has entered the field. A Genin with Uchiha features and eyes, using enemy weapons. He has markings all over his body and is utilizing the multi-shadow-clone technique to bring the fight to the enemy." He said from a kneeling, but action-ready position, his head bowed.

"Was he wearing a gray windbreaker and was his hair hand-brushed?" Dante asked, to the Akimichi's nod; "Lord Hokage, that's my Genin, Hibiki. I don't know what he's doing, but when he arrived he immediately ran off, searching for any of the Sannin."

Danzo's eye narrowed, "you say he is using the enemy's weapons?"

"Yes, sir."

"And he is winning?"

The Akimichi nodded, "from what we're getting from Katsuyu, he's using suicide tactics. Some of his clones locate enemies, duplicate, and keep them suppressed and immobile while his other clones maneuver around and take them down from superior vantage points or through flanking maneuvers." The Akimichi explained, "Katsuyu also reports that he is operating from the Konoha General Hospital, lord Orochimaru is supplying him chakra so he can create his shadow clone army."

"Then this is what we shall do. You gather up the Chunin, the Jonin, and the Military Police, and assist this 'Hibiki' in any way he requires. Wolf, gather your two best guards and patrol the hospital. I want you to protect Hibiki until we can gain a handle of the situation and reverse the tide. This is our window, we shall not pass it up." He received nods, and everyone vanished, save for Dante.

"And me, sir?"

"Find Mito Uzumaki."

* * *

Minato Namikaze was running scared; the attack had started so suddenly that he hadn't even had time to get to the academy, much less the evacuation points. With the entire village either in chaos, under attack, or on fire, the boy was so discombobulated that the only thing he could do was run from whomever it was that was attacking. He didn't know who to trust, so he simply did what he did best, and he ran as fast as possible, his stamina let him do it. He didn't know where he was going, if he were to be honest with himself, first he'd ran to his orphanage, but his foster family had already evacuated, then he'd ran to Hibiki's home, but after crashing through the partially-repaired hole in the wall, he remembered that Hibiki was in Suna and wasn't even aware of what was going on. He tried going to the Uchiha compound to find Fugaku, but all of the noncombatants had been sent to one of their sacred places. Right now he was assuming that the best course of action would be to just find one - _any - _of his friends, so now the blonde blur was sprinting to the Naara compound with reckless abandon.

That was until he literally crashed into Hibiki upon the Genin's landing after an overpowered leap into the air.

"Hibiki!" Minato called out ecstatically, but he blinked and recoiled, "when did you get tattoos?!" His best friend was covered in jagged lines, spreading out in a rip-like pattern, and purple chakra was radiating off of his body like fire, Minato wasn't that much of a sensor, but he could _feel_ the power in that chakra.

"Minato!" Hibiki shouted, as he dropped the boxy weapon he'd been cradling and enveloped his friend in an uncharacteristically bone-crushing hug. They separated a moment later, "why aren't you in the monument?!"

"I never made it!" Said the blonde, as he wiped his dirt and soot covered hand through his dirty hair. "I've just been running for my life, now!"

"Have you seen any of our friends?" Hibiki asked, as he snatched his weapon up from the ground and surveyed the area around them, before he dragged Minato into an abandoned home with him and they hid in one of the deeper rooms. The home was trashed and a few of the walls were riddled by bullets, the lights were out and the home was dark and gray, the floor was covered in random trash and objects and it looked like something out of a post-apocalypse movie.

"Fugaku got evacuated with the rest of his clan, but I haven't seen anyone else." Minato shook his head. "Have _you_ seen anyone? Have you seen Shikaku or Choza? Or Kushina?"

Hibiki blanched - Kushina! She had to be found, if she died, well, firstly, that would be very bad and he didn't want that to happen, but secondly Mito wouldn't be able to pass on the Kyuubi. Hibiki nearly went paper-white - _Mito!_ He had to find her, she was dying of cancer, that and a war on the homefront was not a good combination.

He shook his head, "no, I haven't found anyone. But I've got a dozen other things I need to do - so I need you to find Kushina for me, and then find my nearest shadow clone or Katsuyu slug and call me." He said, before he unsealed the revolver from his hand with a brief flourish.

Minato's shoulders slumped, "Hibiki, I can't do that, I - I'm not a ninja! I'm not like you!"

Hibiki gave Minato a look, and shook his head. "Minato, you were one of the best guys of our year. Together we beat out Fugaku Uchiha! The only damn reason you didn't finish early is because you never passed your written tests, and you _know_ it!" He thought fast, and ripped the headband from his head, and handed it to Minato. "Take this."

Minato blinked, and shook his head. "What?! Hibiki, I can't, that's -" He wasn't given an option in the matter, as one eight year old pressed the headband into the hands of the other.

"You can and you will. Minato, we need everyone we can get in this fight, and with your speed and your wits, you'd be a valuable asset." He said firmly, "so you've got two choices. Me, I've got to go back out there and fight." He heard gunfire, and responsive gunfire, and got a brief flash of memory - a squad of his clones was engaging an enemy squad. "But you, you can either stay here and hide and wait for the fighting to be over, or you can go out there. But if you step out of that door, you're a Shinobi, do you understand?" He asked, firmly.

Minato shook, looking from the headband to Hibiki, back to the headband, before he swallowed thickly and nodded, before he tied the headband around his golden blonde hair.

"Good. Now take this, too." Hibiki handed Minato the revolver, "this is a _last... Resort. _I cannot stress that enough, _last resort._ All you do it point, aim, and pull." He pantomimed the instructions, and pointed out the important parts of the weapon. "You do not point this at someone unless you intend to kill them, but this has to be a last resort. Your life has to be in grave danger if you use this, because you only get to use this six times before it is _useless_ to you as anything but a club, do you understand?"

Minato nodded, absorbing the information remarkably quickly. "Emergencies. Point, aim, pull."

Hibiki nodded and gave Minato the gun, Minato stuffed it in the waistband of his pants. "Don't stop moving, and don't let the enemy point their weapons at you - if they do, you're as good as dead, because you cannot dodge these attacks." Hibiki handed him a kunai as well, "fight only if you have to. Find Kushina, then get into contact with me, understand?"

Minato nodded firmly, feeling confidence well up in his chest. He was scared, but he wasn't going to let his friend down, so he would do it even if it killed him. "I understand."

Hibiki nodded, "good. I have to dispel myself so my clones know to look out for you. Will you be okay on your own?" Minato nodded, "alright. Good luck, stay safe, keep your head down." Hibiki vanished in a poof of smoke.

Minato took a moment to collect himself, to calm his thoughts, before he ran out of the house and started sprinting as fast as he could, confidence and purpose filling every step.

* * *

With the vanishing of the clone who'd spoken to Minato, Hibiki spawned twenty more - each with enough chakra to fight for a few minutes, which did take a dip out of his reserves, but those were almost immediately bolstered again by Orochimaru. Those clones dashed out of the hospital and used the ninja-express to make for the Senju compound, post-haste.

The sky above Konoha was filled with smoke and ash, and the monotony of such devestation was broken by the toads and Hawks doing combat. Several squads of Hibiki clones were assisting the toads in fighting the hawks, with Hibiki's weapons making quick work of the oversized birds.

Before they arrived at the compound, however, Mito's building exploded in a massive beam of white chakra. The Hibikis nearly fell on their asses, awed for the few seconds the beam lasted, for their minds almost synchronously went to a comparable attack: The kamehameha. Someone in there meant _business._ One of the Hibikis shook his head, and they snapped out of their awe and sprinted inside Mito's home.

_"Miss Mito!"_ He called out, as the Hibikis broke up into squads to clear the home. _"Miss Mito!"_ He called out again, but barely a second later an enemy shinobi smashed through the wall, his chest ripped apart.

Mito stood behind the hole in the wall, a cloak of bubbling red chakra covering her body, and her eyes narrowed in anger. "Hello, Hibiki." She said with a nod, "I see during your time in Suna you experimented in curse seals." She said, though the tone with which she spoke told Hibiki that she was barely even aware of what she was saying, let alone what she was seeing, as the cloak dissipated with a deep inhale and a deeper exhale.

Hibiki shook his head, "not my work, but desperate times, and all that." Mito suddenly started wobbling dangerously on her feet, and one of the Hibikis dropped his rifle and dashed forward to catch the ancient Jinchuriki.

Mito swallowed deeply, she was visibly convulsing with pain, and after a moment her composure broke down and she started coughing violently, blood and spittle flying into the hand covering her mouth, as Hibiki helped lower her to the ground.

_Mental note: Make us taller, give us our old body._ "Miss Mito, are you okay?" He asked the seated Uzumaki, who shook her head.

"No. I am dying, Hibiki, I have not been fine since the growth first started spreading across my body." But she shook her head again. "I have little time. I need you to find Kushina, and I need you to find her now." She said, before the Hibikis heard a crash outside, and all weapons were raised towards the entrance to the home.

_"Get her inside and barricade the room, we'll fortify here and make sure no one gets in!"_ One of the clones shouted, as Hibiki channeled chakra through his limbs and picked up Mito.

"Alright, let's go. I've already got someone, very reliable, looking for Kushina. Let's get you inside and lets get you safe."

Outside, however, they heard a familiar voice. _"Hibiki, is that you?!"_

_"Confirm yourself!"_ One of the Hibikis ordered, as Mito was moved further inside.

_"Uchiha Dante, I like pepper mints!" _

_"Then get in here!"_ The clone yelled, as they raised their rifles so they weren't pointed at the emerging Dante.

Dante entered and saw Hibiki, curse seal and all. _"Kami! _Hibiki, what have you _DONE?!"_

"I needed Chakra, Uncle Orochimaru gave it. What are you doing here?" The lead clone asked, as he picked up the discarded rifle.

"I need to find Mito, Hokage's orders." Dante said, "is that a _curse seal?!"_

Hibiki shook his head, "that doesn't matter! Mito's cancer is fighting with a vengeance and she's dying."

"Then what do we do?"

"I've got someone out looking for Kushina Uzumaki, Mito is going to seal the tailed beast in her before she dies." He suddenly got a burst of memories so intense he and the other clones visibly recoiled from it. "And we need to hunker down, now." He said, seriously.

"Why? What's coming?"

"I don't know..." Said Hibiki, as he stared off into space, eyebrows narrowing as he pieced together everything he'd seen; after a few seconds, he was at a loss for words to describe what he'd seen, to be honest. He chose the first ones that came to his mind, the only ones capable of describing the thing he'd just seen. "Frankenstein's Superman." He shook his head and shrugged, "we need to be ready." _We also need a couple dozen atom bombs, some kryptonite, and a lightsaber for good measure, but all we've got are clones, guns, a Jonin, and a Jinchuriki already one foot in the grave._

* * *

The clone that had burst mere moments ago had been sprinting through the streets, fleeing a group of ten gunmen. He'd turned a corner and after he leapt to the end of the street, waited for the gunmen to round it. When they did, he'd blasted them all with explosive chakra, killing a few, injuring the rest, and blinding them all in the smoke screen. Hibiki took his chance and leapt to the nearest stable-looking roof and surveyed his surroundings, trying to find any of his friends, his enemies, or his superior officers - even with him evening the odds, the fight would go nowhere _fast_ without a coordinated army.

What he saw, however, gave him pause. Off in the distance, beyond the village walls, a figure was floating freely in the air. Hibiki activated his Sharingan and focused as hard as he could; it wasn't as good as a Byakugan, but focusing helped sharpen out the details in the distance, and what he saw confused him. It was a man, just about six feet tall, with a Kirigakure headband tied securely on his head. He was floating in the air without a care in the world, simply watching the carnage around him; Hibiki saw many horrific scars criss-crossing their way across his body, his skin a patchwork quilt of stitching and scar-tissue, almost as if he'd had entire parts of his body blown off and then stitched back on. His eyes were a golden color, and even at this distance, they spoke greatly of hatred, though for what, Hibiki couldn't tell. What caught Hibiki's eye almost immediately, however, was the aura, of sorts, of chakra surrounding the man. It was green and it flowed organically; Hibiki felt power behind that chakra alone, and that alone was enough to tell him that this shinobi was a force to be reckoned with.

Hibiki crouched on one knee and shouldered his rifle; powerful as this Shinobi may be, he hadn't found a single person alive that had made themselves invulnerable. One bullet would end him, and given the power he was radiating clearly even from so far away, he had to be their commander, so if he died, the invasion would fall apart. Hibiki centered the sights on the man's head, and inhaled deeply, before exhaling completely, and firing at the bottom of the exhale. It took the bullet two seconds to make it from Hibiki to the Commander, and when it did, it collided right with the center of the man's head, which snapped back instantly.

Hibiki's grin fell when he realized that the man hadn't fallen from the sky, and his green chakra hadn't stopped flowing. The man's head slowly straightened, and now he was, impossibly, staring right at the Senju heir.

Hibiki's shoulders slumped and the barrel of the rifle lowered from his eye, and in that time alone, the man had gone from floating above the walls of Konoha, to right in front of Hibiki. Up close, the man's details were all put into focus for Hibiki's copy-wheel eyes. His muscles bulged against his skin, tensing with every movement and every breath, like steel cables trying to break free from their fleshy prison. His scars were covered on his torso and his arms by the baggy, long-sleeved white shirt and the gray pants. His uncovered hands were covered in the same patchwork-like scars as his face, and so too was even his neck.

Before Hibiki could blink, the man's hand was around his throat and he was hoisted into the air with him; Hibiki clenched at the iron-grip as his windpipe was constricted.

"Tell me, where is the beast of the village?" The man asked, his voice deep and hoarse, but also tough and commanding; though Hibiki _swore_ he heard something else underneath it all, but he couldn't identify it.

In response to the man's question, Hibiki unsealed the revolver from his hand and blasted the man's chest with six rapid-fire shots. They did as much as the first one, though the man now had six holes in his shirt.

"That is interesting weaponry..." He inhaled deeply through his nose, "and interesting chakra... For a boy so young. From whom did your receive your power? Your mother, or our father?"

Hibiki felt his vision darken, he blasted the man point-blank with explosive chakra, and that did as much as the bullets, though now his shirt was shredded and it revealed the scars that crisscrossed all over his chest.

"I see I shall have to do this the hard way." The man's free hand went to Hibiki's head, and before Hibiki could blink, he felt something foreign, and something powerful, enter his mind. It raged against his thoughts, like a shark swimming upstream. Out of panic and out of a lack of any other option, the clone dispelled, but the man had already gotten what he'd wanted: The location of Mito Uzumaki.

* * *

In seconds, the home of the widowed wife of the first Hokage was under assault by arguably one of the most powerful people in the village. With a strong front-kick, the dark-haired man shattered the wall leading straight to her room, and in seconds, Hibiki clones and Dante Uchiha were inside. Mito was wide-eyed as she got a look at the man, she felt the power in him more acutely than the others, and she tried to get to her feet as the Hibiki clones unloaded their weapons into the man, who took it without breaking stride. Dante leapt forward - fortunately for him the clones were quick enough with their fingers to stop firing when he made it clear he was entering the fray - and tackled the man.

The Monstrous man didn't even skid back thanks to Dante's efforts, he batted the Jonin aside as if he were a hapless Genin. Two Hibiki clones were in front of him barely a moment later, their fists wreathed in leeched chakra and streaming lightning as they both unleashed their explosive, lightning punches. Even the enhanced strength granted to the clones by the cursed seal did little but give the Monster a few scuff-marks for his trouble; he shoved his hands through the clones' chests, popping them both in a brief shower of gore and smoke.

Before Hibiki could blink, a massive spectral hand of blood red, flaming chakra grabbed the monster and threw him outside the room. Dante was on his feet again - nursing several broken bones - and was surrounded by bone-like constructs, which were transparent enough to just see Dante within the construct. Dante's Sharingan was blazing, morphed again into its flower-petal shape, as opposed to the three tomoe standard. Dante was grimacing, and his eyes were twitching, as if in pain.

"Hibiki... I'll hold him off for as long as I can. Get Mito and get her out of here." He said, as he strode forward, the chakra-construct following him, not even disturbing the ground it covered.

"Uchiha... Wait..." Mito grunted, as she forced herself into a seating position, as a Hibiki clone came up next to her and transformed into a taller person, more easily capable of carrying her. "He is..."

"I know what he is. I also know that all I have to do is outlast him." But he himself was questioning whether he could do that, this technique, while powerful, took a lot of chakra; but regardless he kept walking, as his Genin picked up the elderly jinchuriki and escaped, several of his clones guarding him with their reloaded weapons.

Outside, Dante faced the man, who was scowling at him.

"I must congratulate you, friend. It has been quite some time since I have called upon my guardian."

"It has been longer still since I have seen one. And the last one I saw was more impressive." Said the monster, as he nodded to the ribcage surrounding Dante.

In response, Dante poured more chakra into the bloodline, and the ribcage-like chakra construct became far more fully formed. It transformed from the bones to the upper half of a spectral warrior, a demonic samurai whose hair was tightly braided back and whose armor was thick, and carried upon its breastplate the Uchiha family crest. On its left arm was a shield which also had the crest imprinted upon it, and in its right hand was a tanto wreathed in red chakra. Its glowing white eyes narrowed in malice as two more arms grew out of the elbow joints, both of these wreathed in glove-like black flames.

The man nodded his head to the side in a submissive 'alright' gesture. "Alright." He said, as he noticed Dante's eyes oozing blood. "But the question is... Can your blood last in a fight against nature?" He settled into a loose fighting stance. "And perhaps even more pressing... Will your eyes last through the fight?!" He launched himself forward, a deep crater left in the ground behind him.


	24. Siege: Indomitable -III-

Chapter 23

* * *

The first hit from the Monster of Kirigakure nearly cracked Dante's blood-given construct. Without pause, Dante's construct grabbed the Monster in one hand, and with another, wreathed in jet black flame, punched his exposed upper half thrice, before he threw him high into the air and launched tight jets of black flame after him. What he didn't expect was the man to halt himself in mid-air by thrusting both hands to the side, and then shooting forth like an arrow from a bow, dodging the fire by several meters. Still in the air, the Monster clenched both hands - the force causing a small shockwave to burst outwards - and he inhaled deeply before he exhaled with a deep, bellowing roar.

Dante saw what was happening with his matured Sharingan eyes, and with his construct's shield, braced against the millions of meter-long, but impossibly thin blades of green chakra-laced wind. They slammed into his shield with astonishing force, and as they buffeted against his shield and the construct's armor, a cyclone began spinning around him, forming a massive tornado of razor-sharp and needle-thin wind-chakra blades. Dante's eyes widened as he realized the point of the attack - it wasn't to hurt him, it was to pin him inside his construct. Had this man fought an Uchiha with his abilities before? How could he know the extent - and subtle weaknesses - of his most powerful techniques?

In scant seconds, the Monster was finished roaring, and though the tornado stayed stationary, it continued to spin angrily. The Monster flew in blindingly fast, with both fists extended, and smashed into Dante's construct with a massive thunderclap. With speed so fast that only Dante's eyes could keep up with it, the man launched a furious flurry of fists, each one strong enough to shatter stone, each one creating a shockwave, each one causing a thunderclap.

Thinking fast, Dante used his sword-hand and stabbed in a rightward arc at the man's side, but the blade was halted wholesale by the man's nigh-invulnerable skin. Dante scowled and with little else than a thought, his eyes grew bloodshot and they leaked thick blood, as the man was enveloped in jet black flames.

The man floated back, staring at himself as his flesh roasted and his clothes burned. He was wholly unaffected, and worse for Dante, after he threw his arms down to his hips, with fists clenched, and with a loud cry, the flames burst outward and extinguished thanks to a lack of fuel. Dante saw, however, that his skin was scorched and parts were red raw - however little, he'd had an effect. With a loud battle-cry, Dante and his construct lunged forward and slashed at the man with his sword repeatedly, quickly, without pause for breath and without end, until the man blocked one blow suddenly with the back of his forearm. The man's strength was incredible, and Dante - even with his construct surrounding him - was struggling to make the man budge, even in mid-air where there was nothing holding him, nothing bracing him.

The Monster grinned, and Dante realized with a sinking feeling that his chakra levels hadn't dropped at all, whereas he'd burned through a quarter of his stores and his vision was growing blurry.

He was being played with.

_Oh... Shit._ Dante sighed as he saw the Monster toss the sword back with a thrust of his arm, and climb higher and higher into the sky.

* * *

Hibiki hadn't had any specific plan in mind when he'd started running, he only knew he had to stay the hell away from the Hospital. Without meaning to, Hibiki ended up retreating to the training grounds, dashing through the forests until he heard a massive, almost deafening, clap of thunder, which convinced him to pause.

The Hibiki under the effects of the transformation technique, who held Mito bridal-style in his arms, turned to look in the direction of the village, but Mito groaned, prompting him to pay attention to her.

_"Do not stop..."_ She groaned, _"he is a sage... He can sense you even through the haze of battle."_

"What the fuck is a sage?" Hibiki cursed, before he heard several loud, crashing noises, and on instinct, he leapt into the air as high as his curse-enhanced legs could propel him. Barely a second later, the Monster came hurtling through the forest, crashing through three of the four remaining clones and destroying them outright.

_"I AM!"_ The Monster halted himself and then flew into the sky, and before Hibiki realized what was happening, Mito smashed her palm into his jaw, stunning him enough to let her go tumbling down. The Monster overshot Mito, but not Hibiki, who he grabbed by the neck, and with a violent jerk, broke into fine powder. Hibiki burst into smoke as Mito landed on the ground, feet-first, an aura of red chakra building up around her as her eyes narrowed into snake-like slits.

The Monster slowly floated down to the ground, behind him was the clearing of toppled trees, and in front of him was Mito, whose chakra cloak was already boiling at six tails, and without a single fleck of skin burning off. She had had a _long_ time with the demon inside of her, and though she had never won its trust or gained its control, she knew how to use its power - up to and including its _very limit__ \- _without killing herself. The only thing running through her mind was a brief prayer that she could at least overpower this man enough to convince him to retreat, to buy Hibiki and his friend enough time to find Kushina.

_Otherwise... I may have to resort to her backup._ Which wasn't something she _wanted_ to do, but she felt the second option was just as good as the first.

The Monster simply held his hand forward, "it doesn't have to be this way." He said simply, his hoarse voice almost _kind._ "Truly, all I want is the demon." He said, as smoke from the extinguished fires from earlier rose off of his singed clothes.

"To what end?"

"Discovery." Said the monster, his golden eyes gleaming with interest, "chakra has connected human kind for longer than they can remember. What better way to explore our history and learn the truth than to take the oldest known sources of chakra and harness them as the tools they are?"

"I have lived a very long life, Kiri." She said, as she looked directly at the man's hitai-ate. "I know when people are lying to me, and I know when they are telling only half truths." She stared directly into his eyes now, "you tasted the power of nature." She said, as she sensed his sage-chakra, which was as thick and plentiful now as when he'd begun fighting less than a quarter of an hour ago. "And it intoxicated you. It enthralled you. So you wanted more, and decided that you would go about this by stealing the nine tailed demons." She narrowed her blood red eyes, "I will tell you this." She said, her elderly voice somehow carrying more power than his own. "As long as I breathe, and as long as the Nine Tailed Fox is sealed within a Konoha shinobi... You will not take it. And though your sage-granted power is indeed great... It pales in comparison to my own." She growled, as she was wreathed in a nine-tailed cloak.

The Monster sighed, "so be it." The two leapt forward at the same moment, and engaged in a savage physical duel. Mito's strikes were animalistic slashes and brutal kicks, befitting of the fox demon inside her. The Monster's strikes were brutal, but more befitting of a brawler than a trained fighter. He struck with precision undeserving of his fighting style, and speed that Mito hadn't seen since her husband's duels with Madara Uchiha.

The red-cloaked Mito grabbed the Monster by his shoulders, with arms grown from the cloak. She slammed him into the ground and began tearing and clawing at his chest, many of her blows merely glanced off of him, but there was damage being dealt, minute amounts of blood were seeping from the small cuts she was carving onto his scarred chest. Without pausing or breaking stride, she smashed her head into his own and bit savagely on his neck, feeling his flesh bend under her chakra-made teeth, but barely make any pierces.

The Monster kicked her from on top of him, and leapt to his feet, wiping blood from his chest without breaking eye contact from the calmly standing jinchuriki. He launched himself forward and caught her by the midsection. He spun around in mid-air and threw her with all of his might, sending her flying through the forest, crashing through trees, to make an eventual landing in the center of an open training field. Her landing carved out a crater in the ground, and before she could get to her feet, she saw the Monster soaring into the air. She scowled, and all of her tails centered around her open mouth as raw chakra began gathering in a hyper-compressed orb. When the Monster curved around and began hurtling towards her, her bijuu-dama was unleashed in a massive column of blinding white light.

The Monster and the beam collided in mid-air in a massive explosion, the shockwave flattening trees for over a kilometer. When the smoke cleared, it revealed the Monster, floating in mid-air, arm extended, the bijuu-dama caught in his left hand and halted wholesale as it struggled against him. The Monster raised his right hand and chopped downwards through the middle of the column of energy, splitting it in two, and sending the jinchuriki deep into the ground when the shockwave reached her.

The Monster was breathing a bit more heavily than before, but otherwise, the only sign of effort was the shaking and the bleeding of his left hand.

Mito crawled out from the crater beneath her, scowling upwards at the Monster. Where did all of this power come from? It couldn't originate solely from his senjutsu chakra, but what other explanation was there? Even her husband and Madara couldn't so overpower overpower a tailed beast, whose power was only multiplied by the strength of its container, and while she may be old and near death, she certainly wasn't weak.

The Monster lifted his hands to his sides, "is that everything you have, Madam Uzumaki?"

She growled. _Far from it._ She thought as the intensity of her chakra only increased, while it was true the two were fighting on a level that would kill people multiple times over, they were barely even winded.

Without even twitching, chakra-laced ink suddenly exploded outwards from her feet, creating intricate, complicated seals that merged with one another and multiplied as they spiraled and grew outwards. Before the Monster could react, she began kicking, punching, and otherwise smashing the ground, sending the seal-covered boulders and debris flying upwards a few feet, before she kicked each one that entered the air towards the Monster, who just grimaced and waited, wondering what it was she was doing now. The moment the first stone hit him, however, his eyes flew open wide. No two stones had the same effect written all upon them, as the intricately designed seals combined their effects and multiplied them all. Some exploded in massive fireballs, some coated him in molten lava that burned not his flesh but his chakra, some imploded in sudden, brief, intense gravity-wells, some even burst into poisonous smoke clouds, with particles covered in their own seals that detonated in enormous explosions upon contact with his flesh.

With a monstrous, demonic roar, the Monster hurtled straight towards Mito and slammed into her, not stopping as they flew through the rocky ground. He punched her furiously, blood seeping out of wounds on his torso and arms, and his chakra flowing rapidly as they tried to 'moisten' his 'dry' tenketsu and shed the burned chakra. He underestimated the extensiveness of her seals though, and for a dozen kilometers downward, he encountered more and more seals that unleashed increasingly harmful effects, but his rage blinded him to the death of a thousand cuts and he kept punching her and slamming her further into the ground, his strength eventually - impossibly - cracking her chakra cloak and doing damage to Mito herself.

Without warning, the enraged monster sage turned upwards and they began flying back to the surface, out of the range of Mito's seals. Every punch sent Mito flying further away, every impact shook the ground with the force of a brief earthquake, and every shout created fissures around them. When they broke the surface, they were in the center of the village, and the Monster launched the Jinchuriki skyward with a massive, earth-shaking uppercut, before he flew up after her, intending upon finishing the job.

As he made it to her, however, he heard a deafeningly loud caw from a bird that was not his own, and he felt a crushingly large mass of chakra hurtling towards his right. His head whipped around and he saw an eagle the size of several houses flying straight for him, talons extended and eyes enraged. _"THE SKY IS THE DOMAIN OF THE WINGED!" _The Eagle roared with such intensity that whatever windows still stood in Konoha shook for several kilometers.

Before he could blink, he was tightly clenched in the talons of the massive eagle, their grip so tight that he actually felt them piercing his skin. As they flew forward, the giant eagle slammed him into the ground and dragged him along, smashing him through houses and tearing a massive gouge in the earth as he removed the Monstrous Sage from the battlefield, unknowingly followed by a massive toad that noticed its presence.

Falling through the air, Mito blasted off weak bijuu-damas to slow her momentum, before she was caught by one of her apprentices.

Another Hibiki clone landed roughly on the roof of a partially destroyed home. He laid Mito down, "Washita will keep that guy busy, I sent an order to all of the clones - they're going to find Minato and they're going to help him find Kushina." He said as the chakra cloak withered away, and he adjusted his grip on the woman. "Come on, we're going to the hospital, Tsunade will be able to buy you more time." He said, before jumping off and heading towards the hospital.

Mito, now unaided by the Fox, felt weak, and her voice reflected this. _"Hibiki... If we cannot find her."_

"Save your strength, Grandma, we'll find her." The curse-sealed Genin urged.

Mito clenched her eyes tight against a pang of pain, now getting the first true look at the curse-seal on her grandson's body. _"Where did... Where did you get the seal?"_ She asked, weakly.

"Orochimaru. He's feeding the alpha me chakra, using the seal as a means of transference. It multiplies my chakra pools and makes me stronger, faster, better than before." Hibiki responded, "just stay quiet, we're almost there." He urged, silently pleading for Minato to find Kushina quick.

* * *

Dashing through the city, a desperate Minato clenched his dagger tightly, trying like mad to find any sign of his friend. Where was she? There was no sign of her _anywhere - _all of the evacuation shelters, the academy, the monument, her apartment building, Hibiki's house, Lady Mito's house, they all reported that she wasn't there.

_If only I could be faster, I could have - _He skidded to a halt, something catching his eye by pure chance. He didn't even know how he saw it, it was so small and thin, and was bathed in the red-orange light of the fires, but he stooped down and picked it up, confirming that the small, frail thing was, indeed, a lock of Kushina's vibrant red hair.

_What is this doing here?_ He thought, clenching the strand tightly and looking up and around, trying to find any path, any indication of which direction they went. He tried listening for any kind of sign, but it was hard to hear anything over the fires and distant explosions. _Where did she go? Why did she drop her hair? Is she in trouble?_ He looked down and saw a small depression in the ground, slowly piecing things together as he reached down and ran the tips of his fingers over the footprints.

_Someone took her... But why? What do they want with her? Is it something to do with Uzushio's destruction?_ He wondered, as he turned in the direction of the footprint, and leapt after it. _They can't have invaded the village **just** for her, could they? _He wondered, _how better to hide a kidnapping than to launch a full scale invasion? People go missing during these things, people die, corpses vanish, it's the perfect cover._ Thought the sole living Namikaze, as he noticed another red hair, indicating he was on the right path.

After a good ten minutes passed, Minato was well outside the walls of Konoha, following the trail of red hair through the forest, picking them up for reasons he honestly didn't know himself, he was simply compelled to do so. He slowed to a halt when he heard shouts of pain and anger in the distance, it sounded as if Kushina was putting up a struggle, even so far out of the village. Minato switched to stealth, and after a few minutes, caught up with the group of kidnappers. Unfortunately for him, one of them was a sensor, and almost immediately picked out his chakra over the background chakra of the plants and animals.

Immediately, the four kidnappers surrounded the fifth - who held Kushina in a burlap sack - and drew their weapons, firing at Minato and tearing apart the forest as he desperately ran and dodged the gunfire. He took a leaf from his fights with Hibiki and improvised, channeling chakra through his legs before he leapt into the air, his knife in one hand, and Hibiki's 'gun' in the other. The ninja scattered as he sailed down, but one reacted just a second too slow, and he landed on them with a heavy smack, his knife pierced the ninja's throat three times before he felt the hairs on the back of his neck fly on end. He leapt away on instinct, managing to dodge three massive chakra-coated stones, and then the stone bullets of an earth-dragon-bullet technique.

Minato scrambled away and took cover behind a tree, before a fireball destroyed the thing and sent it falling down. With a yelp of fear, Minato ran again, and decided that this constituted as a 'life-or-death' emergency.

_"Point... Aim... Pull!"_ He turned around, pointed the gun at the shinobi controlling the earth dragon, aimed the gun, and pulled the trigger. His shot went wild, he wasn't ready for the recoil or the noise of the gun, but miraculously, he managed to graze the spine of his opponent, doing enough damage that they were sent falling to the ground in a crippled, but still alive, heap.

_"He's got a firearm! How can he have a firearm?!"_ One of the shinobi yelled, before he was unexpectedly tackled by Minato, who buried his knife in the man's jaw with an upward leaping, stabbing motion.

The final shinobi leapt forward and tackled Minato to the ground, but before he could land, out of _nowhere,_ with no warning whatsoever, an enormous eagle came flying through their small battleground. The massive creature threw the prey it had clenched in its talons several kilometers, destroying sections of the country-spanning forest as he skipped across the ground like a pebble skipped across a pond. The Eagle flayed its wings and used air-friction to drag itself to a stop, before it blasted the area its target had stopped skidding in with air-bullets as big as apartments.

The shinobi and the orphan were both on the ground, on opposite sides of the groove in the ground. They exchanged a look, looked back to the distant, but still massive eagle, and then back to each other, before they realized they were fighting. In a panic, Minato fired the weapon three times, each bullet tearing through the man's chest and stomach, killing him in seconds. When the academy recruit realized he'd won, he was on his feet and had the gun pointed at the shinobi, who had a gun pointed at the struggling bag.

_"If you move, I'll shoot her."_ The man yelled over the battle between the eagle and the Monster.

"If you shoot her, I'll shoot you." Minato warned, "either way, you'll die." Though one option meant Kushina would die, and he didn't want that, but the key to a successful bluff, according to Hibiki, was making it look like one believed his own words.

The man grinned, "nice try, but you fired six shots."

Minato blinked, and went over it in his head. "No I didn't." He pulled the trigger and hit the man in the shoulder, though he'd been aiming for his head. "I fired four, plus that one." He said, as the man recoiled in pain and dropped the sack on the ground, opening up his core to another, final gunshot. "That was six... Right?" He looked at the gun, but couldn't make heads nor tails of it. Hibiki had said that after six he was done, so he stuck the gun back in his pants - nearly burning his unmentionables with the barrel.

Minato dashed over to the bag, moving fast so he could get away from the Eagle's fight as quickly as he could. He found the rope keeping the bag shut and cut it with his knife, and was promptly punched in the fact by the red-headed Uzumaki inside.

_"TAKE THAT YOU - OH NO MINATO!" _The Uzumaki screamed as she realized what she'd done, with Minato on the ground before her, giggling in madness. _"I'm so sorry I thought you were one of those ninja are you okay please tell me you're alright - is that my hair?!"_ She shouted off in rapid fire as she knelt down next to him, before noticing her hair in his pocket.

"I thought you might want it..." Mumbled Minato, as he slowly dragged himself to a seating position. "It's kind of pretty..." He shook his head, "are you okay?" He asked a red-faced Kushina, "did they hurt you? Why is your face red?" He blinked, looking over her for wounds.

Kushina shook her head, "no, I'm -" A large shadow grew over them, they both looked up and saw the titanic battle between two senjutsu practitioners.

Washita slashed at the Monster with his steel, chakra-coated wing, a massive scythe of chakra-coated wind slashing across the monster's chest, drawing blood as the Monster crashed through the wind scythe and punched the Eagle in the chest, full-force. The Eagle flew back a few meters before it spun around, wing extended, and caught the Monster by the head. The Monster flew towards the ground and left a crater on impact, mere feet from a horrified, stunned, Minato and Kushina.

An enraged and injured Monster dragged himself out of the crater. He'd had to fight an Uchiha, a Jinchuriki, and now a summons with senjutsu, livid was not strong enough a word to describe his anger. He blinked, and his eyes snapped onto the two terrified children.

_The Uzumaki... They're rescuing_ _her!_ "_NO!"_ He roared as he sprinted forward, but before he even made it two steps, a massive toad crashed onto him and buried him in the ground with his equally massive sword, before he blasted him repeatedly times with boulder-sized water bullets.

In the brief time it took for the toad to inhale, the Eagle arrived above them and gave them a fierce look with its massive eyes. _"RUN!"_ He bellowed out, before the Monster dug himself into the ground, and the Eagle took off and the toad leapt into the air so as to dodge a surprise attack, which came just a second later with a loud roar.

Minato grabbed Kushina's hand, _"come on!"_ He yelled, as he scrambled to his feet and dragged the Uzumaki 'heiress', of sorts, with him.


	25. Siege: Transfer of Care -IV-

Chapter 24

* * *

_"Washita, it has been a long time!"_ Yelled the deep-voiced toad, as he was sent flying through the air by the unexpectedly powerful punch by the senjutsu Monster.

Washita watched as Gamadoto flew past him, _"Doto, what are you doing here?!"_ Roared the head of the Eagles, as he swung a steel-wing at the sage, knocking him off balance long enough for the toad to come flying in after his recovery, bodily slamming onto the sage, burying him under his tremendous girth.

_"I was summoned, old friend."_ The toad called out, _"but that is for later. We need to keep him occupied for as long as possible, Katsuyu will explain."_

_The slug?_ Washita blinked, before he noticed a small slug leap off of the toad with astonishing strength and speed, as the Toad yelled at the man crushed under his stomach, telling him that it would take a lot more than senjutsu chakra to lift him up. The miniscule thing landed on Washita's beak, and slithered onto his head.

"Washita, we have little time so I will be brief. The Jinchuriki of the nine tails is dying and you and Gamadoto need to buy Konoha as much time as possible to seal the beast into another container." She spoke in rapid fire.

The massive winged creature nodded with a grunt of affirmation, sensing in the distance several other Eagles entering the fray - Hibiki had finally followed his directions and summoned some combat-caste to fight with the Hawks. As he flapped his wings to keep him aloft, he noticed suddenly that Doto was slowly lifting off of the ground.

_"Oh no, sonny, here we go!"_ Yelled out the toad before he was hit with such force that a massive, wave-like ripple was sent outwards across his rubbery skin. _"Get ready, 'cause this little man's PIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIISED!"_ He screamed, before he was thrown to the north with such force that a crater was formed where he'd been thrown and where he landed.

Not wasting any time, Washita inhaled deeply and screeched as loud as he could - the noise was enough to shatter the ironwood trees and create fissures in the ground. If any ordinary human heard the raw force of these screams, their heads would implode and their hearts would explode out of their chests. The Monster clutched his head in pain, as blood leaked out of his nose - his body was too durable to start popping like bloody balloons, but that only meant he had to suffer longer.

In the distance, Washita saw Gamedoto land, and start hopping back to them. In that brief moment he took his eyes off of the monster, however, decided he'd had enough and, with a clenched gut, bit through the pain and leapt into the sky, sending a mountain-breaking punch straight into Washita's stomach. His roar was cut off instantly as all of the air left his lungs; the steel-wing technique was a very good defense mechanism, but the Monster had just proven himself to be strong enough to break through that almost literal ironclad defense. The Monster held out his hand and channeled so much chakra through it that the air glowed with green fire, before he slashed at Washita's stomach, drawing blood and sending Washita spinning down to the ground.

In those moments he fought the Eagle, however, he'd taken his eyes off of the toad, and the result was that he was covered in a river of thick oil, and barely a second after that he was set ablaze. Without any time to try and douse the flames, the Monster was hit again by a slash from the toad's massive sword, it too covered in oily fire. With the Monster pinned on the ground by the sword, the toad clenched his hands together and inhaled deeply. Inside the massive green and red toad, his lungs filled up with water, which he compressed with chakra and sheer muscle strength - not an easy feat, one most would call impossible. The toad, however, knew that compressed water could cut through _anything,_ even Sages, so after he let the water build and press, he blasted the Monster's chest with the tight stream of water.

The force of impact carved straight through the monster's chest and through the ground, but the Monster - feeling the water stream come closer and closer to his heart - grabbed the massive blade with both hands and shoved it upwards, smashing the enormous toad in the jaw, forcing it to close, and forcing the water stream to cut straight through his mouth, slicing it open and dirtying the water with his blood. In the second it took the toad to cease the technique, the Monster had gotten to the feet and flipped the blade around so he was holding it by its handle. It was an awkward grip, given its enormous size, but he managed to swing it well enough, carving a deep gash in the toad's chest, and on the reverse swing, he smashed into the toad with the flat of the blade, sending him flying several meters, to crash into the ground and make a massive crater.

Without warning, Washita appeared again and had Doto's blade clenched in his talons, and with a rough jerk, he snapped it into pieces. The Monster didn't hesitate, he tossed the blade up a few inches, and with a rough kick, sent it flying upwards, where its jagged edge pierced his chest, sending blood streaming down its blade and through the eagle's plumage. Washita, stunned, couldn't keep himself airborne and fell to the ground, unintentionally sending the blade further into his chest.

Washita groaned, and Gamadoto slowly got himself to a sitting position. The toad shook his bleeding head, "how is he so strong?" He blubbered out through a mouthful of streaming bood, a slight lisp hampering his speech.

_"I don't know..."_ Wheezed Washita, as he turned his head to look at the Monster, still enflamed, as he slowly strode over to the two. "Even senjutsu chakra should not grant this kind of strength... And he _should not_ be able to absorb the energy of nature and remain mobile as he does." The eagle winced at the pain in his chest, several of his bones had been broken by the sword and the Monster's fists, and while most of his organs were bruised, he hadn't lost any to the stab wound, so when he returned to Amerigo, he would be fine.

"And he fought the Nine Tails' Jinchuriki before this..." Groaned Gamadoto as he got to his feet, "this thing... This monster... He is something else."

_"I liken it to being like a force of nature."_ The man called out, gaining the attention of both summons_,_ his hoarse voice calling out over the crackling of flames sticking to his skin. _"___"You... You animals with stolen intelligence. You creatures using power you do not understand. You dregs underneath my feet. You can hurt me, but you cannot kill me, because _like the planet Earth, I am an undying, resolute, indomitable force. An immovable object."_ He said, as he gained ever closer, a slow grin crawling its way across his face. _"And __like the Atom Bomb, I am energy and strength limitless and unseen. An unstoppable force."_

Gamadoto's eyes flickered up, and then back to the monster as he chuckled. "Son... You see, you've forgotten somethin' about us summons."

The Monster came to a halt. "Oh?"

From behind him, a new voice spoke. _"They're always backed up by summoners."_ The Monster whipped around, and was greeted by a several foot tall, white-haired Sage, who had seated upon his shoulders two elderly toads. His nose was large and covered in warts, his hands ended in points and his musculature was overall increased.

"Jiraiya the Toad-Sage." Said the Monster, with a nod of respect.

"We meet at last..." Jiraiya drawled out, "... Guy..." He still received no response from the Monster, so he shook his head. "Nice to finally meet you, Washita of the Eagles." Jiraiya nodded to the massive bird, "I spoke to Hibiki, he gave you clearance to return to Amerigo if you felt you had to."

Washita nodded, "thank you, Jiraiya." And he vanished in a massive plume of smoke, followed soon by Gamadoto after a similar instruction. It was now just Jiraiya and the Monster.

The Monster sighed, "I can see from your companions that you do not simply wish for me to surrender."

Jiraiya grinned, and shrugged his shoulders, splaying his grotesque hands to the side in a submissive gesture. "I mean, that'd be nice." He said, "but given that you're strong enough to go toe-to-toe with a Jinchuriki, an Uchiha Jonin, and two boss-summons, something tells me that I won't be able to convince you to just up and leave."

The Monster shook his head, "all I want is the Jinchuriki. Specifically the Tailed Beast, you can keep the hag. Is that so much?"

"In the hands of a man like you... Yes." Said Jiraiya, as he rolled his shoulders and entered an odd combat stance. "But I will give you one chance to leave. That way you can't say I didn't try." He grinned a toothy smile.

The man stared at Jiraiya, unblinkingly, before he slowly brought his gaze up to the distance, in the direction of Konoha. Jiraiya saw realization dawning in the man's eyes. "You're distracting me." He said, just a second before he took off with a massive leap, and flew back towards Konoha.

_"Shit!"_ Jiraiya leapt after him, _"Katsuyu, tell them they're about to get company!"_ He called out.

_"Yes, Jiraiya."_ Said a thumb-sized slug, _"I have informed the Hokage. He is going to perform his technique and then he will engage, he requests your assistance."  
_

"I'm on the way."

* * *

Without warning, the Hibiki army heard the roar of each and every demon in the six hundred and sixty six legions of hell. The force of the roar shook the very air of Konoha and sent many people to the ground as the earth quaked. One Hibiki dispelled after he saw the source of the demonic scream - a sky-scraper sized, gray-robed figure with a large devil's mask covering its face.

The entire war seemed to stop, as everyone fighting - from the Konoha forces to the invading militia - looked up in terror at the Forbidden Technique: Sacrificial Demon Statue. Like a machine, its jaw fell open almost in slow motion, stretching wide enough to fit two houses in, length-wise. One of the Hibikis, pressed back-to-back to another three clones as they fought several hawks and assisted the eagles flying about, felt a great sense of foreboding leaking from the enormous creature.

One Hibiki exchanged glances with another, the other shrugged, he hadn't gotten any updated orders, and so far as any of them remembered, they didn't have anything even resembling -

Another roar with no warning, but this time something exploded from its gaping maw. Rather, countless somethings - so many that the countless Hibikis couldn't count them - burst forth. Bright, glowing, gray beams bursting forth like missiles. They climbed high into the sky, so high that they were drowned out by the dark gray clouds. There was a bright golden flash in the dark clouds, and in the blink of an eye, all of the gray beams hurtled back towards the ground and slammed into the heads of the enemies in the village.

Several Hibikis burst in raw surprise, several others started jumping about as they tried to dodge, screaming profanities before they realized that the chakra-beams weren't going for him, or any of his dopplegangers, they slowed down, and watched as the beams continued streaming out with loud buzzing noises from the demon's maw. They all got a burst of memory from one that saw the effects of the beam first hand - it shot down from the sky like a bolt of lightning, and for the briefest moment they cut into an enemy gunman and extended dozens of large gray spikes, impaling the enemy infantry from the inside-out multiple times without pause, all in the briefest of moments, the blink of an eye.

Hibiki stared at the spectacle, the jutsu of mass, precise, destruction. It targeted specifically the enemy fighters - or, as the case was, gunners - and liquified them from the inside via death of a thousand spikes. Hibiki got another burst of memories - green beams were bursting from the enormous maw, and one of the Hibikis who had taken a few bullets had been hit by one, his wounds healed in seconds, boiling away into steam, the jagged, cut apart flesh, replaces by fully healthy tissue.

"What the fuck?" Said one Hibiki, as he rubbed the back of his head with a curse-mark covered hand. "What is that, why didn't we use it already, who the hell used it?" He thought, before he saw hurtle across the sky, the Monster that had plagued his memory-flashes for a good quarter of an hour.

_"Oh boy... We got incoming."_ Said Hibiki in English, before he popped himself.

* * *

In the Hospital, there were three Senjus - Hibiki Alpha, a Hibiki Clone, and Tsunade Senju - and two of those three were in a hospital room, desperately trying to keep the lone Uzumaki alive. The Hibiki next to his adoptive mother, and the one in the sealed room with Orochimaru, both recoiled physically from the memory flash the lone clone sent back.

_Oh shit._ Thought the Hibiki in the basement, before he sent out a mental command to all of the clones in Konoha, save for the ones in the Hospital, to vanish. There wasn't a great increase in chakra for the two, but it was noticeable for both of them. Tsunade noticed it too, she perked her eyebrow at Hibiki as she kept her med-chakra coated hands pressed firmly on a seated Mito's bare back; her robes had been lowered so as to provide Tsunade easier access to her chakra system and her body, but also to protect her modesty in the presence of an eight-year-old. She was breathing heavily, the drain of Katsuyu leeching her chakra and her having to personally heal and perform operations on the various wounded was taking its toll, but she had to keep Mito alive for as long as it took.

"What is it?" Tsunade panted, beads of sweat pouring down her forehead and dripping off of her nose.

"Is it..." Mito coughed blood into her hands, "is it... _Him?"_

Hibiki nodded, but he was at a loss for what to do. Mito and her 'tenant' had failed, Dante had failed, and now Washita had failed - apparently even with assistance from one of Jiraiya's boss toads, according to the memories of several clones who'd seen the toad leap out - and even Jiraiya, who'd been glimpsed following them. Even with Orochimaru's seal giving him power, what hope did _he_ have?

"Don't worry about it." Groaned Tsunade, "Katsuyu just let me know, the Hokage is on his way, he will stop him."

_You seem to forget that dude's pretty much Superman, what the fuck will stop HIM?_

"Will he be enough? He took on a Jonin, a Jinchuriki, two Boss Summons, and a Sannin, and he's coming back for _more."_ He paused, thinking. "I've got an idea." He vanished.

* * *

The Monster halted on a dime, when he arrived at the hospital and saw, waiting for him, a crippled, bandaged old man with a cane lightly clenched in his right hand. The Monster inclined his head, and lowered himself down upon noticing the man's gaze was locked firmly upon his own. He landed with a small hop, and the old man gave him an appraising look.

"I have heard from our shinobi that you were powerful... But not... Nude." The man was more disgusted than whenever Dante Uchiha stepped into his office.

The Monster blinked his golden eyes, and looked down at himself. "Hm." He grunted, "I am." He'd taken so many explosions and been set aflame so many times he hadn't even realized he was nude. He looked to his left, and saw a dead shinobi. "One moment." He said with a nod.

"Oh, please. Clothe yourself." Said the old man, as he nodded towards the body.

The Monster nodded, and stole the pants off of the dead woman, caring not for the decency of the dead. After he was finished, he nodded, "thank you." He patted down the pants, "I've been trying to find a way to protect my clothing, but..." He shrugged, and ran a hand through his dark hair. "So, I hope you're here to make the formal surrender of Konoha." He said, stretching his back.

The Man shook his head. "I was hoping to get the same from you."

"You want me to surrender Konoha?" The Monster blinked, "yes. I surrender Konoha to me. Now kneel. Or give me the Jinchuriki of the nine tails."

"No." The old man stated firmly.

The Monster sighed, and started stepping forward. "I grow tired of your games, old man. I have needs that - " He was stopped wholesale by the wooden stick, the flimsy wooden stick.

"I said... I want you to leave." The old man stated, reaching up for the bandages covering half of his face, and with a small twitch, they all fell around his neck, revealing a scarred half, and a Sharingan eye.

The Monster slowly turned his head to look at the old man, the hatred and anger returning to his eyes as he readied for combat again. _"Or... What?"_

The old man turned to look at the Monster, the tomoe of his eye swirling into a single solid circle, with three thick lines branching inward to the center. **_"I'll convince you."_**

The Monster's head recoiled back as he felt the man's invasive chakra pour into his own system. He blinked, and sneezed. "Interesting eye, Old Man... You know, I've always wanted one for myself, I think I -" He was cut off by a brief blast of concussive force that blasted out in a tight beam from the old man's eye; the Monster was sent flying into a shattered, burning building, making the entire thing explode into rubble upon impact.

"I like the eye myself." Said the man. "The abilities unique to it might not suit my desires, but it has its uses." His voice was deep, filled with a youthful vigor that it had lacked moments earlier.

The Monster exploded out from the rubble, angry, but was sent right back, deeper into the earth, by another concussive blast.

"I myself like to leave the fighting to my Root." Said the old man, as he slowly began walking forward, the cane clicking with each step. "Though I can tell by the vibrancy of your chakra and its very color that no Root in existence could combat you and win." The Monster crawled out from the rubble, but again was blasted by a concussive pulse; he was able to keep his footing this time, however, and merely skidded back several feet. "To be honest with you, unless I am willing to sacrifice this eye, I myself believe that even _I_ cannot defeat you." He admitted freely, ignoring the growls of the Monster, whose every footfall forward created a deep crater in the ground. The old man grinned, as the Monster growled. "But there is something I _can_ do." He said, as he saw, in the distance, a blonde and a read-head leap across shattered rooftops and take the back-way to the hospital. He looked back to the Monster, who closed the gap between the two in an instant.

_"Hm?"_ The Monster growled.

"I can buy time for this." Barely a second later, a Sannin appeared up from the ground, as if he melted through concrete. He vomited up a blade and then stabbed outwards, cutting through the man's chest in a shower of blood.

In a flash of movement, the Monster smashed the back of his hand into Orochimaru's head, and kicked backwards, smashing in Danzo's chest. Before he could follow up, a new fighter smashed both feet into him, burying him into the ground, and by proxy forcing the blade of kusanagi deeper through his chest. Jiraiya, his Senjutsu chakra putting him closer to the Monster's level, pummeled him deeper and deeper into the ground, his frog-techniques increasing the already awesome force of every blow. He roared loudly as he smashed the Monster deeper and deeper into the ground, bruising his already torn flesh and ripping more of the blade left, right, forward and back, up and down, causing more and more damage in the chink in his armor.

The Monster, quick as lightning and with about as much warning, grabbed both of Jiraiya's shoulders, and yanked downwards, piercing the second sage's chest on the blade sticking out of his own. He shoved upwards, and yanked downwards again, stabbing a second time. By the third stab, the two toads on Jiraiya's shoulders reacted, clenching their hands together and screeching loudly, deafening both wounded sages, but not stopping the Monster from punching Jiraiya in the chest and forcing the white-haired Sage off of him.

Growling deeply, the Sage forced himself to his feet, and with a powerful push, forced the blade to fly out from the back of his chest, which immediately started leaking blood as he stepped forward, slowly sealing itself up from the inside out. He sensed a large pulse of energy, and leaned his head to the side, dodging a concussive blast from the newly minted and recently proven Hokage. He sensed another burst and leaned backwards, Orochimaru flew over him, but instead of missing, his elbow drove down in a fierce blow that smashed into the Monster's stomach, knocking the wind out of his lungs, in time for a heavily wounded Jiraiya to throw a powerful hook, clobbering the Monster in the face with a massive cracking noise, as senjutsu-enhanced fist met face and the bones underneath cracked.

The Monster flew for a few feet and landed on the ground, digging a crater as he skidded along. He halted himself with a grunt, and was on his feet barely a second later, before he was blasted back several meters by another concussive wave from the Hokage's eye, as the Toad Sage and Snake Sannin both dashed towards him from the side, the Hokage in the center. Without breaking stride, Orochimaru leaned sideways as he ran and snatched up the Grass-Cutter, just as Jiraiya spat out multiple toad-oil fire bullets, each of which the Monster tanked.

With a deep growl, the Monster crossed both hands in front of his face, and then with a mighty roar, threw them both out in front of him - the raw force of these motions halted the Sannin with blasts of wind, and the strength of his voice sent the Hokage skidding back a few feet. The Monster turned and launched a powerful hook at the Toad Sage, who deflected it with his arm and smashed a fist into the Monster's gut, just as the Snake Sannin recovered and swung his blade in a wide arc, forcing the Monster to duck down, where he was met by Jiraiya's senjutsu-enhanced knee, which struck with enough force to break the skin on the man's nose and draw blood.

The Monster leapt into the air in a crouching motion, still between the two Sannin, before he thrust out both of his legs and his arms, smashing the Sannin with both sets of limbs and sending them flying back a few meters, before he himself was smashed by the Hokage's eye once again. With an enraged growl, the Monster soared torward the elderly Hokage, arm outstretched and a look that could melt steel set firmly on his face. He reached the Hokage, who blasted him twice more with his eye during his flight, but the Monster's momentum was just enough to keep him moving forward. Just as he clenched the Hokage's head in his hand, however, a flying eagle - much smaller than the one he'd fought earlier, but still unnaturally large - came flying in with a loud caw, before it sank its claws into his face and blasted him with a wind bullet, and took off again in a perfectly executed hit and run.

With a scowl, the Monster back-handed the Hokage and turned to face the retreating eagle, before he was accosted again by another eagle who took advantage of his lack of awareness. The flak-jacket clad eagle clawed at the man's back and cut at it with its steel wings and its razor-wind techniques, even trying to break the skin with its beak - though having to cut off that avenue of attack when he nearly broke his face open. With a pained bark, the Monster swung around, but missed the Eagle as it had predicted the attack and climbed back into the air before the man could even twitch - and as such, the Monster was left open for a running charge from the Snake Sannin, who slammed his grass-cutter blade into his mostly healed chest and twisted the blade, warm, red blood gushing out and down the blade.

The golden-eyed monster roared deafeningly in the Sannin's face, making it clear he felt no pain and took no damage from the attack. Orochimaru lifted an eyebrow before snakes crawled out from his sleeves and started lunging for the open chest wound, acid and poison practically leaking from every available surface. The Monster yelled out and swatted the snakes away as they tried to penetrate his wounds, and the Toad Sage appeared at his side and launched a rock-breaking haymaker punch at the man's wounded chest. The Monster caught the blow, though the force of it did cause the bones in his hand to bend and creak, and with his other hand he grabbed at the tail of one of the snakes in his chest, ripped the snake out, forced its jaw open, and jammed it on Jiraiya's head, before he leapt into the air and spin-kicked him away, only to be blasted by a massive concussive force from the recovered, if injured, Hokage, who physically was still as stoic and nonfeeling as he'd started the fight - as if the injuries he'd clearly sustained meant so little to him that he could ignore them outright, like a paper cut or a bug bite.

_"That's...** IIIIIIIIIIIIIT!"**_ Screamed a livid beyond reason Monster, before he inhaled deeply, clenched his fist and made an 'L' shape with his fingers, pointed at a rushing Orochimaru, and yelped out, **_"BANG!"_** And the force of his yell, combined with the hand-sign made by his free hand, launched a wave of wind-chakra with countless razor-sharp blades at the Snake Sannin, shredding his skin and sending him flying back, far into the village.

For his trouble, the Monster got blasted in the face _again_ by a seemingly nonchalant Hokage. The Monster turned his smoldering head and scowled at the man, before he turned to the elderly man and inhaled again, a deep, vibrant, fiery green aura starting from his feet and flowing upwards into his eyes as he braced both legs behind him and leaned his torso and head backwards. Just a second later his eyes flashed open and he thrust his front forward, and twin beams of bright green senjutsu chakra blasted forward, slamming into the elderly man's chest and smashing him through several homes.

The Monster turned to the hospital, and found in his way a wolf-masked Anbu, crouched low in a swordsman's stance, wielding a straight tanto with a circular guard, which seemed to radiate chakra. The Monster scowled, but that had been the starting gun for the fight between him and Wolf, who vanished and appeared right in front of him a second later, the tanto held in a reverse-grip and swinging in a vicious upward-slash, a streak of white chakra following in its wake. The Monster's hand shot up and deflected the blow, and before the blood could even begin seeping out of his slashed fingers, the Wolf vanished again, practically dancing in circles around the Monster as he slashed violently and quickly at the Monster's back, chest, legs and arms in what the Monster almost instantly recognized as the Thousand-Cut Blitz technique.

With a scowl, the Monster launched a spinning elbow, which caught the blade directly on the path to its next intended target, and he and the expresionless masked Anbu began a struggle of dominance, which the Monster almost instantly started winning, in direct spite to the stinging pain in his elbow where the tanto was digging in. With a brief flourish, the Monster yanked his elbow to the right, and followed up the parry with a wild superman punch from his left, catching Wolf in the face with a blow strong enough to send a shockwave out through the air. Wolf, to his credit, recovered quickly enough, switched from a reverse to a traditional grip, and stabbed upwards, managing to penetrate the Monster's gut and cut into his chest. Wolf found, however, that his sword was stuck fast by the man's clenched torso.

The Monster grabbed Wolf by his neck and started to squeeze, but Wolf burst into smoke - his sword vanishing from the Monster's gut in the process. Sensing chakra gathering behind him, the Monster swung around in a wide arc, catching the edge of Wolf's blade with the back of his forearm, as Wolf kept his hand on the flat of the blade and worked to keep the Monster immobilized.

A growling Monster roared out deafeningly, _"I grow TIRED **OF THESE GAMES!"**_ He raised his free hand and gathered natural energy in it, before he shoved it forward and the senjutsu-technique's extended reach caught Wolf in the gut and sent him skidding back a few feet. The Monster clenched his fist and yanked it backwards, yanking Wolf right back towards him, where his mask met the full force of the Monster's straight right and shattered upon impact, along with the man's nose, several of his teeth, and a good portion of his skull as his momentum carried the lower half of his body forward, resulting in a somewhat pitiful upward curve and downward, unconscious flop onto the ground.

The dark-haired Monster, whose blade-made wounds had already begun sealing themselves up, stared at the profusely bleeding, silver-haired Anbu with contempt, before he turned back to the Hospital.

_Again,_ he found his path blocked, this time by the curse-marked boy, who stood there, hands outstretched and locked together, with a diamond shape in the opening between them. The Monster stared at the boy, and the boy stared at him.

"Our Fath -"

_"_Ki-_Ko-__**HO!"**_ The boy interrupted him and a massive, surprisingly powerful wave of explosive chakra rushed forward and blasted away at the wounded Monster, who just grimaced and trudged forward, as the boy continuously repeated his attack, each blast of explosive energy buffetting the Monster, who continued forward, only slowed down by the boy's strongest ranged technique.

This continued until finally the Monster made it to the boy, smacked his hands away with a grunt, and grabbed him by the throat. _"I said I am **DONE! WITH! THESE GAMES!"**_ The monster violently threw the boy to the side - not even noticing that he burst into smoke upon impact with the ground - and leapt forward, towards the largest concentration of chakra in the village, landing just outside of the hospital room with Mito Uzumaki, Tsunade Senju, Minato Namikaze, Kushina Uzumaki, and the Alpha Hibiki, who threw his hand down in a chopping motion.

_"NOW!"_ He screamed as loud as he could, before Mito was enveloped in a massive, blood-red cloak with nine tails jutting out of the end.

The Monster realized what was happening too late, and was blasted, almost point-blank, in the face, with the full force of a nine-tails bijuu-dama. He felt the chakra burn at his wounds; he was sent flying as the cone of energy propelled him further and further through the air, ripping him apart through the many chinks in his armor. In the ten seconds the blast was sustained, he was sent dozens of kilometers through the sky, outside of Konoha.

When Mito finally couldn't keep it up any longer, the beam dissipated, and the chakra cloak vanished. The silence that followed was only broken by her exhausted panting, and the idle sound of the purple chakra radiating from Hibiki.

"Is he fucking gone yet? We're running out of badasses." Hibiki muttered, with a brief glance towards Tsunade.

Mito coughed, _"he will not return."_ She said, "Kushina... Give me your hand... Tsunade, help me to the bed, please." She begged, feeling her life force fading away.

Kushina did as she was instructed, as Hibiki committed everything to memory - he knew exactly what he'd just seen, but now was not the time to mention it. As he turned from outside to look in, he caught in the corner of his vision moving figures, a large pale-white one and his clones picking up several others. Mito, with her hand clenching Kushina's, turned it ninety degrees. Instantly, contact-seals started snaking out from her hand outwards, coiling across Kushina's arm and snaking their way down her chest and towards her stomach.

"It is... Hasty... No room for flare... But it will do its job... Reliably" The panting, wheezing elder Uzumaki told the younger one, as she closed her eyes to concentrate. "One of you grab her, this next part will hurt." She said.

With little more instruction needed, Hibiki grabbed one shoulder, and Minato the other. Hibiki noticed a gasp of pain when he grabbed her - Orochimaru's seal was still coiling around his flesh, so his strength was still enhanced. With his Sharingan, he saw that the flow of Mito's blue chakra had halted around Kushina's stomach after a few moments, likely signifying the completion of the seal. With just a second's pause, the black, chakra-laced ink pulsed deeply, like a heart-beat, and grew blood red.

Kushina tensed against Minato and Hibiki, but they kept their grip, even after she partially deafened the both of them as she screamed loudly, desperately. The demonic chakra of the nine-tails flowed from the elder to the younger, and the two boys holding her had to brace their legs behind them she was struggling so much, trying to cut the link, trying anything. The pain was incomparable to anything she'd felt before - it felt as if liquid fire, jagged glass, and barbed wire all were dragging their way through her veins, it felt unnatural, it felt angry. She felt it all, despite Mito's best efforts, and it felt like eternity passed as the process went down - more than once Kushina pulsed bright red with the demonic chakra, but with a grimace, Mito suppressed each pulse, and her seal grew ever more complicated, showing her mastery of the art of fuinjutsu, by how easily it came to her to apply some of the most complex sealwork on the planet through touch alone.

The minutes passed by like hours, and the pain indicated by Kushina's wails only ever increased, before finally, it all ceased and she fell unconscious, slumping backwards in her friends' arms. Mito's arm went limp and swung freely over the edge of her bed, as finally all resistance to the cancer running through her body just dropped like a floodgate. There was nothing left to protect her from the killing growth, and she began coughing uncontrollably.

Despite herself, Tsunade shrieked, both at the sight of blood, and at the sudden realization that her only living relative - no matter how estranged they had been - was soon to leave the world. Mito, however, had one last duty to fulfill, and it took all of her strength to place her withered, shaking hand firmly upon Tsunade's head, silencing her cries, her pleas for the old woman not to die as so many had died before.

_"Do not waste what time you have... Child."_ Whispered the hoarse, exhausted old woman. _"I do not know what it was that I did to hurt you so... But I enjoyed what time we had together, and I shall enjoy telling your grandfather the stories I have heard. I apologize, and hope you can forgive me for leaving you." _She said, as her voice trailed off, and her hand slipped away as easily as her life.

The room was dead silent, Tsunade from shock, Hibiki from respect, Minato from lack of a desire to bring attention to himself.


	26. Siege: Aftermath -V-

Chapter 25

* * *

In total, twelve thousand sixty two civilians, two hundred Jonin, four hundred six Chuunin, and seventy eight Genin, all died on the day Konoha was attacked, with countless more filling the halls of the village's many hospitals. All of the Shinobi who had fought on that day, who were still in fighting condition, were sent immediately to the walls, to defend against future attack and to scout out any stragglers. Hibiki had been among those shinobi - their losses had been so great that even Genin were taking on Chuunin-ranked missions. Dante had been hospitalized for several major wounds and was in critical, but stable, condition, Jiraiya had been sent to the operating room for multiple stab wounds and poison-burns to his chest, but work on him had been a lot less frantic than on Dante due to timely intervention from Ma and Pa toad, who kept natural chakra running through him long enough to undo the worse of the wound. The Hokage had the lightest injuries, namely several broken ribs, and he had been seen to and finished up before the first week had been out.

Orochimaru had light wounds, and as such he hadn't even been seen - instead, after he'd been thoroughly screamed at by Tsunade, whenever she had free time that wasn't occupied by chakra-building activities, he'd spent the first day after the attack working out how to suppress the seal on Hibiki's neck. He'd succeeded after thirty six hours, and Hibiki had been hospitalized for Chakra exhaustion because of it - Tsunade had, for several hours, thought the case had been so bad that he'd slipped into a coma, nearly resulting in Orochimaru's violent death at the hands of Tsunade's fists.

It took months for everyone to be cycled through the hospitals, for the intelligence gathered during the attack to be written up and categorized, and for the reality of the situation to set in. Konoha was, officially, at war with everyone until they figured out who the hell spearheaded this attack, and as such the other nations kept their distance, diplomatically. Hibiki had been 'conscripted' into the Hospital Corps. by a functionally inebriated Tsunade, and she'd given him a crash course on her brand of medical techniques, so he could help out with whatever it was she needed him to do, be it mending broken bones or sealing up raw flesh.

There had been a sharp learning curve from opening wounds to healing them, but Hibiki had caught on quick, as he usually did, and after half of a year had passed - his ninth birthday falling to the wayside, he'd realized a month after the day had passed by - the physical effects of the surprise attack on Konoha had been healed. The psychological, and structural damage, however, were still a long ways away from being healed. The man who was simply being called the 'Monster' had been responsible for a great deal of the damage done to the buildings of Konoha, due to his titanic battles with a great many of the village's strongest shinobi. Once the forces had been consolidated and the numbers were counted, the Genin stopped getting border patrol and started getting assigned to help with the rebuilding, which gave Hibiki a first-hand look at the damage done by the enemy soldiers, proving to him a suspicion he'd had since the first ones had panicked at the sight of his clone army.

They hadn't been fighting Shinobi.

Outside of the Monster, none of their enemies had used any ninja techniques, and whenever Chunin or Jonin forces got close enough to engage in hand-to-hand, they were taken apart in seconds. They all had extremely little chakra leaking from their cadavers - in that they were all empty of all chakra barely days after they'd been killed. On average, even for Genin, it took months for all of the built-up chakra to leak out of a corpse, but for civilians, it took anywhere from a few hours, to three days. More proof came in the form of the autopsies - other than the wounds inflicted by the Demonic Statue, there were no scars, no burn marks, no signs of a shinobi's lifestyle. If these people were Shinobi, they were either highly inexperienced and unproven, or were so impossibly good that they'd never been touched on the field of battle, which, given the ease of their dispatching from Jonin, Chunin, Military Police, and ANBU forces, had to be impossible.

Hibiki stood up and stretched his back, wiping the back of his hand across his forehead. He had been shangheied into assisting a couple and their son into rebuilding their ramen shack. They were a kind couple and their son reminded Hibiki a lot of how he was when he'd been a kid, Back Home. The place had been smashed by Washita during his attack on the Monster, and when Hibiki had arrived first, he'd gotten a good look at the large fissure that had been carved into the ground by the massive bird.

Hibiki chuckled, _'The sky is for the winged!'_ He thought, with a shake of his head before he went back to cutting apart planks of wood and stacking them in large pallets for the owner to grab en-masse. _I wonder what made him think that was intimidating._ He felt a few hairs on the back of his neck stand up, and he looked over his shoulder, to be greeted by the sight of a tall ANBU agent in a wolf's mask.

"Hey Wolf." Hibiki remembered seeing this guy in the Hokage's office, before the Chunin exams.

"The Hokage requests your presence." Wolf said simply, extending his hand.

Hibiki looked from Wolf, to his wood, back to Wolf. "I'm kind of doing something... A little urgent."

"He requests it urgently."

Hibiki grinned, and placed down his tools to take the man's hand. They vanished a second later, and when they reappeared, Wolf pointed upwards, "you know the way to the office. I have duties myself." He vanished just a second later.

Hibiki stared at where the man had been, before he grunted with a shrug, and started walking through the building, wondering not what the Hokage wanted him for, but what his teammates and his friends were up to. He'd caught up with his team about a week after the attack, they both had a few new scars in various places, but were largely no more worse for wear. Team Four had nearly lost Kyo due to a collapsing building, but they all were fine save for chakra exhaustion. Minato was riding high on his field-promotion, after the Hokage had learned of his involvement in rescuing Kushina and getting her to Mito before she died. Fugaku had been evacuated to his clan's safe-place when the attack had begun, Chouza and Shikaku had been evacuated to the mountains, and all three of them were more than a little angry in their own ways that Minato had eclipsed them in rank, thanks to the attack, and word from Serizawa - who, word had it, had taken down three enemy gunmen alone while he'd guided the academy students to the Hokage monument - said that they all were hitting the books with the vengeance, in their own ways.

Though, despite him catching up with his friends, he didn't see them too often after the attack. Their work rebuilding, scouting the walls, and cataloging the dead kept them all separate. There wasn't a lot of time for team-specific missions when their manpower was low and they needed people spread all over the village to help with the rebuilding efforts. Worse, in a manner of speaking, was that there wasn't a lot of time to train in the last few months, which Hibiki had found the realization of rather startling, and it put a lot of things in perspective for him.

He was a killer. He wasn't just a soldier, he wasn't just a warrior, he was a killer, plain and simple.

Whenever he walked into a room with multiple people, his mind almost instinctually jumped to who was the biggest threat, how they could attack and kill him judging from their appearance, and how he could defend against such attacks and retaliate. Back Home, if there had been some kind of disaster in his city, instead of thinking 'damn, if I help out I won't have time to train', he would have thought 'I should see if there's anything I can do.'. When he'd first found himself thinking that he'd have less time to further hone his not inconsiderable power due to the rebuilding efforts, he'd suddenly, jarringly, _harrowingly, _realized that the boy in the New World, and the man from Back Home, were two completely different people. One was an EMT who worked twenty four hour shifts, who only thought to save people and how he'd scrounge up enough money to make rent next month and still have enough to put into savings, where the other was a walking weapon of mass destruction. If this were some kind of Hollywood movie, Hibiki - only nine years old - would have already been at the point where he was too good at his job - _killing people - _and the Government would have started considering 'exit strategies'.

Hibiki sighed, and shook his head as he came up on the Hokage's office. It hurt, every time, when he thought of home, and how much just _nine years_ here had changed twenty from there. Now, however, wasn't the time to wallow in self-pity and remorse, now was the time to face the music. The Hokage had probably finally found enough free time in his schedule to confront Hibiki about his guns, and Hibiki had a story prepared. He'd thought _long_ and _hard_ on whether or not he would give out the secrets to firearms to Konoha, where the Monster's country clearly already had them. It had basically boiled down to the fact that, while the Monster's country might be more militarily capable, none of their soldiers were truly _trained_ with those guns; truly, when Hibiki had fought them, they'd injured each-other as much as they'd killed his clones. Konoha, if given the secrets to guns, would spend even less time training with them and would field them immediately; the world he lived in _just wasn't ready_ for that kind of warfare. With that in mind, he had to be ready for the worst possible outcome from this meeting - _refusing_ secrets through lying to a militaristic leader of a military city-state filled with ninjas, all of whom were trained to catch even the slightest tells, was a bad idea, and if Hibiki had to do it, he could very well get himself killed, so he had to keep all of his bases covered.

He knocked on the Hokage's door. A deep, though elderly, voice beckoned him inside. Hibiki entered, and found, not to any great surprise, several assembled Jonin standing on both sides of the room, Dante and Eiji nowhere to be found, with the bandaged Hokage taking up the center of the formation, seated behind his desk. Hibiki steeled himself, and entered slowly, respectfully. When he reached the center of the room, he was ordered to halt, and he did so, his heart thundering in his chest, though he was managing, just barely, to keep himself from trembling. He was almost certain of why he was here, but the operative word was _almost,_ so he couldn't give anything away just yet, he had to let the other players show their hand first, before he could start drawing from his stacked deck.

"Hibiki Senju." Spoke the deep voice of Danzo Shimura, from behind his interlaced hands. "Tell us how you fought and defeated Iwagakure's Jinchuriki."

Hibiki didn't blink, but he did have a feeling he would have to change his pants later, he wasn't sure. He swallowed deeply, fighting back a torrential, angry outpour of _WHAT?!_ "In the Chunin Exams, sir?" He clarified, to the nod of the Hokage. "I... Earlier that day, at the beginning of the final exam, I saw the Jinchuriki engage my teammate in combat, and I got a chance to see how she fights. I deduced that she relied on the immense stamina and chakra overload of her tenant to fight, and that when she was enraged, she was much more willing to burn chakra." He wasn't certain if Danzo wanted the 'stop a war' details as well, but given that that mission was an S-Ranked black ops, he erred on the side of caution. "So, when it came my turn to fight an unrelated opponent, I took an opportunity to lay a trap, and performed the multi-shadow clone technique and spread them out amongst the field. After defeating my opponent, I took the time to rest and build up chakra for the fight against Miu.

"Before the fight, I had sought to enrage her so as to make the fight easier in the long run. When the time came, I knew I would be unable to fight her in her chakra-cloaked form, so I used a pre-placed clone back home to double my chakra reserves, and I put everything I had in to one punch." He explained, "it did nothing, leading me to conclude that the only way to truly fight her was by opening the Eight Gates."

He was interrupted by Danzo, "were you trained, by your mother, relatives, or Jonin-sensei, to open these gates?"

Hibiki shook his head, "no, sir." He said, "I deduced the method by reading of the gates from my mother's library."

"Were you at all concerned that you would cripple yourself by opening these gates?"

"Only partially, sir. Physical damage doesn't transfer between two shadow clones, but memories and chakra do. What I did was send a shadow clone to fight her in my stead, and it was the one to open three of the Eight Gates. When it burst after being killed by Miu, with a weapon similar to that which we saw several months ago, its memories and chakra were sent to the clones spread about the field. With the experience of opening three gates, those clones all revealed themselves and opened gates themselves. With numbers on my side, and the strength of the first gate giving me enough power to fight against the Jinchuriki, I managed to outlast and overpower the girl, eventually culminating in my victory through knockout." _And the winner... **Fighting,** out of the red corner... Hibiki! SENJUUUUUUUUUU!_ Floated Bruce Buffer's voice, unbidden, through Hibiki's head; it took everything he had to not grin.

Danzo nodded, "I see. Now, tell me about that seal on your neck, and what made you get it." The unasked question wasn't hidden at all - how did he fight during the Battle for Konoha?

Hibiki nodded and swallowed thickly through his suddenly dry throat. "Simply put, sir... I don't know much about it, yet. The rebuilding efforts have kept me from experimenting with it, and picking my uncle's brain about it. What I do know is thus: when we arrived at Konoha and saw it under siege, I was struck with a desire to find my family and friends first." He said, half-lying. "And as I searched for them, I was attacked by several enemy fighters. I managed to kill a few and take their weapons. I did the math and decided that we had to fight fire with fire, as it were. So I found my mother, who led me to my Uncle, to whom I told that I needed what essentially equated to a bottomless pit of chakra - in order to use the enemy's weapons against them, I would need to send an army of shadow clones to meet them, equipped with those weapons, but to do that, I would need far more chakra than I had at the moment." He explained, slowly brushing a hand through his dark hair. "So, Orochimaru planted this seal on my neck. It acted as a catalyst and a converter... A catalytic converter, if you will, for my uncle's chakra. He pumped his own into the seal, and the seal converted it to chakra that I could use, which I did use, to create my army of shadow clones, which met the enemy forces head-on. Given the replaceable nature of these clones, I figured that we would be in a far better position to fight the enemy with an army of expendables than with an army of irreplaceable shinobi." He explained.

Danzo nodded slowly, his bandaged face unreadable. "How did you become so skilled with the enemy's weapons?" He asked.

Hibiki grinned and let out a shaky chuckle, "er... I'll admit, sir, the first few times I used them, I hurt myself as badly as I did them." The first time he'd ever fired a gun, he'd dumbly taken his father's magnum and fired it like the movie stars did. His father maintained that it was some sort of divine act that he hadn't broken his nose, but he had gotten himself a nasty little scar from the stunt; never again did Hibiki disrespect a firearm like that. "But it got easier as more and more memories from my clones piled on. Point, aim, shoot." Shoot at the bottom of the exhale, don't lock your arm, only point the weapon at something you want to kill, never keep your finger on the trigger unless you're willing to shoot, but that all would be lost on the gun-shy Hokage.

Danzo nodded. "Now tell me how you fought the Monster of Konohagakure."

Hibiki wondered where this was going, but felt a small weight slide off his shoulders regardless; the hard part was over. "I specifically, did not, sir. I tried to kill him with one of his own weapons, but it did nothing to him - the projectile just bounced off of his skin." Like Superman. "And he very quickly showed me that he outclassed me in every way; even if I'd used the Eight Gates - which, given the unknown of the Curse Seal, I did not want to do - he would have been stronger than me. So, when I saw he was headed for Mito Uzumaki, I warned Dante-sensei, who was with my clones at her home. Dante engaged him, and then he engaged Mito. The clone protecting her was destroyed, but I was busy bringing in the cavalry - the giant Eagle summon. Washita then engaged him with the assistance of Gamadoto, the boss-toad. I knew that what was needed to injure that man was a _lot_ of power in a _very_ short amount of time, so after he finished fending off Dante-sensei, Mito, Washita and Gamadoto, you, Jiraiya, and Orochimaru, he landed on the hospital, just outside of Mito's room, and I had her blast him with her strongest attack." He answered.

Danzo nodded, and for a few minutes, he was silent.

"Hibiki, I have conferred with your Sensei, and the Jonin who was present for your fights. I have conferred with my advisors, and the shinobi who saw you fight in defense of Konohagakure. You have displayed skill and intuity beyond your age and your rank; you have displayed power beyond many living Jonin. You have the tactical abilities to create winning strategies mere moments after being exposed to your situation." Danzo listed off, "if you will accept it... I, as the Fourth Hokage of the Village Hidden in the Leaves, do hereby present you with your flak jacket." He pushed the jacket forward on his desk, and nodded to Hibiki, beckoning him closer. "A symbol of your promotion to Chuunin."

Hibiki picked up the jacket; a heavy thing that reminded Hibiki of the combat vests Soldiers wore back home. Kevlar existed in this world? He didn't know that. "I..." Hell, what was there to lose? "I graciously accept, Lord Hokage." He said, bundling the jacket up under his arm, and then bowing to the Hokage.

Hibiki recieved a nod from the Hokage and a bow from every Jonin in the room. "With rank comes responsibility, young Senju." Said the Hokage, "very soon we will be attacking Kirigakure, in retalliation for their attack on us." He indicated a heavily charred, but recognizable, Kiri headband. "That came off of the Monster's head. As a Chunin, you will be sent to the front lines to fight and, if it must happen, die, alongside your people. You will command Genin forces and take orders from your Jonin commanders. We are at war, Hibiki; and having a Senju as powerful as yourself will win a lot of battles before they need to be fought." He said, to Hibiki's understanding nod; Danzo nodded himself and waved Hibiki out, "that will be all. You will receive orders soon."

* * *

Exiting the Hokage's office with the flak jacket bundled up under his arm, Hibiki was greeted by the unclean Jonin, who wore a wide grin on his face.

Hibiki grinned too, "so, my mother let you go?"

Dante laughed, "no, I just got bored, and the Hokage told me he was promoting you today." He tousled Hibiki's hair as the two made their way out of the building, "congratulations, kid. _Chunin!_ Nine years old, mid-ranked. Doin' better than I was at your age." He laughed.

Hibiki nodded, "so... Do I _have_ to wear this?" He asked, shuffling the flak-jacket, "it's heavy, and I'm willing to bet it will restrict my movement."

"Well, yeah, but go ahead and skip it if you don't care about protecting your core from knives and explosions." Snidely said the Jonin-sensei as they reached the ground floor and exited the building.

Hibiki gave Dante a look, "sir... I have bones I can manipulate with my thoughts, and can make stronger than steel. I have a healing factor that's gotten to the point where it heals wounds about as fast as they're made... And I tend not to enter any situation without shadow-clone backup." He said, "at this point, I don't really see the reason to wear it, other than to display my rank... Which... On the battlefield... Is kind of suicidal." He pantomimed an enemy, "look! That one's wearing a flak jacket! He's a chunin! Take him out first! ... Versus: look! That one's not wearing a jacket, skip him, look for the Chunin or the Jonin!"

Dante nodded, "makes enough sense, I guess. And to be honest, the flak-jacket's a formality. I stopped wearing it when I was seventeen." He explained, "but, that's neither here nor there. I've got something I need to show you."

Hibiki looked to Dante, "oh?" He said, reaching into his seal's pouch and pulling out a storage scroll, sealing the vest into the scroll as the unclean Jonin nodded.

"Yeah. Been stuck in the damn hospital so long I haven't been able to do it, but I pulled a few strings and got clearance to bring you to the Naka Shrine." He explained.

Hibiki nodded, as he stuffed the scroll back into the pouch. "Care to explain what that even is?"

"Simply put, it's where the full and true history of my clan is written... But I can't say much else until we get there." Dante explained, brushing his black hair behind his head. "Oh, and, it goes without saying - don't ever repeat what you see in there... To _anyone else."_

* * *

They entered the Uchiha compound a few minutes later, marking the first time Hibiki had ever been there, he realized. They traveled through the compound, which was largely indistinguishable from the rest of the village save for the Uchiha fan hung up everywhere it could fit, like the American Flag in a Texan neighborhood. Hibiki was partially surprised that no one gave him or Dante more than one passing glance as they walked through the compound, but once he considered that his hair was dark and his eyes were onyx, he realized that he pulled off a pretty good half-breed Uchiha. They walked through the massive compound for a good quarter of an hour, before they reached the center of the compound and found the main hall.

"Come on, in there." Said Dante, nodding inside, and giving the elders they passed a nod of greeting.

They entered the hall and after Dante muttered something about 'seventh from the far right', and he moved the tatami mat in question, they found a small stone covered in a large seal with a Sharingan in the center. Dante elbowed Hibiki in the arm, and told him to watch closely, before he flew through a few handseals and then pressed a hand on the stone. It moved with a deep groan, revealing a staircase that led downards.

They descended deep into the earth, before finally reaching a warmly lit shrine with several stone tablets on its far wall.

Dante stretches his back and groaned, "this, my dear little Chunin, is the Naka shrine. Flip on your Sharingan and get comfortable, 'cause we've got a _long_ story ahead of us."


	27. Intervention

Chapter 26

* * *

The Naka shrine was, in a word, enlightening. The Uchiha clan was a clan with a deep and rich history, and after that trip, a lot of things about them, and the nuances around their powers, made a lot more sense.

For instance, in order to awaken a Sharingan in general, one has to go through a traumatic experience. Maturation - which was the addition of more tomoe, with a maximum of three - tends to be expedited with more trauma, but can be done 'naturally' with usage, experience, and training. However, what interested Hibiki was what he read in the shrine. A lot was indecipherable, but what he read and what Dante told him were two different things. According to the shrine, the secret to achieving untold, nigh impossible amounts of power through the Sharingan, was to 'experience death of a traumatic nature'. Hibiki equated it to seeing one's mother murdered right in front of them. It went on to explain that the Mangekyo was a devastating source of unrivaled power - such was the power that made Madara Uchiha the legend he was. The cost of this power, however, was the slow deterioration of the wielder's eyesight, with blindness an inevitability; cursed power.

Dante, however, explained the Mangekyo in a different light. He called it a cursed path to power, because - in his words - the only way to achieve it was to kill one's best friend, and he refuted every attempt from Hibiki to question such an interpretation. He explained that, while Mangekyo did cause inevitable blindness through overuse, there was a way to overcome such a weakness - but many saw it as the ultimate sin, because the only way to 'undo' the Mangekyo's blindness was to steal the eyes, or, more preferably, the Sharingan, of another person. If this person was related by blood, and they themself possessed a Mangekyo, the opportunity arose to acquire an 'eternal' Mangekyo, a fusion of both eyes and an unending source of power - one that never deteriorated; though Dante admitted, with Hibiki's healing factor, he had no idea if he would ever even _need_ a transplant.

It was after that point that Hibiki was unable to read it, and Dante told him that only those with a Mangekyo could read past that point, and even then there were hidden details, but those would be for another day, for now, Dante had to train his students. War wasn't just on the horizon, it was coming fast, and while Team Six was good, they weren't ready for _war._

So, the next day, Dante set to work. The number one thing to consider in a ninja's war was one's own stamina and chakra reserves, so he had them work on their physical stamina and their chakra reserves. He kept them on the basics for weeks, building their stamina, their strength, their reserves, so if they ever got into a true, to-the-death fight with an enemy shinobi, they could at least _last._ It was after they worked on their stamina, and brought it up to par and got them to the point where they could continue on their own, did he start teaching them the tricks of his trade.

He told them of his own career in the Second War. He was ANBU back then, the first and - thus far - only of his kind: an ANBU Shock Trooper. He was so skilled during his prime that he was sent on what equated to suicide missions, with the sole intent of causing as much damage, death, and destruction as he possibly could, and getting out _only_ if he could. He built his name - and wrote his entry in the bingo book - with the wanton destruction that only he was capable of. That was what, he explained, he was trying to groom his genin - though, now Genin and Chunin - team into the first Genin Shock-Trooper team. The three of them were able to cover each-others' bases well enough to be able to work in tandem on a battlefield, and were all powerful enough on their own to be able to engage their enemy head-on.

Noboru's combat training had been focused on building his speed and the damage he was capable of with each strike. His jyuuken emphasized accuracy over power, but being able to smash boulders with his palms was a very good trait. He did accept Dante's ninjutsu teachings, but he mostly focused on his clan-techniques and his taijutsu in that area, while training personally on building up his raw speed.

Suboro's training focused almost solely on the art of genjutsu, and to that end Dante taught him what he _knew,_ but his brand of genjutsu was largely reliant on eye-contact with his Sharingan, so he brought Suboro before the living members of the Kurama clan. The methods they used to teach Suboro were kept secret to Team Six, but Suboro admitted he enjoyed learning he was a part of a clan and learning their history and their techniques. They were a conservative bunch that didn't trust outsiders easily, but they were willing to teach Suboro despite his half-blood.

Hibiki's combat training had been largely been around maturing his Sharingan and teaching him how to fight with and without it in the middle of battle. Dante explained that the weakness of many Uchiha was their over-reliance on the Sharingan, so being able to fight perfectly without it, meant they could be unstoppable _with_ it. Hibiki, however, didn't stop there - after a week training with Dante in the Uchiha way, he went to Tsunade, who had taken up the drink again, in the wake of Mito's death, inspiring Hibiki to delegate his training to Shadow Clones, so the Alpha could instead focus on confronting Tsunade about her ever-worsening problem.

The encounter with Tsunade had been somewhat explosive, but Hibiki had come with his guns loaded, figuratively speaking. He'd brought Jiraiya, Orochimaru, and Shizune with him in what largely equated to an intervention.

Tsunade, leaned forward in a drunken pose, stared at the four of them angrily, her face red thanks to the booze running through her system. "You've... _Got..._ To be fuckin' kiddin' me." She slurred, eyes slowly traveling down the line of people.

Hibiki shrugged, "far from it." He said, "you were perpetually drunk after grandpa Sarutobi died, you were too drunk to train me, you were intoxicated during the invasion, and you were even snockered during our hospital work in the aftermath." He listed off. "And to top it all off, you've gambled away seventeen million ryo in the dens all across Konoha."

"Oh, who are you to care what I do in my free time?"

Jiraiya added in his two cents, "uh... He's your _son._ I think, of everyone, he has the biggest right to care." He said, to a scoff from Tsunade, as she took a deep swig from her bottle - she'd nearly broken Jiraiya's arm when he tried to take it from her earlier.

Orochimaru spoke next, "drowning yourself in alcohol is not healthy, Tsunade, and I will not be around to leach the alcohol from your system every time something happens." Both times he'd had to do so, several of his snakes had nearly _died_ from alcohol poisoning, leading him to assume that it was some kind of perfect mixture of her Senju and Uzumaki blood that kept her alive whenever she drank.

"You're killing yourself, lady Tsunade... You're destroying your livers and rotting your brain!" Shizune pleaded, brushing her dark bangs behind her ears nervously.

"Bah!" She slurred, ripping the bottle from her mouth, sloshing some liquid down her front as she cursed. "Who even cares? Everyone I know and love is going and dying on me anyways." She wiped the alcohol off of her chest with the back of her hand, and after it hit the necklace that hung from her neck, she growled and eventually ripped it off in a drunken rage, and tossed it aside, it landed with a soft 'thunk' in the dark hallway.

Orochimaru shook his head, "Tsunade... Your grandfather wouldn't want -"

"Oh, who cares about him? He's been dead for decades, he doesn't care about what I do." Tsunade grumbled.

"What about my uncle?" Shizune asked, before she shrank under Tsunade's murderous glare.

_"DON'T you mention him!"_ Tsunade growled angrily.

Jiraiya growled in response, "then what about _Nawake,_ hime?! Would _he_ care?!" He dodged a flying bottle of booze, which shattered with a loud crash. "None of them would want you killing yourself over them. Hell, even Sarutobi sensei wouldn't -"

Tsunade snorted with drunken, slurred laughter. "Oh please, he'd care less than any of _them!"_ She slurred angrily. "He always tried fixing problems. 'Let's bring the village out of our depression!', 'let's intervene in the war before it gets too bloody!', 'let's _end_ the war now that we're a part of it', 'let's fix Tsunade's grieving by giving her this fuckin' kid we found."

"Uh, _hime -!"_ Jiraiya tried interjecting, but Tsunade had hit her stride by now.

"Random ass abomination of nature... Sure!" She twitched, in faux glee, "I'll just scoop him up and give 'im to Tsunade. Tsunade the Great, Tsunade the Sannin, Tsunade the Medic, Tsunade the _Mother."_ She laughed, leaning back on the couch and letting her head loll about.

"Tsunade... I think you've had enough." Said Orochimaru, whose own voice held hints of concern, and his eyes were widening, slowly flicking towards Hibiki, who was leaning forward, face impassive save for the raised eyebrow, fingers interlaced, chin resting upon them as he listened.

"As if I could carry a child. I couldn't carry Dan's, and all of a sudden everyone expects me to just _know_ what to do with this random science experiment from some madman's laboratory?"

_"Tsunade, that's enough!" _Jiraiya called out, desperately trying to mitigate the damage she was doing.

_"WHAT?!" _Tsunade flew forward, staring pointedly, drunkenly, at Jiraiya. "Can you honestly say you expect any different? Everyone I know _dies,_ what was Sarutobi thinking when he handed me this... Random... Kid." She lost her steam as fast as she'd gathered it, as it slowly dawned on her who all was in the room to hear her tirade.

The entire room was silent, as all eyes turned towards Hibiki, whose face was largely impassive, unreadable except for the Sharingan slowly morphing into existence, its three tomoe spinning into place unbidden.

"You done?" He asked, simply, his young voice cutting through the room; Tsunade said nothing. "Good." He paced his hands on his thighs and pushed up to his feet with a sigh. "That's what drinking does. You say things that you otherwise wouldn't." The room was feeling a lot smaller, all of a sudden, so Hibiki inhaled deeply and exhaled exhaustedly, yawning at the bottom of the exhale. "I guess you've got a lot to think about. I know I do." He said, turning on his heel and walking towards the hall, absently picking up the crystalline necklace on his way out, and twirling it in his hands, ignoring completely the cries for him to wait as he just kept walking.

* * *

_Ugh..._ Minato Namikaze loathed busy work. Even if things were getting better thanks to all of the non-stop, around the clock rebuilding efforts these last few months, the busy work was something he could just go without, he plain hated it. Granted, it was much better than schoolwork - he utterly despised schoolwork, and his field promotion to Genin had eliminated that part of his life entirely.

Half of the day, every day - even on Sundays, not like school - he was outside in the sun, working, building, cutting boards, moving bricks, laying concrete, patrolling the wall. He missed Hibiki - _he_ was a sparring partner, but because of the stupid chunin exams in Suna, and then the invasion and the aftermath, he was training with other genin, and ever since his promotion, chunin, people closer to his level - and though he would never admit it openly, or perhaps even _privately, _Minato knew that Hibiki was advancing at a frightening rate; he wasn't sure if he could keep up with him, not until he got his own Sensei. Sure, Minato was faster than Hibiki, but Hibiki just got things more naturally, he had a better natural talent and that talent was bolstered by his never-ending work at bettering himself.

It was no surprise at all that Hibiki was already a Chunin, where Minato was just barely a Genin, and even then only on Hibiki's word of recommendation. Maybe he should stop fooling around so much and start hitting the books more, like Hibiki had done? A cursory knowledge from the books could give him a better chance at figuring out the physical parts.

A thunk downstairs, followed by the pained wails of one of his orphaned foster-siblings, told Minato that his me-time was over and done. Even if he had schoolwork, he was the oldest kid in his orphanage - at the ripe 'old' age of nine, almost ten - and as such most of his free time was sucked up helping his foster parents with the upkeep. Minato briskly walked downstairs, and saw little Dana crying and holding her head, as their foster mother bent down low and took the toddler into her arms, while shooting one of the rowdier boys a nasty look, no doubt silently condemning him to no dessert for a month, for whatever he'd done.

His foster-mother saw him arrive and she nodded to the offending child, "handle him, would you? I need to stop the bleeding." She'd realized her mistake as she was making it.

_"BLEEDING?!" _Dana screeched, before proceeding to deafen everyone in the house and the surrounding area as the volume of her cries tripled.

_Damn it, Don._ Thought Minato, as he nodded to his mother-figure and grabbed Don by the scruff of his shirt, the child in question paled as the 'big kid' dragged him outside. Minato let go of Don after he closed the sliding-glass door and he crossed his arms. "You know what to do."

"Awe, come on, Minato! I didn't even push her that hard!"

"She's bleeding, Don, and now Ma has to deal with it." Minato nodded to the water buckets, "fill 'em up, come on." And, he silently added, now he had to watch the trouble-maker until their foster-mother was done dealing with Dana. He was still sore from his work today, and because of this, he was losing out on his sleep.

Don groaned as he went to fill up two water buckets, hang each of them off of an ironwood branch, and lift the branch up above his heads, his arms still bent, as was required of him - _expected_ of him, at this point. This kid was such a trouble-maker that some sabotage experts - one of them even ANBU - were eying him and vowing to check his progress once he entered the academy.

Minato heard a brief sound of impact on a grassy ground, he looked to his left and saw Lord Jiraiya of the Sannin, Hibiki's Uncle.

And, by Proxy, Minato's too. He grinned brightly, toothily, "hey Uncle Jiraiya!" He waved and dashed over to the Sannin. "How goes things?" He asked, after casting a brief look behind him to make sure Don wasn't locking his arms or legs, or trying to favor one side over the other - he had to stay in the most arduous position possible until either Minato or their shared mother came and told him he was good to put them down, and they wouldn't do that until Don's muscles were audibly screaming.

"Things go good." Said Jiraiya, in his same non-chalant tone. "Say, you haven't seen Hibiki around, have you?" Though Minato would think it natural, Jiraiya was making something of a show of looking around the yard for his misplaced child. "Kid hasn't shown up for training and I'm just making sure he's okay before his mom kills me." He grinned with a chuckle.

Minato blinked, and shook his head. "No, after I finished my assignments for the day, I've pretty much been lazing here all day." He looked back at Don, who was dutifully still in the position. "You think he's alright?" He asked, looking at the Sannin with big, innocent eyes.

Jiraiya looked at Minato for a moment, before he grinned, "yeah, kid. I'm sure he's fine. Probably just knocked himself out training too hard." He laughed, and so too did Minato.

"Yeah, last time I saw him he said it was real important he got ready for this war coming up." Minato pouted just a bit, "lucky guy... He wasn't even a Genin for a year, and he's already been promoted to Chunin and he's just getting stronger."

Jiraiya, though wanting to beat feet and get back to his search, inclined his head. "What, smart kid like you hasn't caught up to him, yet?" Minato had a lot of potential, but Jiraiya could tell that it was all in combat-related things, not necessarily so in bookwork.

Minato shook his head, "my grades in the book-skills weren't good enough to graduate early. Only reason I got out early is because of my... 'meritorious actions during the defense of Konoha under the assault of the enemy'. Though, I _am_ taking to that sealing stuff Hibiki showed me." He smiled and looked back up at Jiraiya, "did you know I finished a storage-seal before Hibiki did?" He asked conspiratorially.

Jiraiya blinked, "really, now?" He asked with a grin.

* * *

Noboru Hyuga stood in his clan's training grounds, Jyuken-stance firm, eyes closed. He had dozens of light-weight test dummies hooked up to ninja wire and hanging from the ceiling, a bunch of branch-family members were waiting for the opportune moment to spring their simulated ambush on him. He was trying to pull a leaf out of Hibiki's book, and reduce the amount of chakra it took for him to use his Byakugan, by using it _all the time,_ in increasingly stressful situations. It hurt like hell to be so exhausted each day due to chakra depletion, but if Serizawa the Blind could do it enough to hold a job at the Academy, Noboru could do it enough to where he'd never have to turn it off - he _would_ do it.

Noboru was stolen from his thoughts by the sound of rushing air. Immediately his Byakugan flared, and he saw everything, everywhere. The first dummy was flying towards him at an angle forty-five degrees to his left, another to his immediate front, a third just passed into his blindspot, but a simple shift in position would bring it back into sight. Noboru sprang forward and smashed a palm into the first dummy, and then spun around the second, which collided with the third, and palmed it - the raw force and added chakra expulsion of impact destroyed both dummies.

They started coming faster and faster, and Noboru - befitting his chosen style - increased his own speed to match. Hibiki had told him of his goal was to be what he called a 'Lightning Bruiser', someone who could hit as hard as he could move fast, and it was one of the reasons he trained so diligently with Noboru and Suboro to build his physical stamina - Hibiki had never forgotten their first 'big' fight, back against the bandits; the first test of his skills, when he found suddenly that he couldn't sustain his technique. If Hibiki's fight with Emi, so many months ago, was any indication, then whatever he was doing was working wonders. He always said that if he could fight fast for a long time, that meant they could fight _faster_ for _enough_ time.

However, Noboru was far faster than Hibiki in short bursts, and while Hibiki couldn't match Noboru's speed in the short-term, Noboru knew from experience that Hibiki had the potential to be far faster, and with that Sharingan of his, he'd never suffer from tunnel vision like others - like Noboru - would. The dummies kept coming, faster and faster, in greater numbers, Noboru couldn't keep taking them out one at a time, so he took the rotation stance and executed the technique, before he exploded it outwards as he had done over a year ago when fighting the bandits, and again when fighting Emi. His 'Exploding Rotation' had gotten him some renown in his clan, they were even considering inducting it into their scrolls!

With his 'enemies' thoroughly defeated, Noboru noticed a new arrival in his dojo. He stood tall and wiped a little sweat from his brow, "Lord Orochimaru." It was Hibiki's uncle, the enigmatic one who had branded Hibiki with that curse seal. "To what do I owe the honor? Is Hibiki alright?" Usually, it was that either Dante-sensei or Tsunade would visit him with matters involving Hibiki, but with Dante splitting his time three ways between the genin, and Tsunade acting a drunken, gambling slob - and unwittingly bringing Hibiki down with her, whether or not the both of them knew it - it wasn't unless Hibiki himself visited that he got news, and if it wasn't Hibiki visiting, but one of his family, something had to have happened.

Unfortunately for the Byakugan-user, Orochimaru was a very accomplished liar, so his words didn't even trip the boy's Byakugan. "He is fine, I believe. I was merely hoping you could provide me with a few clues as to where he could be, I wish to speak with him, so we can test out the limits of the seal on his neck. What it can and cannot do, what it does to him, what its side-effects are..." Hibiki didn't know _how _lucky he was, having the three Sannin training him, just like he didn't know how well it showed when the three Genin sparred. In the beginning, Noboru and Suboro were a league above Hibiki; when they started clearing Bandit Country, Hibiki had been something of an equal to the both of them, when the Chunin exams came around, Hibiki was above the two of them - but only barely, as Hibiki himself didn't even count the power he'd obtained through the Eight Gates as his own, just a temporary augmentation; and that was all in a period of about eight to ten months.

Noboru would readily admit he was somewhat scared to see what Hibiki could do with eight to ten _years. _The man would probably rival his grandfather, maybe even surpass him_._ "I have not, unfortunately." He admitted, giving Orochimaru a respectful smile and an honest answer. "Not since our joint-training session with Dante-sensei, last week."

Orochimaru hummed, not pleased, but not dissatisfied with this answer. "Thank you." He bowed his head, "also, you may wish to putting some thought into burst-chakra, as opposed to sustained flow. That's what Hibiki and Tsunade do." He nodded with a snake-like smile, and left the room.

Noboru looked at his hands, the Sannin's words flowing about in his head, and an idea forming. "Set up more dummies." He ordered his lower-class, Marked Clansmen.

* * *

Where Hibiki and Noboru had clear-cut methods and goals to their training, Suboro Nil was much the opposite. Hibiki wanted to be a 'Lightning Bruiser', and Noboru wanted to be a flash of furious fists - or, palms, but he digressed - but Suboro preferred the abstract approach that came with Genjutsu. Admittedly, he _liked_ fighting with his fists, but he was just more natural with Genjutsu than Taijutsu or Ninjutsu. For a while, he'd wondered if there could be a reason behind it, and now, thanks to his team, he knew - it literally was in his blood. He had a _family_ out there, and while they may be a quirky bunch, they took him in with open arms, just like Team Six. It made his chest feel all warm and fuzzy, and being taught by these people and learning what he was capable of made him feel like he could finally turn all of those jeers from Hibiki and Noboru on their heads.

True, with his bloodline, a vast majority of his training time had been spent building his mental fortitude - whatever made his 'Executioner', as the Kuramas were calling it, wait until he was thirteen to manifest, it only helped him, because he was at a point in his life where he could feasibly defeat it in a battle of will. If it had happened when he was a baby, as was the case with many Kurama kids, he could have very easily killed himself and most everyone around him accidentally. They didn't know and they didn't understand what caused the Executioner to wait so long, but they weren't questioning it, instead spending the time they could be asking questions, training his mind. The secret was that he had to either lock the Executioner away, deep inside his mind where he couldn't bother anyone, or build himself to a point where he could defeat the executioner's influence through will alone. The ancient Kuramas had been able to do such a feat, but it had largely been unheard of in the last few centuries - the locking away method was easier, after all. Just bury it until he forgot it was even there. The results of his training were a far greater control over his genjutsu than he'd ever had before; once he'd managed to convince a store owner that he was a pretty little girl for about a half of an hour, before a roaming Jonin smacked him on the head and told him to experiment on prisoners and volunteers, not civilians. So Suboro convinced said Jonin he had a wife and she was in labor, and he vanished with a panicked cry in a second, unwittingly ceding victory to the thirteen year old.

Suboro leaned his head back against a tree, breaking his gaze with the sketch-pad in his lap to look at the sky above. One of the things he found that helped him to craft genjutsu was to visualize what he wanted - if he wanted, say, to make the person see a werewolf, he had to visualize said werewolf thoroughly, down to the slobber from its mouth and the evil gleam in its eye. He'd tried making genjutsu suggestions, but that was a branch of genjutsu that took a great deal more skill than he had - to plant suggestions, he had to go deep within the subject's mind to plant, for instance, the suggestion for fear of a werewolf, and then deeper than that to plant a suggestion that the next time he opened his eyes he would _see_ a werewolf, and then finally he would have to deeper than _that_ in order to plant a 'wake up' suggestion, so the genjutsu couldn't be dispelled if they knew their stuff and could perform a genjutsu-release technique.

He knew that a lot of the difficulty of his particular brand of genjutsu was circumvented by his unorthodox 'anchor' technique. Most Kurama anchored their genjutsu to physical objects, like paintings or walls, to produce a vast, area-of-effect, mass-hysteria genjutsu focused around the previously exampled werewolf, that would affect anyone who came into contact with the chakra emanating from the anchor. The problem was, in order to do that, the user would need to have some light teaching in fuinjutsu - and while Hibiki was well on his way to his 'jack of all trades' status in the art, despite his mentor's death, Suboro didn't want to learn it as intimately as Hibiki was, he would just want that chakra gatherer seal. Suboro instead circumvented the whole ordeal by making _himself_ the anchor, so anyone within a few dozen meters of him would be ensnared almost instantly, and would be unable to escape the illusions unless he permitted it; the only catch was that he couldn't specify targets yet, but given that his entire team had Genjutsu-nullifying dojutsu, he had the time to practice specifying targets.

Suboro stretched his arms and looked back down to his drawing. Unlike what his previous thoughts would suggest, it wasn't a werewolf he was drawing - those things only existed in the most ancient of fairy-tales, most people didn't even have such an old book to know they existed in the first place - but a creature from his dreams; _the_ creature from his dreams, actually, as he'd learned recently that this creature was the enigmatic 'Executioner' so many of his Kurama teachers were so cautiously fearful of.

A shadow stretched over Suboro, and the scent of mints flooded his nose, he looked up and saw Dante-sensei. "Dante-sensei!" He greeted, forcing his sore legs to bring him to his feet. "I was just taking a break, sir." He hadn't expected Dante to show up today, but the dirty Uchiha did like to surprise his students every now and again.

Dante grinned, "I just thought I'd surprise you, kiddo." He looked around, Sharingan flashing briefly, "say, you haven't seen Hibiki today, have you?"

Suboro blinked, "no sir. Is something wrong?" He asked quickly, "does Noboru know? Should we be looking for him?" He spoke faster and faster with each word.

"Whoa!" Dante waved his hands, "no need to light a fire there, kiddo. Lady Tsunade summoned me, he was going to start training with Lord Orochimaru with that seal on his neck, so she wanted to give him a medical exam first, to make sure it wasn't doing anything to him in its dormant state. Problem is, he didn't show up. No excuses, just not there. I'm just trying to make sure he hasn't blown himself up, or tired himself out training, or something."

"Oh!" Suboro nodded enthusiastically, "did you check the training grounds? If he was practicing that turtle thing, it shouldn't be hard to find him." He shifted his weight from foot to foot, "should I go run and grab Noboru? I bet we'd find Hibiki real fast with his help, what with the Byakugan and all."

Dante sincerely wanted to say _yes go get Noboru right now,_ just as much as he wanted to set the drunken slug-sannin on fire for putting them all in this situation, and having to delay her own search because she needed Orochimaru's snakes to suck all of the alcohol out of her, but he couldn't let his little Genin in on the fact that something was terribly wrong. "Ah, it's no worries, no big deal. You keep going on your training. If something goes down, you'll be the first to know." He nodded, "okay?"

"Yes sir. Good luck finding Hibiki!" Suboro was calling Dante's BS, he'd go find Noboru and see if he could help out in the search.

* * *

Hibiki Senju had long since stopped trying to list all of the essentially innumerable things he missed from Back Home. There were so damn many - his truck, cars in general, air conditioning, drive-thrus, his friends, cell phones, the internet, the Dark Knight - but he'd eventually narrowed it down to just two things he would give a great deal to have again, and one technically existed in the New Hotness, but that was only on technicality, and it therefor didn't really count.

The thing he missed most, therefor, was pants. That wasn't to say his new home didn't have pants - before he'd stepped in here, he'd been wearing a pair over some hastily bought swim-trunks, as a matter of fact - but it didn't have a very specific _kind_ of pants. _God,_ the things he'd be willing to do for just one pair of jeans. He'd always been a jeans and a t-shirt kind of guy, Back Home, and he'd caught no end of flak from his more fashionable, trendy lady friends, but they'd figured out by the time he'd turned twenty one and hadn't changed his style that he liked how he looked and he liked how jeans and t-shirts felt. It was a simple look, took no effort to make, and he'd be damned if jeans weren't comfortable - they felt nice, could take a beating, and depending on how they looked, could tell you pretty much everything you needed to know about a person. Clean pair of jeans? That person probably didn't get out much. Grass, or dirt stains? This person worked outside a lot. Rips and tears? This person worked hard at whatever they did and kept up with this pair of jeans out of nostalgia, and because they were comfortable - but if that same person showed up later in a new pair of jeans, that also said they knew when to throw in the towel and get a new pair, because shredded jeans did not look cool, and Hibiki didn't care how many dumbass highschoolers said otherwise.

Then there was the second thing he missed, and it was a rare day in which he got to indulge in this amenity in his new home: Hot water. True, Konoha had its hotsprings, but absolutely nothing beat the feeling of standing under the head of a shower, letting the hot water pour onto his back, and the steam rise into his face. Sinking into the hot water - as he did now - just didn't compare to a fucking _shower_.

After beating his hasty retreat from Tsunade's home, Hibiki had made one pit-stop before making a bee-line for the closest Hot Springs-bath. He couldn't, after all, just jump in nude - he needed some trunks, _then_ he could jump in, and he didn't want to go back 'home' just to grab a pair and leave again. He wanted his alone time, and grabbing a pair of trunks from out of his room would let them know immediately where he intended to go. He'd locked all of his stuff into a locker and sank neck-deep into the naturally hot water, thoughts buzzing around his head like a bee.

Tsunade's unintentional revelations revealed a lot, he mused. His theory that this was all just some sort of well thought-out illusion was holding less and less water now, as did the reincarnation theory which had been just as likely, now that he thought about it, and looked at the Soul Seal on his chest. At least _that_ bit made sense now, it had been a long time since he'd looked at it - he'd had it for so long that he hadn't even thought about it since before he'd started seeing the late Uzumaki widow. This must have been how he'd been brought back, but what Hibiki wondered was whether or not it disproved the afterlife, or instead proved it right? He didn't remember any paradise, or any kind of eternal hell, for that matter. Did that mean he went to purgatory, or that there _was_ no afterlife? But if there was no afterlife, then where did souls go? They didn't just cease to exist - if Hibiki's running theory that this seal meant that his soul had been taken back from wherever he went, that meant that they had to go _somewhere._ Was there some kind of post-world where souls floated around and just _existed?_ How could that even _work,_ ignoring how useless such a place would be, there are so many laws of physics such a place would have to violate or obey on technicality, just to exist _theoretically. _

And even ignoring where he'd been after death, and how he'd gotten back here, there was still the problem of where he was. Had the baby Hibiki been born, but a vegetable, so a Seals Master stole his soul from Purgatory to give the kid a chance at life? Was he a body-snatcher? Or, what did Tsunade say about him? He was some abomination of nature, an experiment from some madman? What, was he some kind of Frankenstein's monster?

Hibiki lifted his hand out of the divinely warm waters and examined it with his Sharingan, noting absently that his vision had suddenly taken a sharp increase in clarity, idly concluding that this shocker must have been enough to kickstart its maturation, or at least push it over the edge he and Dante had been climbing towards with his training. Regardless of his bloodline - whether or not it had matured because of this revelation, he didn't really care right now - he couldn't be an exact copy of Frankenstein's monster, because he didn't see any seams where he'd been sown back together, but that didn't rule that theory out - Chakra was literally a violation of the laws of physics in and of itself, who was to say that his new father hadn't just _grown_ him, and then tossed a soul inside because, like an engine without gas, a body without a soul couldn't run? But whether he'd been grown or born, it was pretty damn official now - Tsunade wasn't his mother, Dan wasn't his father. Of course, he'd had that suspicion for a while now, but still, had they taken him? Who were his real parents? Did he _have_ a 'real' set of new parents?

Thoughts of Mito and her brief mentionings and explanations of the purpose of Jinchuriki came to mind. Was he being kept in Konoha because they thought he could be some kind of... Tailless Tailed Beast? A weapon they had to raise? That theory held some weight - he was a _natural_ at combat, and his bloodlines - which had to have been given to him artificially, lending credence to the Frankenstein theory, as there was no way he'd been born of natural birth with so many bloodlines in him - gave him even more potential power on the battlefield. Even at ten years old, his chakra stores alone were approaching levels that most mid-ranked Chunin in their twenties maxed out at, and take into consideration his bloodlines,and his experience from Back Home giving him ideas for new techniques, he was pretty much a walking weapon. Of course, there was the problem of his body - sure, he had a lot of potential energy, but his body wasn't used to channeling all of the chakra he could pump through it, and it wasn't anywhere near developed enough to fight enemies as strong as Emi, or the Monster. The former had necessitated him opening the eight gates, and the latter he hadn't even been able to fight on any serious level because of the unknown of the seal on his neck. So did that disprove or simply lend more credence to the living weapon theory? Obviously a nine year old couldn't be expected to play god, but he was a nine year old who'd figured out how to go toe-to-toe with a Jinchuriki, and had also figured out how to, more or less, make a frequent use of the Eight Gates without any adverse effects on himself, so what did that say about him when he'd enter puberty? When his body was finished developing? What kind of monster would _he_ be when he hit his prime?

Hibiki lolled his head back and let his arm drop into the water, idly noting a new arrival, but duly noting that it wasn't anyone he recognized, so they were probably here by coincidence. The waters were doing wonders at helping the stress just wash away - _god_ he missed showers. And pants. He really missed pants. He really, _really_ wished he could have a pair of jeans, right now. It wouldn't solve any of his problems, but it would provide some creature comforts, a little guilty pleasure.

_My kingdom for a pair of denim jeans._ He grinned.

So, if he'd been taken from his 'original' home, and he was some kind of Frankenstein's Monster, it would be logical to assume that his 'Father', his own Viktor Frankenstein, was dead - they wouldn't let some guy like that live, not on their lives. But that didn't answer where he'd come from, and he didn't really have any other clues to go by, meaning that mystery was, for now, a dead end.

Hibiki blinked, idly hearing the new arrival take another pool opposite him. It seemed the 'every other stall' rule existed here, too. But his thoughts about 'strange new home' struck a chord in him: Where the hell _was_ he, then? Was he on Earth? Was he in his galaxy? Was he even in his universe? What constituted Purgatory? Was it connected to the multiverse, or was it locked to his own universe? If the former was true, was there any way of going back to Purgatory and forcing his way home? If the latter was true, where was Earth? What had happened during his absence? How much time had passed since he'd last seen his family? Had any time passed at all?

"Seems like you've got a lot on your mind, kid." Said the new arrival, jarring Hibiki from his thoughts. "This place is as good as any to think on things, I guess." He mentioned offhandedly.

Hibiki turned his head on the rock wall he was resting on, the only other man in the hot springs was the silver-haired man whose back was to Hibiki, in the pool to his front. He didn't seem like he had any ill-intent in talking to him, but much the opposite - here was a kid, alone in a hotspring, who hadn't said a single damn word to him before or after he'd shown up. Obviously he had something on his mind, maybe he'd like some help working through it.

"I guess it is." Said Hibiki, noncommittally.

The silver-haired man noted Hibiki's word choice, "can I take a guess?" He asked.

_"Free country."_ Hibiki muttered in English, almost automatically. He missed talking in his native tongue - once and only once had he tried talking to a Clone in English, before he'd decided it was stupid and mad, and never tried it again. He didn't even give the man a moment to question him, "go ahead."

The man turned his head and gave Hibiki a brief look up and down, his dark eyes not betraying any thoughts. "You just had some news poured on you. Stuff you weren't expecting for a while, if ever." He said, and after he got a neutral grunt from Hibiki, he kept going. "Maybe someone's lied to you, maybe you just learned a few secrets, maybe both, maybe neither. Your eyes tell me everything I need to know."

Hibiki grinned, "oh?"

"You, my friend, are a wayward soul. Stuck in some kind of limbo and you don't know what to do, especially with this stuff you've had poured on you." Said the man, "am I warm?"

_You have no idea._ Hibiki shrugged, "maybe."

"Well, if you're not going to give me a yes or give me a no on any account, I can't really help you much. So how about we start with a name? I'm Sakumo."

"What's your rank, Sakumo?"

"How do you know I'm a ninja?"

"This is a Shinobi-hot spring."

Sakumo nodded, "clever. I'm a Jonin." He said. "Used to be Anbu. I might still be. Can't really say, especially not these days." He dipped his head in the hot waters and came back up, rubbing the water through his silver hair. "You're a Genin?" Hibiki grunted 'no', and let him know he'd been promoted. "Hm. Congratulations, Chunin. You got a name? Or should I just call you Kid?"

_I've got two names, actually._ "My name's Chuck Norris."

Sakumo halted wholesale, and turned to look at Hibiki, a weird, disbelieving look on his face. Hibiki's serious look didn't falter for even a second. "Well... _Chuck..._ Actually, no - what kind of name is that? I've never heard a name like that before. Ever."

_I will punch you with my third fist. Fear me._ "It's the only name I got." _Well, the only name I've got that I'm willing to give. You're lucky I didn't chose Arnold Schwarzenegger, or Bruce Lee. I bet that one would fit better here, anyways._ He shrugged.

Sakumo stared at him, silently knowing that Hibiki was screwing with him, but not really able to call him on his BS. "Okay then... What've you got on your mind, Chuck?"

'Chuck' lolled his head back, and sank a bit deeper in his pool. "Too much." _Maybe my next technique should be the only true rival to the Falcon Punch - The CNRK!_ He grinned.

Sakumo chuckled listlessly, "I know that feeling." He yawned, "need to talk?"

"To a strange man who had no qualms about sharing a hotspring with a ten year old chunin? Sure." Normally Hibiki kept to the 'ten year old prodigy' role, but he felt he had a right to sink back in to the snide American, at least for now. "You want the philosophical stuff, or the real stuff?"

"Surprise me." Sakumo sank again and rose, water streaming off of his head.

"My parents are dead. The woman who's been raising me has been lying to me my entire life. I may or may not be going war here in a few weeks." He looked at the seal on his right wrist, within which had one of the most lethal killing tools in the village. "I may or may not have even the slightest clue as to what to do in said war. Never had to fight one before." Should he stay or should he go? Keep playing the hand he was dealt, or throw the deck in the dealer's face, steal the chips, and flip the table?

"Interesting things to reveal to a strange man who has no qualms about sharing a hotspring with a ten year old genin." Sakumo noted with a brief chuckle. "So, why do you think the woman who fed you for ten years had been lying to you?"

_Oh... This guy didn't just show up out of coincidence._ Hibiki decided, and he was pretty damn certain that the man knew he knew, now. The question now was how did this man know Tsunade, and how did he know him? How _much_ did he know about him? "She's a ninja. She'll have her reasons." He sighed, he _wanted_ to be angry, but he'd learned once before that the world was a real complicated place, he didn't have to learn that again, especially in a world of magic, ninjas, and magic ninjas.

And no fucking pants.

"It doesn't seem like you're angry." Sakumo noticed, stretching his arms and popping his muscles. "So, why'd you run, then?"

"There's been a lot on my mind the last few years." The last few months more than anything, but that mattered little. "Sometimes, you just need some _god damn_ time to think." Back home, he would have plugged in his playstation, or watched some bad fighting anime, to collect his thoughts. Here? All he had was the hot springs. "So, I've got to ask, how do you know me and my mom?" He wanted to keep the unspoken ruse going, but he also wanted at least _one_ fucking answer, before the day was out.

"I was the ANBU agent that got you out of your makers' hands." Sakumo revealed, "I remember when you could fit in the palm of Rat's hands. We all check in on you, you know. You're actually something of a running joke in the teahouse."

"The teahouse?"

"You've been there. It's not the real HQ, but we pretend it is anyways. It's better than saying ANBU HQ." Sakumo groaned and sank deeper into his hot water. "You gave your tail and your adopted parents quite a fright when you pulled your runaway act. You're just lucky that my dogs had your scent from earlier."

"You're an Inuzuka?"

"Close, I'm my own clan. But I summon ninja hounds, and the day we brought you here, I had to summon a few to keep you safe while we fought off some of your cousins."

"Cousins?" So there were other Frankenstein's Monsters out there? If it weren't something of a mathematical impossibility, that concept could possibly explain the Monster of Kirigakure and their gunsmith, but Hibiki decided it couldn't be - before he'd gone out, scientists had said something close to eighty _billion_ Humans had died throughout all of time, and that was ignoring their lesser evolved ancestors. The chances that two Modern Men had been brought back from the dead were so large, they could have stretched to Mars.

"Your maker had to practice a lot to get to you." Said Sakumo, "but I can't say much else, that's for your adoptive mother." He said, as a German Shepherd with a flak jacket and a headband came trotting inside, he gave Sakumo a nod, and then vanished in a poof of smoke. "Were you the one who signed with the Eagles?"

"Yeah." He had to check in with them, actually. After the battle for Konoha, he'd sent a messenger to Washita, thanking him for his help, and none-too-subtly suggesting that, if they wanted to deal a deadly blow to the Hawks, it would be best to strike then and there, while they were still weak and tired from the battle. He hadn't gotten any news back since then, other than a 'we're still alive'.

"I thought it was you. Word travels fast in the Summons realm. They knew someone new had come, and a lot of animals were sad to lose a summoner as strong as you are, and can become." Sakumo sat up straight and groaned as the hot water streamed off of his back. "You can't stay in here much longer. If you don't leave soon, Lady Tsunade may get the alcohol leached out of her system soon enough and smash her way in here."

Hibiki groaned himself, "you wouldn't happen to have any advice on that, would you?"

"I'm a shinobi, not a miracle worker." Sakumo said, with a shrug, "I'll be in touch." He said as he left.

* * *

"Just wait for him. He'll come." The damn dog-summons had told her, after the alcohol had been sucked from her bloodstream and she'd nearly smashed her way out of her home.

Tsunade Senju sat angrily, impatiently, in her living room. This day could not get worse, there was no damn way it could get worse. Hibiki hated her, she was a drunken mess, gambling away the Senju clan's fortune, and she'd managed to alienate both of her teammates and her apprentice in one single rant. She felt angry, sad, and resigned all at once - she was infuriated at herself for her own weakness, sad beyond description that she might lose everyone else in her life, and resigned that she'd done it all to herself.

She groaned and sank her face into her hands, as she fell back against her couch. What else was she going to do, today?

"Hey."

Apparently, she'd be airing some of her dirty laundry. She uncovered her face and saw Hibiki standing in the archway between the dining room and the living room, one hand in his pocket and another hanging limply at his side. He had a look in his eyes that she hadn't seen since he was a baby - a look of a person far older, far more experienced, than should have been possible in such a young little one. Even a ten year old like he, he just shouldn't have that kind of a look in his eyes.

_I guess I'll be learning about as much as he will, tonight._ She leaned forward, silently cursing Orochimaru's snake for not doing jack for her hangover. "Hey." She said, defeatedly.

"I hear you've got a lot to explain." He said, before there was the sound of tearing flesh, her head snapped up, alarmed, and she saw three massive blades sticking out from in between the knuckles of his right hand. The blades crumbled to dust and the wound healed, the blood remained, and she wondered if he didn't wipe it away on purpose, as he strode through the room and sat in the chair Jiraiya had occupied not hours ago. "I guess I'll start." He said, after she remained silent in thought. "You're not my mother. Dan Kato is not my father. Konoha was not my birthplace. I wasn't even born, technically."

_Smart kid._ He'd figured all of that out of her rant. "What else did you figure out?"

"I died once." He tapped the area of his chest where the Soul Seal rested. "I was brought back in a body that was probably made artificially. I was kept alive, so to speak, in a chakra womb, until my maker could find a way to pump a soul into me and keep it there." His Sharingan flipped on, "given my unique skills... I'll go ahead and say that this man's goal was to fuse the bloodlines of many multiple clans into one, just to see what would happen. Given how old I am, this all happened near the end of the second war, so I may have been a last-ditch-effort weapon for whatever village made me, but Konoha Anbu killed my maker and found me before he could have done something to secure my allegiance." He leaned forward, rested his elbows on his knees and clasped his hands together, some of his long hair falling in front of his blood red eyes. "These ANBU brought me to the Leaf. Hiruzen decided what to do with me. The only people who know are the ANBU who rescued me, the late Hokage, and the Sannin... _Hell,_ I bet Dante-senei knows too. I was left in your hands... Probably because, if I hadn't, you would have done what you're doing _now, _only a lot sooner." He indicated the scattered alcohol bottles and gambling receipts. "And everyone who knows has one goal in mind: To make me into a weapon." He extended his right arm, and after only the briefest of chakra pulses was sent into the seal in his wrist, the gun he'd used to help keep the village safe appeared in his hand. He leaned forward and placed it on the table with a loud clunk. "The question now is whether or not I've done a good job... Or if you're wanting a war to start to see if I've been a good investment." There wasn't any hatred in his red eyes, nor was there any sorrow, malice, or even resignment, he was just looking at her blankly, almost _lethargically._

Tsunade sighed, "you're not wrong. You're not right, but you're not wrong. We didn't specifically want you to be a weapon... Or, I didn't, at least. And Serizawa knows, too." She filled in some of the blanks. "After a few years, I wanted you to have the freedom of choice. Sarutobi-sensei maintained the same position from day one... But he looked pretty excited when he saw you in the headband." She nodded to the leaf-village headband secured around her adopted son's head. "And you weren't made to be a weapon for the old enemy... Kenichi was his name. He made you just to see if he could."

"How many other bloodlines do I have?" Hibiki asked, after she drew off into silence for a few minutes.

"He didn't list them all. He was just the happiest about Uzumaki, Uchiha, and Kaguya blood." She responded, "but his notes suggested that you could be nothing _but_ stolen bloodlines." She gave him a serious look, "our current Hokage won't know about you unless you tell him. That is our secret. I didn't even tell Serizawa until you were locked in his class."

_That explains why we stayed late for three damn hours._ Thought Hibiki, remembering vividly the boredom that had resulted from that night.

"Can I ask you something?" She finally asked, the one question she'd wondered for her whole life.

"Can you?" Hibiki retorted.

Tsunade had expected something harsher, but she allowed a respectful pause before she finally asked. "Do you remember anything? From before you died?" She asked, almost pleadingly. "Or even after?" Maybe, _just maybe,_ he could put her fears to rest.

_Oh,_ did Hibiki want to tell her everything he knew. _Everything_ he knew. But he could recognize a plea when he saw one, and she was practically begging him for absolution. Her real question was, _Are Dan, Kato, Hiruzen, and Mito happy wherever they are?_

_I wonder if this is what Ricky Gervais' character felt like, in The Invention of Lying._ "Yeah." He sighed, "it was... Quiet." He said. "It was quicker than falling asleep." But those few instants right after being hit by that truck had hurt more than anything else, before or after he'd died. "And it's misrepresented." Not a total lie, but now was the time to work off of hypotheses and theories. "There is no heaven or hell. Just peace. Like a dream. If I hadn't focused on remembering it, I would have forgotten it after I woke up."

She blinked in realization, "those things you wrote, when you were little."

_Well, you're not wrong._ Hibiki nodded.

Tsunade looked down at the gun, "and... That?"

"A gift from Back Home." Was all Hibiki said, "I don't know how someone else has it. I didn't make it until I knew I could keep it safe." He reached forward and grabbed it again, and after a brief poof of smoke, the revolver was back in his wrist.

Tsunade nodded, trying to digest the almost literally out-of-this-world information she was being presented. "Can you tell me about Before?"

"No." Said Hibiki, "if you were entitled to your secrets for ten years... I'm entitled to twenty two of mine." He wasn't exactly subtle about it, but he wouldn't call attention to it either.

If Tsunade noticed, she didn't mention it. "Can you forgive me?" She finally asked in a defeated, sorrowful tone, after she broke eye contact with him.

Hibiki let her suffer the silence for a few minutes, pretending to think. "There's nothing to forgive. You had your reasons. I accept that." He eventually settled upon, "it _pissed_ me off that you kept it from me, but I understand why." He stood up, "that being said... Quit the drinking. Alcohol only numbs the pain, it doesn't get rid of it." He walked upstairs to his room.


	28. Interception

Chapter 27

* * *

A week passed after Tsunade's 'intervention', and in that time, Danzo declared war. Six hundred shinobi in total, a majority of them chunin, got sent out to conduct reconnaissance through the land of Grass. His intelligence said that Kiri-nin were infiltrating the country in an attempt to gain a foothold against Konoha. Danzo's plan, therefor, was simple - first send an expeditionary force into Kusa to find where Kiri had positioned their forces, and then send higher-ranked ninja to conduct the true warfare.

Hibiki, astonished as he was to admit it, hadn't been sent out on that expeditionary run, though Team Four's Jonin-sensei, Eiji, had. Looking back on it, it made a little sense, they needed trackers and information gatherers for this mission, not people who specialized in large-scale destruction, but still, it surprised Hibiki nonetheless. Either way, it gave Hibiki the time he needed to focus on the important things - training. Specifically, training with the seal Orohimaru put on his neck.

Slipping back into his 'shadow clone training' routine, Hibiki had his clones about the village doing various things - training and perfecting what he'd learned during the Chunin exams, training under Dante, Jiraiya, and a slowly-sobering Tsunade - while he himself worked with Orochimaru. The man himself said that the seal - which he called the 'Cursed Seal of Earth' - was still in its very early stages, Hibiki had been the first ever live subject _period,_ let alone the first Human one. The idea behind it had come from Orochimaru's experiences with a foreign clan, whose blood possessed enzymes that allowed them to draw in 'natural energy' all of the time. According to Orochimaru, this allowed them to transform into what essentially equated to a 'sage mode', where their chakra was mixed with the natural energy they constantly drew in to create 'senjutsu chakra'. Orochimaru had tried to learn the techniques from his Snakes in the Ryuchi Cave, but had discovered that, as it was, his body was too weak to transform into sage mode. To get around this, Orochimaru had begun work on his Cursed Seals, which worked on the same concept as the Senjutsu Clan's bloodline: activating the seal drew in natural energy from the surrounding environment, allowing those too weak in body to enter Sage Mode.

Using the seal gave Hibiki a new perspective on things - it multiplied his strength dozens of times, perhaps even exponentially. It turned his base 'One' into 'Fifty' by mixing his own human-chakra with natural chakra. The difference between the two was that human chakra was generated constantly by the human body, and its strength was dependent on the fortitude of said body. Natural chakra, however, was all about equilibrium and balance; it was powerful almost beyond measure, but having too much could wreck the body - and turn it into a 'living statue' - and too little would have no effect at all. When both human and natural chakra was mixed perfectly, however, the product was Senjutsu Chakra. Channeling Senjutsu Chakra increased all aspects of a shinobi - strength, speed, stamina, reflexes, durability, etc. - and as well gave them a _massive_ boost to their chakra pools.

The problem was, as Orochimaru and Hibiki discovered, the Cursed Seal of Earth only granted a proto-sage mode. It allowed most of the advantages of sage mode, by drawing in the natural energy and using the seal as a strainer of sorts, creating the senjutsu chakra by forcibly balancing the natural energy. However, it didn't mix the chakra with Hibiki's own - it wasn't _true_ senjutsu chakra, but rather a watered down natural energy that was filtered and balanced through the seal. Orochimaru theorized that this was either because of the seal's very early, 'prototype' stage not doing what he'd intended, or because it was a sacrifice one had to make if they wished to reach a sage mode through the cursed seal, though Hibiki had made the quip that maybe the fact that it was named the _cursed_ seal of earth, had something to do with it. Regardless, it put Hibiki at a higher level, but a 'natural' sage-mode - like that which was utilized by the Monster of Kirigakure - was just plain _better._ True senjutsu chakra mixed with the user's own pools and just ran until it hit empty, but the chakra provided by the seal was its own pool altogether; but to utilize that pool, Hibiki had to constantly spend his own chakra to keep the seal active. He likened it to letting a car idle to get the air conditioning - he got the AC, but he was constantly burning gas to do it. Whenever Hibiki ran out of the chakra needed to sustain the seal, it turned off and he was down for the count.

When it finally 'clicked', Hibiki laughed, and laughed, and laughed, because he had finally realized the legend, the legend his enemies would fear; because they weren't dealing with the average ninja warrior anymore. He, Hibiki, had finally become, a Super Saiyan!

Orochimaru had simply stared at him, not understanding at all what he'd found so funny. Hibiki had just kept laughing, almost deliriously. He wondered where the parallels to Dragonball would _stop. _This world of his seemed to be built around parallels and similarities, it was getting harder and harder to ignore. There was chakra, a parallel to ki, there was the explosion release, which reminded him pretty damn well of ki-blasts, the chakra laser-beam-thing Mito had done during the battle was almost a verbatim Kamehameha, the eight gates were a kaio-ken, and now here he was with a cursed-seal on his neck that essentially made him a Super Saiyan. What was next, ancient items that allowed he who gathered them together to make a wish? That sounded a lot like Dante's Izanagi, actually.

After he gave himself some time to revel in the impossible, he got back to training.

Befitting the comparison, the Cursed Seal was functionally a Super Saiyan transformation. He had to spend chakra to make chakra, as it were. Burning his chakra allowed him access to the senjutsu chakra that came from his seal. Figuring out its limits had essentially equated to having Orochimaru and the other power-houses in Hibiki's life attack him with everything they had. The results were astounding, but also somewhat frightening - this seal was allowing Hibiki to overpower Dante, temporarily, at least, to the point where the Jonin actually felt the need to use some of his Mangekyo techniques, which had put the fight on equal terms for those precious few moments Dante allotted for himself. More impressive, however, was that, during a training mission, the seal allowed him to fight Orochimaru. He wasn't able to defeat or overpower him, and he wasn't even willing to say that he'd reached equal terms either, but he was able to fend him off, long enough to buy time for Suboro and Noboru to arrive and back him up.

What Hibiki was learning was that this seal was a functional Super Saiyan transformation. It multiplied his power by dozens of times and allowed him to fight opponents on levels _far _beyond his own. It gave him power he was actually, admittedly, somewhat scared of. The frightening part was that the power he was being afforded was almost intoxicating, it felt _good_ when he let the seal open up and let that kind of unbridled power run through him. The problem with that was that he didn't _want_ to like it, because liking the feeling of power almost invariably led to wanting more of it, and when one hit that point, it was no turning back.

However, Hibiki reasoned, if he considered the Seal a tool and used it as such, he would never cross that moral event horizon, so to speak. With that mentality going forward, Hibiki went about with two training regiments: getting his body used to functioning with the Seal, and training his base form, so the power obtained by the seal only increased. Slipping back into old habits helped a lot in this sense, sending clones all over the training fields to work on developing new techniques, and improving and mastering the old ones. A problem he'd run in to, however, presented itself rather quickly: his age.

Hibiki was _ten,_ he'd barely been ten for a month, he was still physically a child, no amount of mental age could change that. That meant that his body was still developing, and even with ten years of practice, a child's body was just not even remotely capable of handling all of the raw power Hibiki was constantly putting it through. Hibiki likened it to the difference between potential and kinetic energy - he was capable of calling on astonishingly large amounts of power, basically on a whim: his Sharingan, his bloodlines, the eight gates, the shadow clone variants, and now the cursed seal. The problem was, however, that transforming all of that sheer potential energy into kinetic energy - energy that could be used into energy that was being used - took its toll on his body, simply because it was just too underdeveloped. He'd tried for a while to make the argument that the cursed seal was something of an answer to that - it augmented his body to better withstand the massive power - but he'd quickly figured out that was, in a word, wrong. The senjutsu chakra from the seal, while it did augment his body and increase his potential energy, it was still running _through_ his body, and that brought him back to square one: his body just couldn't handle what he was doing to it. The problem, however, was in necessity.

In every single one of his battles thus far, he'd had to find _some_ way to artificially increase his power. With the bandits before the chunin exams, he'd awakened his Wolverine-release. With exploding-kid from Iwa, whose name he couldn't remember, back in the chunin exams, he'd had to pop one of the chakra-generating clones he'd left in Konoha, and _then_ steal the kid's techniques - which he'd figured out hadn't just been a miracle, but had been the work of one of the myriad bloodlines running through his veins, go figure. With Emi Miu, he'd had to open _three_ of the eight gates, and with those few brief encounters with the Monster, he'd had to rely on the power of the cursed seal - and in that instance it hadn't done jack diddly squat, he'd been taken apart in seconds every time. He was at a point in his life where, despite all the training he was doing to make himself stronger, the opponents he was facing were just growing in power, constantly, becoming leagues above his own, to the point where, if he wanted to fight and survive, he _had_ to augment his power, which just exacerbated the problem. Eventually he'd be in a fight where he _had_ to open the eight gates, or activate the seal, and the Shadow Clone trick either wouldn't work, or wouldn't be viable, and he'd be a candle burning twice as bright. The only solution to these problems, was one he likely wouldn't be able to wait for, given the way the world was turning these days: he had to hurry up and wait to get older. He needed a post-pubescent body, one that was more durable and much more capable of handling all of the power he had right now, and the assumedly exponentially greater levels of power he could work to obtain.

In short: he'd finally done it, and come full circle. He was an adult who'd gotten the chance of a lifetime, to be a young kid again, and now he couldn't wait to grow up.

It wouldn't solve anything at all, but the only true thing he left all of these discoveries and theories with, was a desperate, almost consuming, desire for a pair of pants.

Once a few days had passed after Hibiki had written down and finalized his notes on the seal, he decided he'd do something he should have done a while ago, and check on Kushina. She'd largely locked herself away after Mito's death, even moreso than when Uzushio had been destroyed. Hibiki had checked in with Serizawa a few times, and he said she still showed up for class, but was forlorn and quieter than usual.

Hibiki followed the usual path to Kushina's apartment, and knocked in a 'shave and a haircut' on her door. There was silence inside, he added the two bits, and then got a response, a brief 'hold on'. After a few moments, the door opened slowly, and Kushina revealed herself in the crack between the door and the frame. She looked exhausted and sad, but she did manage to brighten up, her blue eyes looking a bit more vibrant as she saw her friend.

"Hibiki!" She said, eyes wide, "er... How are you?"

Hibiki shrugged, his hands in his pockets, "'bout the same as usual. I got promoted." He said, "so now I'm getting less rebuilding work, but I've got to train more, war's comin', and all." He said, "how 'bout you?"

She nodded slowly, opening the door. "I'm fine... Come in?" Hibiki nodded and thanked her. "So... Did Serizawa send you to check on me?" She asked, as she led the Chunin in to her little shoebox of an apartment.

Hibiki shook his head, "it's a lot for me, so I figured it'd all be a lot for you." He said, as he sat down on a chair, and she sat down on her couch. "The invasion, Miss Mito, rebuilding, the war." He listed off on his fingers. "How are you holding up?"

Kushina stared at him for a moment, eventually shrugging. "It's... Hard, you know?" She asked, "first I had to leave Uzu... Then I heard they all died... Then Lady Mito... It hurts." She admitted.

Hibiki nodded; his own experience with death was a lot less up-close and personal than hers, but he could relate, on some level. The problem was, while he could relate, that didn't change the fact that he had no idea what to say or do in a situation like this.

Hibiki shrugged, "believe it or not, I understand the feeling." He said with a sigh, "but... I try and take solace in the belief that they're all in a better place, now." He gave her a grin, "better than the alternative." She managed a chuckle, "so, we need to get you out of here. How 'bout we go find Minato and make him buy us some food?" She perked up at the idea of food, "he's a Genin and he's been doing a _lot_ of D-Ranks rebuilding the village, so it might not be as thick as mine, what with the S-Rank I did a year or two ago, but he's got some money saved up, and -"

"You did an _S_ rank?!" Kushina perked up, "_really?"_

Hibiki grinned, "can't really talk about what I did, but yeah, it was fun. Managed to avoid blowing up a village, picked up a _bunch_ of new skills, and I beat up a jinchuriki."

Kushina blinked, giving Hibiki a look up and down, "really?" She sounded disbelieving. "Hibiki, you are strong, but... You're..." She paused, giving him another look. "Er... You know?"

Hibiki grinned, and leaned back as if he were offended. "You doubt the skills of a Senju heir?" According to Tsunade, he didn't have a drop of Senju in him, but the name still meant something, and the fact that he'd had training from all of the surviving members of the Senju family, and the other two Sannin, and the former Jinchuriki of the nine tails, had to account for something.

"I doubt the sanity of the kid that used to openly accept challenges from _everyone _back in the Academy."

"This coming from the Red-Hot Habanero?"

Kushina stared at him blankly for a few seconds, as it very slowly dawned on her what he'd said; soon enough, her face grew dark under her scowl, and Hibiki swore the ends of her long red hair were all flaying outwards. "Who told you that, Hibiki?" She asked, with a sweetness in her voice that belied the anger on her face.

Hibiki gave a look to her flaming red hair, as it slowly levitated upwards at nine points, He looked back at her and grinned, "I dunno, my memory's a little shotty, what with my empty stomach and all. Let's go find Minato and force him to pay for our food."

"Hibiki, I'm not dropping this you know, _who told you that?"_ She demanded as Hibiki stood, stretched, and made his way for the door.

* * *

Dinner with Minato had gone about as well as expected; Kushina had gotten it in her head that it had been Minato who had told Hibiki about her schoolyard nickname, and had nearly punted him across the village when they'd found him. The only way he'd calmed her down was by promising her as much ramen as she could eat, which made her personality do a complete 180, going from the Red-Hot Habanero to the Kushina the two of them knew.

The look on Minato's face when Hibiki told him that Jinchuriki had enhanced metabolisms, and as such a much, _much_ greater appetite, had been priceless. By the time their impromptu outing had been finished, Minato had barely two hundred Ryo left from his original stockpile of twelve hundred - and a great deal of that had come from an eating contest between Kushina and a random patron, who heard her boasts about how she could eat all the ramen in the world, and called her on it - loser paid. As it turned out, the man had been an Akimichi who'd just been discharged from the hospital, after using his clan's food-pills, and as such he had a _lot_ of room. Kushina had lost by two bowls, and Minato had been stuck with the bill.

Before the three of them left, however, the owner of the ramen stand they'd eaten at had called Hibiki over, and told him that whatever he and Minato were doing with Kushina, to keep it up, because she was a regular there, and he hadn't seen her that happy in _months._

After the dinner, despite the setting sun, the trio were still wide awake and none of them had any hints of feeling sleepy anytime soon. So, Kushina had made the amazing suggestion to visit her friend in the Uchiha compound, Mikoto, and improvise from there. What followed had begun with the intentions of a surprise visit, and had ended up with them pelting the Uchiha girl with dozens of Water Balloons - with Hibiki having Something From Nothing'ed them from the original one, to dozens, in a matter of seconds. Minato had made Hibiki _swear_ to teach him the Shadow Clone technique later, but Hibiki told him that he'd need a lot more chakra first, because training to use them like he did _needed_ the chakra first, and training to minimize it with the Bare Minimum technique came later.

After they'd pelted the Uchiha girl with their stock of water balloons, they'd ended up being chased by her and, of all people, Fugaku, whom had been escorting her home for some reason, all the way across the Uchiha Compound. Minato, accordingly, had a perfect idea - get Hiashi and Hizashi Hyuga, also known as the _heirs to the Hyuga clan,_ in on their little game, because apparently Minato had befriended the two of them during his last days at the Academy. Their plan had nearly been ruined by the Hyuga clan compound's guards, who understandably weren't too willing to let five running and yelling children loose in their compound, but some timely intervention from Noboru - and his unintentional joining in on their hijinks - had gotten them inside.

During this exodus from the Uchiha compound to the Hyuga compound, Fugaku and Mikoto had gone from enemy to friend, and they two had come up with the plan to send Minato in to get the Hyuga twins outside and in range of another arsenal of SFN'ed water balloons. The twins had _not _been amused at the 'treachery' displayed by Minato, but had been suitably surprised and had actually had to visibly suppress laughter when Mikoto and Fugaku betrayed the original three and pelted _them_ with water balloons, in vengeance for their earlier attack, with Noboru simply watching alongside his clan's heir and the boy's brother.

After they all dried off and spent an hour simply talking with eachother, Kushina showed signs of exhaustion, so Hibiki none-too-subtly suggested for Minato to escort her home. When she left, he apologized for the trouble they caused, but thanked Noboru, the Hyuga Twins, and the Uchihas for their help in cheering Kushina up. He hadn't planned on it, but the moment he'd seen his opportunity, he'd taken it eagerly. The Hyuga Twins looked visibly relieved that it hadn't just been a spur-of-the-moment decision from Minato to try and get them to 'lighten up' again, and ended up admitting they enjoyed their limited involvement, Noboru - in a rare showing of emotion other than stoicism - simply shrugged and had said he was just happy to help out Hibiki; Mikoto was glad that Kushina had other friends who were interested in her wellbeing, and Fugaku made Hibiki promise to spar with him in return - the confidence with which he spoke told Hibiki that he must have awakened his Sharingan, and was feeling a lot more confident now than he had been before.

When they all separated, Hibiki still didn't feel tired enough to go home, which most assuredly wasn't because his home life with Tsunade had become a bit more strained and awkward recently, what with the revelation that they were, by technicality, a lot closer in age than she'd ever realized, and he'd simply been playing along for ten years while she bumbled around and tried to raise him right. So, he eventually found himself atop the third head of the Hokage monument, the fourth having just begun construction. He lied down and rested his head atop his hand, lying back and simply staring at the sky above.

After a few minutes of simple stares, he ended up wishing idly that he'd studied astronomy Back Home. He didn't recognize any of the constellations of his new home, but that didn't speak for anything, really, because outside of Orion's Belt and the Little Dipper, he didn't know _any_ from Back Home, and he couldn't find the aforementioned two right now. Was Sol out there, somewhere? Was there a pale blue dot still flying around the universe, with all of its people still minding their own business, fixing problems, blowing stuff up, reaching blindly into a galaxy they couldn't hope to understand?

He thought back to his notes. Everything he could remember from Back Home, written into several thick stacks of paper that had been put into a storage seal that _no one_ would ever, ever, ever, find. He'd made that seal after a scare in the aftermath of the invasion, and had decided that a storage scroll hidden in the floorboards under his bed wasn't good enough, and after a lot of careful thought and consideration, had concluded that the safest place for them would be the place that, hopefully, no one would ever have the balls - or the brains - to look.

He'd walked funny for _days_ after he'd made that seal, but now it was protected about as well as any superpowered Human male could protect his groin.

He wondered how out of date his notes on Back Home were. Depending on how much time had passed, _thousands_ of movies and games could have been made, and he'd be sorely out of touch. If he ever made it back, he wouldn't be surprised if he'd have to pull a Captain America and start a running list of stuff he _had_ to catch up on. No matter what, if he ever made it back, he'd catch up on the latest Marvel movies - that had been something of a tradition with him and his father, after the first Iron Man movie, he and his father saw _every single _Marvel release in the theater, as soon as they could. There had been ups and downs, but they'd never considered it money wasted.

"I am surprised to see you up here, so late." Came a familiar voice, Hibiki turned and saw, to his own surprise, a familiar Aburame walking across the deceased Sarutobi's great stone head.

"I'm surprised to see you up here period." Hibiki countered, "this one of your usual haunts, or is tonight a special occasion?"

Dai shrugged, and sat down next to Hibiki, who stayed prone. "A little bit of both." She admitted, "today my clan finished rebuilding their compound, so tomorrow we all do not work."

Hibiki nodded, "not bad. Got any plans?"

She shook her hooded head, Hibiki amusedly noted that she wore her sunglasses, even in the dead of night. "War is coming, Hibiki. I will have to catch up on my training."

"Oh, phooey to your training." Said Hibiki, "it's your day off, lady. You're... What, fourteen, now? Wasn't your birthday recently?" He racked his brain, but couldn't find the answer; he barely remembered his original birthday, let alone his new one or any of his new friends' birthdays.

"Thirteen, and in three days, actually." She corrected him.

"Well, hell, you've got tomorrow off, why don't you celebrate?" Hibiki asked, turning his head a bit to get a look at Dai; he noticed a slump in her shoulders, as if they were weighed down by something: Something was on her mind.

"Hibiki... We are not children anymore, and we are not civilians. We cannot celebrate every little day." She yawned.

Hibiki snorted, "what happened to the lady who convinced me to pretend to date her for several days while we were in Suna?" He asked, "depression doesn't suit you, Dai." Though he was searching for a reason; so far as he knew - and he had checked in with her frequently enough - no one she knew directly had died, so what was weighing her down?

She turned her head to look at Hibiki, her eyes hidden behind her glasses. "How do you remain so calm?" She asked, "we lost many thousand people in the attacks, and we sent scores of scouts out to go launch the beginning techniques of a war."

_Oh._ Eiji had gotten sent out with the scout parties, that explained it. Hibiki shrugged truthfully, "I dunno. The way I see it... Letting it get me down would only hurt more." Looks like he had to play emotion doctor twice today, it was time to improvise. "Say Dai... You -"

"Dai."

Hibiki blinked, but when he caught her sly grin, he chuckled and rolled his eyes. "Smartass." He chuckled, "you ever just sit back and look at the stars?" He asked, turning his head a bit and nodding towards the sky.

Now it was Dai's turn to blink, she turned forward and looked up, "no..." She said.

_Okay... I can work with this._ "Lay down." She gave him a look, and he scoffed. "Just do it, lady."

She did so, soon adopting a pose similar to Hibiki's, but instead of laying on her left arm, she rested upon her right, with her left lying on her chest. "Okay... What am I looking at?" She asked.

"Stop talking and just look." It didn't work on some people, but Hibiki was fairly certain Dai wasn't the kind of person to avoid the reflection-effect that staring at the stars had on people.

They laid there in silence for a half hour, simply staring at the heavens above. Eventually, Dai spoke without thinking, "it feels like... If I let go of the ground, I would just float away." She whispered.

Hibiki grinned, "good, it's working."

She blinked, "what is?"

"Shush." He gave them another quarter of an hour of silence, just staring at the twinkling sky. "Alright, now let me tell you something." He began, "I remember reading in a book once that all the stars in the night sky were small holes in the heavens. Every little pinprick of light represented a new soul leaving the earth and going to the afterlife, and because we see them, that means they all are looking down upon us, watching us, helping us." He explained, "so, think about it. There are more stars in the night sky than there are grains of sand on our planet, and for every one we can see, there are countless more that are too far away for us to see without special equipment. So there are millions and millions and millions of souls and angels in the afterlife, and they're all watching us."

"Why are they watching us?" Dai asked, her eyes glued to the sky and her mind enchanted by Hibiki's voice.

_'Cause bein' dead is boring, apparently. I don't remember any of it. _Thought Hibiki, "hm... You know when you go to sleep on the edge of your bed, and you wake up on the floor, and you don't even remember falling?" He asked, almost grasping at straws, but truly drawing on a story he remembered some kid telling in Sunday School; he got an affirmative from Dai. "Well, that's them. They're watching out for us. They won't make life _easy_ on us, but they'll help us out from time to time. You understand?"

Dai slowly nodded, "I... I think so." She said, "so... Is that why you look at them?" She asked.

Hibiki grunted in the negative, "I like to think something else. I like to think that all of the stars are suns, like ours, and that somewhere out there, there's a planet similar to ours, with people like us. They don't know we're here, and we don't know they're there, but they exist just as we exist, and some day I'd really like to go out and see them." Again. He wanted to see them _again._ He really, _really,_ didn't want to be alone in this universe. He wanted to believe that Earth - _his earth - _and humans - _his_ humans - were both out there, somewhere, and he could see them again, maybe figure out exactly how and why he came back.

And failing that, get himself a pair or two of jeans. Or twenty, or eighty, or enough to last him until he withered away into dust; actually, forget Earth, he'd be just fine with a pair of pants. He could do without going home - much as it would hurt, short-term - but he didn't know if he could go on without any god damn pants.

Lost in his remembrance, Hibiki almost missed it when Dai wrapped his hand in hers.

He repressed a sigh, _shit. This is a problem I kind of wanted to avoid for another... Five years. At least until my balls dropped again._ He'd been well aware that courting and marriage went by fast and happened early in this world - which made sense, given that shinobi tended not to live past their early twenties if they kept up their ninja careers - but some things were hard-wired, and dating at _age ten_ wasn't something Hibiki would be comfortable with.

Regardless of that, however, he found himself not resisting, letting Dai do as she wished. He was here to help her not feel so down, he reasoned, and if this helped her, then so be it.

* * *

After escorting Kushina home, Minato found himself with an odd urge to visit the Hokage monument. He didn't quite understand _why,_ but he'd gotten gut feelings before and they'd never led him wrong.

It took him hours after dark, but he eventually made it to atop the third Hokage's head, and grinned when he saw Hibiki lying hand-in-hand with a girl, both of them dead asleep. This must've been why he'd felt he had to go - he had dirt on Hibiki now. Hibiki would never live this down, he grinned widely, and looked up to the sky, watching a falling star as it soared through the sky.

Without warning, the star descended harshly, now heading straight for the Hokage's monument. On instinct, Minato concluded that the star was heading straight for them, but before he could even yell, it reached them, revealing a white-garbed man enveloped in dark green chakra. Without even slowing down, he grabbed Hibiki, impacted the great stone head, carved a deep gouge through the late third's head, and then soared off.

Minato blinked, as Dai slowly recovered from being almost literally ripped from her sleep and nearly blown off of the head. In the distance, Minato heard several claps of thunder.

_Wait a second - "HIBIKI!"_ Without much thought, and even less hesitation, Minato turned and dashed off, chakra streaming into his legs as he followed the bright green glow and smokey trail of the attacker, leaving his village behind as he ran after his friend.

* * *

_A/N:_

_Writing as long as I have, and (somehow managing to) getting some renown across a few profiles, I always enjoy the moments where I realize I could very well avoid a cliffhanger. _

_I love those moments, I like to wave as they pass on by._


	29. Retrieval: Squad Up -I-

Chapter 28

* * *

Flying sucked.

Flying involuntarily sucked.

Being awoken from a rather restful sleep sucked.

Being awoken, from a rather restful sleep, by flying, _involuntarily,_ was just plain rude.

It took Hibiki a half second to realize that this wasn't supposed to be happening, and on instinct, he leached chakra from one hand to the other and smashed it into the chest of whoever it was carrying him through the air as many times as he could. Six thunderclaps later, the Monster of Kirigakure literally threw him forward with astonishing strength, the wind whistled in his ears, deafening him, his eyes were still trying to adjust to the dark, blinding him, and there was naught but air around him, dumbing him, he was totally exposed, and he didn't know where the next hit would come from. Before he could even blink, he saw a bright green flare of fire burst forward, catch up to him, and smash its fist into Hibiki's face, knocking him out cold and fracturing his steel skeleton. Without even breaking pace, he was caught by the Monster of Kirigakure, and they kept up their flight

* * *

It took Dai ten seconds to realize what had happened, after she'd finished panicking because she'd begun slipping off of the Hokage monument. When she climbed back up to the top of the head, she found a large crater carved into the head, just inches away from where she'd fallen asleep. Ten seconds later, she connected the dots - someone had taken Hibiki, and the thunderclaps she heard as she stuck to the monument and forced herself to calm down, had been Hibiki trying to extricate himself. She searched the horizon, but the kidnapper had gone far past her range of vision, far sooner than she'd thought to look for him.

The pale-skinned Aburame slowly felt some muted, mixed level of panic and despair start flaring up in her chest. Something had breached the walls, stolen an astonishingly powerful chunin, and left, in a matter of seconds, and there was no way of tracking him, not with how fast the thing was flying away. But as soon as she'd thunk those thoughts, the Queens in her spoke softly, directly to her mind. They asked her to calm herself, to close her eyes and inhale deeply through her nose, and exhale just as deeply through her mouth. They had things to show her, things she missed in her panic.

The Aburame obeyed, the Queens had gotten her through a great deal during her thirteen years, and they hadn't led her astray except for the one time - when they'd all but begged her not to associate herself with the 'Gold-Blooded Monster', and she'd decided to speak with Hibiki anyways. She pulled her hood tight against her head, and adjusted her sunglasses - casting her world into the muted colors she was used to. She held the sides of her hood and pulled tight, closing her eyes and inhaling deeply through her nose, calming herself down and slowing her heartbeat. The Aburame genin concentrated hard, and to her glee, found what the Queens had been hinting at - her tracker beetles were detecting pheromones from the female that had migrated over to the Senju heir. Hibiki's sudden departure hadn't thrown off any of the few beetles that had rested upon him, _one_ of whom was female.

She could track him.

She could help him.

Dai opened her eyes and released her hood, before she turned around, staring at the dark village below her. She could certainly track him, but that didn't mean she could feasibly fight whomever it was that had taken him. Obviously, the first thing she had to do was find her own team, with their help there wasn't anyone she couldn't find and retrieve; then she would find Hibiki's team, with those two she could feasibly face any potential threat she ran across. After finding them, then she would improvise. With a plan set, she dashed off for the Hyuga compound, sending a few beetles to the Inuzuka compound - Kyo-kun was smart, he'd hear and smell the beetles and wake Aoi up to follow them.

With her speed - which, admittedly, wasn't anywhere close to Hibiki's, or even a determined Minato's - she managed to make it to the Hyuga compound in seconds. The gate guards halted her instantly, their blank white dojutsu bulging angrily as they cornered her and kept her from moving any further into the compoint; it was too late for visitors, they said. She told them exactly what had happened - the Senju heir had been kidnapped and she needed to get Noboru and Akane Hyuga. They looked at each other with apprehension, not entirely believing her, but fearing what would happen if they refused her and she wasn't lying.

After a few minutes of arguing with them, they allowed her in - on the condition that one of them followed her. She recognized that the guard they'd put on her was one of the Sealed shinobi, so her first target had been Noboru - in their clan, he had the authority to tell them to go away and stop bothering her.

She found his house after a few minutes, and knocked loud on his door. After a while of waiting, he slid open his door, visibly surprised to see an Aburame there.

"Dai-san, to what do I -" He began, his voice showing no signs of drowsiness despite the late hour and the activity earlier that day.

"Someone took Hibiki and I need to find Akane and Suboro and we need to track him down." She interrupted, speaking in rapid-fire.

Noboru was stunned for but a half second, he looked up to the guard and nodded once, releasing him from his duties. "Come, quickly." He said, guiding her through the compound and then to Akane's home. Unlike Noboru's somewhat regal, extravagant home, Akane's was much smaller and quaint, had the Hyuga not had the pride to keep everything pristine, clean, and royal looking, it would have almost been considered second-class. They grabbed her, and Noboru instructed the two of them to meet him and Suboro at the academy.

In a blur of running and activity, and after a quarter of an hour had passed, the remaining members of Team Six met up with Team Four on the roof of the academy, the dull white light of the moon cast everyone in a neutral black and white, had it not been for their ninja-eyesight, they would have been largely blind to the finer details of their comrades. Everyone was slightly disheveled and hastily dressed, having been woken up and told to be combat ready in less than five minutes, but they all were attentive and were ready to get answers and orders upon the eventual arrival of Team Six.

Noboru bowed lightly, "I apologize for my lateness, I had to wake up Dante-sensei, who is going to find the Sannin and speak with the Hokage. He gave us clearance to leave whenever we see fit." He looked directly at Dai, managing to intimidate her with the strength of his gaze. "So, Dai, _what happened?"_ He asked, firmly.

Dai took a deep, calming breath, and told the story. "I don't now, Noboru-san." She said, "Hibiki and I were on the Hokage monument -" She pointed at the third head, "when there was a crack of thunder. Something hit the head and woke us up, grabbed Hibiki, carved a crater out of the head, and took him." She explained. "Whoever it was, he was moving fast, but there is a Kikaichu beetle on Hibiki, so I can track him, no matter how far he goes, but we must move soon." She implored.

Noboru regarded her for a moment, looking her up and down, before he spoke, "who took him?" He asked, laying to rest the other question that plagued his and likely everyone else's minds - what were the two of them doing on the monument.

Dai shook her head, "I do not know, I was awoken by the impact, and nearly sent flying off of the head." She said, "I only know that whoever it was could fly."

Noboru's eyes narrowed, "there was someone present during the invasion who had a flight technique... The Monster of Kirigakure. Would you be willing to assume it was him?"

Dai nodded, "it sounds correct, but I would not be willing to stake Hibiki's life on it."

Noboru nodded, "alright, these are questions for later. You three are the tracking experts, so we shall follow you. But whomever has stolen Hibiki, we must assume he has allies and he is strong." He looked to Suboro, "Suboro, when we find this man and his friends, you hit them with your most powerful technique. Kill them if you can, but stun them if you cannot. While they are stunned, I will move in and cripple them with my jyuuken." He looked to team four, and pointed at Aoi. "Aoi, when Suboro stuns the enemy shinobi, you and Kyo move in and grab Hibiki. Dai, you use your Kikaichu to leech the chakra off of everyone we meet. Akane, you keep watch around us, you look for enemy shinobi and keep us covered." He looked at everyone, "understand?" They nodded, but Suboro raised his hand, prompting Noboru to look at him.

Suboro itched the back of his bald head sheepishly, "er... Noboru, no offense, but... We aren't really strategists, man. Hibiki came up with the plans."

Noboru blinked, "my plan was almost verbatim what Hibikis tended to be."

Suboro shook his head, "yours was kind of rigid. He had general ideas with an improvisation undertone. That's what makes him our strategist - he's good at improvisation."

Noboru stared at him, his face still the stereotypical Hyuuga calm. "And we are not?"

"We're better at following orders than issuing them. So... I was thinking we should bring a strategist in to our fold." The buzz-cut Genin said, scratching more at his bald head as he spoke.

"Who would you suggest?" The Hyuga noble inquired, almost impatiently.

Suboro shrugged, "he's friends with Shikaku Naara." He said.

"A rookie." Noboru and Dai said almost synchronously.

Suboro gave Noboru a dubious look, "a _Naara_ rookie. He's a clan kid. He might not have combat experience like us, but he's not untrained. And if we get him, we can get his Yamanaka and Akimichi friends, too."

"Two more _rookies."_ Noboru countered, "the only reason _we're_ even remotely capable of conducting this mission is because we have mission experience. Combat experience. We know more than one or two clan-techniques and we have a lot more stamina and chakra than ten-year-old rookies. I am not saying that they are not good - I know as well as you that many of Hibiki's academy friends are top of their year - but they are still rookies. If we bring them they will slow us down, we will have to protect them when we inevitably enter combat."

Akane spoke up, "were there not any Naaras in our graduating year?"

Noboru nodded, "yes, but one was killed and the other was crippled during the invasion." He sighed and shook his head, "i do not approve of this. Bringing three rookies - and three irreplaceable _clan heirs_, at that - into a search and rescue mission."

Suboro's shoulders slumped, "did you just tone Hibiki out whenever he spoke? Shikaku watched whenever he sparred with that Namikaze kid, and despite how lazy he is, he himself does, indeed, train too. He's a genius, and he's a natural tactician. I don't know much about his friends, Chouza and Inoichi, but they're clan kids too, so they've got to at least have _something_ we can use."

Noboru sighed, shaking his head in the pale moonlight. "We would... Literally... Have to keep them away from any fighting." He said, "_any_ of it." Despite his words, Suboro could see plans forming behind his pale eyes, about how they could use the trio. "But... If you think we can make it work, I'll trust you, then."

Suboro grinned, "don't worry, man. We'll be fine, now come on, we're burning moonlight_." _He looked to Team Four, "you two -" He pointed at Dai and Akane, "- you guys begin the hunt. We'll keep Aoi so we can find you after we round up Ino-Shika-Cho." He said with a nod, "sound good?"

* * *

Minato Namikaze's legs were burning, his lungs were on fire, sweat was pouring down his head, but he was managing, just barely, to keep up with Hibiki's kidnapper. He'd ran for so long he'd lost count of the hours, but the sun was coming up now, and fortunately for the Namikaze, they seemed to have arrived at their destination. He came to a halt at the edge of an enormous cliff, and in the distance he saw a large village filled with large, cylindrical buildings with grass tops, likely meant to disguise the village from any enemy scouts. There was a thick layer of mist hanging close to the ground, and all of the facts pointed to one conclusion: This kidnapper was the Monster that Hibiki had told him about, 'Frankenstein', and they had just traveled from Konoha to Kirigakure in six hours.

Minato took a knee and watched as Frankenstein curved down low and entered the largest, central building, which itself was connected by large stone canals to the village's other buildings. Breathing heavily, Minato took in everything about the village as he could. The 'ground' was actually mostly swamp-land, and the large canals were roads that connected the various buildings of the village, which were built into the marshlands, and with the mist and their thickly covered grass tops, the village could very well be missed by patrolling scouts.

_Okay..._ He thought, breathing heavily as he tried to catch his breath and calm his thundering heart. _Okay. Hibiki's in that big, middle building, right there in the center of, literally, the one village in the world that would kill someone wearing my headband on sight._ Thought the Genin, as he adjusted his hitai-ate, which was darkened and thick with collected sweat. _So... The problem is, how do I get in there, get Hibiki, get out, and run away, without being found?_ Wondered the blond blur, running a hand through his unruly, sweat-slick hair.

_Consider my strengths... I'm fast... I have a **lot** of stamina... That... I... Burned to get here... I... I have some training in fuinjutsu! Hibiki showed me a couple things, and I tried a couple other things... Um... Serizawa said I can manipulate Chakra pretty well, but I burned a lot of that trying to get in here... Uh... Uh-oh... I might have made a bad decision._ He shook his head and stared hard at the village. _Let's try and make a plan... Let's start simple, how do I get in?_ He looked around at the various buildings he could see. They all seemed to be largely closed environments, but if Minato concentrated real hard, he could just barely see the ant-sized shapes of people walking to and fro, across the stone canals connecting the buildings.

Minato nodded, his blue eyes narrowing as a plan slowly formed. _Okay... Maybe I can sneak in... I can bury my headband and just pretend to be a traveler. Didn't they say they were invading some place? I can use that, tell 'em - no, wait, it's them doing the invasion, that won't work... Unless I use the bandits angle._ He nodded slowly, _okay, okay. I bury my headband and my weapons, dirty myself up a bit, and play the injured kid role... I can do that._ Thought the boy, as he dug a hole quickly with his hands, wrapped his headband around his weapons pouches, and buried it. He patted his face down with dirt and grime, and searched around for a main road.

Eventually he found the closest thing he could to a main road - a large mud 'road' of sorts that was just above the water, with wheel tracks running both directions. As a bonus, in the distance, he heard voices, and they were getting closer. Focusing his hearing, Minato discerned the sounds of a man, a woman, a dog, and the cries of a baby, and a plan formulated in his head, as he lied down on the road - face down - and waited.

He would feel _real_ stupid if they just passed him by, but he hoped that basic human decency would prevail.

A few minutes passed by, the couple and their dog were taking their sweet damn time, but eventually he heard a loud, panicked gasp, and a 'thunk' that sounded like the sound of a canteen hitting the ground. There was the sound of rushing feet, and Minato steeled himself to maintain his unconscious visage. He was flipped over and a pair of fingers found their way to his neck, feeling for a pulse.

"His pulse is strong, he's just unconscious." Said a deep voice, before Minato was scooped up into a pair of strong arms. "Come on, we need to get to the village."

The next quarter of an hour was spent shaking and jostling, incredibly difficult to play the unconscious traveler, but Minato powered through it until he heard a powerful voice call out for the civilians and their dog to halt. The man skidded to a halt in the mud, "my name is Ayumu Goro, I am the owner of the Goro Bazaar, I need to get inside now, I have found a sick boy, he needs to go to the hospital."

He heard a harumph, "move over." A few seconds of only footsteps, then Minato felt a rough hand clench his forehead, and he heard the sound of chakra flowing through the air. "He's not sick -" Minato felt his heart stop, " - he's just exhausted. Drop him off at the orphanage and move on." He nodded inside, muttering about the too-protective civilians, and about how one day they would be the fall of the village.

Minato was rushed inside, where the sounds of a village greeted him. He heard a gasp, and then the woman stammered out, "lord Katsuo!" With a loud cry.

There was the sound of someone landing, and then a calm, albeit hoarse voice, spoke to the two. "I sensed an abnormal amount of chakra entering the village... Who is that boy?" The voice asked, likely looking at Minato.

"Er..." Ayumu stuttered, "we found him, unconscious on the road. His pockets are empty and he's covered in dirt and sweat, I think he was robbed." He said, "I was going to bring him to the hospital, sir." He said.

There was silence, then, "well why didn't you say so? Give him to me, I'll get him there faster!" Said the hoarse voice, with great urgency.

Minato was traded from one pair of strong arms, to a new pair of even stronger arms, and without warning, he felt his stomach drop as wind suddenly started flying through his face. Unable to keep from grimacing at the feeling, he blinked heavily and feigned 'suddenly' waking up, twisting in the man's arms and groaning. He creaked open his eyes, slowly, pretending like the light was too much. He got a few seconds to look at the man carrying him, his long-sleeved, thick, white shirt and light gray pants, the thick scars running in lines all over his face, as if he'd been stitched together from different people. His eyes were a deep golden, and they instantly locked onto him when he started stirring.

"Stay calm, child, you are safe now!" The man said, his voice deep and hoarse, as he soared out of the first building they'd entered, and made for one nearly a kilometer from the central building, Minato's target.

"Where am I?" Minato groaned, grimacing as the wind started whistling through his ears.

"You are in Kirigakure, kiddo. You passed out on the road." Without warning, the man started descending towards one of the smaller cylindrical buildings.

Minato blinked, "are we flying?" He asked, his heart-rate slowly climbing as he realized that he'd only ever heard of _one,_ heavily scarred, golden-eyed, flying Shinobi from Kirigakure.

The man smiled, "well, I am, you're along for the ride." He said, straightening himself up and landing on the ground, shouldering his way past the hospital doors, where a few medics almost instantly appeared, ready for the man's orders. "Here you are... You will be safe now." He said, handing a befuddled Minato over to a thankful nurse, who started calling out for medics as he was rushed inside.

Minato had been expecting a _monster_ from the monster, not... That.

* * *

Tsunade senju's rage was something of a legend in Konoha. Stories had spread like wildfire about the time she had nearly killed her teammate, in front of her son no less, when the former had brought the latter to a hot sprint to peep on her. Then there was the story about how she'd nearly throttled her _other_ teammate when he'd left snakes at her home to scare her kid at night, and there were so many more. The problem was, _all_ of those stories paled in comparison to what was happening right now.

Tsunade's killing intent was so thick that it was peeling the paint off of the walls of the Hokage. It was so powerful that even the Anbu guards were shifting uncomfortably. The Hokage, seated in his seat with one hand interlaced with the other, elbows resting upon the table, was keeping a good poker face, but even he was unsettled by the killing intent the woman was radiating.

"I want to know what you meant." Tsunade said, so calmly that one who was chakra insensitive could have mistaken her for _calm;_ the lack of volume from her words seemed to shatter the silence of the air worst than a bolt of lightning.

Danzo repressed a sigh; "we are going to wait to find your son." He stated bluntly. "There is already a task force set about looking for him -"

"Children. Five _children."_ Tsunade interrupted, "and don't forget that four more of the boy's friends went missing around the same time your task force went looking for him. So that's five Genin _children,_ and four _Rookie _children, tracking a Chunin _child,_ who was abducted by the Monster of Kirigakure." She said, still vocally the epitome of calm. "Am I correct?"

Danzo nodded.

"Good." She inhaled deeply, and exhaled just as so, "now, allow me to ask... _Why... In Kami's name... Did you..."_ And she turned her eyes, her deep brown eyes which spoke of unending and ceaseless pain and torment, to the unclean Jonin a few feet away from Danzo, "_and you... Think it was a **good** idea... To send five genin and four rookies... None of whom are adults, and barely any of whom, were actually trained for combat... To run across the continent on a manhunt... For my son?"_ The sound of her voice went from pleasant to deadly in an instant; Danzo felt the air grow frigid with the intensity of her killing intent, Jiraiya even scooted his chair over a few inches.

"Well... We're low on manpower, and -"

Tsunade interrupted the sensei, "that expeditionary force was comprised mostly of _Tokubetsu-Jonin_, and Chunin. Our most elite are still here, manning the walls. Don't you fucking tell me we are short on manpower."

"Our children need trials by -"

"Oh don't you start about that, Uchiha." Tsunade growled, "you may be my son's sensei, but I'll kick your ass just as soon as I'd kick _his_." She pointed at Jiraiya, who scooted closer to the snake sannin. "The war only _just started..._ We aren't desperate enough to start sending children on suicide missions to force them to build up their skills." She leaned forward, _"why am I still here?!"_ She whispered.

Danzo took this opportunity to interject, "it is simple, Tsunade. You three, and our Jonin, are powerful." He said, "children, those Genin, while strong, are not. When faced with a hurdle as large as the Monster of Kirigakure, they will know outright that they cannot fight him, they cannot beat him. So instead of going in with the intent to fight... They will go in with the intent to _win._.. By means other than combat. There are many ways to win a battle. Not all of them are by defeating their foes by dominating them through combat." He explained. "Think of Hibiki. During his Chunin examination, he found that he needed not to win his battle, but merely he had to _not lose,_ and to that end he opened three of the _Eight... Gates..._ And managed to overpower a jinchuriki long enough to accomplish his goal. Look at Noboru Hyuga. During the invasion, he rallied several of his clansmen and created tactics on the fly that allowed us to hold off the enemy soldiers long enough for Hibiki to come up with his own response. Suboro Kurama, he likely has the greatest killing potential of the three - a Kurama with an activated bloodline and no split-personality. He could feasibly walk into the center of a village and kill everyone he sees in scant seconds, and with the way he has crafted his unique - even for a Kurama - brand of genjutsu, he wouldn't even have to burn too much chakra to do it.

"Then consider the team assembled to _find_ them. Akane Hyuga - another Hyuga, netting two Byakugan, between the two of them they can cover their blind spots and see, literally, _everything._ Aoi Inuzuka - her ninja hound has been reported to be _particularly_ protective of its master and her friends and allies, despite its tendency to sleep whenever possible. That dog alone tore the throats out of seventeen enemies during the invasion, and with its nose and its tracker-oriented training, whatever Akane and Noboru miss, she will see. And then there is Dai Aburame - an unremarkable fighter, except for her self-developed Kikaichu Shield technique, but an excellent tracker with a proficiency for sending her beetles to leech the chakra out of her opponents. She drained _dozens_ of enemy soldiers bone dry during the invasion.

"Between the five of them, they could feasibly encounter Jonin-level opponents and use their unique skills to survive. They need not _fight,_ they need to _win._ They will find your son and they will bring him back."

Tsunade huffed, "that doesn't change the kami-damned fact that you sent children to rescue _my son._ What would they do if they can't _survive,_ as you say?!" Tsunade demanded, her glare strong enough to bore holes through Danzo's bandaged head.

"Think of it like this, lady Senju... You are faced with a foe you cannot possibly defeat... But you have a seals master_, _and nearby is an abandoned village once _filled_ with the most adept seals-masters in the world._"_ He said. "So tell me... Lady Senju. What would _you_ do?"


	30. Retrieval: Attack -II-

Chapter 29

* * *

Hibiki awoke slowly, groggily, his head lolling about and throbbing as if a cinderblock had smashed into it. He exhaustedly raised his hand to rub at his throbbing brain-case, at least he tried to, until he felt his hand catch on a thick metal object, and he heard the metallic clinking of chains. He was awake in almost an instant, and he found himself, arms chained to his sides, shirt and coat in shreds.

His eyes were open wide, he tried to break the chains, but he found that his chakra wasn't answering his call. Much the opposite, it felt like he didn't have any chakra at all. He looked down at his gut, as if that would provide him with clues, and surprisingly enough, it did - there was a massive seal covering his entire stomach, it wasn't completely restricting his chakra flow - on instinct, and without really thinking about it, he flipped on his sharingan to take a better look at it, and the almost nil chakra usage didn't draw too heavily from what little chakra leaked out from the seal.

He flipped off the sharingan, and jumped when a large metal door grinded open.

In came a white-garbed, golden-eyed, heavily scarred monster. He made eye contact with Hibiki, who sat there, scowling at the man.

_"Can I interest you in a cup of coffee?"_ The hoarse man asked in flawless English.

Hibiki blinked; had he finally woken up, or did that New Hotness man just speak English? There were a thousand questions running through Hibiki's mind - not the least of which, what made the man think he spoke English, and not German, or Spanish, or Japanese even. Hibiki resigned to just stare at the man, his hair hanging in front of his eyes in thick, sweat-clumped strands; he felt like Dante.

The Monster sighed, pulling up a iron chair, it making a horrendous grinding noise as it scraped across the floor. _"I'm afraid I don't have any other drinks from my home, coffee was the only one I knew how to make, and that's only because my mom and dad couldn't go a day without it."_ He sat down, _"really coulda' gone for just one last bottle of pop, though."_ He shook his head.

Hibiki stared at him, "what... _What are you?"_ It had been over ten years since he'd spoken English, but he recognized that it was, indeed, what the man was speaking. He surprised himself, actually, at how nearly flawless the man's American accent was, and how heavy his own accent had become; had he been asked, he would have expected the exact opposite.

_"Well, that depends, friend. Here, my name is Katsuo. Yeah, it's Japanese, but the war was over when I died, so, I guess it's okay."_ He said, stretching his leathery skin. _"But back home, my name was Billy."_ He said with a nod, "_what's your name?"_

Hibiki stared at the man, _"John Doe."_

The man didn't get it, _"well, John, when did _you_ die?"_

_"Does it matter?"_

_"Not really, I'm just making conversation. You were our father's 'Magnum Opus', so I wanted to learn as much as I could."_ He looked Hibiki over, _"I will admit, I see potential within you, but I am the better of us."_

Hibiki ignored his boast, _"this is the second time you've said 'our father'. Who is he?"_

_"Kenichi the Graverobber. The man wanted to do what no one else could - he wanted to create life. I was... One of his first successful attempts."_ He held his hands out, indicating himself.

_"You look like a Frankenstein reject."_ Said the Senju heir.

_"And you look like a child. But we are both living proof that a book can not be judged by its cover."_ Said Katsuo.

Hibiki rolled his eyes, _"what do you want?" _

_"I want to learn. There has to be a way Kenichi took us from our home, there has to be answers as to where this home is, or where it went."_ He explained, _"so, I decided that the best way to learn would be through chakra. The problem is, natural energy is too... Replaceable. It dates back to the beginning of chakra itself, but it recycles too frequently to draw back. So, I thought to myself, what chakra dates back to the beginnings of chakra itself, that never, or very infrequently, recycles? The nine tailed beasts. If I took them, I could use their chakra to date backwards, to see back to the time of the Sage of Six Paths, to see the origins of this world and perhaps learn how to transcend it as he did. I may be powerful now, but his eyes made him a titan amongst gods. With his power and mine, I could learn everything. I could figure out where our home is... I could bring us **all** home."_

Hibiki narrowed his eyes, _"us... All?"_

Katsuo nodded, _"you and I exist, and there is an intense difference in quality between us. Did you think he went from me, to you, with no practice? John, there are dozens of us - even after many of them were killed by Konohagakure's ANBU."_ He said, his golden eyes twinkling, _"though, I will admit... There are only **two** of **us."**_

Hibiki felt his blood run cold, _"what do you mean?"_

_"No one else knows what a gun is. None of them speak English, none of them know what America, the Soviet Union, Germany, Japan, any of them are. None of them have heard of the Radio, a few of them know what books are, but they said they were never rich enough to afford them - most of them couldn't even read, back home... But they **all** came from _our_ Earth! Don't you want to know why?!"_

Hibiki would admit, he was curious, but he kept up his blank scowl, he wouldn't give this guy the satisfaction. _"So how does a journey of discovery turn into a plan to start World War Three?"_

Katsuo sighed, _"you think I am evil, like the Russians, or Hitler. I can hear it in your voice, sense it in your heart. I'm not evil, Hibiki, I just want to take myself and my brothers and sisters **home.**"_ He looked up at the boy, _"isn't that what you want? To go home?"__  
_

_"All I want is a pair of pants."_ Said Hibiki, _"I would like to go home, sure, but think about it logically. I go home, I'm basically a Super Saiyan. The Government will want to know how, they'll take me and experiment on me."_ He said.

Katsuo gave him an incredulous look, _"they're the good guys, they wouldn't do that."_

Hibiki narrowed his eyes in thought, this man almost literally had somewhere around three to four hundred years of history to be born from, when the hell was there ever a time where people _trusted_ the government? Or had he been a kid when he'd died? Questions for later. _"Still. I lived a good life. Maybe not the best, but the best I could have. I_ **_accepted_** _my death. I'm willing to take my second chance, here."_

_"Then... Don't you want to know what happened?"_

"I_ got hit by a truck."_

_"How we got here?!"_

_"Someone tried pulling a Frankenstein, and used magic to make it work."_ Hearing that from someone else - apparently a kindred spirit, no less -helped a _lot_ of things make sense, but he hadn't the time to think about it - right now he had to figure out how to go home.

_"What the heck **is FRANKENSTEIN?!"**_ The Monster roared, the force of his voice shaking the building,a green aura flaring up around him, before he took a deep breath, and let it out slowly. _"I am sorry... But regardless, I won't let you go home."_ He said, _"I **can't...** There's so much you don't know, so much we all can teach you!"_

Hibiki raised his eyebrow, _"and what makes you think you can stop me? Obviously this 'Kenichi' preferred me over you, or any of our cousins, living or dead. There's got to be a reason for that, and I'm willing to bet it's got something to do with the fact that I've just got potential to be greater than **all** of you, put together."_

Katsuo stared at him, _"Hibiki, I'm like Superman. You're like... Like..._

_"Batman?"_

_"Aquaman. You're just silly, you can't **hope** to beat me."_

_"I like to think I'm Goku."_ Hibiki commented, with a shrug, _"Superman was cool and all, but I liked Goku better."_

_"The heck is Goku?"_

Hibiki stared at the man, beginning to wonder just _when_ this guy came around. _"Regardless... I don't want anything to do with your quest. I just want to go home and live my second life."_

The Monster scowled at Hibiki, _"no. You **will not** leave here."_

Hibiki raised an eyebrow again, _"oh? And why won't I? Let's do a headcount here, buddy. My uncle, a man who took 'science' and 'chakra' and managed to fashion himself into a demi-god... My other uncle, a perverted legend who lives up to the legend... A mother with breath taking anger management issues... Several friends with ties to the most powerful clans of ninjas and assassins in the world - and **you,**__ big fella, managed to piss them **all** off by taking me, the most powerful ten year old in my village and heir to one of their most ancient, respected, and arguably most powerful clans."_

Katsuo grinned, _"I have Senjutsu, your -."_

_"And I've got a turtle de_ -" He cut himself off, he didn't want to reveal his best trump card, just yet._ "Look, the point is... It may not be today, and it may not be tomorrow, but I will eventually leave. And you barely escaped alive last time, and that was against two exhausted sages, a dying jinchuriki, an exhausted Hokage, an exhausted ANBU Assassin, and two Boss Summons - one of whom, was exhausted. You literally only fought **one** being at the height of his power... So how do you think you'll last against an **army** of our best, AT their best?"_

Katsuo grinned, _"about as long as your... Admittedly tenacious blonde friend, would last against me."_ He said, dropping Hibiki's smirk.

Hibiki felt his heart start beating faster, and, unbidden, his eyes shifted to their bloodier forms. _"What?"_

_"When I took you, there was a blonde boy there on the head. When I left the village, a presence, admittedly small, but with vast potential, possibly even more than you if he really applied himself, followed me. When I arrived here, I felt that same presence enter the village alongside some merchants, and, lo and behold, that same blonde boy showed up."_ Katsuo leaned in closer, _"you've seen how powerful I am. How long do you think that child would last against me?"_

Hibiki's face slowly went from a neutral scowl to full-on rage. _"If you so much as touch him, Katsuo -"_

_"You'll what, John? Fight me?"_ Katsuo nodded to Hibiki's gut, _"that thing restricts ninety nine percent of your chakra. You couldn't fight a baby, let alone the jinchuriki of the four tails... Let alone **me!"**_ He leaned back up, "I'll let you think about things... Just remember, I know where your friend is. I can **end** him without a second thought... And you _know_ this."

* * *

Minato Namikaze was angry. He'd been stuck in the hospital until well after dark, because the damnable nurse kept checking in on him every quarter of an hour. Sure, he appreciated her ill-placed nurturing, and the food and water she gave to build him back up, at the expense of Kirigakure, but it still annoyed him - he had a mission to do, and this lady was preventing him from doing it! His friend was missing, probably being tortured, and this nurse was keeping him from rescuing him! He bet that, if she'd known he was from Konoha, she would have avoided him like he was a plague.

The blond blur waited until it was late night to try and break out. He'd spent the day trying to crash-course his way through suppressing his chakra, so he wouldn't show up in the Monster's senses again. That had terrified him, suddenly being picked up by the Monster and flown through Kiri, he'd thought he'd been made, but whatever the Monster thought, him being a ninja wasn't it. He'd managed to find a way to suppress his chakra around dinner time, and had done so by thinking of a large safe in his stomach, and when he shut and locked the safe, he barely even sensed his chakra himself, so he hoped it was enough to hide from the Monster.

His gameplan was simple; he'd seen the Monster land on the floor eight down from the roof in the central building, so he figured that would be a good enough place to start his search. He didn't know what he would find or where he would find it, but he hoped and prayed he'd be able to do it without getting caught, or dying.

So, with his plan in mind, Minato slowly slinked out of the bed, and towards the pitch-black window on the other side of his room, after suppressing his chakra as low as he possibly could. He had to do things the 'old fashioned way', because outside of the basic clone and transformation techniques - which he couldn't use anyway without flaring his chakra - he didn't know any wall-walking techniques. It took a lot of concentration and maneuvering to get outside, hang from one hand, and close the window with the other, and barely a second after he did so, he heard someone crash into the room he'd just been in.

_Oh no._ Minato thought, throwing some caution to the wind and dropping a few feet at a time, before catching a grip and saving himself from a splat. In ten seconds, he found himself on the ground floor, and he hid underneath a balcony leading inside just as the window to his former room opened with a slam, and someone looked outside.

_"I don't see the damn kid!"_ A deep, livid voice called out.

Another, hoarse, and if possible, angrier voice, called out, _"how the hell could he have even gotten out?! If he'd used chakra, I would have sensed it!"_ Minato leaned against one of the pillars and watched a shadow suddenly race across the ground, hovering a few feet outside of the window. _"You check the building, every room, and interrogate every nurse, **find** that damn kid! Without him, we lose our bargaining chip over John."_ And without further ado, the floating figure rocketed off in another direction, away from the hospital and towards the village entrance.

_Damn it... Okay, I need to be -_

_"K... Kinpatsu-kun?"_

Minato felt his heart drop, he _knew_ that voice. He turned around slowly, and saw, to his horror, that damn nurse from before, hand lightly clenched over her slack jaw, eyes wide in horrified realization.

"Wha - what are you doing out of bed?" She whispered.

Minato didn't have any weapons, and if he attacked, she'd scream. How could he get out of this?

He gulped, "uh... Nurse Aiko, listen -"

"How did you get out?" She asked, her voice shaking as she took a step back, her lip quivering in fear and her deep green eyes watering up as it ever so slowly dawned on her what was happening, "are you... Are they..." She looked at Minato, then out past the building's archways, referring to the shinobi.

"Nurse Aiko, listen, I'm looking for a friend. He was taken from me." He said quickly, gaining her attention and, more importantly, her silence. He formulated a story quickly, "we were separated when Kiri shinobi took him. I nearly died trying to get to him - please, I don't want any trouble, I don't want to fight... I just want to get my friend, and leave... _Please!"_ He said, hands raised in a placative gesture, as he slowly inched his way towards her.

She still looked horrified, but he could see it - his words were working. She gulped, "why... Why was he taken? Who is he? Who are _you?"_

"I'm... An orphan." He said, not truly lying to her. "And he's my friend. I don't know why he was taken, but he is all his mom has left... I need your help, Nurse Aiko... _Please..."_

She gulped, "but... You two... You are -"

_"Children,_ Nurse Aiko. We didn't have any choice in what we do... All I want is to save my friend and bring him home." He said, with a quick look behind him to make sure no one was coming. _"Please... _I _need_ you!"

* * *

It took them nearly the entire day, but they made it as the moon was high in the sky. All of them had their chakra suppressed, and they all were standing on a plateau overlooking a cleverly disguised village in the middle of a massive, canyon-filled, misty swamp land. Dai Aburame's beetles had led them here, and the Genin's speed and endurance brought them here in their timely manner. They had had to resort to creative solutions to cross the small straits that separated the many islands of Kiri, but they had managed to do so without burning all of their chakra, and losing too much time.

"I see him... Just barely. He is in that central building." Akane Hyuga pointed at the building in question, "their forces are mobilizing, I do not know why, but they are worried about something. The patterns match a lockdown... Perhaps another prisoner escaped." She concluded.

She turned to look at the assembled posse of Genin shinobi and rookie students. Four other Shinobi and three inseparable rookies made up their search party, and it was one head to which all others turned. The possessor of this head nodded, a serious look on his face, looking almost alien on it, as all who knew him were used to a tired, bored expression of indifference.

Shikaku Naara had, initially, been annoyed beyond measure that he'd been awakened in the dead of night, but after being told that Hibiki was missing and they were gathering up a search group, he'd needed no more inspiration - he was ready to go. Through a combination of luck, convenience, and chance, both of his friends had been staying at his home that night, and they'd both been awoken by Hibiki's friend, and had summarily outright refused to let him go alone, and it had only taken him a few seconds to conclude that they would be useful, even without final-year Genin training, they still knew clan techniques and could manipulate chakra, so, while outclassed, they wouldn't be useless.

Shikaku was kneeling a few feet from the edge of their cliff, hand resting on his chin, as he stared intently at the village, trying to come up with a plan of attack. His eyes flitted between three different buildings, and after a few minutes, his head turned to his group, as he looked at everyone in turn, no one able to decipher the thoughts that lay behind his dark eyes.

He nodded, "okay... Inoichi." The blonde Yamanaka perked up at the sound of his name. "I know your clan has the mind control techniques... Is there a way to tweak it so, instead of taking over our minds and controlling our bodies, you instead take a presence in our minds, so as to communicate with us and relay information?" He asked.

Inoichi frowned, thinking hard. "I... Think so. It would take less chakra to do that than to take possession, but I don't know how long I could make it work."

Shikaku nodded, "I don't want to spend more than an hour here, so if you can make it work for two, that's all we need." He said, looking to Team Six. "Noboru, how good is your team at big... _Big_ explosions?"

Suboro answered for the Hyuga, a big grin stretching across his face. "Are you kidding? We're _Hibiki's_ friends. You show us a building and we'll give you a pile of rubble."

Shikaku, however, shook his head, his sun-tanned skin reflecting the pale moonlight, "no. We don't want a destroyed building... We want chaos, and emergency responders. We want an explosion large enough to compromise the structural integrity of..." He turned around, then pointed. "That building." He chose one far enough away from the center of the village that they could maneuver in peace, but close enough that all shinobi could respond. "And injure a _lot_ of people. It needs to make a _**big**_ fire..." He looked back to Suboro, "you're good with Genjutsu... So cause as _much chaos as possible._ No holds barred."

Suboro smiled widely, and looked at Noboru, "looks like I'm about to prove myself, Noboru. Better get your shots in while you can!"

"You'll find a way to not fight anyways." Said Noboru, with a light grin at Suboro's responsive sputter.

"Focus." He said, turning to team four. "You three, enter that central building and locate and extract Hibiki." He looked at each of them in turn, "Dai, your beetles can extract chakra, so no matter who it is - if you find them, you drain them bone dry, leave no survivors. Aoi, Kyo has Hibiki's scent, so have him guide you to his cell. Akane, use your Byakugan and keep watch on your immediate surroundings. Keep your chakra as _low as possible_ to avoid tripping any sensors." He looked at Chouza, "Chouza, you'll be protecting me and Inoichi, your job is the most important. Keep watch, and warn us of anyone coming our way." He looked past them all, "the rally point will be those caves. When you arrive, call out 'Night'. The correct response is 'Safety'. If you're in trouble, call out 'Day', and our response will be to hide, and you will pretend as if we are not even there." He looked at everyone, "when we get Hibiki, we will retreat to those caves and wait until nightfall tomorrow, whereupon we will go straight for Konoha. If we are unable, or if we are being pursued, we will run for the Uzushiogakure ruins. My father told me there is a defensive force stationed there, large enough to evacuate us and cover our retreat if we need it." He paused, "understood?"

Everyone nodded.

* * *

Before Katsuo even knew what was happening, the bazaar - one of the largest buildings in central Kirigakure - exploded, in a massive fireball. A massive cloak of green fire enveloping him, he whipped around and concentrated on the bazaar. His eyes and his senses provided him visual clarity and a perceptive range comparable to a half-breed, Hyuga/Uchiha child; it wasn't as perfect as such a blood mixture, but it was damn good in its own right, and it afforded him to see almost exactly what was going on: Chaos.

The flames were spreading, appropriately, like wildfire, dancing across the walls and the floors and scorching the stone ceiling, only failing to collapse the massive building due to the way it was constructed. Katsuo glared at the massive plumes of fire; he'd been told that this village had been created almost specifically to avoid such massive, destabilizing fires and explosions, and yet here it was - a fire causing chaos, panic, and death.

Concentrating harder, his eyes widened as he saw and sensed civilians rampaging around, beating and slaughtering eachother left and right like wild animals. He sensed one man beating on another's chest like an ape, he saw another fleeing from an unseen phantom as his skin opened up and bled freely from unseen weapons, a third was desperately fighting against a horde of enemies Katsuo couldn't see or sense, and seemed to be losing, as each time he tried to dodge, he recoiled as though he were hit by a counter attack, and another deep, bloody gash appeared on his person.

Though Civilians had impossibly little levels of chakra - only enough to keep them alive and functioning as people from his home would - they did have chakra, and as such they could be influenced by genjutsu, such as the hordes of people being blanketed by some kind of mass-hysteria technique. The problem, however, was with what he was seeing - genjutsu didn't have physical effects on the body, it just hurt their mind. Furthermore, even the shinobi that arrived to quell the riots and fight the fires were caught in the techniques, and absolutely nothing they did could dispel them.

_A genjutsu of this size and scale should take chakra like a damn bonfire to maintain..._ Katsuo nodded in realization, _but his first goal was to attract shinobi with the explosion, so his chakra would bleed in with theirs. Genius..._ Thought the man, as he channeled energy to his eyes. _So... Let's introduce a wild-card._ It would damage relations with Kiri, but things were a done deal already - in scant months, the greatest of their three-nation coalition, A and B of Kumogakure, and the very best of Iwa would be here to bolster their defenses and provide a springboard for the Konoha invasion.

With but a thought, Katsuo snapped his head forward, and bright, burning green beams of natural energy burst forth and carved a massive fissure into the ground, shaking the earth with explosions and dousing fires with the superior heat. When he blasted the crater the initial firebomb had made in the bazaar was when he sensed it - the involuntary slip-up that came from a brief spout of fear from impending doom.

Katsuo grinned and angled himself towards the ground, before he felt another, _massive_ spike in chakra. It felt familiar, he realized suddenly that it was too familiar - it was one of his cousins, and he immediately realized it wasn't Aojiroi's, it was nowhere near as savage and angry as the beastial man's. If it wasn't Aojiori's, then it meant it was the viper-woman's, and that meant John was loose.

This was a distraction, whoever was streaming chakra to make this genjutsu was buying time, Katsuo realized, for a shinobi rescue team to infiltrate the central village and rescue the boy. The damned blonde was already with him, and worse, whoever was trying to find them both was doing _something_ that drained all of their enemy shinobi bone dry before they even had a chance to fight, before they even made visual or perceptual contact with each other.

Katsuo made several, rapid conclusions based on this information. One: The rescue team had in its ranks a Hyuga, feeding his teammates information. Two: The rescue team had someone capable of leaching chakra, and given their likely origination point, that meant it was an Aburame whose beetles were killing everyone seen and marked by the Hyuga. Three: the firebombing below was meant to attract shinobi and civilians to a central location, where the genjutsu master would ensnare and kill them all in his physical-world genjutsu. Four: Hibiki had escaped and was being engaged by the viper.

Five: He was getting very, _very_ frustrated at how difficult it was proving to turn this boy to the light.

With a deep, enraged bellow that shook the very air around him and the ground below him, Katsuo shot off like a rocket, blasting towards the central building, right towards the gathering of chakra, signifying the meeting of the viper, Hibiki, and his blond friend.

If he didn't end things tonight, he was going to have to go to war with a ten year old, whose closet somehow had more skeletons than his own.


	31. Retrieval: Retreat -III-

Chapter 30

* * *

"Just... Let me do the talking, Kinpatsu-kun..." Said the brown-haired nurse, as she led the blonde genin through Kirigakure's central building. She had taken the wrap that had hidden much of her own tightly-bound brown hair and used it to cover Minato's, as blonde hair was something of a rarity in their village.

They were mutely making their way through the central building, climbing the stairs on their way to the eighth floor. Aiko had had to convince one of the guards at the front desk that Minato was the son of her friend and she was watching him for the night; she'd been called in to check on 'Aojiroi', who she told him was a sickly man whom 'Lord Katsuo' frequently brought with him during his visits to Kiri.

As they ascended a staircase, Minato spoke, "so... Lord Katsuo doesn't live here?" He asked, to which, Aiko shook her head.

"No." She said, "he lives in the Land of Earth. He knows personally the Tsuchikage and the Earth Daimyo." She explained quietly, as they walked through the quiet building, the hallways of which were largely empty, given the time of night. "Many believe that he is the true leader of the country, that the Kage and the Daimyo are just his puppets... But I do not know which is truth, or which would be better, so I simply give him the respect he deserves." She explained, her voice kind and warm even when whispering.

"If he lives in Earth country, why is he here?" Minato asked as they continued climbing stairs.

"With Konohagakure eying everyone with hatred ever since the death of their third Hokage, and the invasion from the shadow-nation, the other nations have seen war on the horizon, and with the surprise attack on Konoha and Ame, everyone is frightened that war is here. He is here on behalf of Iwa, offering alliance." Her voice shook as she spoke, out of fear and anxiety - she had been but a child during the last war, and she remembered vividly how terrifying it had been when Suna had invaded her village.

Minato blinked, "Ame was attacked too?"

Aiko nodded, "Yes... Though that is all... _Anyone_ knows, really. Not much leaves that village." She looked down to Minato for a moment, as they reached the eighth floor. "Just... Please promise me something, Kinpatsu-kun..."

"Er..."

"Try and stay away from the war... This one will be the worst." She said, her bright green eyes practically pleading Minato to tell her he would acquiesce.

He sighed, "I'll... Try."

She nodded, "okay... Follow me. I... I think I know what room your friend is... Though I pray he is not in there when we arrive."

"Why's that?" Minato asked, as they walked through a dimly lit, warmly colored, spacious corridor.

"It is covered with alarm seals, set to go off if anyone unauthorized opens the door."

Minato frowned, "oh." He thought hard, "Nurse Aiko, why don't you... Go?" He asked, turning back to the door to the stairwell they'd just passed out of. "I mean..." He _really_ didn't want to see her hurt, not when she'd been so nice to him, but by technicality, she - and everyone else in this village - was his enemy. If she didn't leave, when she figured out that Hibiki and he were _Konoh__a_ shinobi, what would he be willing to do? "If things go bad, you don't want to be caught with us."

She slowly turned to look at him, a sorrowful look in her eyes. "Kinpatsu-kun... I'm a doctor, and you... Remind me of someone. I have to help you." She said, with a sad frown.

Minato sighed, he didn't want to do this, but her being with him while he rescued Hibiki would only put her in danger, get her charged with treason. Worse would be her reaction when it finally dawned on her that he was a shinobi from an enemy village. So, he sighed, and smashed his fist into her gut, her eyes bulged and her throat squeaked as air was squeezed out of her clenched lungs, and when she doubled over, gave her a quick chop on the neck, knocking her out cold. He stared at her silently for a few seconds, before he turned and ran, after a few blind turns through the hallways and corridors, and more than a few opened doors and empty rooms, he found a door covered in fuinjutsu seals.

_I'd say this is what I'm looking for._ Thought the blond blur, as he stepped back and focused chakra into his foot. It wasn't like he had any better options, so he decided to 'wing it', like Hibiki said, and he smashed his foot into the door, turning it into splinters, and revealing a spacious room, with no sources of light. He heard a deafeningly loud series of alarms start going off, all of them shaking the walls with their raw decibel levels. Minato ran into the room and found, chained to the ground and stuck in a chair, Hibiki Senju, whose head whipped up the moment light spilled into the room.

_"Hibiki!"_ Minato cried, a great smile stretching across his face.

_"Turn the fuck around!"_ Hibiki cried almost panickedly.

Minato whipped around and had a foot planted on his chest, sending him flying into his friend with force enough that the chains snapped and they both slid into the wall.

A woman, no taller than Aiko, but much more _feminine,_ sauntered into the room. _"What did he say your name was... John Doe?"_ She asked in a language Minato couldn't understand, but with the way she spoke it sounded off, as if she herself wasn't used to speaking it, as if it were a second, or even a third language; but what languages existed besides the Common and Ancient Tongues? _"What, have you gone native, John?"_ The woman asked, the light from outside, no matter how weak it was, was substantially greater than that inside the prison room, and as such her front was cast in deep shadows by the backlight. _"That is the phrase, isn't it, John? Katsuo uses it frequently when he thinks we're getting out of line."_ She said, as Hibiki roughly disentangled himself from the wall and pushed Minato off of him, as the latter recovered himself.

"Oh... We're fucked." Muttered Hibiki in Common, as he slowly dragged himself to his feet, but he was pinned against the wall by his throat, the woman suddenly in front of him, her forearm locked onto his throat.

_"Why is it so hard for you to realize that his way is the best way?"_ The woman said, with an upward inflection at the end indicating to Minato that it was a question; in the distance, they three heard a _massive_ explosion, and Minato nearly missed a smokeless unsealing from Hibiki's wrist, and during the brief quake the building suffered, he dropped the object from his hand, it landing near Minato, who recognized it for what it was - the firearm he'd been given back in Konoha. _"Knowledge is truly the better way to live, and he seeks knowledge of over **how** we live... Do you know what my life was, back home? Do you know how it ended?"_

Hibiki grunted, _"no... But I know this one will."_ He clenched his fist, signalling Minato to grab the gun and jam it into the woman's curvy side, and six shots and a loud roar later, the walls were sprayed with her gore and she was clenching her stomach in shock, eyes wide and mouth open in a silent 'o' of pain as she felt her blood and her life slip away.

Hibiki slid down the wall and took the gun back from Minato, flipping out the cylinder and ejecting the spent casings, before popping out six new bullets from his left hand and loading the weapon. When he clicked the cylinder back, he realized that the groans of pain had become overly dramatic, almost to the point where they were less groans, and more _moans._ Slowly, he turned his head back to the woman, _almost_ afraid of what he'd be seeing; when he looked at her, his shoulders slumped. The same neutral, muted green chakra that he'd seen Tsunade channel so much and so often, and that he himself had been taught to channel, was practically radiating around her, curling into tendrils, and then wrapping around her bloody gut and squeezing, the wounds vanishing in a hissing cloud of steam.

"Oh shit."

_"Oh, nooooo. The widdle kiddie shot me, what _ever_ will I -"_ Hibiki shut her up with a shot to the face; it did as much as the shots to the gut - the green tendrils of medical chakra all surged towards the hole in her forehead and penetrated it, gripping the bullet lodged within and dragging it out, undoing the damage done to her brains and her skull as they did so.

"We've got to go." Hibiki turned and clapped Minato on the back, "come on, we've got -" He heard a hissing noise, and leapt forward on instinct, tackling Minato to the ground as the area they'd just been standing in was sprayed in a green, acidic poison.

_"What, John? No chakra? Where's that power you used to fight Emi Miu?!"_ The woman demanded, as the green, viscous substance dripped off of her mouth, as she herself got to her feet, with Hibiki and Minato scrambling backwards, Hibiki to buy time, Minato because he was terrified and totally aware how outclassed he was. _"I thought you were -"_

Hibiki smelled gas, he looked to his right and saw the dark green, viscous substance covering the ceiling and wall, the air above it was shimmering with gaseous vapors; twenty plus years of hollywood action films, and ten plus years of dissecting these films with his friends, told him what to do. All he needed was the muzzle blast from a firearm to ignite the vapors, which would hopefully ignite the acid - or whatever it was she'd just spat out - and start burning her alive. Hibiki didn't want to chance his bullet not ricocheting and failing to cause sparks, but fortunately, he didn't have to - he'd made a _magnum_ revolver for a reason; he remembered once he'd fired this gun at night, and the muzzle flare had leapt out a good twelve to fifteen inches, and the pile of acid was barely six away. Without hesitation, Hibiki turned the gun to the acid puddle and fired, and barely a second later it went up like a puddle of gasoline, and the trail and the vapors lead straight back to the woman.

Hibiki leapt onto Minato to cover him as the room was enveloped in a large ball of expanding flame, and after a second passed, he got off of the blond blur and grabbed his hand. _"Run motherfucker RUN!"_ He shouted, as he felt the miniscule chakra leaking out of the seal on his gut trying to heal the severe burns stretching across his back, but failing utterly; he'd be getting scars from this, he was sure.

He and Minato were on their feet and running out of the room in an instant, and as they ran out, they heard a loud, enraged, pained _scream_. Hibiki didn't even need to guess - he _knew_ that the bitch had lived through it. He wanted to try and see how well she'd deal with a blast of explosive chakra, but right now everything that leaked out of the seal was far too busy undoing what he'd done to his back. Hibiki heard thundering footfalls growing closer, as he and Minato reached a fork in the hallway.

_Always keep your right hand on the wall._ "Minato, go right, keep going, keep your hand on the wall, you'll get out fast." He said fast.

_"What about you?!"_

"I'll be right behind you. Bullets don't kill her, but they do stun her, now _GO!"_ Hibiki shouted as he fell onto the scorched knees of his khakis and slid forward, and Minato took his advice and kept right at the fork. Hibiki slid forward and hit the wall with his left foot; he turned around and found the Viper on his tail, so he pushed off of the wall with all of his strength; even without chakra, he was inhumanly strong for a ten year old, so the force he generated with the one-legged push sent him airborn, and he smashed into the Viper's gut with a loud 'smack'. In one fluid, swinging upward motion, he brought his gun up and fired, once in her gut, once in her chest, and then once in her chin, before his momentum overtook hers and they both hit the ground.

_Head, Gas, Gut, Chest, Chin -_ Hibiki did a quick count and, landing on only five shots instead of six, he fired once more into her face, right between her eyes, right where her central nervous system was. By all laws of human biology, the Viper should have been _dead_ without time enough to even blink, but the green tendrils of chakra were already digging the shrapnel out of her brain and healing her wounds.

_"Fuck!"_ Yelled Hibiki, as he scrambled away and chased after Minato, reloading his gun as he went. _How can I break this seal? Does it suppress the eight gates, too? If I let one open, will it overload the gate and fry it? Or will the seal keep me from doing that, too?_ Wondered Hibiki as he saw Minato at the end of the fourth right turn, tackling open a door to a stairwell, but Hibiki shook his head. _"Minato!"_ He called out, spinning the cylinder and slamming it back into the smoking gun.

Minato whipped around and smiled widely, "Hibiki!" He called back, happy to see the still smoldering Chunin.

Hibiki caught up to the boy, "come on." He said, making a left turn at the door to the stairwell.

"Wha - but -"

"They'll _expect_ us to take the stairs..." Hibiki called out, "they won't expect -"

_"WINDOW!"_ Minato screamed, causing Hibiki to whip his head back to him, he was pointing forward, Hibiki turned forward and saw it just as it happened.

Katsuo, the 'Monster of Kirigakure', smashed through the window, and the wall surrounding it, with a deafening crash; his right hand thrust forward, and he caught Hibiki by the neck, slamming him into the carpeted, though still concrete, floor and dragging him several feet.

_"Why won't **you JUST -"**_ There was the sounds of a horde of buzzing insects, and both he and Hibiki's heads whipped towards the sound, where a cloud of black beetles was soaring forward almost at muzzle velocity. Just a second later all of the beetles slammed into Katsuo with astonishing force, almost perfectly equivalent to fifty professional football tacklers. The odd part, Hibiki noticed as he scrambled back towards Minato and the massive hole in the wall, was that a few seconds after making contact with him, the beetles began turning to stone and crumbling to dust under the struggle of the monstrous sage.

_"Minato, come on!"_ Hibiki called out, after he made it away from the cloud and was able to get to his feet, but Minato was pointing behind the Chuunin with a wide smile.

_"Konoha!"_ Minato called out, Hibiki whipped around and felt himself enveloped in a completely uncharacteristic, and bone-crushingly tight, hug from an Aburame far from home.

"Dai - Aoi Akane!" Hibiki realized, but his face fell just as Akane's lit up in alarm, _"RUN!"_ It wasn't Katsuo getting to his feet and running towards them, but it wasn't better either - the Viper had recovered and was thundering towards them.

_"AOJIROI THEY ARE UP HERE!"_ Screamed the Viper, as her throat and her mouth bulged, and she sprayed her gaseous acid all over the hallway, after the running Konoha shinobi.

Barely a second later, the floor underneath the Genin's feet exploded upwards and a dark-skinned, hulking beast with dark orange hair and jet black eyes greeted the five of them, roaring so loudly that birds dozens of kilometers away were startled enough to fly away.

_"Holy shit it's the Hulk!"_

_"THAT'S PALE AND SICKLY?!"_

_"EVERYBODY GET DOWN!" _Akane screamed, _"cover your eyes and ears!"_

_Fuck that shi -_ Hibiki realized why she'd told him to do so just as he saw a certain buzz-cut Genin with two fingers pressed against his temple, and one hand seal in front of his chest. When Hibiki dived for the ground - and clothes-lined Minato to force him to follow - he covered his head and clenched his eyes tight as Suboro unleashed his most powerful genjutsu illusions on the hulking beast.

Whatever Suboro was doing, it stunned Aojiroi and knocked the Viper out cold, with blood pouring out from her eyes, ears, nose and mouth. Without any further indication, Noboru leapt in through the massive hole in the wall, eyes clenched shut tight but his Byakugan blulging angrily, and he soared towards the hulking, dark-skinned beast, slamming his palms into the beast's body and deftly avoiding the clumsy, encumbered swings of his thick arms. After sixty four strikes to his various tenketsu, the beast was shrinking and his skin was losing its color, but it was still livid, so Noboru decided drastic measures were warranted and slammed his palm, lightning-fast, into the man's gut, stunning his entire chakra circulatory system and nearly forcibly shattering keimon, the gate of viewing.

Whatever was powering the monster vanished in that instant, and he shrunk down and his hair whithered and fell off in clumps, revealing an extremely pale - but not Orochimaru white - sickly thin, bald man, who amazingly was still awake, and his wide eyes were radiating anger and killing intent. The man, in extreme pain, grabbed both of Noboru's shoulders before the boy could dash away, and with a pained grunt, his rib cage exploded outwards in twenty four massive, spiked blades, all of which pierced Noboru's chest, gut, neck and arms, before his throat split open from an unseen - likely illusory - knife, and he fell to the ground.

_"Shit! Get him!"_ Suboro called out, prompting everyone to get to their feet and whip around, to see a heavily bleeding Noboru falling over to the side.

Hibiki was next to Noboru and had him caught, one arm hung limply around his neck, with both of Hibiki's supporting the heavily wounded Hyuga.

_"Come on!"_ Hibiki called out, tossing his gun to Minato, who caught it deftly. _"You watch our ass!"_ Suboro arrived next to Hibiki to assist the Senju in carrying their teammate, Hibiki felt true despair for the first time in ten years when he tried to open the first of the eight gates to try and overload the seal on his gut, and realized that he couldn't even do that - he couldn't help his dying friend.

_"Stick to the plan, regroup at the caves!"_ Dai called out, _"we must hurry! The monster is -"_

"SHUT UP AND MOVE!" Hibiki screamed, as they reached the window and Suboro took Noboru in a fireman's carry and he leapt outwards with a chakra assisted jump, Dai grabbed Hibiki and Aoi grabbed Minato, and they all were leaping out of the city.

* * *

It took them ten minutes to make it to the caves, Dai called out 'night', and someone inside called out safety. Hibiki was then greeted by Shikaku, Chouza, and even Inoichi. They all were at the ready, Chouza was next to Suboro and was supporting an unhealthily pale Noboru, the moment Hibiki hit the ground he was off of Dai and he was next to a coughing Noboru, trying to come up with something - _anything - _he could use to help fix this situation. Cauterizing the wounds would do nothing, bandaging him would have so little of an effect that it would be pointless, and he didn't have access to his chakra reserves so he couldn't try and magic the situation better.

A conversation between Shikaku and Dai slowly made its way towards him, he heard, "I don't know, but when they started leeching his chakra, they all started turning to stone -"

Hibiki's eyes widened, he whipped his head around, focusing immediately upon Dai. "Dai, can you leach _any_ chakra?"

She blinked, "yes, but -"

Hibiki straightened up and reached out his hand, "I need you to leach the chakra out of the seal on my stomach. Without its own source it'll crumble apart." Hibiki was fairly confident it wasn't using his own chakra to sustain it, that would be self-defeating.

"Hibiki, that could -"

_"Dai!_ I don't have time to argue, I know the risks, now _DO IT!"_ He pointed at his gut.

She frowned, a hurt look on her face, but nonetheless, whatever kikaichu she still posessed flew out of her sleeves and sent towards him, immediately, almost greedily, sucking away and eating at the chakra sealed upon his gut. A never-ending, infinitely stretching three minutes later, and the ink on the seal suddenly started chipping away, like old paint on a wall. One minute later and the seal was gone, Hibiki felt his chakra return to him, a warmth flowing through his veins. The beetles buzzed away as suddenly as Hibiki turned back to Noboru, his hands wreathed in the muted, neutral green medical chakra shown to him by his mother.

The mystical palms technique took an impossibly precise amount of chakra control, but if one was able to do it, it was largely unrivaled in its healing ability; it had taken Tsunade a week to teach Hibiki the technique - an unprecedentedly _short_ amount of time, according to her - and it took Hibiki a month to understand it. It worked by accelerating the body's natural healing abilities, in the sense that a cut that would take a month to heal would vanish in just a few seconds. The advantage was, as long as the target was _only_ injured, they could be up and moving in a few hours to a few weeks, depending on the extent of their injuries; Dante had anecdotally told Hibiki that he'd needed weekly therapy sessions of several varying doctors and several hours of mystical palms, for a great many years, to recover from his climactic battle against the jinchuriki during the second war, so this technique could bring even the most crippled to perfect health, given enough time and patience. The problem, however, as those who were more seriously injured - Hibiki had learned the hard way that if there was any kind of shrapnel at all in the wounds, the wounds would heal around this shrapnel, and unless it was removed, the shrapnel would open up the wounds again, bringing them back to square one; worse, if one's bone wasn't properly set, the bone would heal as-is, meaning it would have to be re-broken in order to be properly set and healed.

Right now, Hibiki knew that there was bone fragments and other such kinds of shrapnel stuck in Noboru's various wounds, but his focus was less on bringing Noboru up to full fighting power and more just stabilizing him until they could make it to Konoha. It took him time, but eventually, Noboru, still pale, no longer looked like he'd tried to tackle a cheese-grater. Hibiki, panting, checked the boy's pulse. It was weak, but it was there.

"We need to get moving..." Panted Hibiki, his chakra reserves may be larger than most Chunin of his age, but medical techniques took a certain kind of focus and skill, and focusing so hard for so long was something of an endurance test. "This will keep him stable... But..." He shook his hands and coated them in medical chakra, a sensing technique that scanned the patient's body and, like a computer, uploaded the raw 'data' to his mind, and it was up to him what got translated - and it had taken a long time for him to figure out how to discern what was useless 'junk data' and what was relevant to his goals and desires, and then again how to translate it all into 'refined' data; from zeroes and ones to English lettering and words. "There's still a lot of shrapnel and debris in his body... Just the act of moving him will wound him again, and if we stay here we risk having to _fight_ next to him..."

Shikaku shook his head, "Hibiki... If we leave now, they'll _find _us, if we give it time, most of their scouts -"

"Katsuo - the Monster of Kirigakure - he's probably already on his way, he's a damn _Sage,_ Shikaku, he can sense chakra a _lot_ better than anyone else alive can, and he can _fly._ Literally, the only chance we have is running... As fast as possible... As soon as possible."

Akane blinked, "Wait... The monster of Kirigakure is the one who can fly?"

_Oh Jesus..._ Hibiki slowly, arduously, turned to look at the sealed genin. "Yeah."

"Isn't he the one Dai hit with her beetles?" She looked to Dai, her eyes wide, "he... He is still alive, and -"

Dai shook her head, "that should be impossible, I had them _all_ leech _all_ of his chakra, there is no way he could have survived that."

"- and he is -"

"The guy's fuckin' _superman,_ don't ever assume you've killed him. We need to move Noboru right now and we need to get back to Konoha."

"- but he is -"

"What is Superman?" Aoi asked, with a confused, innocent blink, an a similarly confused yip from Kyo.

"That doesn't matter, and even if we did move right now, we're all exhausted and Konoha is an ocean away, we -"

_"HE'S COMING RIGHT NOW!"_

_"What?!"_

"I'm here." Came a new voice, alongside the sound of boots skidding on the ground.

Nearly everyone, sans Noboru and Akane, who was unconscious, and had seen him coming respectively, gasped or otherwise shouted in surprise and fear at the arrival of the white-garbed, golden-eyed man. The Monster of Kirigakure looked at the ten of them in turn, with a disappointed, annoyed, and somewhat angry glare.

"What was it he said?" The man asked, "now I am become -" With a loud grunt of unexpected pain, he was sent flying off as Hibiki's chakra-streaming fist, coated in the chakra-laced ink of his cursed seal, smashed into his gut.

After he skidded to a halt, a few rocks and pebbles getting caught up in the wind he generated by his brief sprint, Hibiki slowly straightened up, and turned to look at the six shinobi and three rookies behind him, his Sharingan eyes blazing as purple chakra radiated off of his ink-laced body like fire.

"So... Run?" He said to Shikaku.

"Run." Said Shikaku.

Hibiki nodded, and reached down to grab one of the pebbles he'd kicked up into the air, which he tossed up and down a few times, and turned in his hand, before he turned to Suboro and tossed it to him with a nod. Suboro caught the rock, a look of surprise and revelation on his face, before he nodded too, enthusiastically. "Hey, uh, Minato, right?" Minato's eyes snapped over to him, and then he nodded. "Help me with short blind and ugly." He said, leaning down to pick up the Hyuga noble.

"Minato... Keep the gun." Said Hibiki, as he turned back outside, watching as the Monster slowly floated back up into the air, bright green fire radiating around him, as rain began falling in heavy sheets around them.

"Uh... Are you going to be okay?" Minato asked, as he supported Noboru in his arms, with Suboro's help, Hibiki's gun stuffed down his pants.

"Yeah, I'll be fine."

"But... We came here for you, if you die out there..."

"He'll be fine, trust me." Said Suboro, hauling Noboru upright and then nodding to his other allies, "come on, he'll buy us some time."

_"But we came here for -"_

"I _know, let's GO!" _Said Suboro, before he vanished with Noboru and Minato in tow.

Hibiki watched the Monster as the Monster watched him, he made to vanish when he heard other feet fly away, but he felt a hand wrap around his curse-marked wrist. He turned and saw Dai standing there, wide, earnest eyes hidden by her glasses.

"We came here for you." She said, her voice shaking.

Hibiki sighed, trying to come up with something better to say than 'I know'. He flitted his eyes back and forth, before they eventually landed on Dai's spectacles and, with a brief grin, he pressed her nose and made a honking noise, and then he leapt off in the direction opposite the flight of the genin. Dai watched the green ball of fire rotate slightly, before it too flew away, leaving Dai to stand there, silently wondering if the Senju heir even knew what he was doing, before she rushed off to regroup with the others.

* * *

Several kilometers away, Hibiki finally stopped running, he skidded to a halt at the top of a large, elevated outcropping of rock. Katsuo arrived, his flaming chakra slowly dissipating as he landed across a large gap between his and Hibiki's outcropping, the wind and the rain whirling and raging loudly.

Katsuo spoke first, _"John, why do you insist on going to Konoha? You and I both know where your true home is."_ He called out.

'John' responded with, _"I've accepted my death. You haven't."_

_"But don't you want to know where we are?! Where we went?! Why so many of us came back to **right here? Right now?!"**_ Katsuo cried out, _"our father saw something in you that he rejected from all of us! If you were with us, we could learn what that was! We could find out what power you have, and we could get the answers we seek!"_ He threw his arms out to his sides, indicating the area around them. _"You cannot tell me you don't want to know!"_

Hibiki raised his hands and shook his head, _"I don't give a fuck! Chakra might functionally **be magic,** there's some shit it just can't do!"_ He yelled out, over the rains and the winds. _"Maybe instead of trying to go back to a world you've lost, you should try and just adapt to a new one."_

Katsuo growled, "_I WANT to go_ **HOME!"**

_"AND I WANT A PAIR OF FUCKIN' PANTS! WE DON'T GET EVERYTHING WE WANT, BILLY!"_ Hibiki yelled, as the purple senjutsu chakra of his curse seal started radiating off of his body. _"Now here's how this is going to go down: I'm going to kick your ass, and if I ever see you come anywhere **near** the Jinchuriki of the leaf, my friends, or any **other** tailed beasts, I'm going to **KILL** your ass!"_ He said with a deep, heart-stopping scowl.

Katsuo grinned, _"and how do you plan to beat me?"_ He asked, _"must I explain **why** I think I'm Superman?!"_

Hibiki grinned too, and straightened his posture, raising a hand and thrusting it in 'Superman's' direction. _"I never said I'm going to beat you... All I said is I'm going to **kick**... Your... ASS!"_ His grin turned into a sinister sneer, _"because I've been working since last we met. Had a couple things I wanted to work out."_ He straightened his hand and a large orb of explosive chakra gathered in it, before the soccer-ball sized orb was compressed to the size of a baseball, and it kept growing and compressing, until it was so dense and compressed that it started affecting the world around it; it had both the power of the hyper-compressed explosive chakra, and the chakra itself was multiplied and strengthened by his cursed seal._ "So, without further ado, let's just get this started._

**_"BIG BANG ATTACK!"_**


	32. Retrieval: Melee -IV-

Chapter 31

* * *

If one simply wanted something to explode with the force of a grenade, all they needed was a minute amount of explosive chakra. If one wanted the explosive power of a rocket propelled grenade, they had to contain the chakra in an orb-shape and let it fly, but that was the limit of ranged explosive chakra attacks. Hibiki, however, had figured out a way around that when he'd wondered if chakra could be compressed like air. The result had been a bolt of chakra about the size of a pebble, exploding with the power of a missile. The obvious solution, Hibiki realized, was to see how far he could take it, so when training he'd just kept pouring more and more chakra and compressing it as far down as he could, and after an entire forest had pulled a disappearing act and an enormous, several dozen kilometer wide and deep crater, and Dante had almost had a heart attack when he'd found Hibiki standing there, staring at his handiwork with a small smile on his face.

All Hibiki had had to say for himself was 'boom', with a wide smile.

Right now, his 'boom' was paying off, especially now that the effect was magnified dozens of times by his curse seal. If he had to guess, he'd just unleashed somewhere around twenty five kilotons of explosive chakra. He'd made it as a logical extension to his first explosive attack, the kikoho; the Big Bang Attack took the kikoho's explosive wave and focused it inward - turning the wave into a self-contained bomb, essentially. Pouring more energy into it made the bomb grow, and forcing it to compress proportionately exponentially its explosive power as the 'bomb' grew smaller. So, when he created a soccer-ball sized ball of compressed explosive chakra, and launched it forward, it slammed into Katsuo's chest before he could blink, and sent him flying backwards as fast as a jet. After a few seconds, the attack detonated in a bang big enough to earn Hibiki's name for it. It expanded into an enormous dome as the shockwave blasted past Hibiki and nearly sent him flying off of his outcropping. The light was blinding, especially to Hibiki's Sharingan eyes, but he squinted through it, and saw what he'd been looking for - a certain Frankenstein's Monster hurtling out of the expanding dome, arm outstretched.

_Here we go._ Hibiki snapped into a combat stance, chakra streaming off of him as he leapt to the side to dodge the hurtling Monster's angered charge, but the monster changed directions on a dime and launched a massive straight punch into Hibiki's chest, sending him flying up into the air. Hibiki nearly had the wind knocked out of him, but he recovered fast enough to see the monster soaring after him, and the two engaged in a mid-air duel of furious fists and flying feet. Katsuo followed the momentum his first swing had given Hibiki, to its height, then around its curve, and back towards the ground; Hibiki found it difficult to properly swing when his 'flight path' was mostly determined by where and how hard Katsuo hit him, and every time he made contact with Katsuo, he merely sent himself backwards and lost most of the force behind his blows.

_Let's see what I can't do about that._ Thought Hibiki as he planted both palms on Katsuo's chest and detonated his chakra, sending Katsuo flying back a few feet and him flying towards the ground faster.

Hibiki whipped around and thrust both hands forward and detonated his chakra again, halting his momentum. He grinned widely and swung his feet forward, angling them towards the ground, detonating a stream of chakra that flowed out of them, sending him soaring upwards.

_"Oh... I can FLY, NOW!" _He shouted out as he detonated another few blasts of chakra sent him soaring towards a waiting Katsuo. Hibiki sent a flying, curse-sealed punch into Katsuo's stomach, it hit hard enough to surprise the man, but that was about it, most of the force came from the chakra augmenting and multiplying the strength of his muscles.

Hibiki reared back a fist and grinned as he decided it was time to experiment, and he unleashed a cripplingly powerful jet of explosive chakra, streaming out of his elbow before it detonated with the force of a missile, sending Hibiki's arm flying forward so fast that, had he not been prepared for it, he would have dislocated his shoulder. The blow smashed into Katsuo's face, and the momentum sent Hibiki spinning around in mid-air; the displaced man thrust both arms upwards - though, relative to the ground he was facing, he was throwing them down - and detonated more explosive chakra to keep him airborne, kicking Katsuo in the face as he spun himself upright. However, Katsuo grabbed one of Hibiki's legs and hurtled towards an outcropping; Hibiki braced himself for the impact that was to come. Katsuo reached the massive pillar of stone and flipped end-over end, using momentum and his vast strength to smash Hibiki into the ground like a ball-and-chain. As they descended the pillar, Hibiki was smashed into it again and again, to the point that Katsuo wrecked the outcropping's structural integrity and it collapsed, massive boulders and vast debris falling to the water.

Hibiki, taking the momentary pause in the relentless hulk-like smashing, clenched his hands in a tiger-seal and belched a massive ball of flame right in Katsuo's face. Katsuo, however, wasn't even stunned, and even took it in stride - flying straight down with Hibiki's leg still clenched in his hand. Hibiki realized what was happening, and with a brief 'oh shit!', he switched his tiger seal to a shadow clone seal - the new clone appeared in the air, and grabbed Hibiki's outstretched hand, before detonating a powerful pulse of explosive chakra, enough to break the trapped Senju free of Katsuo's grip. Katsuo slammed into the ground with an enormous splash, the clone disippated - giving its chakra back to its spawner - and Hibiki blasted himself higher and higher into the air, an orb of superdense explosive chakra gathering in his hands, before he launched another Big Bang Attack at the water below.

Katsuo, however, quite literally punched his way through the attack - piercing the 'shell' of chakra keeping the raw explosive energy contained, tanking the detonation, and flying out of the massive flash and the enormous cloud of smoke, outrunning even the shockwave on his warpath to the Senju. He launched a straight right at the Senju's head, and Hibiki was only able to dodge it thanks to his Sharingan and another explosive burst of chakra sending him flying away. It took a _lot_ of chakra to defy gravity like this, but thanks to his transformations, Hibiki had chakra to spare. He flew upward and blocked a bone-jarring punch from the monster, before the two engaged in a lightning-fast midair duel of furious fists and feet, each blow and each impact creating a thunderclap and a small shockwave, sending the pouring rainwater flying in all directions as the two fought to the death. Hibiki launched a right, Katsuo blocked it with his left, he launched a left, Katsuo blocked it with his right. In direct opposition to Hibiki's precise, measured punches, Katsuo launched his own wide, powerful blows, which Hibiki barely managed to block thanks to the strength in his augmented bones. Blindingly fast, the two exchanged more and more fists, slowly climbing into the air with each blast of Hibiki's admittedly rudimentary counter to Katsuo's flight.

Without warning, and fast enough to have happened instantly to anyone without Hibiki's dojutsu, Katsuo threw out his arms, deflecting both of Hibiki's, and then grabbed Hibiki by the shoulders, before he spun the both of them around blisteringly fast and let Hibiki go flying. Hibiki smashed through several outcroppings before getting buried in a canyon wall. Hibiki kicked several of the boulders that fell onto him into the air, sending them flying towards Katsuo, who simply tackled his way through each one on his blind dash towards Hibiki with a deafeningly loud yell.

Hibiki planted his feet in the ground and caught both of Katsuo's extended fists, skidding back far into the canyon wall thanks to the strength behind the monster's blows. The two struggled against each other, Katsuo's golden eyes locked onto Hibiki's spinning red, both of them roaring loudly, before Hibiki suddenly yanked backwards and leapt upwards, driving his knee into Katsuo's gut and slamming his head onto the monster's face, before he whirled around and threw Katsuo deeper into the canyon and leapt outwards, blasting the hell out of the canyon wall with dozens of compressed explosive bolts, each one detonating with the force of a missile.

_I could break Miu's durability, so I can fucking do his too!_ Hibiki thought determinedly, as continued blasting the canyon.

Katsuo, in response, flew straight into the ground and burst out from the deep waters beneath them, uppercutting Hibiki so strongly that it sent a shockwave outwards that cleared the air of rain for several unending seconds, before Hibiki outpaced the rain and slammed into the surface of the water beneath them, finally coming to a halt when his back hit the base of another outcropping. With a pained grown, Hibiki climbed to his feet and stood on the surface of the water, staring up into the sky at the bright green ball of flame, illuminating the entire archipelago green.

_Well... That's not good._ Hibiki could just tell that the man not only had been holding back this entire time, but he'd not even gotten winded. Maybe he _was_ Superman, the goddamn guy was overpowered enough to qualify. _Let's think about this logically..._ Thought Hibiki, as he swept his hand through the hair that was plastered all over his face, deep purple chakra radiating off of him in a fire similar to Katsuo's, but much weaker. _What kills nature..._ He looked to his left, he could just barely see the area he'd cleared out with his first Big Bang Attack. _Obviously not a nuke... And fire didn't seem to work either..._ He looked back up to the floating man, who was slowly making his way back to Hibiki, who growled. _Can't really use electricity without frying myself... But I can't come up with enough raw fucking force to really injure this guy..._ He looked at his hands, covered in the cursed seal of earth. _Maybe... Can I control their sharpness?_ He wondered, as he narrowed his eyes, and his wolverine-claws popped out from between his knuckles, meeting literally no resistance from his skin; he turned and dragged the claws across the face of the rock, and they carved deep gouges in the stone with little to no resistance possible.

He grinned, the water beneath his feet detonated in a huge splash, and he was soaring back through the sky like a tiger about to pounce on his pray. Katsuo grabbed both of Hibiki's wrists just as they came within stabbing distance, and squeezed hard enough to start crushing Hibiki's steel bones, but Hibiki saw what Katsuo didn't even notice: When just the tip of his claws scraped against the man's chest, Hibiki had just barely made a small groove in his thick, previously skin, _just_ deep enough to ooze a single droplet of blood. Without warning, Hibiki launched his knee forward, and another bone burst out of it in a violent spray of blood, shredded pants, and gore, before it jammed into and through Katsuo's stomach.

Hibiki was thrown back towards the mainland, crashing through several outcroppings of rock before he smashed into the ground, the jagged rocks carving up his back as quickly as his Kaguya bloodline healed it. The bone that had sprung from his knee crumbled into dust, allowing Hibiki to stand again, albeit in his shredded, scorched khakis. Hibiki looked up, noticing with his Sharingan that the wound had already been healed by the man's senjutsu chakra, causing the Senju heir to scowl.

_So... It works, but it also doesn't. The only way to hurt this guy is to hit him with enough force to break his durability, then the wounds **stick.**_ Hibiki's first idea had been to use a little science - the man's durability was enhanced by his senjutsu chakra, so Hibiki's theory had been that creating a bone-blade with a cutting edge so sharp that it could sever molecular bonds, would be able to pierce his armor and cause him damage. He hadn't been wrong, but he'd only been _barely_ right, which meant that it wasn't right enough, a death of a thousand cuts wouldn't work on this guy.

Hibiki sighed, _this isn't good._ He thought, before he launched himself back upwards and engaged him again.

* * *

Noboru was awake and coughing up blood, Dai was screaming at them to go back every ten seconds, Minato had been out of gas already, and his brief rest in the hospital hadn't helped much, and Akane and Aoi were conflicted as to whether or not they were doing the right thing. In just ten minutes, the situation had gone from 'we've got Hibiki, we're winning!', to, 'Why did we leave Hibiki, we're going to lose!', and Suboro felt he was losing control.

Nothing emphasized this more than when Dai finally put her foot down and stopped them all, and when he landed, Suboro found her pointing at him. "Why would you allow him to stay to die?" She asked, as simply and as bluntly as those of her clan were reputed to be. "We went there for him... And now we are retreating without him."

Suboro clenched his teeth, "he knows what he's doing!"

"He was kept prisoner and had his chakra forcibly sealed away for twenty four hours, and the entire time they've been fighting we've been seeing and hearing nothing but explosions and thunder. He is not invincible." Dai stated, "he cannot fight indefinitely and we _left him."_

"Dai." Noboru said weakly, slowly turning his head from the direction she'd pointed to the Aburame herself. "Hibiki is a wise man in a child's body. He is more powerful than all of us. He fought a jinchuriki to a standstill and _won."_ He stated.

Suboro nodded, "and he hasn't even opened the eight gates yet!" He declared, "he could still pull a victory out of this!"

Minato - who was only even still standing on the water right now due to the effects of a soldier pill donated by Aoi - shook his head, "what?! Hibiki can open the eight gates?! How much has he been holding back in our sparring matches?!" He thought out loud, looking off into the distance.

However, during his audible thoughts, Akane blinked, Aoi caught it and nudged her gently. "What?" She said, "what's wrong?"

"He... I... Didn't you sense it? Right before the beginning of the fight." She said, and Suboro's shoulders slumped and his grip slackened as he, and in quick fashion, Noboru, realized what she was alluding to.

Dai and Minato, however, were blind to her meaning, and the latter demanded an explanation. Akane fidgeted under everyone's gaze.

"He..." She said, before muttering the rest.

"What'd you say!?" Minato asked hurriedly, staring at the sealed genin with wide, hopeful eyes, almost praying that she knew something he didn't.

"He's already opened two of the gates."

* * *

The two of them had gradually moved past the shoreside archipelago that they'd both thoroughly trashed and destroyed, both of them were in the center of the massive crater Hibiki had created earlier, both in combat stances, both with chakra streaming off of them like fire, both panting.

_This is... Really not good._ It was less that he was tired, and more that his body - running on two of the eight gates - just needed all of the oxygen it could possibly get to keep up with the speed at which his heart was pumping blood through his body, and all of the chakra that was running parallel to said blood. _Two gates in and the best I'm able to do is give this guy a few bruises... _ He coughed a few times involuntarily, still suffering from the brutal, bone-jarring punch to the chest that had sent them onto the mainland in the first place. _And this guy... How isn't he even low on chakra yet? Does he **not run out?!**_ Hibiki demanded of himself, staring unblinkingly at Katsuo through narrowed Sharingan eyes.

Hibiki gulped through a dry throat and resumed panting, _okay... I have no better plan than to try and physically break through his durability... Maybe what I need isn't raw force, but the precise _application_ of raw force... If that doesn't work, I've only got one option left available, and that will end the fight... _He clenched his jaw and launched himself forward, barely an instant before Katsuo did the same.

They met in ground zero of Hibiki's earlier detonation, the force with which they smashed into eachother creating a massive shockwave that shook the ground and sprayed the still falling rainwater everywhere. The two traded blow after blow, Hibiki felt his steel bones crack and bend and dent under the unrelenting force behind Katsuo's blows, and Katsuo felt his impregnable skin bend and in some places start to swell under the power of Hibiki's fists. Katsuo grabbed one of Hibiki's fist in a bone-crushing grip, and Hibiki responded with a savage, explosively-propelled kick straight to the groin. It wasn't enough to truly hurt, but the sudden and unsuspected attack on his gonads stunned Katsuo enough for Hibiki to collect lightning chakra in both hands.

_Eight gates fueled, cursed-style... Lighting Release - "FALCON -"_ Hibiki gathered all of the immense surplus of Eight Gates, lightning-natured, cursed-senjutsu Chakra in one hand and caught it in the other, before the lightning-fist hurtled forward, its velocity accelerated both by an explosion blasting outwards from a few tenketsu on Hibiki's elbow, and Hibiki's curse-augmented strength. _"PUUUUUUUUUUUUNCH!" _The fist slammed into Katsuo's face and an immense, enormous dome of lightning enveloped the both of them, jumping between rain droplets faster than either of them could blink, and it continued extending until finally it rushed back inwards to the point of contact between Hibiki's fist and Katsuo's nose, and so fast that Hibiki was only able to follow it with his Sharingan, and not react to it or adjust to it in any way, Katsuo threw a hand up and caught the blow, lessening its effect but not its force; the resultant explosion sent Katsuo flying backwards.

_Now, NOW!_ "Kaio-ken_ TIMES THREE!"_ And Hibiki met his previous eight-gates limit and bullheadedly charged straight past it as the increased bloodflow through his body turned his skin bright red, and his Sharingan eyes spun rapidly before locking onto Katsuo, who was digging himself out of the sides of the crater.

Hibiki launched himself after the Monster, his leap leaving large fissures and cracks in the devastated ground. He met Katsuo and smashed both hands into the man's gut, before unleashing a blisteringly fast flurry of blows on the man's chest and face. Katsuo reacted to this by smashing a palm into Hibiki's gut and then kicking him high into the air, before he blasted out of the ground himself and the two continued their duel in midair. Each punch, each kick, and each blow launched out a massive, rain-stopping, earth-shaking shockwave.

The two separated for a brief instant, before they both rushed towards each other at blistering speeds, the air booming like thunder from the sounds of Katsuo breaking the sound barrier and Hibiki detonating his chakra behind him. As they hurtled towards each other, they both were suddenly overcome with great, intense pain, so much so that both of their fiery auras of chakra dissipated in scant seconds, and they flew straight past each other and fell straight for the ground. When Hibiki hit the ground, he clenched his head and screamed in agony, as it felt like the shrieks of trillions of tortured souls were piercing his very brain, digging and clawing at him, trying to force him to acknowledge them all personally, to make him speak to them, to make him even glance at them or even pretend he might have heard them in passing.

_What... Is he doing?!_ Hibiki clenched his jaw tightly, trying to bite through the pain, to ignore the blood pouring out of his nose, the feeling of his brain being carved open with the dull, rusted edges of a cheese grater. He tried to get to his feet but felt too heavy, the eight-gates chakra and the cursed seal doing next to nothing to accelerate his healing factor, almost as if what was happening circumvented it entirely, he fell to the ground in continued agony.

_I've got to get up... He's going to kill me..._ Hibiki clenched both fists and smashed them into the ground, shattering the stone and sending debris and rainwater flying in all directions, as he forced himself onto his feet. Every second he persevered, the pain seemed to lessen, and when he turned to see Katsuo lagging behind him, the pain was largely gone. Whatever Katsuo had done had backfired, it seemed, and he was feeling the effects too, and given that he was lagging behind in recovery, he obviously hadn't been prepared to feel these effects, he'd thought he'd been able to finish the fight.

Hibiki, seeing his opportunity, left the Monster no time to recover, and rushed forward. Hibiki smashed his forehead onto Katsuo's, grabbed both of his shoulders and threw the man into the sky, before he himself leapt after him. The first kick to Katsuo's gut sent him flying further into the air, the second kept him flying upwards, and soon he was being relentlessly pummeled by the ever-quickening, mountain-shattering punches and kicks from Hibiki, before he again channeled as much of his lightning chakra into both fists and leached them onto one.

With a lightning-streaming, powerful, falcon-punch fueled open-handed strike, Hibiki smashed his palm and one of his feet into Katsuo's gut, the electricity exploding outwards and then inwards again with Hibiki's deep, loud scream, _"REVERSE LOTUS!"_ He roared, sending Katsuo flying higher into the air.

However, Hibiki wasn't done - he had one card left to draw that wouldn't end the fight right then and there. Using the Reverse Lotus was wrecking his body, but with all of the chakra streaming through it, his healing factor - now working again - was undoing the damage about as fast as he could make it. With a powerful blast of explosive Chakra, Hibiki overtook Katsuo and flipped end over end, lightning chakra streaming from both feet. He had developed this technique as an extension to the Reverse Lotus, it took the momentum, speed, power, and as an unfortunate by-product, the self-harm, of the third-gate technique, and multiplied it all several times with one final, explosive kick.

Hibiki inhaled deeply, _"FALCON -" _He had only thought of the name afterwards, when he'd figured out just what he'd made. _"KICK!" _He kicked downwards, smashing his chakra-streaming foot into Katsuo's chest, sending them both hurtling back towards the ground as fast as a speeding meteor. They impacted the ground with an enormous, earth-shaking explosion.

After a few seconds to recover and let the light from the attack wear off, and the dust settle, Katsuo suddenly grabbed Hibiki by the throat and squeezed. He hovered them both to their feet, he was smoldering from Hibiki's ultimate taijutsu technique. He raised his right hand, which too was smoldering from the earlier Falcon Punch, and he gazed down at his chest, which was heavily scorched and even visibly injured by the Reverse Lotus and the Reverse Lotus Extension - Falcon Kick.

_"That hurt... John._" Said Katsuo, as his hand twitched for effect. Hibiki could see a great deal of scrapes, cuts, and burns on the hand, letting him know that his hits had been having an effect, but due to the man's speed and senjutsu-given reflexes, he'd managed to change Hibiki's target from his face, to his hand; his _chest,_ however, hadn't been so lucky. _"I think I'm going to stop playing nice... Do you want to know something neat about what the blood father gave me allows me to do? It allows me to draw in natural energy... Senjutsu Chakra... Always. It never stops. But that's not why I'm Superman... My strength, that's not why I'm Superman either... And no, it's not the fact that I can fly... You know what? Let me show you. I _am_ done playing nice. If you won't accept my kindness, then I'll stop offering it."_ And with that, he violently threw Hibiki to the ground, Hibiki landed with an explosion of rocks, debris, and collected rainwater.

When Hibiki extricated himself from the ground, and his shoulders slumped and his red face fell as he realized what Katsuo was doing. All of his chakra, and all of the ambient energy he was drawing in, it was all being drawn towards his eyes. However, despite his shocked expression, Hibiki found himself grinning.

_Now's as good a time as ever._ Thought Hibiki, as the air stilled around him and he called forth even _more_ eight gates chakra.

_"DO YOU HAVE ANY LAST WORDS, JOHN?!"_ Katsuo roared from up above.

Hibiki grinned, and took a wide-legged stance. _"As a matter of fact... I do."_ Much as he wanted to yell out 'times six', he had an _other_ choice of words that had a much greater effect. With a grunt and a thought, the water in the air formed a massive, powerful cyclone around the Senju child as three more gates were smashed open in rapid succession; Hibiki knew there were more, but he didn't know how to open these ones without killing himself before he could fight with them, he had managed - on two separate occasions - to get his clones to open all eight gates, but his body was just too weak to sustain Gate Seven for any extended period of time, and couldn't even last a second with Gate Eight, and besides, they were last resorts anyways, his cursed seal - up until this point - had been good enough as a boost.

Hibiki extended his arms in front of him and cupped both hands vertically, wrists-touching.

_"Ka..."_ _All_ of his chakra, from the six of the opened Eight Gates to the Cursed Seal of Earth, to even the mixed version of the two that was giving him his immense power, started flowing through Hibiki, surging towards his arms.

Seeing it three times in a short amount of time gave him several points of view from which to see the attack done. Up close and personal, far away, and from the side.

_"Me..."_ He slowly brought his hands to his side, making absolutely certain that his hands were spaced a few inches apart and that his fingers were spaced out.

The bijuu-dama worked by mixing chakra at a perfect ratio, but the mixture would just detonate if it wasn't contained. This was why all of the tailed beasts used their tails and their mouths as they made the attack - they needed something to contain all of the raw chakra they were forcibly mixing and compressing into a tiny explosive ball.

_"HA..."_ The chakra reached his hands and started pouring outwards, creating a swirling blue and purple vortex within, it tried to break through the prison created by Hibiki's fingers, but it couldn't get past the evenly spaced digits, and instead sought to collapse in upon itself. Hibiki had to 'mix' his chakra perfectly - with absolutely no margin for error - now that it was trapped and collecting between his hands.

Seeing the attack from the sidelines had given him the last piece of the puzzle. His 'chakra fart' had actually been a step in the right direction, but had been too small in scale. There needed to be more space for the chakra to be contained in, but there couldn't be too much for him to contain - this attack relied on perfect execution. If he'd never had shadow clones, it would have taken him years to figure out the exact ratio, the exact spacing, the exact mixture, the perfect perfection required to do something like this.

_"ME..." _He scowled deeply as he shouted, the chakra unable to collapse any further in upon itself and instead growing into a basketball sized orb of blinding white chakra, resting in his hands, unable to escape, only able to continue getting denser and denser, thicker and thicker, deadlier and deadlier, its power multiplying almost exponentially with each passing second.

Keeping the chakra contained in his hands, with his fingers acting as the container, like bars to a jail cell, meant that the only place all of the chakra he was generating had to go, was _in._ It hypercompressed itself every few seconds, to the point where Hibiki's relative mass skyrocketed. Once it reached critical mass - the point in which it couldn't compress any further - it started growing. When it was ready, all Hibiki had to do was provide an opening, and the chakra would blast forward in a massive destructive beam. It wasn't a bijuu-dama, which relied on the tail beast's immense chakra reserves for its power, it was better, wilder, more powerful in its own right, and hiding that he'd done what literally no other non-jinchuriki in history had done had caused Hibiki no end of trouble.

Up above, Katsuo inhaled deeply through his nose and clenched his eyes shut tight, leaning his head back as the natural energy he was focusing in his eyes started reaching critical mass.

For a brief few moments that stretched on to eternity, the air went silent, the rampaging cyclone generated by Hibiki's curse-marked eight-gates released form froze, the building energy in Hibiki's cupped hands and Katsuo's eyes both reached their breaking point. Power, the likes of which the world had not seen from ordinary mortal men had not seen since the days of Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha, was radiating in an almost tangible form off of both of the two displaced men turned unstoppable warriors. The brief, barely one second long pause before they both unleashed their most powerful techniques, seemed to stretch on for eternity, a literal calm before the storm.

Katsuo's eyes snapped open and his head snapped forward, and bright green, raw senjutsu chakra, blasted out of his eyes and sailed towards Hibiki.

_"HA!"_ Hibiki screamed loud and long, as he thrust both hands forward; now with a break in Hibiki's ironclad defense, the collected, superdense chakra blasted forth, with power enough to dig Hibiki into the ground and send small bits of debris flying around him as they got picked up by the vortex created by his eight gates chakra.

The two titanic beams of impossibly powerful chakra collided in mid-air, tight beams blasting outwards from the point of impact, carving deep gouges in the earth and sending out a shockwave so powerful it reached and then parted the thick stormclouds above them. Hibiki roared out as he physically felt the collision of the two chakra beams, and both he and Katsuo were sent back a few inches. Neither gave an inch, both were trying to take a mile, the sound of the two hyper-powerful beams was like metal grinding against metal.

After just a few ceaseless seconds, Hibiki felt it - a brief but significant hiccup that sent his beam an inch closer to him. He realized with horror that the man was winning in their titanic struggle.

Hibiki scowled, with a glare that could melt metal. _Not on my watch._ Screw the consequences, even if it ended the fight, he _would not lose this._ He breathed in deeply through his nose. _"Kaio-ken..._"

The sound reached Katsuo's ears, and he growled fiercely, pouring even more energy into his attack, slowly sending Hibiki's back at him.

_"TIMES..."_ The struggle stopped moving, Katsuo's scowl deepened.

_"SEVEN!"_ Hibiki screamed, before he felt the tearing feeling of all of his muscles shredding and his steel bones bending and cracking under the raw force his muscles were able to bring to bear when they clenched with the strength of _seven opened gates_. The result, however, was worth the risk - Hibiki's ultimate attack immediately started moving forward, slowly at first, but it gained momentum as more of the seventh gate's chakra entered Hibiki's system and soared straight for his hands, and even a green aura of instantly evaporating sweat enveloped the screaming boy.

His destruction wave catapulted forwards, overpowering Katsuo's senjutsu eye-beams and slamming into his chest, sending him flying up into the air, past the clouds as the raw chakra ripped and tore at his body. Hibiki kept it up for a good six seconds before even his eight-gates augmented body just couldn't handle the strain anymore and the beam shrank until it dissipated completely, and his arms swung loosely at his sides.

Hibiki stood there, the previously thundering storm having vanished, allowing him to bask in warm sunlight, gasping heavily, which even those slight movements caused unending pain all over his body. He slowly grinned, twitching with intense pain at every movement. "I guess... I win?" He asked exhaustedly, before something slammed into the ground a few feet in front of him, with enough force to crack and break apart the ground.

Walking out of the small dust cloud was Katsuo, definitely injured, but nowhere near as bad as Hibiki, who had closed the gates out of instinctual self-preservation and was now so low on chakra that his healing factor wasn't even working on his organs, and his cursed-seal had gone back to its dormant state, curled up around his neck like an animal trying to hide from a predator. Katsuo stared at Hibiki intensely; Hibiki, whose Sharingan slowly flickered away and yielded to his onyx eyes, grinned lightly - even if he hadn't won, he had hurt the guy, and Katsuo blasting him with his 'senjutsu vision' had obviously taken a lot out of him - the raging inferno of green chakra was now just a flickering fire.

_"No, John. You haven't. I commend you for trying, but I told you... I was done playing games."_ Said Katsuo, in the king's English. _"I don't know what that was... But that was dangerous. I won't ever let you do that again."_ He was in front of Hibiki in an instant, and he shoved his open fist through Hibiki's chest.

If the pain before just from opening the gates was crippling, this was excrutiating. The man's arm was literally sticking out of Hibiki's back, he had destroyed one of his lungs, grazed his heart, and cracked his spine, all of which were already weak and shredded from Hibiki's gate usage. Hibiki tried to breathe, but only a rasping, almost squeaking noise came, as no air entered his single functional lung.

_"You were our father's greatest creation, John. There was so much you could have -"_ Hibiki burst into smoke, interrupting Katsuo as he vanished.

* * *

With no delay between the Hibiki fighting Katsuo bursting, and the Alpha getting the memories, Hibiki's transformation ceased while the assembled rescue-squad was still in mid-air from their last jump. This had the unfortunate side-effect of Hibiki _literally_ popping out of Suboro's pants, shredding them and tumbling through the air with a startled scream as momentum carried him forward, and gravity brought him downward.

_"WHOOOOOOAA SHIT!"_ Screamed the Senju heir before he impacted the water head-first with a large splash.

Barely a second later, everyone else landed, but Hibiki was already surfacing and climbing onto the surface with his water-walking technique.

Minato was the first to snap out of shock, as Hibiki stood on slightly unsteady feet, shaking water from his hair and wiping some from his still exposed chest. _"Hibiki, what the fu -"_

"NO TIME - HE'S PISSED - RUN _**NOW!" **_Hibiki screamed before he sprinted forward at breakneck pace.

For a few seconds there was stunned silence, and then all eyes turned to Suboro, who was still stunned, but much less so than everyone else. He blinked, noticing all eyes on him, sans Noboru and Hibiki.

"What?" He asked, "I _told_ you guys he'd be fine."

* * *

Say what one would about the Senju heir, the boy was nothing if not _fast._ In the brief ten seconds of dialogue between the rescue team, he'd ran over two dozen kilometers, even accounting for the few seconds it had taken him to recover when he'd tripped over his own feet and skidded for a few dozen meters across the surface of the water.

It took the group ten minutes to catch up with Hibiki, who was laying on his back on the shore of a beach, gasping for breath. Everyone skidded to a halt and gathered around the prone Senju, all of them in some kind of shock and surprise over what had just happened.

Before they had time to speak, Hibiki raised a sweat-covered arm and pointed right at Dai, _"how... The fuck..."_ He gasped, _"did you not... See this... _Coming?!" He gasped.

Dai blinked, and then her neutral face fell into a blank, if playful, scowl. Without speaking, a beetle flew out of her sleeve and landed on Hibiki's nose, before it bit him and flew away. Noboru coughed blood, reminding them all of the pressing situation. Hibiki grunted and forced himself to an upright position, and then accepted a hand from Minato to get to his feet.

Shikaku took a step forward, "the plan was to head to the Uzushiogakure ruins. There's a Konoha scouting force there, keeping watch on our borders."

"Well, that's convenient." Panted Hibiki, before he grunted and cracked his back. "Okay... We head there." He said, taking a step forward but stumbling when his foot hit the ground, Minato caught him by the chest.

Hibiki grunted, and Chouza stepped up to assist Minato, and they both carried Hibiki. Dai spoke, a concerned look on her face, though much of it was hidden by her glasses. "Hibiki, I thought it was a clone that fought him? How are you injured, then?"

Hibiki grunted, "well... I did get set on fire, sprayed with acid, almost punched in the face by the fuckin' Hulk... That was definitely me. And to fight Ninja Superman, I had to pour ninety five percent of my chakra into a shadow clone, spend more chakra to make sure it made no noise and no smoke when it spawned, and then spend more of whatever I had left to transform into a rock and hide with Suboro. Then, this clone activated his curse seal and _**then**_ then opened seven of the eight gates and shredded literally all of his muscles and snapped his otherwise un-snappable skeleton..." He swallowed thickly, "all of that... In less than three hours..." He panted, "Dai... that _kind of..._ took it out of me." He looked to the distance, back towards the water. "I just fuckin' hope they decide we're too much trouble... Else, I don't know _what_ the fuck we're going to do." Hibiki felt like a beginning-level character fighting the end-game boss; he was strong enough to hold his own against an army of mooks, but against the big bad tough guys, he couldn't do jack diddly squat. He shook his head, "we've got to go. I _really_ don't want to be caught here if they decide to follow us..." He also _really_ didn't want to test out whether or not opening the Eight Gates would have the same effect as popping a shadow clone with full reserves - if it worked, he'd have enough gas for one last fight, but he'd shred his body and leave himself crippled, and if it didn't, he'd die.

* * *

Hundreds of kilometers away, back in the partially shattered village of Kirigakure, an airborne figure landed in the eighth floor of the building he'd smashed a massive hole into. Barely a second passed and one of his companions appeared by phasing through the wall, as if it were some kind of liquid. The dark-skinned, almost amazonian woman stood tall at seven feet exactly, her shapely, almost _exaggerated_ body covered by a tightly-hugging, paper-white dress which followed her movements like a shadow. She wore a mixed look of concern and glee on her face, her deep red eyes scanning around the heavily scarred man, noticing the distinct lack of a familiar looking child around him.

_"Lord Katsuo... Did you beat him?"_ She asked in his language, as she fell into step next to the six foot, golden-eyed man.

Katsuo narrowed his eyes, and took a look at his blood-covered hand, before he finally shook his head. _"No... And yet... Yes."_ He said. _"I understand what our father saw in him, but I do not understand why he does not eclipse us all because of it."_

The Viper blinked, and tilted her red-haired head in confusion, looking down at the Monster. _"What do you mean?"_ She asked, as they reached a stairwell and began descending.

_"Our father considered him to be his Magnum Opus... Given what he sought, that should mean he is an almost perfect mixture of the most ancient clans of the elemental nations - a god in mortal form... And yet, at his absolute best, he couldn't even match me at not even half of my best."_ Katsuo narrowed his golden eyes.

The Viper was respectfully silent for a few moments, as they reached the ground floor and made for the hospital, where Aojiroi had been taken after his encounter with the Hyuga. However, she eventually broke the silence, as curiosity got the better of her, _"so... What will we do with him?"_ She asked, _"even if he is not as strong as you... He is one of us... We cannot just let him be. He knows what we want, what we are looking for."_

Katsuo shook his head, _"the best solution is the easiest one, and killing him will prove to be difficult... Especially when he is within the walls of Konoha and surrounding himself with the village's strongest shinobi. Even **I** found myself matched equally against all of them in succession... But at the same time, they would prove to equal me." _With those words, the Viper's eyes flashed between the large scar stretching across his chest and his back, and then back up to the Monster's eyes. _"It would prove impossibly unwise to simply assume my strength will carry me through the coming times... Especially with my targets being who and what they are."_

The Viper nodded in understanding, _"so what is your bidding, lord Katsuo?" _

Katsuo clenched his burned, cut, pulverized, and blood-soaked right arm tightly, an aura of green fire swirling around it as he did so. The flame-like aura of chakra continued building as he clenched harder, and with but a sigh, he let go, and the aura vanished. He looked up from his hand and smiled.

_"Start a war."  
_


	33. Digestion

_A/N:_

_Glad you all liked the fight._

_It goes without saying: Won't be the last we've seen of Katsuo, or any of the Experiments, really._

* * *

Chapter 32

* * *

"Never again." Had been Tsunade's words, after Teams Four, Six, and Rookie-squad arrived back at Konoha. Had Hibiki not been suffering from multiple injuries, and exhaustion of both chakra and body, she likely would have done more than simply reprimand him.

It took them two hours to make it to Uzushiogakure, with an extra half hour dedicated to locating the desolate place with a byakugan, and before they'd even set foot on the village grounds they had been surrounded by Anbu. Before the Anbu had knocked them out, Hibiki had made certain to tell Shikaku _exactly_ how correct he'd been when he'd said there was a scout force in Uzu. Two days later, Hibiki awoke in a large, shared hospital room with the others from the Rescue Team, sans Noboru who was in intensive care. Ten seconds hadn't even passed and Tsunade had figured out Hibiki was up and she'd barged right into their room, nearly splintering their door in the process. Had Hibiki not been in recovery, Tsunade told him she would have throttled him for being so stupid - even if it was a clone, opening the eight gates was always meant to be a last resort, not a go-to option. As it turned out, he'd gotten quite a bit of excess eight gates chakra from his clone, and with his healing factor out of wack thanks to the hastily removed seal on his gut, that chakra had rampaged its way through his body for a good amount of time - one of the prime reasons Anbu had found them so fast, he'd been acting as a beacon of excess chakra. He'd essentially been running on fumes and torn muscles for the entire trip, and add in a severely stressed and depleted chakra circulatory system, Tsunade told him he was lucky to be alive.

It took them another week to recover in the hospital, and after that week everyone, sans Noboru, was discharged, though were placed on strict orders - rest and recovery for a month, at least. Hibiki took that and threw it away as haphazardly as he threw away yesterday's leftovers, and not ten minutes after he was outside of the hospital, he had a dozen Shadow Clones running about the village on their way to train, while he himself made for the Shinobi hotspring - as much as he seriously felt he should be training himself, that was what the clones were for. This thing with Katsuo wasn't over, he knew as much, but he had to at least think about it first - there was a _lot_ to contemplate, and he may as well get something done during this period. He had to reach a point where he could match Katsuo without having to open all of the eight gates, so to that effect he wanted to both increase the power he got from the Curse Seal, and then increase how strong he was in base form, but the problem with that was a conclusion he'd made a while ago - his body. It was just too damn young to handle the kind of power Hibiki could generate, and the only way to make it more durable was to augment it, either with the eight gates or his curse seal, and both of those weren't the best first-resort methods. But, he decided, figuring a way around that - if such a thing was possible - was for the clones to worry about, right now he just wanted to sit in a hot spring and just digest everything he'd learned.

Stopping home, however, yielded a very sudden, very grounding revelation.

The Calendar was marked February Twenty-Sixth - and yes, for the umpteenth time, he noted the absurdity of how this Japanese offshoot civilization used the Gregorian calendar - today was his birthday. His _real_ birthday.

He stared at the calendar for a moment, all of his thoughts grinding to a halt.

Hibiki, Katsuo, Katsuo's 'family'. All wayward souls brought forth by an arrogant madman, _all_ of them apparently sharing a similar origin point - Planet Earth, and he was, assumedly, the youngest. Ten years of all of this, playing an act so as to not be thrown in a loony bin, fighting for his life, trading his old life for a new one.

Slowly, as if it were the center of gravity, he found his gaze drawn to Tsunade's liquor cabinet.

He stared at if for an eternity, before he sighed and channeled a bit of chakra into the seal on his right hand - only for it to come up empty. He blinked, before remembering he'd given his gun to Minato. He shrugged, channeled the chakra into the seal on his back, and then blasted the cabinet with automatic fire, until the gun quickly clicked on empty. The dark-haired Senju heir smiled, sealed the gun away, went to his room to grab a pair of trunks, and hopped onto the Ninja Express to head to the hotspring.

_I really wish I had a pair of pants..._ Thought the boy as he hopped from roof-top to roof-top.

* * *

Hibiki sunk into the warm spring water with a deep, contented sigh.

_So... Katsuo's from Earth. He speaks English. He's taught 'everyone else' the same. What can I conclude from this?_ Hibiki wondered, as he leaned back and stared blankly at the steamy ceiling. _When we first met, he commented on my weapons. He recognized them, but also implied he didn't. He speaks English where no one else does and recognizes guns... Given that he **recognized** them, that means he has to have come from... I'd say the nineteen-hundreds and after... But given that he didn't recognize mine specifically, I'd limit myself to the nineteen hundreds. He has to be the one supplying Iwagakure weapons -_ He blinked. _I didn't see any weapons in Kirigakure... No guns. Shit... But what was he doing there...?_ He wondered if the man wasn't perhaps playing one massive chess game, playing the other nations against each other... He wanted the jinchuriki... Did he perhaps _want_ a war? It would make sense - especially if he controlled an army with firearms. When he entered the playing field, all of the shinobi nations would **have** to send out their jinchuriki, and since he had been able to fight the _nine tails_ Jinchuriki, old, weak and decrepit as she may have been, it was obvious he could keep it up in a fight against the others.

_So plug that in to what we know... He's got an army, he's got a goal, and he's well on his way to accomplishing that goal. But this doesn't tell us **when** he was born... _Hibiki dug through everything he remembered, and eventually landed on the guns from the invasion. _He was supplying his troops with Thompsons... He talked about the Japanese and the war being over..._ He narrowed his eyes, _what, was... Was he born in the forties? When did he die, then? _ He shook his head, and sunk deeper into the water, his hair floating about the surface as his eyes glazed over in thought. _I'd have to be exposed to him more to learn these things... So that leads us back to why he would want the Tailed Beasts... There's no way to 'read' chakra, is there?_ Hibiki wondered, _the Sharingan and the Byakugan can **see** it, and my eyes can help me mimic it... But we can't **read** it, can we? Is there another eye out there that can do it? Can Sages? No, wait... No, Sages can't, else Washita or the Eagles would have been reading me like a book... There has to be something else... Is he a puppet, then? But, no... That doesn't make sense either. The guy's strong enough to take on the strongest in our village, and he literally sneezes off attempts to trap him in genjutsu... There can't be anyone alive that powerful enough to control him..._

Absently, Hibiki flipped on his matured Sharingan, staring at the ceiling with perfect clarity. _Maybe I'm looking at this wrong. He said 'all of us', and he said he figured out that 'we' were all from Earth. First off, **how,** and assuming he's right, what does **that** say? Why does he think he can return? What does he know that I don't, or is he some kind of madman, drunk on power? If the afterlife is connected to the multiverse, it should be mathematically impossible for two people from the same timeline to be dropped into a new life... But we can't possibly be in a... I dunno, future Earth, magic and Chakra just doesn't exist, not where I'm from... Literally and physically impossible. So what the hell? All of his answers just led to impossibly difficult questions..._ He sunk deeper into the water, his nose just above the surface now as he continued thinking.

_So... What do I know for sure? He's from the post-War era, likely from my Earth... He knows what guns are and has knowledge enough to help his army reproduce them... He wants jinchuriki, both for answers and to find a way to potentially return home... He's fucking Superman without the cape... He has a group of people like me, all of whom follow him for... Some reason or another... And they all were created, apparently, by the same madman that made me - by stealing souls from the afterlife and fusing them with bodies with multiple bloodlines... Meaning they **all** could be almost exactly like me, only with years more of experience to help them out... He wants to be Moriarty, manipulating the whole world into showing its cards so he can clean 'em out with his royal flush, and I'm no Holmes...  
_

Hibiki sighed deeply, his exhale making waves and bubbles in his spring. _I guess the problem is... Do I want to stop him? Do I **need** to stop him? Do I **have** to stop him? _The boy blinked heavily,_ Should I stop him? Do I have an obligation to? _There were many parts of him that told him that it was his duty to stop the man from whatever it was he was doing, but then there were other parts of him that wondered if that was even the right thing to do. The guy was just a confused, scared man with god-like powers, who just wanted to go home... Didn't that describe Hibiki to a T, up until a few years ago? Even, granted there were small parts of him, now? If their roles were switched, would Hibiki think he was right?_  
_

"It looks like you've got a lot on your mind."

Hibiki sighed, a part of him not too surprised that this guy had showed up again.

"Hey Sakumo." Hibiki straightened up and surfaced from beneath the water, everything below his nose a pale red from the heat of the water.

"Do you _always_ come to the hotspring when you have trouble?" The silver-haired ninja asked from the pool behind Hibiki.

_You know... Your voice sounds familiar, bud._ Thought Hibiki, who nodded. "I like having a nice hot bath every now and again. Helps me unwind, collect my thoughts."

Sakumo grunted, "I understand the feeling." He heard the shifting of water, he assumed Sakumo was leaning over, almost conspiratorially. "It also helps coming here, when your wife's a civilian. Even through marriage, she can't get in here." He whispered.

"Way you talk, sounds like she can still hear you."

"Wouldn't put it past her." Said Sakumo, who returned to his original, seating position, his back to Hibiki. "So what's on your mind now, Chuck?"

Hibiki grinned, of course this guy was the kind of asshole to know bullshit when he saw it, but not call it just to get a rise out of him. "I'm stuck between a rock and a hard place." Said the displaced man, "on one end... I've got a carrot on a stick, with the proverbial carrot being answers I've been looking for for a long time now. On the other end... No matter how violent it may be, I've got a life I'm coming to like... Or at least tolerate." Said the Senju heir, "but the problem is... Ah fuck it, I just dunno what to do. A very... Confused man, with a lot of power behind him, wants the secrets of the universe, and I don't know whether or not I should let him try his luck, or if I should stop him."

"For fear he might destroy everything between him and these secrets?" Sakumo guessed.

"No." Said Hibiki, with a shrug. "For fear that he might get exactly what he's looking for." And what it might mean for everyone involved. Hibiki was an ant tumbling into a Titan's quest.

Sakumo raised a silver eyebrow, "is that a bad thing?"

"That's the problem... I don't know. His intentions are... Not evil... But the road to hell is paved with good intentions." Said Hibiki, "the guy's playing a chess game with the entire world as his board... He's a Moriarty, but I'm not a Holmes." Hibiki paused, "uh... He's a Madara Uchiha, but I'm no Hashirama Senju."

"Oh." Sakumo nodded, understanding the comparison.

"Sorry 'bout that." Sometimes it was just too easy to fall back to the references and allusions he had been raised on, a 'Holmes and Moriarty' comparison was almost a universal thing, Back Home, but here? No one knew who either of them were.

Sakumo was silent for a while, "you know... It kind of sounds like you're... needlessly shouldering the weight of an entire world. Hashirama had an entire clan at his beck and call, and soon after he had an entire village, too. So did Madara. Do you think those two just... _Did it_ on their own? They were strong, but on their own, they could only do so much."

Hibiki nodded, "so what're you saying?"

"Whatever it is you've got bottled up inside you... _Tell_ someone, for Kami's sake. Keepin' it inside, it's not healthy." He paused, "oh yeah, you left this here last time around." Said the man, as a shadow danced across the ground, and a necklace with a green crystal landed in Hibiki's pool. "You're lucky _I_ found it, Chuck. I'm pretty sure it's fake - but on the off chance it's not, you could buy _mountains_ of gold if you sold that thing... Someone else found it, it would've been on the market in a second."

Hibiki grunted, "thanks..." He grabbed the necklace, he recognized it as his mother's, the one she'd tore off months ago. Absently, he put it on, that way he wouldn't forget it again. "Mind if I go dark? I've still got stuff to work out."

Sakumo shrugged, "oh, don't mind me. Wife's trying to surprise me with pregnancy news, but, again, _civilian,_ so she's shit at keeping secrets, so I'm trying to buy her as much time as I can to make a 'proper' reveal." He yawned, "but, I wouldn't wait too long, I saw a couple beetles buzzing around... I think someone's looking for you."

_Oh, it's a hint, is it?_ "Thanks for the warning." Hibiki sunk back into the water with a yawn.

_So... It all boils down to that, doesn't it? Do I intervene and keep the status quo... Do I help him... Or do I just let him do his thing, and see what happens?_ Thought Hibiki, _On one hand, beetles flying means it's probably an Aburame, so Dai's probably out on the hunt, and -_ Hibiki shook his head, focusing his thoughts. _Katsuo... Ah fuck it._ "I hate you." Hibiki said, standing up and exiting the pool.

"See you next time." Said a nonplussed Sakumo in a sing-song voice.

Hibiki yawned, absently tossing a Bird in Sakumo's general direction.

* * *

Walking around in the bright, late-winter sunshine, Hibiki figured that if Dai was looking for him, she'd find him the moment he showed his face.

Amusingly enough, she _did._ The Senju heir was strolling around the market, and Dai quite literally strolled into him, walking the opposite direction. With no warning and no break in her stride, she collided with him, locked her arms in the crook of one of his, and kept on walking, dragging him along wherever it was she was going, leading to a bemused grin from Hibiki, who wondered if this chick would ever cease to amuse him.

Before he could speak, she spoke for him. "Your mother said we all had to rest for a month." She stated, as a matter of factly. "So... Imagine the surprise - or, to be honest, lack thereof - when I discovered a dozen of you running about, blasting each other to bits, beating each other to bloody pulps, and doing Kami knows what else." She said, not in an accusatory fashion, but more in a conversational tone.

Hibiki shrugged, walking backwards as Dai continued almost physically dragging him along with her. "Well, you see, the advantage of shadow clone training is that you can get months of training in a day... And you've got expendable, thinking test-dummies to test your stuff on." He'd gotten one or two bursts of memory from his clones in the last few hours, and those bursts had told him that all of them had multiplied, meaning his clones were - impossibly - taking his training more serious than he was, which was ironic, if he thought about it.

"Do you ever _not_ train?" Dai asked, "I understand your team specializes in combat, but... There is a limit, Hibiki."

Hibiki shrugged, "I just fought Superman and lost, Dai."

"Is that a bad thing?" Dai asked, "your goal wasn't to win... Was it?"

Hibiki sighed, extricating himself from her arms, turning around, and allowing her to grip him again - he knew he wasn't getting out of this, but he'd at least walk properly. "I don't know, Dai... I really... _Really_ don't know." He said, "I learned a lot from him... And I _really_ don't know what to do about it."

Dai stayed silent, slowly nodding beneath her hood. "Come, I know a quiet place."

"I already went to the hot springs."

"_Quiet_, place... Hibiki. Not a sweaty place."

"Obviously you've never been to a hotspring."

"Do you know what Aburame look like under their clothes, Hibiki?" Dai asked, amusedly.

Hibiki blinked, and turned to look Dai up and down, "uh... No?"

"Allow me to put this to you gently: It is a very bad idea for us to go to hotsprings... For many reasons, most obviously being that we are quite literally walking beetle hives."

"What does that have to do with anything?" Hibiki wondered.

"Have you ever considered just how the beetles enter and exit our bodies?" She asked, as such a beetle crawled its way up her unflinching face.

Hibiki squinted his eyes in thought, before it 'clicked' and he understood what she was getting at. "Oh." He said simply.

"Yes. 'Oh'." Said Dai, with an amused, brief, giggle.

_So, here's a question then... How the fuck do they bathe?_ Hibiki wondered as they drifted off into silence, and he followed the Aburame Genin. _Showers wouldn't work, and obviously they can't take baths or go to public bath houses... What, do they sponge bathe? Do they bathe period? Holy shit, is this where Dante got his 'smell' technique? Is Dante part Aburame?_ He had a tough time keeping a straight face as these thoughts raced through his mind. _That would make so much fucking sense... Mix it with his Uchiha blood and you've got - Holy shit! Dante's half Aburame! _He chuckled silently, wondering what Suboro and Noboru would make of this development.

* * *

"You know... When you said 'quiet place'... I was expecting... I dunno, a meadow... Or... A clearing in a forest." Said Hibiki, as he gazed around the dense woods that made up training grounds forty four, also known as the Forest of Death.

Dai blinked in an innocent manner, though this was masked by her glasses, almost making it seem as if the oddity of their little meeting ground wasn't even registering with her. "I would have thought this would be the perfect place." She said, "it is seldom that these training grounds are used outside of Chunin exams... And they are kept up by my clan, so we know it better than most. We will be fine in here, and no one will hear your screams."

Hibiki chuckled, "hahaha, Dai." He leaned back and yawned deeply.

Dai allowed him his moment, before cutting right to the chase. "So tell me, Hibiki... What is it that ails you?"

_I died, came back, figured out I wasn't the only one, and that the other guy is Superman, and I'm comparatively Krillin. _Hibiki leaned back forward, giving Dai a look, silently asking if this were why she'd brought him here. "What makes you ask?"

"I can see it in your eyes, Hibiki, and you were very quiet in the hospital. You saw something in Kiri that shook you, and you haven't been the same." She summarized in her typically blunt fashion, "and I'm willing to wager that it has something to do with... Whatever it is that always lurks behind your eyes." She said, raising a dainty finger and indicating Hibiki's eyes. "I do not know what it is specifically... But ever since the first day I met you, there has always been _something_ in there... Constantly on your mind... Always ailing you... It is only now, after Kiri, that it has become so readily apparent."

_Well... That shut me up._ Thought Hibiki, as he stared at the dark-haired, impossibly intelligent Aburame girl. He snorted, "if I told you what I had on my mind, you'd think I was batshit insane." He said derisively, though it was less to shy her away from pursuing this, and more as an opening salvo.

"Try me, Hibiki." Said Dai, earnestly.

Hibiki stared at her for a moment, idly biting his fingernail as he stared into her sunglasses, and she into his onyx eyes. He sighed, shaking his head, "alright." He pointed at her, "but I warned you." Ten years was long enough, and maybe Sakumo was right - he might feel better if he finally let this off his chest. He leaned back and stared at the roof of the forest, and the sky beyond it, silently wondering how to put this in a way that didn't sound as impossible as it was.

"Ten years ago, during the final months of the last war, there was a man. Dude was as arrogant as he was insane... He had only one goal: he wanted to create life." Hibiki began, eyes locked onto the forest's roof, "and not in the traditional birds-and-the-bees kind of way, but on his own. Synthetically. _Man-made life._ So what he did was he stole the blood of every major clan he could get his hands on... Uchiha, Uzumaki, Kaguya, and so many more... And he started creating bodies in synthetic wombs. He fused this blood into these bodies and then... Stole souls, I guess... From the afterlife." Hibiki explained, "he did this... A _lot_, I've been told. Dozens of synthetic bodies animated with stolen souls, all with the goal of creating a... Well, _perfect_, man-made human being, just to see if he could.

"After a few dozen tries, he eventually got the method down pat and he started the process of making his magnum opus - his last, greatest creation. He made the body and sealed the soul in it, and not two seconds later, Konoha Anbu arrived and killed him for the crimes of desecrating the dead. They found this child, found his notes, and brought him back to their village to figure out what the hell to do with it. The Hokage at the time figured that, no matter what kind of bastard of man this child was, he was a child and he deserved a chance at living a life. So, the Hokage gave this child to a grieving woman - a woman who had just lost her brother, and had previously lost her lover, both to the same war." He saw Dai stiffen up, ever so slightly, through his peripherals - it was dawning on her what he was saying. "Lacking any other options, this woman took the child in and told the world that he was a baby born out of wedlock to her late lover... There was just one problem. This baby had an undead soul inside of him... And he still had all of his memories of his previous life.

"This baby suffered for years, until he got the motor and oral skills required to at least regain some vestige of independence, so he could at least _try_ and figure out what was happening to him... He thought he was insane. He remembered, very... _Very_ vividly... A life he thought he lived. Motorized, horse-less carriages that traveled faster than the speediest runner, aerial jets that flew among the eagles, and faster than the body-flicker... Massive rockets that took his kind to the stars themselves, weapons so powerful that they could wipe out dozens of villages with just the push of a single button... Armies so well trained that they could topple nations in days, and a world so filled with people that many were considering the logistics of _leaving it behind_ for other, distant planets. He remembered reading the history books... His peoples' footprints were on _the moon._" He explained, "they had devices that let them speak to a person on the other side of the _planet..._ They had machines that could travel to other planets and study them, vehicles that could leave the surly bonds of earth and touch the stars on a whim. One of these machines had even left their solar system on a ceaseless journey of scientific discovery. He remembered living, he remembered his friends and his family, his career, his hobbies and his interests. He remembered most everything... Even _dying_ at the hands of an inebriated driver who lost control of his vehicle. So imagine his surprise when, instead of waking up outside the gates of Heaven, with Saint Peter laughing his ass off, he woke up in a small crib with several enormous women and an unnaturally pale, snake-eyed man staring at him and talking in some strange... Yet subtly familiar language.

"In his world, there was no chakra, there were no shinobi... Whenever his people needed to solve a problem, they made a machine to do it, they didn't create the solution from ancient, inborn mystical energies... They just _didn't exist._ He thought he was insane - hell, some part of him _still_ thinks he's insane, that it's all a dream and he'll wake up in the hospital and have a wicked story to tell; but then he met someone else... a monster strong enough to take on the most powerful men and women his new home had to offer - who, in his own world, would have been considered something approaching _gods._ This monster recognized the boy for what he was, and took his first opportunity to abduct the boy and tell him what he had suspected all along - that this wasn't a dream, but more than that... That he wasn't _alone _in this universe. That there were dozens like him, perhaps not from the same time as him, but from the same world." Hibiki leaned his head forward, making eye contact with Dai again. "The Monster tells him that all he wants is to steal these nine ancient sources of unending power, so he can use them to figure out just what happened and how... And if there's any way to send his cousins in undeath back to their respective homes... The problem with that, is that the only way he knows how to do this is to facilitate a major war between all known shinobi powers - a world war, the third of its kind. He tried to recruit the boy, but the boy was just fine living out his new life in a state of relative peace...

"The problem, however, is ever since I returned home, I don't know which option is the right one. Katsuo's goal is... Somewhat noble. He just wants to go _home_... His execution is what I have a problem with. So do I actively fight against him? Deny him his wish? Deny him the life that was stolen from him by a madman, just like mine was? Or do I let him do what he wants, and in the process allow _millions_ to die in the ensuing wars." He sighed, and shook his head, running a shaking hand through his dark hair. "There is no good option here." He said with a hung head, "on one hand, I fight a kindred spirit who, arguably, wants the exact same thing I do - to figure out what happened to him and to see if there's a way to reverse it... On the other hand, I let him do what he wants, and watch as millions upon millions _die_ as he pursues his goal, knowing full and well that I could have done something about it." He sighed deeply, with an exhausted yawn at the end.

Dai was staring at him silently, digesting everything he'd just given to her, and trying to make good on her unspoken offer to help. "If Katsuo's goal is noble, but his pursuit is evil, would that not make _him_ evil?" She asked.

Hibiki shook his head, "even back home, the world isn't so clear cut. Think about it - I was gone for... What, two days? And you, Team Four, my teammates, and Minato blew up a part of a village, trapped their inhabitants in a genjutsu, and then we exploded our way out. Your goal was noble - rescuing me - but in doing so you, either directly or indirectly, killed a _lot_ of people. By your logic, wouldn't that make _you_ evil, then?" Hibiki asked, looking up at the Aburame girl, "and in another light... If you were stolen out of your home, wouldn't you want to fight to get back there? Would you care about the lives you ruined on your warpath to return to your friends and family? In that reverse exodus, you yourself would kill people and likely ruin lives. Again, would that not make _you_ evil?" Hibiki asked. "From our point of view, we're the righteous ones. You wanted to rescue me, and you had to kill in order to do it. You, hypothetically, wanted to return home, and there was no choice _but_ to kill to do so. From their point of view, we're monsters who slaughter our way to our goals. So who really is evil? Katsuo, who just wants to go home, or me, who would keep him from doing so?"

Dai lowered her gaze a bit, thinking deeply on Hibiki's argument.

Eventually she spoke, "I do understand... On some level... Your struggle... But of what consequence is a point of view, to the lives Katsuo is ruining in his selfish journey?" Dai asked, hesitating for just a second before she reached up and removed her glasses, revealing a stunning set of deep amber eyes. "His goal may be considered noble, good, or even _not_ evil, in some respects... But he decided to reach that goal by slaughtering innocents and starting a war, Hibiki." She said, her amber orbs locked to Hibiki's onyx eyes. "I think that we, as Shinobi, live in a morally gray area. We promote peace, and yet murder and destruction are our primary means. Katsuo seeks to ruin the stability of an entire world, slaughter countless and start wars with endless consequences, on the off chance he may be able to return home... I think that makes him evil, and I think that, with the power you possess - that we _all,_ as shinobi, possess - you have an... Obligation... To at least _try_ and stop him. To at help those who cannot help themselves, and to save those he is putting in danger by following his pursuits." She reached forward and grabbed one of Hibiki's hands in one of her own, "do you understand what I'm saying, Hibiki?" She asked, her eyes wide with trepidation.

Hibiki sighed deeply, feeling a weight slide off of his shoulders as the air exited his lungs. "Yeah." He said, "yeah, I understand." What had she just told him? She'd just said that with great power came great responsibility.

If there was a god, he was fucking _laughing_ right now.

Dai smiled, "good." She scooted forward and turned around on her rump, pressing her back into Hibiki's front and forcing the two of them to the ground. "Now, Lady Tsunade told us _all_ to get bed rest for the next month. Healing factor from some obscure bloodline or not, that means you too." She said, as she pressed a bemused Hibiki to the ground in the middle of a forest routinely used as a survival grounds, due to its massive population of deadly animals, insects, and plant-life. "And you're going to tell me about this world you left behind, I'll be the judge of whether or not you're sane."

"This..." Said Hibiki, not resisting the girl but not necessarily just _letting_ her have her way either. "Coming from the girl who thought the forest of fucking death was a quiet place."

"Hush." Hushed Dai, as she got comfortable on Hibiki's chest. "Now talk."


	34. Planning the Beginning

Chapter 33

* * *

Before Hibiki had even known what had happened, he'd whittled the entire day away telling Dai about his old home. Everything from its history to its technology, from its evolution to its society, from the population to its dividing lines, even to Hibiki's role - just as Hibiki had many years ago, she'd found it ironic he'd gone from an EMT to Shinobi, two fundamental opposites. She took particular interest in Hibiki's descriptions of cities and then again in the very _concept_ of science. Hibiki had long ago learned that this world's sciences _existed,_ but were sorely lacking in any true desire to learn and understand. Dai put it better than he'd ever been able to - his people, whom he'd told her he called 'Terrans' so he could differentiate them from humans here, had an insatiable lust to learn and understand everything around them, and impossibility wasn't seen as a limit, but a _challenge,_ whereas the Shinobi here were completely willing to live on some kind of harmony with their natural world, instead of seeking outside for answers, they sought answers within themselves. She'd found it astounding that his people had gotten around for so long without any chakra at all, and almost every time she asked him what Terrans did if they couldn't do 'x-concept' without chakra, she was amazed at his explanation, though she stopped asking about the more destructive parts after Hibiki described to her the Manhattan Project.

By the time the moon had grown high in the sky, she'd come to the conclusion that, while his story certainly had holes, given the raw _scale_ of his world, it was understandable. She didn't know what to think about everything he revealed to her, but she made it clear that she didn't think he was crazy - and, if he was in some kind of coma, she asked him kindly _not_ to wake up, she liked things the way they were.

When they finally decided it was time to go home, Hibiki led Dai home, and before she said her goodbyes, she told him that, on no uncertain circumstance, was he off the hook. They still had thirty days of bedrest, and she wasn't going to let him get out of it - and if he even thought of delegating her to Shadow Clone duty, she told him, she'd find less pleasant ways to keep him resting. When he asked what she meant, she revealed that he'd had a beetle in his hair the entire day and he'd never even known, and then, when asked if Tsunade had put her up to this, she simply smiled and bade him farewell.

The month that passed by was, arguably, one of the most refreshing since Hibiki had first woken up in the New Hotness. No heavy training, no worrying about Tweedle-Dee and Tweedle-Gun, or Katsuo trying to come back and get him, he was just able to pretend he was Back Home again. Spend some money on stupid stuff, hang out with his friends, try and figure out what the fuck it was that was blooming with Dai, it felt nice. The only hiccup had been, a week after the Forest of Death, he'd noticed, by complete accident, that he was being tailed by an ANBU agent in a familiar wolf's mask. Further inspection had found that he'd been followed by this guy for the entire month, and when he'd asked his adoptive mother, she'd shrugged and said it was about time - she'd had an ANBU assigned to her since she was three, and it had only been after she'd fought Hanzo the Salamander that they'd finally decided to drop it.

After the month ran up, however, he was almost forcibly reminded of his situation by a small scroll sitting on his windowsill, with a simple message - a summons from the Hokage. He hadn't even made it two steps out of his house before he was greeted by Wolf, whose arm was outstretched.

Hibiki stood there, staring at the Anbu. "Dude... I'm really starting to hate you." He said bluntly.

"Not my problem." Said Wolf, "on the bright side... You're not doing anything right now."

Hibiki sighed, "hypothetically... What if I... I dunno... Spawned a thousand shadow clones and slipped away in the chaos?"

"I'd find you in less than three hours."

Hibiki nodded, "hm. If it took you more than three hours, would I get a prize?"

"My knife."

Hibiki hummed, "do you do gift exchange?"

"Yes."

"What does it get exchanged for?"

"Another knife." Said Wolf, "a bigger knife."

The Senju heir grunted, "guess I don't really have any choice." He swept his hand through his hair exhaustedly. "Fuck." He took Wolf's hand, and a second later, they were in the Hokage's office, having skipped even the trip up through the building.

Hibiki managed not to look surprised that they'd skipped the trip and gone straight for the kill, and bowed respectfully to the man in the chair, under the hat. "Lord Hokage." He greeted.

The Hokage nodded, allowing Hibiki to stand up straight. "Hibiki. Your medical leave has just run its course, correct?"

"Yes sir, just today." Hibiki nodded, knowing that the Hokage had known full well that he was on leave, and suspecting that his mother played some part in keeping Danzo and the Chuunin corps away from him and his friends.

"I would then request your personal account on the events in Kirigakure." Said the Hokage, "I've already read the reports from your rescue squad, I merely wish to hear your own."

Hibiki nodded, having seen this one coming, and for the next hour he explained at length the events in Kirigakure as they happened to him. He did, however, spin them in a very specific, very meticulously crafted way - he had a plan he needed to execute. It hinged on one very specific, nigh impossible task: manipulating a master manipulator. The way Hibiki saw it, as much as Konoha was at war with Kirigakure - ignoring how much Hibiki was starting to understand that they _shouldn't _be - he was at war with Katsuo, or Billy, or whatever he preferred to be called, the Monster. He and Katsuo were playing an intricate game - the fact that Katsuo hadn't attempted to abduct him again, yet, meant that he was likely going for a far more subtle approach - so Hibiki had to try and play the game of nations, while holding no rank whatsoever in the grand scheme of things. If Katsuo and whatever nation he controlled did this - for instance, attacking Konoha, implicating Kiri, and then outing his goal of stealing the world's jinchuriki - Hibiki had to respond appropriately.

At its core, Hibiki had to end the war before it could escalate. Ignoring that their true target should, by rights, be Iwagakure, Kiri had been implicated in too much for any leaders or influential figures in Konoha to allow them to get by untouched, which meant that Hibiki had to find a way to end Konoha's desire for Kiri blood, with as little bloodshed as possible, though that was a pipe dream in and of itself. The problem, however, was time; wars in this world took a great deal of time to end, even small conflicts between lands with no shinobi presence, and if two hidden villages went to war, soon enough their allies would join the war, and then it would become long and bloody, and game-changers would be needed, meaning escalation of force would applied: One village would send out one jinchuriki, then another would send out theirs, and soon all warzones would be littered with the tailed beasts, which was exactly what the Monster wanted, because then he could find them and take them for his purposes. Hibiki's response, therefor, had to be to end the war in as little time as possible - win a chess game in ten moves or less, so to speak - and as terrifyingly as he could. The problem, however, was that the only way he knew how was to start bringing the Elemental Nations up to the modern age, which was something he couldn't do - Katsuo had already shown how self destructive such a thing would be when done far too early. So then the question became what could he do, drawing on his own history, to end the war between Konoha and Kiri, whilst extending his war with Katsuo so he could build more power and plan his next move? How could he end one war, and leave himself cards to draw for the one to come after?

The answer came to him one night while he'd been re-reading his notes on Home: Blitzkrieg. It was perfect, because from what he'd read about the history of the elemental nations, wars were savage, brutal, and impossibly long affairs - usually taking decades to finish, and this was almost always because of the fact that, outside of national borders, no hidden villages knew where the other villages were. There _was_ a reason they were called the 'Hidden' villages, after all. Even after the Chunin exams, when the hosting country specifically brought foreign ninja to their borders, the secret documents and maps sent to the various kage always ended up being lost or destroyed under mysterious circumstances.

However, this was where Hibiki held an advantage: He knew where Kirigakure was. Using the archipelago he'd fought Katsuo with - which had been to its north - and Uzushiogakure - which was to its southeast - he had been able to pinpoint a general location for the village. It wasn't exact, but it was much, much better than simply searching for it - and with Konoha's scouts, specifically their Hyuga ones, they could do in hours what would have taken days to do otherwise. Better yet, conducting blitzkrieg would send Katsuo a message: That Hibiki _knew_, at least on some level, where and when he had been born, and everyone who fought knew that the first step to defeat one's enemy would be to _know_ one's enemy. Hibiki had concluded that the man Katsuo had been born before World War Two, raised through it, and died shortly thereafter, which would mean that he would at least know _of_ Hitler's lightning war strategies, and in seeing Hibiki use such tactics, the man would know that Hibiki had no intention of just _letting_ him do what he wanted.

All of this, however, the entire game of chess, the entire proxy-war between Hibiki Senju and Katsuo, the Monster of Kirigakure, it all relied on one thing: Hibiki's ability to manipulate a man who had quite literally spent his entire life as a shinobi, and was, almost by definition, a _master_ manipulator. Such a thing would be considered impossibly by anyone else, but Hibiki was nothing if not a good improviser, which was the first step on the road to becoming a master bullshitter, which itself was synonymous with manipulator.

In short, Hibiki knew how to tell a story, and his story was ending with a bombshell: "And finally, sir, I believe I know how we can end the war before it escalates into a third _world_ war."

Danzo's unbandaged eyebrow raised, almost humorously, but the man's eyes told a different story - this was a man who had been born and raised around the legendary stories of the Senju clan, and had fought alongside and under the second Hokage. He practically idolized the clan for its almost ingrained ability to produce capable fighters and unstoppable leaders - and even if Hibiki hadn't been born naturally, or even with any Senju blood that he knew of, for that matter, the man didn't know that, and Hibiki still had the name, which held a lot of sway with the man. "Oh?"

Hibiki nodded, "I know where we can find Kirigakure no Sato." Hibiki stated bluntly.

Danzo's visible eye widened considerably, as the implications of this quickly formed in his mind. "Interesting... What would you have us do with this information?" The way he spoke, Hibiki knew there was something he was hiding, but Hibiki had to soldier on.

"Simply put, sir, I would have you end this war before it escalates." Said Hibiki, "you and I both know that the weapon used to assassinate the Third Hokage didn't come from Kiri - our findings in Suna point to their origination point being Iwagakure, and Minato's report states that Katsuo has a great sociopolitical influence in the Land of Earth. He's using Kiri as a scapegoat, and he's turning them to his side. So I put forth that we eliminate them as a threat, so we can instead focus on finding Iwa and destroying it." With little pause, Hibiki kept speaking, "there is a war-time strategy that was taught to me by the Eagles, that I think would work perfectly here." He began, "Blitzkrieg. It is an ancient word, but it means Lightning War." The former elder's silence beckoned Hibiki to continue, "I think it would work perfectly here, sir. In essence, it is attacking with constant streams of overwhelming force, keeping the enemy off balance long enough to destroy their ability to fight. As an example, during their war with the hawks, the Eagles took their army and flew high above the clouds so as to avoid detection, and then struck directly at the heart of hawk territory, with overwhelming, _massive_ force. This went on for days, they kept the hawks off balance and unable to mount a proper defense until the Hawks were forced to capitulate." The best part was that this wasn't a lie - Hibiki needed a proving grounds for his Blitzkrieg theory, and the Eagles needed a way to end - or at least seriously shorten - their war with the Hawks, so Hibiki had sent several war-plans and strategic outlines to Washita, with the suggestion to 'go wild'. The result had been nothing short of spectacular: "They won, sir, and they took minimum casualties." The only problem was that the hawks still had to abide by their own contract, though Hibiki had learned from Washita that their contract had more signatures on it than Washita had _ever_ seen before, as if an entire village had signed it, all but saying to the Senju heir that this problem was far from solved.

Danzo nodded slowly, the pieces falling together. "You would have us blitzkrieg Kirigakure, so as to make a statement to the world: We can crush anyone, anywhere, who strikes our village and slaughters our people." He concluded. "Removing Kiri would allow us time to investigate Iwa and their 'firearms'."

Hibiki nodded, "yes, sir. Better, I know how we can do it, too." He said, "a five sided attack. From the North and South, the toads and snakes. From the East, our Shinobi, and from the air, the Eagles." If he left a _lot_ of Shadow clones to mull about and get themselves chakra, he could potentially summon up a cubic buttload of combat-caste, and maybe even Washita himself, though that would probably kill the clone that did it.

"And the fifth avenue?"

"Me, sir."

Danzo's eye narrowed, "what makes you think you would be strong enough to warrant your _own_ avenue of attack?" He asked.

Hibiki swallowed, "sir, I think you and I both know what makes me think that." Said Hibiki, "during the attack on Konoha, I demonstrated a... Mastery, of sorts, over the multi-shadow clone technique. I know how to make _thousands_ of clones with the bare minimum of chakra usage, and I know how to make it so they aren't fragile, glass cannons." He said, "and if I had them use the weapons recovered from the invasion, my army would be unstoppable. If we all fought towards the center of the village, we could take their Hokage and force him to surrender to us before they could mount any proper defense."

"And we could end the war with Kiri..." Said Danzo, thoughtfully, nodding as he considered these implications, before his one eye settled again on the Senju heir. "There is, however... Just one problem."

Hibiki felt his heart stop. _Oh... Shit. This guy's going to ask how I know how to use guns. He's going to ask where I got mine when they took them all up. Fuck, fuck, fuck._ Thought Hibiki, "oh?" He said, deceptively calmly.

"Indeed." Danzo reached into his desk, and pulled out a scroll. "This came back from the scouting force. They've been found by enemy shinobi and are certain they will be engaged, whether or not they retreat, and they are requesting reinforcements." He looked up from the scroll, to Hibiki. "They say that the force they've discovered is a massive attack force, filled with Jonin-level shinobi, and they will be discovered and attacked in a week's time. The only way to save them would be to send our own army to back them up, which would take about a week to get our forces to arrive. But doing that would, while ensuring victory, make it nigh impossible to cripple Kiri in the way you have described... Our forces are already low on manpower... We only have the opportunity to do _one." _Hibiki's shoulders slowly slumped, he realized what Danzo was going to do just a second before he did it. "So tell me, Hibiki... What would you decide is more important? Ending the war, or saving our scouts?"

_Why the fuck would you ask **me?**_ Hibiki wondered, with a thick swallow through a dry throat. "Why would you want my input, sir?" He asked.

"You obviously have insight and skill in tactical decisions. Not as much as myself or someone with more experience, but you show... Promise. I know what _I_ would do... I ask what _you_ would do." Said Danzo, "there is no wrong answer."

"There isn't a right one, either." Said Hibiki, "but..." He sighed, this was some kind of test. The needs of the many versus the needs of the few. Did he want to save a hundred or so scouts, or potentially _millions_ of people by ending the war here and now? He knew he'd feel like hell about this, but this was a decision he had to make. There was, however, the problem of the fact that there was a massive attack force apparently orbiting Konoha. Was it Katsuo's militia? Kiri's forces? Iwa's shinobi? Or any number of any other villages that may have a grudge against Konoha? If they engaged Konoha's scouts and won - as Danzo suggested they would - would they still be strong enough to strike at Konoha? What was the best plan - wait it out, reinforce them and lose the blitzkrieg option, or attack Kiri and sacrifice them?

Hibiki narrowed his eyes in thought, could he have the best of both worlds? Was that even possible? As it stood, for his plan to work he needed both his gun-wielding clone army, and then also a shinobi attack force capable of fighting anywhere from Genin to ANBU level shinobi. Hibiki liked to think he was good, but he doubted even an army of his clones, filled with chakra and ready to go, would be able to get that done. So the question now was whether or not he could conduct his blitzkrieg without a shinobi attack force, save Jiraiya and Orochimaru, who would be present for the summons. Hibiki could make a lot of bare-bones clones with his chakra, and multiple clones with full stores could do the same thing, but for that to work he'd need to have enough clones with enough chakra to make _two armies,_ which would have to coordinate with each other and find a way to overpower a kage and force him or her to surrender. Ignoring if he could even do _that,_ could his mind even handle such a mental strain? He got headaches from leaving a few dozen clones to run around for more than twenty four hours, and he was considering _thousands_ of them, constantly multiplying, for what could very well be one long day. Constant bursts of memory, never-ending streams of information, ceaseless casualties and phantom pains.

Hibiki had to repress the urge to shake his head. This wasn't something he could do by himself - not unless he was willing to just blow up Kiri with a Big Bang Attack, and that was iffy in the first place. He'd seen shinobi take some pretty big hits during his time, so without an actual _nuke_ nuke, or a way to make certain he could put his money where his mouth was and truly replicate a few dozen kilotons of explosive force, through chakra alone, he wasn't entirely sure just one explosion could take out a village. So now he was going back to square one - save the scouts and risk a long and bloody war with Kiri, with it inevitably expanding to a much better prepared Iwa, or conquer Kiri through shock and awe, to force Iwa to step back and think things through, allowing him time to more thoroughly prepare for that eventuality. There was always the 'hurry up and wait' option, which entailed him backing off and letting the Hokage deal with it, but that was a non-choice, given the circumstances he found himself in at this very moment.

_God... Damn it._ Silently cursed the Senju heir, as he considered what it all boiled down to - what was worth more? All the lives spared by ending a war, or a scouting force of three hundred shinobi? _I mean... They can just _run,_ right? If they're engaged, not all of them will get caught and killed, right? They're scouting **specialists,** for Christ's sake, Escape and Evasion should be in the damn job description._

He wondered where this put him on Dai's scale of 'acceptable evils'.

"I think it would be better for us to end the war now." He said, damningly.

"And _why_ do you think this?" Danzo asked.

_What the fuck, is this a job interview?_ Thought Hibiki, "as much as it hurts to say, sir, it's the needs of the many versus the needs of the few. Sending our shinobi to save our scouts would doom us to lose more shinobi in later battles, which would mean that, to bolster our forces, we'd have to throw freshly-graduated genin onto the battlefield, basically meaning they would just be there to distract the enemies, or survive and pray they learn something useful. If we end the war _now,_ at the cost of some of our scouts, we can broadcast to the world our power whilst simultaneously buying us time to build said power."

Danzo hummed, "some would say that our scouts are the backbone of our entire military, and would question the wisdom of sacrificing them." He mentioned, "do you think the reward is worth the risk?"

"Scouting forces are adept at stealth, escape, and evasion. The only ones we would lose would be the ones who couldn't help but get engaged in open combat." The Senju-heir reasoned, "and if they're caught, they must not have been good enough at their jobs to begin with." He almost _felt _a small bit of his soul rot away with that last comment.

Danzo hummed again, "what is it that _you_ want, then?" The man asked.

Hibiki would have applauded the man on his people-reading skills, but he had seen this one coming, and apparently Danzo had done so too, so neither of them danced around it. "Sir, you said it will take you a week to get to Kiri, and it would likely take you anywhere from twenty four to forty eight hours to set up the attack, netting - on the low end - eight days from now until the attack. There's something I need to do... A _few_ somethings, actually, and I would need that week to do it."

Danzo's eyebrow raised, "and what would these things be?"

"I've fought the Monster of Kirigakure twice now. I told you already that I've learned that the only way to break through his senjutsu durability is to _physically_ break through it, and that requires a lot more force than I can bring to bear, so given how likely it will be that we'll find him during our assault, I'll need to have a technique that will be able to break through his durability. I have something of an idea as to what I could do, but I need time to prove whether or not it is viable." He explained, "problem is, with the scale of the attack I'm creating, I risk a _lot_ of wanton destruction if I screw it up, so I need a private place to develop it. The second one is a pipe dream that would make fighting the Monster far easier." He said, "and to do either of those things, I would need to travel to Amerigo, the land of the Eagles." He'd already had correspondance with Washita, who said he would be willing to at least _try_ to train Hibiki in flight, as payment for Hibiki's help in ending, in a way, their war with the hawks. Hibiki had neglected, however, to mention that he was going to try and find a place where he could fling around micro-nukes in an attempt at creating the force needed to break Katsuo's durability.

Danzo stared at Hibiki for a few moments, "you realize what you ask?" He inquired, "you would be losing a week's worth of planning. All of our strategies, you would be nonethewiser. You would have nothing to go on, other than 'arrive at Kiri, begin an attack'. There could be very sensitive orders, and due to your self-imposed absence, you would not know about them. Are these techniques you wish to develop _that_ worth it?"

Hibiki swallowed, "sir, from what I've found, the only way to permanently injure Katsuo is to physically break through his durability, and we've seen him take hits that most Jonin would die from. A lot of my conclusions are based off of my one fight with him, but the point remains that my single biggest attack barely did more than give him a few bruises and some scorched skin. While it is true that you need to deal insane amounts of damage to hurt him, just blowing him up isn't enough - _precise_ force is what is needed to break him, that is why he survived during Konoha - when they saw he could take everything they had, everyone kept hitting him with their biggest attacks, which is what he defends best against. The problem is, of my techniques, only two are capable of delivering massive amounts of precision force, and neither are capable of doing enough damage to him after they break his durability, thus my problem." He explained. "So I need to go to Amerigo and see if I can't create a technique capable of doing what I need. In Amerigo, I would have a margin for error, but here..." He let the meaning hang in the air. "It is a forgone conclusion, sir - invading Kiri would mean we find him again, and unless you're willing to literally dedicate _all_ of our best to ganging up on him, in effect leaving the rest of us to fend for ourselves, my plan is the best we have. So I may miss out, but the reward would be worth the risk, I think." And they both knew that, after he spawned his clone army, he would search for a Commanding Officer and get updated orders, Danzo's question was less 'how stupid are you?' and more 'how well have you thought this through?'.

Danzo stared at Hibiki through his one eye. "What you describe almost sounds like you are trying to recreate a bijuu-dama... But we've already seen him survive such a thing. Do you truly believe you, a boy not even of breeding age, can create something stronger than the quintessential attack of a jinchuriki?"

Hibiki looked at Danzo, "sir... I honestly don't know. I have other plans, in case this one doesn't work, but this is the one I have to bank on, because the other ones rely on theories and little else." Everything from a way to lock Katsuo's chakra away with fuinjutsu, to seeing if Dai couldn't leech his blood away and take his bloodline from him, to even creating some kind of ninja kryptonite, Hibiki was practically praying for some kind of solution at this point. "Katsuo is the kind of opponent who warrants this kind of preparation. Even if I fail, I am more than certain that you have your own theories on how to defeat him."

Danzo was silent for several moments, as he digested everything given to him by the Senju heir. "Alright, Hibiki Senju." Said Danzo, "I will give you your eight days... But if I don't hear of your participation in your... Blitzkrieg... I will be very... Very angry." He said, in a chillingly calm tone.

Hibiki nodded deeply, "thank you, sir. I shall be leaving tonight, then."

Danzo nodded, "then leave. I, it seems, have a war to end."

* * *

Barely ten minutes after Hibiki made it home - unable to update Tsunade as she was working at a hospital - and started packing his bags, he heard loud, intense banging on the door to his adoptive mother's home. He hadn't even had time to revel in the fact that he'd _done it,_ before someone was there to interrupt him.

He had perhaps been expecting Dai - she always seemed to know what he was doing before even he did - or Suboro, who was often anxious to test his newly gotten Kurama skills with Hibiki and Noboru. He got, however, Minato, who wore an ear-to-ear smile, and was practically vibrating with excitement, the way he was hopping up and down on both feet.

"Hibiki!" Minato yelled, so loud that Hibiki's ears started ringing. "Hibiki, Hibiki Hibiki Hibiki! You'll never guess what!"

"You finally confessed to Kushina?" Hibiki grinned when that froze Minato on the spot, but was surprised when that didn't work for long - usually it kept up for a few seconds at least as Minato bashfully denied what _everyone_, even Hibiki's own teammates, saw as plain as day.

Minato shook his head, "no! No no no, better!" He said, before he caught himself, eyes wide.

Hibiki leaned back and crossed his arms, "oh, _better?_ She confessed to you?"

"Shut up, Hibiki." Said Minato, before he, started bouncing again. "No! But, really! It's awesome!"

Hibiki sighed, a grin playing on his features, "let me guess..." He whistled, "you've... Been adopted?"

Minato shook his head, "no! I finally got assigned a Jonin Sensei!" He said, with an enormous smile on his face. "I was going to go meet him and my team right now, I thought you'd want to tag along, meet the man who's going to teach me how to surpass even you!"

"Oh yeah?" Said Hibiki, with a grin, "surpass me?" Minato nodded triumphantly, "Turn around." Minato blinked, and then did so, and was met with a Hibiki clone flipping the blond genin 'the bird'.

Minato rolled his eyes, "doesn't mean anything." He said with a shake of his head, "so, want to tag along?" He asked, excitedly.

Hibiki laughed, and nodded to the clone, who nodded in return and strolled back inside to resume packing for Amerigo. "Sure, why not? I've got a few hours I can kill." Having Shadow Clones around to solve the 'everywhere at once' problem really helped things out; if he ever needed to get several things done at once - Shadow Clones and the problem was solved.

He followed Minato out and the two rushed back towards the Academy.

* * *

From what Minato had explained, due to the 'unique' nature of his promotion, and the general lack of any other available genin to be assigned a team, he hadn't been given a sensei for so long because none had the time nor the desire to take on just _one_ student, one had to volunteer. Someone had finally volunteered to hone Minato into the weapon he clearly had the potential for being. To Hibiki, it made sense - here was an untrained Genin, who had managed to not only track _The Monster of Kirigakure_ across an entire ocean, but also infiltrate an enemy village single-handedly and then rescue a fellow shinobi, all exhausted, and all with little to no combat-applicable skills other than a crazy-large stamina reserve, which had been largely depleted during the pursuit, not even mentioning the kid's Uzumaki-esque aptitude for fuinjutsu; who in their right mind _wouldn't_ jump at the chance to train this kid? He had the makings of a Hokage in him, and he was just ten years old.

So, after their brief whirlwind sprint through the village, the two met up at the academy, and ran into a familiar face whilst searching for the classroom Minato had been instructed to wait in.

"Uncle Jiraiya!" Minato called out, with a wide grin on his face.

"Uncle J." Hibiki tilted his head a bit, an eyebrow raised as he wondered what the toad-sage was doing in the academy.

Jiraiya turned to look at the both, and grinned in his usual way. "Well well well, it's been a while since you two have graced these halls. What're you guys up to, I wonder?" He asked, putting his hands on his hips and leaning down to get eye-level with the two.

_Oh, this motherfucker._ Hibiki saw it in Jiraiya's eyes, and had he not known the man personally, he wouldn't have believed it. The teasing glare, the shine in his eyes, the grin on his face - he was here for Minato, and was playing off both of their tardinesses as coincidence.

"I finally got assigned a Jonin sensei!" Minato responded ecstatically, "I'm going to meet him, right now!"

Jiraiya's grin widened a bit as he straightened up, "you most certainly are, aren't you? Did you get a name?" He asked.

Minato shook his head, blond hair flipping about wildly as he did so. "No, I was just told to be in room seven, by three." He said.

Jiraiya raised an eyebrow, eyes flicking over to Hibiki, who simply had his hands in his pockets, watching the event unfold before him. "You know, I may have taken a few hits to the head in my day, but... It's four." He said.

Minato's smile fell in an instant, he blinked, and then turned to Hibiki, who was grinning. "Hibiki! Why didn't you tell me!?" He shouted frantically.

"You're the Genin, I thought you knew." Hibiki said with a grin, as Jiraiya chuckled under his breath.

"You know, I think he might have left by now." Jiraiya added, mentally thanking Hibiki for the opportunity. "I mean, you're an hour late. Most Jonin don't appreciate tardiness, of any kind."

Minato was on the verge of panic, his big, blue eyes as wide as dinner plates as horrified thoughts danced through his mind.

_"Run like the wind, boy!"_ Hibiki called, and barely an instant later Minato was gone.

Hibiki and Jiraiya stood there for a moment, silently watching the smoke trail as it dissipated. Hibiki looked up to the toad sage, "so why'd you take him?" He asked, "never really pegged you for the teaching type."

Jiraiya looked to Hibiki out of the corner of his eye, "who said anything about _me_ being his sensei?"

"I did." No one Jiraiya knew was still in the academy, there was no reason for him to be here - even when one considered that the Hokage's office was connected to the building, that part of the building had a different entrance entirely. Jiraiya was here for someone specific, and Hibiki had connected the dots.

Jiraiya chuckled, "you know, kiddo, you're something else." He said, "you better watch out, else ANBU might try and snatch you up."

Hibiki shook his head, "nah. Smashing stuff is too much fun." He said.

"So when are you heading off to the eagles?" Jiraiya asked.

"Few hours. You never answered my question, you know." Hibiki looked back down the hall, he knew that Jiraiya knew they both already had the answer.

"Both of your names are starting to make their way around. He tracked the monster of Kirigakure, by sight, across an entire ocean and into an enemy village, which he promptly infiltrated and escaped with little to no sleep or assistance, and that's before any training makes its way into the equation." Said the sage, "and after seeing what you were capable of, Lord Fourth specifically requested me teach him. The way he sees it, two children with mountainous potential, both trained by sannin, could become sannin themselves."

Hibiki nodded, "interesting theory."

"Do you blame him?"

"Not really."

"Why are you heading off to the land of the Eagles?" Jiraiya wondered, "only time I ever went to Mount Myoboku was to learn senjutsu, and even with that seal on your neck, your body isn't anywhere near capable of handling that kind of thing."

Hibiki shook his head, "my body isn't anywhere near capable of handling what I can do _now."_ Said Hibiki, "I'm less focused on getting stronger, and more focused on adding to my arsenal. When I fought Katsuo, I figured out I could do something, but it was... Rudimentary at the very best. I spoke to the eagles, and they said they might have a way to teach me how to do it." He explained, "and the way I see it, if I can't figure out how to do it in a week, I won't be able to figure out how to do it period."

"Why do you think your body isn't capable of handling your power?" Jiraiya asked, "I'm just curious, is all."

"You know how prodigies kind of... Fall off the radar after they graduate? And then everyone starts hearing about them when they hit their teenager years?" Hibiki began, "well, they figured out the same thing I did. They might have the ability to draw upon unheard of amounts of power, but their bodies are too weak to do anything with it. If I tried channeling all of the power I wield - which, in the grand scheme of things, isn't anywhere near the levels of you or the enemies I've fought, but still - I'd run out of stamina, or just be unable to fight for long, because my body just isn't capable of fighting at that level, with that power, for more than a few _seconds._ That's why I have to augment my _body_ with curse seals and the eight gates. They allow me to fight beyond what my body is capable of handling by itself. The other prodigies always figure this out, probably around the same time I have, so instead of focusing on making themselves stronger, they focus on adding to their arsenal. They learn, so when they reach a point where their bodies are strong enough to handle that knowledge and that power, they can use it, and become legends." He shrugged, "don't really have to look farther than Hashirama Senju, or Madara Uchiha, for proof. As kids they had _great_ potential, but they couldn't tap into it until they hit puberty, simply because their bodies couldn't handle it."

Jiraiya nodded in understanding. "So, you've found a limit you can't pass until you hit puberty, and your body starts really developing."

"Pretty much."

"How does Amerigo plug into all of this?"

"I looked in to the specifics behind summoning contracts and the like. Katsuyu and Washita were pretty helpful in that regard. What I learned is that, as the sole summoner of the Eagles, I technically hold rank in their hierarchy, and as such I can request their land to train. As it is their sacred land, they can refuse to allow me entry, but I _am_ their summoner. Even if, officially, Washita and the elder Eagles have the last say in what the Eagles do or do not do, they aren't likely to deny me if I ask. So, I go to Amerigo to add to my arsenal an attack that... I pray... I'll be able to make in time." But he didn't even know what he was looking for, let alone how to get it. Big detonations did nothing to Katsuo, but how could he create something with the explosive force of a nuke, that stopped at hitting Katsuo? He thought he'd struck gold with the kamehameha - but the bargain-brand bijuu-dama had barely been enough to _injure_ the man, let alone kill him; and with its energy drain, Hibiki was already ready to write this off as something that would be just plain _impossible_ at his current age and level of development.

"And if you can't?" Jiraiya inquired.

Hibiki shrugged, "I'll figure that out when I get to it." He shook his head, "I'll see you, Uncle J."


	35. I AM Iron Man

Chapter 34

* * *

The second trip to Amerigo had been much more pleasant than the first one, and he'd arrived in the same giant nest at the top of the same titanic tree as he had the first go-round. Like the previous time, Hibiki noted almost immediately the striking similarities between Amerigo and Konoha, in the sense that both lands' skylines were dominated by massive trees, though Amerigo's seemed larger and a more deep shade of green. The 'ground' beneath him was the same rock-hard nest he'd landed in last time, though unlike the last time, instead of being greeted by a great, showy flourish and a show of power, he was greeted by a waiting Washita.

Washita nodded deeply to Hibiki, "you are late." He said, his deep voice cutting clear through the background noise that filled the air.

Hibiki grinned, "a shinobi is never late. Nor is he early. He arrives precisely when he means to." He said, "I do want to thank your hospitality, though. I know you didn't have to do this."

The great eagle shook his white, feathery head. "No, the honor is mine. You may not have ended the war, but your tactical advice allowed us to cripple the hawks and remove their ability to strike us on hour home territory. If flight is what you wish, it is our duty as your summons to grant it to you." He said with another deep nod, "hand your things to swift-runner, and he will take them to where you will be saying."

Hibiki looked to his left, and saw a scout-eagle waiting with an outstretched wing, Hibiki handed his backpack to the eagle, who secured it to his flak jacket, and took off in due form, not aware that Hibiki was watching him with his Sharingan. "I guess training starts now, then?"

"Indeed." Said Washita, before he blasted Hibiki in the chest with a wind-bullet comparable in power to that of a speeding truck. Hibiki was sent flying off of the tree, soaring through the air as he recovered, unable to hold back a panicked, shocked cry as he realized he was flying through the air, and Washita was giving his rudimentary flight abilities a trial by fire.

Fortunately for Hibiki, that trial had already come and gone. It took a lot of chakra to do so, and it hurt like hell with the recoil, but he _could_ feasibly fly by using his explosion release. He thrust his hands forward as he reached the top of his arc and started falling towards the ground, and detonated two powerful blasts of chakra - startling a great many eagles, who hadn't expected or even known that their summoner was present and being trained in their flight arts. The first blasts halted his momentum and kept him aloft, like a juggler keeping his balls from touching the ground, the next detonations came from his feet, and they propelled him through the sky at break-neck speed, straight for the nest he'd been blasted out of.

Unfortunately for Hibiki, he'd never really practiced landing - during his fight with Katsuo, landing hadn't ever really played into it. So when he suddenly realized that the solid 'ground' that provided the foundations for Washita's nest was coming up hard and fast, he yelped loud and threw his arms up in front of his head, before crashing hard into the nest, smacking into the nest with a hard 'thud'. To Washita, the branches he used would have been as small as twigs, but to Hibiki, the things were about as thick as his arm and half as strong as his steel bones - so hitting them hurt, and even broke some of his skin, though those injuries dissipated quickly enough.

When Hibiki extricated himself from the branches, he found Washita shaking his head in disbelief.

"I never thought humans would be so insane as to _detonate_ things in order to bring themselves to the domain of the winged." He muttered, "I respect your attempts... But what ever made you think that detonating your chakra would be a sustainable way of flying?" He asked, his deep voice unmistakable even from the ground, clear even through the noise of hundreds, perhaps even thousands, of eagles taking to the sky, trying to figure out where the explosions came from and what was going on.

Hibiki shrugged, not willing to explain to the summons that, technically speaking, blowing shit up was a perfect way to fly - and any fighter pilot wouldn't hesitate to agree with him. "I had to make do with what I had." He said, "and powerful, controlled explosions worked for what I needed them to." Though, exactly like fighter jets, flying like that drank chakra just like jets drank gasoline.

"That is wasteful, Hibiki." Said Washita, "intuitive... But wasteful. I've seen the Gelignite clan's techniques in action. They are devastating, but it takes great amounts of chakra to use it. First, you must saturate the air with your chakra, and then you must spend more chakra to detonate the saturated air - and that's just for your weakest explosions. Many use blast techniques to achieve long-range supremacy, or saturate various materials such as metal or clay, to create explosive weapons and traps, and that takes a great deal of chakra to create and maintain, as well as to safeguard against premature detonation." The great eagle explained.

Hibiki nodded, idly looking around, taking in the gorgeous skyline, and all of the tops of the massive trees as he digested what the Boss Eagle told him. "So what would you suggest?"

Washita ruffled his feathers and cawed lightly, "that is where I draw a blank. I sense no wind-natured chakra within you." He extended a wing and placed it on Hibiki's forehead. "Your Sharingan allows you to replicate other elements, wind-chakra included, but your natures are more aligned towards lightning and fire. This is a problem because all eagles are wind-natured by default, and summons are unique from humans in that they have no secondary affinity." He said, turning Hibiki's head in various directions, as if looking at it from other angles, "my plan had been to teach you like we would teach our young, but levitation without wind chakra would be... Impossible, in a word, or at the very least incredibly difficult." He retracted his wing, "there are some earth-users that have techniques to lower their body weight, allowing them to be lighter than air, but this is a rudimentary duplication of the Winged's flying techniques."

"But, Katsuo - the Monster of Kirigakure - he could fly." Hibiki pointed out.

"That is what confuses me. I had direct contact with this 'Monster', as you call him. He _has_ no chakra affinities, which means that, ignoring the impossibility of such a reality, even in sage mode, he should have burned through his chakra far too fast to sustain his fighting style." He said, eyes narrowing in thought.

_Well, he _is_ one of Kenichi's creations, and we're a category unto ourselves._ Thought Hibiki, "why don't you show me how the young eagles fly, then?" Hibiki asked, "with my Sharingan, I can perfectly see the flow of chakra, and I can mimic techniques. Maybe that, and seeing it for myself, it'll inspire us."

Washita tilted his head, before bobbing it up and down. "Alright, then. Follow me." He spread his great wings far and flapped them twice before taking off.

Hibiki grinned, and got to his feet. "What, not going to let me - "

_"No."_ Washita cut him off bluntly, before he took off, heading for the largest nearby lake.

Hibiki shrugged, "alright, then." And leapt after the eagle.

* * *

They landed near an impressively large lake. Washita pointed at one of the distant trees, explaining that they could get no closer, as they were going to bare witness to a rather convenient lesson - a mother eagle teaching her young how to begin flying.

"Eagles -" Washita explained, "as do all animals, possess an innate connection to nature, and natural energy. This means that all summons generate what humans call senjutsu chakra naturally. It is not nearly as powerful as the mixture of human and natural chakra, but it is very powerful in its own right." He peered over at Hibiki, who sat next to his head, perched atop a thick branch, and with his impressive eyesight, noticed that Hibiki was squinting hard to see clearly the mother he was showing him. "Don't worry, your eyes will change in time. For now, use your Sharingan. My energy will blanket yours and will not disturb the young." Hibiki capitulated, and saw things clearly.

In the distance, up near the top of one of the tallest trees near the shore of the lake, a mother eagle was floating in mid-air, her wings partially extended as an aura of green energy swirled around her, almost like an orb. It spun in all directions and none, practically allowing her to defy gravity through the rotation of her chakra alone.

"Our connection to natural energy allows us to master in days what many humans must spend years studying. In this case, the mother is trying to introduce her young to the concept of flight, but because their muscles are still weak, she is showing them that they can join her in the sky through their chakra alone." The orb disappeared as he explained this, and the mother flapped her wings to keep herself aloft, and to keep the attention of her young, before her chakra started flowing outwards and spinning again, stabilizing her flight.

Hibiki squinted his eyes, was he seeing things?

"Now watch the young. This is her fourth attempt this month, and she is of the scouting caste, meaning her children will catch on quicker than others." He said quietly.

Hibiki shifted his gaze to a gathering of four small eaglets. They were chirping excitedly, almost a perfect example of the mind was willing but the body was unable - they were attentively watching their mother demonstrate eagle flight, but couldn't do it for themselves. A few took exchanged looks from their mother, to the ground, and back to their mother, and one had the guts to actually try it - taking a few steps back before making a running leap for the edge of the nest, chakra streaming from his body as he did so. It leapt, flapping its wings wildly as it flew through the air, before it slowly came to a halt thanks to air friction, and remained aloft, his chakra slowly spiralling into an orb that protected him from the cruel gravitic force from the ground below.

Seeing it from the eaglet, Hibiki now knew what he could compare what he was seeing to: Noboru. Chakra was flying out of the eagle's body, and Hibiki was certain that, if he had a Byakugan, he would be able to see it streaming right out of their tenketsu. It streamed out into the air, but instead of disippating, it started rotating, forming something like a bubble that surrounded the animal and defied gravity and kept them suspended in mid-air. The way the chakra streamed out of their tiny little bodies reminded Hibiki of the way the chakra flowed through and out of Noboru when he used his gentle-fist techniques, but instead of sharp bursts of chakra, it came out as a constant stream. The eaglets manipulated natural chakra and their wind nature to create bubbles of rotating winds, which rotated and shifted so fast that it kept them suspended in the air.

Hibiki broke contact with the eaglets and looked down to his hands. Of all things, the chakra fart was coming to mind. The proto-kamehameha that he'd created a long time ago, a step in the right direction, just down the wrong road. The chakra fart collected and trapped chakra in the near-zero space between his hands, and when released, did generate tiny amounts of force - nothing noticeable, but it had to, else it wouldn't shoot forward, but rather just radiate outward.

"What are you thinking, young Senju?" Washita prodded, he too breaking eye contact with the pride of the next generation, and looking intently at his summoner.

Hibiki was connecting several unrelated dots. Bursts of explosive chakra propelled him through the air, but did so at the cost of a great deal of chakra. Hyper-compressed, trapped chakra generated force and recoil, but wasn't good for anything but attacking and destruction. Hyuga could stream chakra right out of their tenketsu, and could do it in a way that a powerful jet of it burst out of whichever tenketsu they desired - implying some sort of pressure/release system, strong enough to send the chakra to invade their enemy's system, but nowhere near powerful enough to create any kind of physical force or recoil on the Hyuga's end. The eaglets, on the other hand, sent out powerful, constant jets of chakra from their own tenketsu, and rotated it in a manner similar to a Heavenly Rotation technique, which helped keep them aloft. Hibiki's Falcon Punch generated enough power to allow him to throw his mass around and 'fly' similar to how Thor did in the comics.

The question became how could he connect all of these? Was there a way for him to collect great amounts of chakra in specific tenketsu, but not let them leak out of his body, so as to create massive amounts of pressure, which he could then release and send him flying?

Hibiki nodded, "I've... Got an idea." He said, "but I need space. A _lot_ of space."

Washita blinked, "all you should need is a tree to jump from."

Hibiki grinned, "Washita, have I ever showed you how I train?"

* * *

Twelve hours passed by in the blink of an eye. Washita brought Hibiki to a clearing usually reserved for teaching Combat Caste aerial maneuvering and attacks, but Hibiki was given priority as the eagles' summoner. Washita had been suitably stunned when, in scant seconds, the field was filled to the brim with Hibiki clones. He asked Hibiki how he functioned, using the Shadow Clone technique like he did, and Hibiki shrugged - he didn't really know, he just _did._

He didn't make too terribly much progress before night fell that first day. He tried taking the concept of the chakra fart and applying it inwards - building up the pressure by trapping the chakra inside, as opposed to outside - but whenever he let it stream outwards, his arms were either dislocated or it went out in the wrong direction and blew large bits of his arms clean off. Several clones tried applying this pressure/release theory to his Explosive Flight, with disastrous results - they magnified the effects of the explosion, and certainly flew farther at the cost of less chakra, but ripped apart their hands and feet in so doing. Some tried performing a small-scale kamehameha, but the cost of flying such a way was more than detonating chakra, and was far less controllable, meaning that too was out.

Before Hibiki knew it, it was dark out, and Washita was calling his name. Hibiki turned to the great eagle, and saw that the big boss had brought a small crowd with him, it seemed that the other eagles were more than eager to see their summoner training. There were a few combat-caste that weren't too thrilled that they couldn't train _with_ him, but they didn't look like they were complaining too much. Washita called out again, it was time for rest, exhausting himself each day would do him no good, and after a small resistance, Hibiki was guided to the home nest of the eagle who would be caring for him for this week.

Hibiki broke out into smile when he saw the scarred, goggled face of Geoff, the scout eagle.

"Hibiki-san!" The nasally scout called out, with a wing extended in a salute. "Oh, I knew you couldn't resist my dashing face." He smiled in his eagle way, nodding to Washita, who gave their summoner - literally, the most important individual in all of Amerigo - over to his care. "Come on! I shall show you where I put your things." He said with a happy tone, "I'll even prove to you that ladies _do_ find scars attractive."

Hibiki blinked, a disbelieving grin stretching across his face. _"No."_ He said, "no fucking way." He said, hands in the pockets of his wind-breaker as he followed Geoff. As it turned out, whereas non-summons eagles typically had the one nest, summons eagles had developed a hierarchy of sorts, and had several nests spread throughout a given section of the towering trees that covered the landmass that was Amerigo. Hibiki hopped up through the branches and followed Geoff, as the latter lazily flew through the tree and made sure he did so at such a speed that the human could keep up with him.

"Oh, yes, Hibiki." Said Geoff, as they climbed the tree. Hibiki heard Geoff inhale deeply, _"AMI! SHAKE A FEATHER, WE HAVE A VERY IMPORTANT VISITOR!"_ He cawed out, almost deafeningly loud.

Hibiki blinked, "Jesus, Geoff -"

Geoff laughed, "don't worry, she's fine with it."

_"Gejoforra, I swear to Kami if this is another of your scout friends -"_ They heard a female sounding eagle call out, as Geoff flew up and landed on the target nest.

"Even better!" Said Geoff, as Hibiki burst forth from the leaves and landed in the nest. "Our summoner!"

_"OUR SUMMONER!?"_ Geoff's mate shrieked, disbelievingly, she was about as tall as Geoff, perhaps just a bit smaller and thinner, her plumage was much thicker and had a more radiant sheen, as opposed to Geoff's dusty plumage, tightly secured goggles, and flak jacket. "I thought you were - I mean, I didn't believe he -" She stuttered, managing to look outraged and enraged at a smiling Geoff, to embarrassed and honored to a blank-faced Hibiki, who was mostly just watching the fireworks with a suppressed grin and a raised eyebrow.

"What, you think my stories of being summoned to fight by our summoner's side were just bar stories?" Geoff asked, ruffling his feathers in a proud manner. "How else do you think I got this scar you adore?" He inclined his head and brushed the scarred half against his wing.

Ami sputtered for a few more seconds, her head snapping back and forth from Hibiki to Geoff, slowly rearing back as she realized that this wasn't a nightmare. Slowly, she kneeled down, extended both wings low to the ground, and bowed her head deeply, "I apologize for my husband and I's lack of professionalism, Lord Senju." She said, her voice shaking, "I am honored to have you in my home."

Hibiki stared at the eagle, slowly turning to look at Geoff, who was doing much the same. Silently, the two conspired with each other, and Geoff bobbed his head once, letting him know he was okay with it. Hibiki crossed his arms and inclined his head, "I dunno..." He said slowly, trying to hide his smile with a light frown and a raised eyebrow, "I was led to believe that being a summoner for a clan of ninja animals - especially a previously noble one such as the eagles - earned me some prestige and respect, not... Shouting and sputtering." He glanced at Geoff, who was shaking with suppressed laughter, and back to Ami, whose head was practically buried in her nest as she tried to hide her shamed face from her summoner. "Is this the best I can expect from the eagles? I've been told I have an open-door policy with the Slugs, even if I've signed on with yours. Maybe I should start talking to Katsuyu." He suggested, forcing himself not to smile.

He could see Ami trying to hold back panic - she would _never_ live this down if she lost her people their summoner. "I apologize, lord Senju -"

"I mean, isn't Geoff your mate?" He looked to Geoff, Geoff nodded. "Why would you accuse him of lying? And one more thing - I'm fucking with you."

There was silence.

"What?" Came the muffled voice of Ami, clear of panic, now just blank.

"Hibiki-san, I think you just killed us both."

Hibiki looked to Geoff with a large smile, "you mean, you think I just killed you." He said, glee clear even in his voice, he turned back to Ami, who was now standing straight and tall, glaring at her mate with killing intent radiating off of her.

_"Gejoforra..."_ The she-eagle growled, her personality going from embarrassed and fearful to angry and vengeful at the drop of a hat.

Geoff gulped deeply, "yes, Am -" Before he could even finish, he was blasted from his place by a wind bullet, and sent cawing pitifully through the air.

Hibiki burst out into laughter, feeling that perhaps his week here wouldn't be entirely wasted after all. Even if he didn't learn to fly, at least he'd be able to get to know his summons better.

* * *

"So, I fly up to the medic like a seagull coming in to shore, the doctor looks as me and says - '_oh Kami, we've been with him for not even a year and we're already taking injured!'."_ Said Geoff, as he gesticulated with his wings. "So he douses me with some senjutsu techniques, and lets me know that the scar will be permanent." He traced over the scar on his face, "and barely an hour later -"

Realizing where he was going with this, Ami started choking on her food, a 'plate', of sorts, of half of a dozen fish. Hibiki's 'plate' - which was honestly a few oversized leaves holding his food - was the only one with cooked food, as Hibiki was the only one in the entirety of Amerigo unable to digest raw fish. _"Gejoforra -"_ She sputtered, _"don't you -"_ She coughed.

But Geoff was just hitting his stride, "I go down to the lake to get myself some fish, and I _crash _into this clean-feathered hen, and out of instinct I clench my talons -"

_"Gejoforra!"_ Shrieked a scandalized Ami, though when she heard Hibiki chuckling, she realized she was losing the fight to retain _any_ amount of dignity in front of her summoner.

"And before I realize what's happening - she clenches her talons around mine and we're falling to the water! She doesn't let go until we're just a few inches from the surface of the water -"

_"O- only because this rodent is a scout and his grip is harder than steel!"_ Struggled Ami. _"_He wasn't letting go!"

Hibiki grinned, "I dunno, Ami. Sounds kind of like you were looking for a sugar daddy."

Geoff laughed, "so, she lets go, I let go, I hit the water, and without really meaning to, I surface with two fish. So I figure - hey, accident or not I _did_ just court her, might as well try my luck." He finished, "and next thing I know we're making our nests."

Hibiki chuckled, "_nice."_ He said.

Geoff grinned in an eagle way, "oh, if you think _that's_ nice, you should hear about last week, when -" Before he could finish, he was blasted in the face with a weak stream of water.

Hibiki blinked, and turned to look at Ami, who had the remnants of the technique dripping from her beak. An eyebrow raised, Hibiki asked, "I thought eagles were wind-natured by default?"

Reveling in a chance to recover her image, Ami responded, "we are, but that doesn't mean we cannot use other natured techniques, they just use more chakra than wind."

Hibiki nodded, eyebrows narrowing. "Can you do that again?" He asked, eyes slowly morphing into his Sharingan shape.

Ami blinked, "I beg your pardon?"

"I think I saw something, but I wasn't sure." Hibiki grinned, "so please, by all means, blast your sugar daddy in the face again."

With his perfect, one could say eagle-eyed, vision, Hibiki didn't miss the twitch in Ami's eye. She turned her head and Hibiki saw the flow of chakra as she prepared the water technique again. For just a few seconds, her chakra flowed fluidly through her body, before it suddenly stopped - as if it hit a barrier, right around the area where her lungs were. For not even an instant there was no motion, but then the chakra built up, and Hibiki saw it all happen in slow motion - the build up of pressure, the expansion of her lungs, and then a small opening through which the thin stream of water splashed out, not shot forth with chakra, but through the pressure of her clenched lungs, and the ever-so-tiny opening she made with her beak.

Hibiki grinned, continuing to watch as the water streamed outward and caught a flabbergasted Geoff in the face again.

He nodded, after the stream died down into a dribble. "Alright... I think I got what I needed."

Coughing, Geoff asked - "what did you need that necessitated my nearly drowning?!"

"A visual aid." It put some things in perspective for him, though he'd have to wait for his chakra to build up and for the next day to begin before he could apply it. "So, Ami, tell me - what kind of dirt do you have on Geoff?" He nodded to the scout, whose eyes widened as he realized what the human was doing. "I mean, we've been giving you a hard time all night. I figure we might as well bust his balls too." He grinned as he recognized the Tsunade-esque conspiratorial glare in Ami's eyes.

"Now that you mention it..." Said Ami, "he did tell me once about his run-in with a few combat caste."

_"Oh no... No! No no no!"_

* * *

Hibiki's little 'experiment' with Ami the night earlier had yielded what he would venture to call _perfect_ results.

Well, almost perfect.

The water technique the she-eagle had used had worked on the pressure/release theory Hibiki had come up with earlier that day, but was less black and white than his. The way he pictured it, he thought of a balloon - when one blew up a balloon and then let the air out, it didn't just all explode outwards in one triumphant fart, it all had to first get funneled through the comparatively _small_ opening through which the air was introduced in the first place. The result was a great deal of force being pushed through a small medium - and the balloon flew away. Like a rocket, or a jet.

Hibiki had been trying to build up the pressure and then just let loose the floodgates, where he should have just been letting it out through a thin 'shaft' of sorts. So, when the next day came around, he had somewhere around five hundred clones all trying to put his theory to practice. He called the preliminary result the 'rocket boot' technique - by building up chakra in his feet and not releasing it, he built up the 'pressure', and then he slightly opened the tenketsu on his feet - which, alone, took him dozens of clones and several hours to figure out how to do with any kind of stability. Tenketsu weren't really meant to be slightly opened or mostly closed, they were meant to be open or closed, no middle-ground. Even the Hyuga, who had more control over their individual tenketsu than most, but even they didn't partially open or close theirs - Hibiki had concluded that they just built up the pressure, and then blasted it outwards, using their gentle fist as a medium. So Hibiki had had to figure out to do something that was either impossible, or so difficult that no one even tried. Worse for him was that there wasn't anything he could think of from Back Home that could help him here, so he was essentially on his own. He equated what he was trying to do with trying to use a body part that one hadn't ever even known had existed. Closing his fists didn't work, tying down his feet with any manner of binding agent didn't work, focusing _real hard_ didn't work. He had at one point tried just letting out small streams of his pressurized chakra, but that had had the exact opposite effect, generating no force, just relieving the pressure on his tenketsu, meaning he would have been better off just letting loose the floodgates and blasting off again.

Late, late one afternoon - as the sun was deep in the sky, turning it into a dark orange - the Alpha found himself sitting in the center of the great field, watching his clones as they tried to nearly close their tenketsu. His hands and feet were burning with the after-effects of all of the chakra he'd been literally pumping through them, and he simply sat there, feet splayed out and hands resting on the flat, grassy ground. Sweat poured down his head, and he was breathing heavily.

_I know _what_ I need to do... I don't know _how_ I need to do it..._ Thought Hibiki, very aware of the hundreds of pairs of eagle eyes were settling on him, as they figured out that he - being the only one who rested out of the hundreds of clones pushing themselves to the breaking point - was the only one actually taking the time to rest, and must be the Alpha. _Physically clenching my muscles or blocking these tenketsu doesn't do jack... But I can't just partially close it, so what the hell?_ He held up one of his hands and stared at it, as if it would just up and reveal its secrets to its resurrected master.

"Reveal to me thine secrets." Hibiki muttered, inspecting the limb with his dojutsu. _Let's think about this for a second... Maybe my problem isn't that I need to partially close it, but partially open it..._ He felt his face falling as he realized what connection he was drawing. _Farting._ Or, more specifically, trying to fart without making too much noise.

He didn't even want to explain it to himself. He just stood up and closed all of the tenketsu on his legs and feet and started building up the pressure inside. If this worked, he would need to make something up, because even he wouldn't be able to believe that this had worked. After he had enough pressure built in his legs, he clenched the tenketsu as tight as he could, and after a few moments, partially opened them. _Alright, fuck it. Now or never._ He opened the tenketsu on his feet.

The result was that he certainly took off, but not in any stable fashion. He flew straight up into the air, for just a second an elated feeling entered his system, until he slipped up for a half second and began uncontrollably flailing about. The clone spun, flipped end over end, hurtling through the air in a wild pattern as what he would refer to as his 'rocket boots', and never anything else, kept him flying. In a brief moment of panic, he let loose the floodgates so all of the chakra would leave his legs - exacerbating the problem, but also letting him detonate his chakra without any danger of blowing apart his legs. Even with his attempts to detonate his chakra, he still ended up slamming into the ground pretty hard.

_"Oooooow..."_ Groaned the displaced man in his native tongue, _"that hurt... Progress hurts... But it was progress."_ He muttered, digging himself out of his crater. Looking up, he saw a clone standing above him, bewildered expression painted on his face, but hand extended nonetheless. The Alpha accepted the help of the clone.

"So..." The clone said, giving the Alpha a look over.

_"Never trust a fart."_ Hibiki stretched his back, spawned a clone, and popped it quickly.

The clone who helped him burst out laughing.

Now aware that he could 'clench' his tenketsu, he had a method with which to start flying. As time went on, he and his clones kept either failing to take off, or he took off and was completely unable to take control of himself before he smashed into the ground with a sickening 'splat'. Hibiki came to hate the 'splat', every time he heard it he got a brief flash of panic and pain, though his clones kept soldiering on - what didn't kill the Alpha only made him stronger, they liked to think. He tried putting less power into the initial 'burn', and while that worked in letting him levitate, it only let him float just a few inches off the ground, and if he put more power into it to try and really get moving, eventually he'd lose control again.

The problem, he started to learn, was in that his feet were the only things propelling him off of the ground. If one moved even a centimeter too far, or in the wrong direction, the two opposing forces would send him careening out of control and would send him spinning and flailing about, which would only end in a splat, or a hard landing.

Three days passed by like this - he got down the art of take off, but absolutely nothing he did worked to give him control. Once, he'd tried to see what would happen if he just leapt off of the top of one of the large oak trees and winged it - no pun intended - and he'd gotten interesting results, but nothing he could _really_ use. What he'd done with that experiment had been to lock both of his legs together - kind of like what it would be like if they had been tied together for a three legged race, or if they'd been covered in the types of casts used for broken bones. He had a much greater control over where he went and how he went there, but that control only for his pitch - up and down; he had absolutely no control over his yaw, the left or right.

As the sun was high in the sky on the fifth day, the sky a deep orange and all of the Hibikis - from the clones to the Alpha - were all covered in sweat from their work, Hibiki noticed Washita was among the crowds watching him. It was impossible to miss the building-sized eagle, even if he was standing at the edge of his clearing and was somewhat covered in the shadows of the trees.

Breathing heavily, Hibiki raised both hands in a submissive gesture. "Got any advice, Boss?" He asked.

Washita stared at Hibiki deeply, eyes narrowed in thought. He slowly padded his way to the Senju heir, "I must admit, Hibiki. I do not know what you expect to get from me... I have seen many humans in my day, few have shown ingenuity like you. Others try to fit the mold, try to mimic what they see, but you train and create like a man possessed, almost as if you have seen it all before." He explained, "this... 'Rocket' technique you have told myself and Gejoforra about, I would never have even considered such a thing feasible, and yet you created it with little help on our end. I truly believe you could have done it _without_ us, given time... But there is something I clearly see you missing." He came to a halt in front of the Alpha Hibiki, as others kept sputtering and taking off, managing to keep control for a few seconds before something inevitably went wrong and they went splat.

"What would that be?" Hibiki panted.

In response, Washita spread his impressive wingspan as far as he could, and took off with a great leap. With his Sharingan, Hibiki saw the 'air bubble' surround Washita as he used his wings to climb into the air, allowing him to climb and float quicker than a being of his weight and mass would have been able to on his own. Washita levitated for just a moment, before he took a nose-dive straight for the ground.

Hibiki blinked, what was this bird doing?

_"YOU LACK A MEANS -"_ Washita roared, before he suddenly did a hairpin turn and was flying up once again. _"- OF CONTROL!"_

Hibiki stared at the bird, as he halted himself, and soon hovered back down towards the ground. "I think I've figured that out, Boss."

Washita shook his head, and landed with a ground-shaking thump. "You misunderstand me. How do you think the lesser eagles, those without chakra-born sentience, fly? Faith? They use their wings, Hibiki. Us winged use our wings to control our motion - left or right, up or down, we use our wings as a way to control our propulsion." He nodded to the clones, "your clones are relying upon the propulsion alone as their means of control. While possible, it is... Incredibly difficult." He grinned, in his own way. "I tried. So my advice would be to find a means of control. A means of stabilizing yourself, that doesn't rely solely upon that which propels you through the air."

_So, all I need is a Red Bull._ Hibiki nodded, "alright." How the hell could he grow himself wings? He'd already tried throwing up a superman pose, or bending his body every which way to try and guide himself, but nothing he did worked.

* * *

That night, as he laid in his sleeping bag, he stared at the naked, bright, beautiful stars. He didn't remember much about Men In Black, but the 'stare at the stars' monologue always stuck with him, and it wasn't necessarily wrong, either. Whenever he looked at the stars, he either forgot about his problems, or they had a way of working themselves out. Tonight, what with the subject matter, he found himself thinking about flight. Washita's words made a certain amount of sense - even fighter jets and passenger airplanes had wings which helped them navigate the skies. Back Home, technology had it all figured out - people couldn't fly, so they built machines to do it for them. People couldn't survive out in space, so they trapped air in tin cans and flew it out there.

Thinking of rockets and space, he wondered about Back Home. Obviously, time had to be moving on - Katsuo had to have come from a time before him, which meant that after death, time continued. He wondered how much time had passed since he'd died - had it just been the ten years he'd experienced here in the elemental nations? Or had more time than that passed? Were his people out exploring space yet? Or were they still figuring out how to get it done? He remembered that they'd had some kind of jet-pack around the time he'd died - hell, he remembered that some French guy, or at least he thought he'd been French, had made a jet pack and had flown from Europe to the UK in several hours. Even _that_ thing had wings.

_I wonder if they'll ever figure out an Iron Man._ Thought the displaced man, as he stared at the twinkling stars. _That would've gotten us flying around._ Thinking back on it, his plight was somewhat similar to the titular character from the movies - though he could hardly remember half of what happened in them. _Oh hell, who am I kidding? They probably already have. For all I know, my present wasn't even the present, but time travel isn't something I want to fuck with._

He shook his head, and pulled the sleeping bag up further over his head. _Maybe I need to start looking at it a different way. Maybe it isn't wings I'm looking for... I mean, I don't **just** have to push chakra out of my feet. What if I... I dunno, pushed it out of several tenketsu at once? Kind of defied gravity by proxy?_ Close to the 'air bubble' the eagles made, but not the same thing.

However, those thoughts made Washita's words again come to mind. Other people always tried to 'fit the mold', just replicate what they saw, just like they saw it. Trying to push chakra out of all - or several - tenketsu at once would just burn his chakra, and would take so much concentration that he'd have to divide his concentration between flying and fighting, and that would get him killed. He couldn't push chakra out of the tenketsu on his back - he'd tried, but there was no way to 'angle' the chakra down and make him fly up, it only went straight out, and pushed him forward - as if there was a rope tied to the wall and it was pulling him towards it.

He yawned, and turned to his side. _Maybe I should just stop trying to replicate Superman and try to pull an Iron Man._ He thought, closing his eyes.

He stayed silent and still for a grand total of ten seconds, before he opened his eyes again.

_Oh god damn it, you've got to be kidding me._ Slowly, he leaned back up, Sharingan blazing, staring at his hands. _It can not be that simple. _How did Iron Man fly in the movies? He strapped rockets to his feet to act as a propellant, and then to his hands to act as a stabilizer.

What the _hell_ was stopping him from doing the same thing?

Staring at his hands, Hibiki sighed, and shrugged. What was the worst that could happen? Another clone would go splat?

* * *

With a start, the Scout-caste Eagle whom was housing the lone summoner, awoke. He blinked hard as his vision adjusted nearly instantly, tilting his head this way and that as he wondered what awoke him. He unlocked his feet and slipped away from his mate, sensing movement and the flow of chakra above him, in the same nest that Hibiki had begun sleeping in.

Concerned, the scarred scout took off and flew up to the nest, seeing Hibiki standing on the edge opposite to him. The eagle tilted his head, blinking once to make sure his perfect eyes weren't lying, and sure enough, they weren't - Hibiki was standing there, on the edge of the nest, one foot hanging over the edge and his eyes staring down to the distant ground.

Was this something all humans did? Even if it was, it concerned - and frightened, though he wouldn't admit that - Geoff, so he padded his way over to the prepubescent shinobi.

"Er... Hibiki, what's up, man? What are you -" Without warning, Hibiki stepped off, gravity taking control instantly and pulling him towards the ground.

Had it been anyone else, from any caste, save for maybe the combat caste, they wouldn't have reacted fast enough - scouts needed to process information the moment they got it, and react just as quickly. This meant that, with a brief, panicked shout, Gejoforra was in the air in a second and soaring after the Senju heir. However, when he reached the edge of the nest, was when he saw a miracle - rocketing straight upwards, almost colliding with the person-sized eagle, was the very same human who had just made the suicidally stupid leap.

This was enough to shock the scout into a stupefied silence, as he levitated in the air, wings outstretched and flapping gently, staring at the chunin as he soared into the sky, laughing, hooping, and hollering with glee as he did so. Slowly, the eagle landed back on the nest, watching the human as he did what a great many eagles had written off as impossible - or at least impractical.

A human being had entered the domain of the Winged, and from the looks of it, he was having the time of his life.

With his eagle eyes, Gejoforra could see every minute detail about the human, and he knew the view would be one he wouldn't soon forget. The wide, triumphant, gleeful smile, the arms and legs spread and almost literally bursting with chakra, the gleam in his bright red eyes, the sounds of his laughter and cheers, it all burned its way into the scouts mind. Even more impressive was how quickly the boy took to flying - almost like he'd done, or at least seen, it before.

After several minutes, the boy finally spread his arms and legs wide - and pointed both forward, with a large pulse of pale blue chakra accompanying the motion - effectively performing an air-brake and halting him wholesale. He hovered in the air for a few moments, legs locked together and hands at his hips, palms facing the ground. There was a pale, just visible blue stream of chakra bursting from his hands, likely being what kept him afloat, if the Eagle had to guess. The human rotated a bit, experimenting with guidance, before he caught sight of his host, and turned towards him, hurtling straight towards the nest.

He came in hard, and if the eagle hadn't seen it, he wouldn't have believed it, but with a flip, he went from hurtling towards the ground face-first and then landed on his feet, skidding forward for a few feet before he thrust his hands forward and pulsed chakra from them, generating a powerful gust of wind and bleeding off a great deal of his momentum. Hibiki came to a halt just a meter from Gejoforra.

He looked to the eagle, with the world's most victorious grin on his face, and said, "yeah. I can fly." And he burst into smoke.


	36. Dive

Chapter 35

* * *

In Amerigo, there was a certain level of silence that just pervaded the very environment. While it was true that there were nonsentient animals that made noise, and the noise of eagles hunting for food, and other winged singing their songs, there was little to truly break that white-noise. It was much unlike a great deal of human society, which almost relied on the white-noise of its population centers to function, giving birth to the human phrase 'too quiet'. Even when the winged summons flew, they made little noise save for their calls. Their chakra created the wind-shield that allowed them to defy gravity and cancel wind resistance, but it was wholly silent, and even the movement of their wings didn't break the silence of the environment around them.

So, when the sound of a demon banshee's guttural roar suddenly invaded the ears of all of the winged, followed by the nearly hysterical laughter of a distinctly non-avian voice, a great many eagles were appropriately terrified. Ever since their summoner had provided the facts needed to cripple the hawks, they hadn't lived under the fear of attack - they hadn't had to look up. With this sudden break in the peaceful silence of their lands, many assumed they were being attacked, and the populations of many a caste took to the sky, with the males taking an aggressive stance and summoning their steel plumage, and their females joining them after hiding the children.

It took not but a few seconds for the source of the disturbance to be located. Even without the noise, it was somewhat impossible not to notice it, what with the bright blue geysers blasting out of his hands and creating the deep roar.

_"By the air - it is Lord Hibiki!"_ One eagle, a scout with better vision than even other eagles, said after he narrowed his eyes. _"Lord Hibiki has joined us in the air!"_ He cawed, joined by the distant cheers and laughter of the human in question as he threw his hands and feet forward and halted his forward momentum, before he blasted straight up into the air in the blink of an eye and the clap of thunder.

_"Do you see?"_ A deep-voiced Combat Caste called out, pointing with one wing while his chakra and his other kept him aloft, _"it is our summoner!"_ His voice carried through the sky, reaching many but falling flat on others due to the copious amounts of noise. _"A human can fly!"_ He cried out with pride; the human he indicated bent his back and started hurtling downwards in large, showy spirals, an enormous, toothy grin plastered over his face, his bright red eyes wide and glowing.

Slowly, word began to spread through word of mouth, and soon enough everyone was airborne, watching as the human played in the domain of the winged. The human was enjoying the experience as much as he was testing out what he could do, performing maneuvers, blasting forward and slowing to a crawl, even once cutting power to his flight technique and diving towards the ground, terrifying many eagles before he threw out both hands and feet and avoided a splat before it was too late.

After a while, the sky grew dark, as the massive shape of Washita took flight. Whoever didn't have their eyes locked onto their summoner, looked to their Boss, who hovered in the air and watched the human with pride in his eyes. The enormous bald eagle tracked Hibiki's flight, and the less notable flight of the scout tailing him, only partially unable to believe what he was seeing. Hibiki had said he could do it, and Washita had believed him if only because he had no other reason to not believe his summoner.

Soon, the summoner noticed the massive eagle watching him, and blasted over towards him, coming to a halt several meters from the boss.

_He uses his hands as we would wings... This human will do great things, for us and for his people._ The big boss smiled an eagle smile. _"Hibiki Senju... Welcome to the sky!"_ With a great flourish, Washita beat his wings and took off upwards, soon joined by several other eagles, who began a domino effect which ended with the lone human hovering in the center of an enormous spherical mass of flying creatures, watching it all with a massive smile on his proud face.

The smile turned to a deep grin, and Hibiki blasted upwards, breaking the sphere in a veritable explosion of eagles as they made way for him, and soon everyone - even the boss - fell in behind him, allowing him to take the lead.

* * *

Hours later, after what equated to a flying party, Hibiki remembered rather vividly thinking once that flying sucked.

As he soared through the air far faster than any human being had any right to, he decided he'd take the time to amend that thought: Flying rocked.

Flying voluntarily rocked.

Using old, arguably corrupted, memories of Hollywood to solve his problems rocked.

Flying, voluntarily, because he used old, arguably corrupted, memories of Hollywood to solve his problems was just plain _awesome._

Hibiki was mentally smacking himself for how long it had taken him to figure out how to solve his stabilizing problem. The answer had already been there, locked away in that bit of his mind that he thought about not nearly as often as he liked. Was there _no fucking end_ to the amount of problems that fiction from Back Home could solve?

Need to figure out how to make a one-shot super-punch? Draw from Smash Bros..

Need to figure out how to escape from a couple gun-wielding thugs, while tied to a tree? Hollywood has it covered.

Need to figure out how to control explosive chakra? Draw from Dragonball.

Need to figure out how to recreate one of the most powerful chakra-based attacks in the entire world? Dragonball again.

Need to figure out how to fucking _fly?_ Draw from Hollywood, which itself drew from comic books.

What did they all have in common?

_Don't try this at home._ Thought a victorious displaced man, reveling in his newfound skill.

If he had to pick his absolute favorite moment of his new life, he'd choose this one - even figuring out the kamehameha paled in comparison to this. He had two days before he had to return to Konoha and then blast off in time for Kiri, so he felt it was time to check in on one of his clones. Hands at his sides, blasting out chakra in a constant, roaring stream, he soared through the air with a massive grin on his face, heading for the largest uninhabited lake he could find. Finding a body of water with no lake-side residents was surprisingly difficult in Amerigo, given that three quarters of the population were avian, and most preferred eating fish, most tended to live near or around lakes.

Hibiki oriented himself so his feet were toward the ground as the lake in question came into view, it was a _massive_ one, almost as large as a city, and the best part was that it was several dozen kilometers from any trees big enough for the Eagles to live in, and the environment around, rocky as it was, wasn't conducive to most fish-eating species, meaning Hibiki's clones could run wild. As the Alpha Hibiki came in for a landing, he saw a blinding white orb of chakra fly outwards and detonate in an enormous explosion, sending a massive shockwave flying through the air and disturbing the already raging lake.

"So, no luck?" The Alpha inquired, as he came in to land; he'd left this clone to mull about alone specifically because he didn't want two conflicting sets of memories from two separate training sessions mucking about with his flight training.

The clone shook his head, "can't blow shit up with the kamehameha, can't tone down the BBA." He said with a light sigh, before he turned to the Alpha, as the glow from the distant explosion died down. "I'd say I see you got your experiment down, but it's kind of hard to ignore constant bursts of memory from a thousand of us." He said.

"This... Is very weird." Chuckled Hibiki, shaking his head.

"I'm talking to myself."

"And I'm responding." The Alpha sighed, "so, no real updates?"

"No."

"Then I'm going to go, Big Boss wants to see how fast I can get going, and Geoff volunteered."

"Good luck, Mister Stark."

"Yeah yeah, asshole." Hibiki launched himself into the air, where a human-sized eagle was hovering there, waiting for him.

"So, what was that, Hibiki-san?" Geoff asked, as he looked around, eyes narrowed and a shiver running down his back.

"Absolutely nothing, unfortunately." Said Hibiki, who noticed Geoff's look, "what's wrong?"

Geoff shook his head, "nothing, we just try not to fly near the Arid Lake is all." He said.

Hibiki inclined his head and narrowed his eyes briefly, unable to shrug. "Alright, so what're the rules of this little race?" He asked, pumping just enough chakra through his hands and feet to keep him aloft, this stream much more muted and less roaring than the earlier one.

Geoff blinked, turning his head to Hibiki and ceasing his worried looks around, "what rules? Just don't freeze to death." Hibiki had learned the hard way that flying fast was a quick way to freeze, and flying through the clouds had nearly given him hypothermia.

Hibiki raised his eyebrow, staring at the scarred scout with an amused expression, "did I hear that right? No rules?"

"Can't see what you're capable of if we restrict you." Said Geoff, as he started a mental countdown.

"Hm. We going anywhere specific, or just flying?"

"Pick a direction." _Three... Two... One. _On one, Hibiki hurtled off to the southwest.

_Okay... Give him a few seconds._ Thought the eagle, as he turned mid-air and watched Hibiki turn into a small dot. Hibiki might not be a sore loser, but Geoff could tell it wasn't his favorite thing to lose. What Geoff was watching for was less any problems in Hibiki's form, and more for problems with the way Hibiki flew. It was a very strange way to fly - only thrust, no true guidance outside of more thrust. Hibiki had replaced wings with more power, and if ever he had to turn, he just thrust his hands out and made his mid-air brakes; however, being a winged creature, Geoff was therefor native to the sky, and if anything, he could help make Hibiki's flight more efficient. Hibiki had tried bundling up in extra clothes after they'd found what Hibiki was calling 'the icing problem', but Geoff and Ami had shot that one down - adding wind resistance would make Hibiki slower and more sluggish mid-air, and to make up for that speed loss he would have to burn more chakra, which would give him less air-time. He'd also told Hibiki that he should start dressing in less baggy clothing if he wanted to decrease wind-resistance, but Hibiki had drawn the line at switching out his pants, and had nearly started fighting Geoff when the Eagle had insisted he do so. Geoff had never, in his life, heard anyone shout so loud about their legwear.

_Wait a second..._ Geoff narrowed his eyes. Hibiki was flying southwest, and they were at the Arid Lake. His eyes widened, as he realized where Hibiki was headed. "Oh Kami..." Caution almost literally thrown to the wind, Geoff took of with single flap of his great wings, pushing himself as hard as he could to catch up with the Senju heir.

The ground was flying beneath him, slowly turning from the rocky expanse to grassy plains, but Geoff could not say he was familiar with these plains - he was specifically not familiar with these ones except for their description, and direction and proximity relevant to the Arid Lake. The green blurry ground below was not what he focused on, nor did he focus on the slowly graying sky above him, he was focused completely on the Senju heir with the blue fire blasting out of his hands and feet.

_"HIBIKI-SAN!"_ Cawed the scout, once he knew he was within earshot, even with the roaring winds doing their best to deafen them both.

The Senju heir turned his head to the scout, who was trying to calculate how soon they would arrive at their speed, and not liking what he was coming up with. However, his response was the exact opposite of what he wanted to hear, _"oh come on, Geoffrey! You said it yourself - no rules in this race, asshoooooooooole!"_ He called out before he accelerated with a thunderclap.

The scout cursed, and flapped his powerful wings harder as he poured more chakra outwards, effectively cancelling air resistance and allowing him to fly faster than the human could ever hope to. It was difficult, if not impossible, to explain to anyone outside of the Winged Domain, but the Avian Summons' particular method of defying gravity allowed them to reach speeds impossible for the non-sentient birds, meaning he caught up with the Summoner in a matter of seconds, and when the human noticed, he flipped himself around, back facing the ground, to give the Eagle his dues.

_"Damn, son, I didn't know you could -"_

_"Hibiki-san, we need to turn around! Right! NOW!"_

Hibiki scrunched up his face in playful disbelief, _"what happened to 'figuring out what I can really do?"_ The human called out over the roaring winds, _"worried I'll embarrass you when we get home?"_ The human was grinning, he had no idea where they were headed to.

Geoff shook his head, _"you don't under-"_ He cut himself off when he saw it, just on the horizon, a place that no Eagle had ever dared visit in centuries. _"Hibiki, TURN AROUND!"_

With a tilted Head, Hibiki flipped himself back so his belly faced the ground, and his head faced the horizon. _"What're you afraid of, Geoff?"_ He asked, squinting his eyes as they slowly turned blood-red, _"I don't see -"_ No sooner had he tempted fate than had fate responded with the thunderous sound of a distant explosion. Before either of them could blink, the place in the distance lit up as a small plume of smoke suddenly shot out. Without thinking, or slowing down, Hibiki uttered,_ "what the fu-" _But was cut off by the realization of the scope of his fuck up. His eyes allowed him to see it as it approached, unlike Geoff's, his increased his rate of perception, meaning he saw it all happening in slow motion. The object flying through the air was shaped conically, with a fine point; it spun rapidly, and it flew at speeds far beyond Hibiki and Geoff were, but unfortunately for them, they were heading straight towards it, meaning that their window to dodge it came and went before they even knew what was happening. Despite the fact that Hibiki could clearly see it with his Sharingan, despite his great reflexes, this thing was approaching them too quickly - so quickly, in fact, that even to the Sharingan it was moving fast.

Though, to Hibiki, it was happening all in slow motion, to Geoff, it was happening blisteringly fast. No sooner had the horizon lit up in a brief, almost imperceptible flash, than did the air right next to Hibiki explode, sending him careening downwards, spinning out of control, his clothes smoldering and droplets and small streams of blood following his trail, as his forward momentum dictated he keep moving towards the cursed place.

With a shout of panic, Geoff dived for the ground, praying that the tall grass could shield him from the ever-watchful eyes of the Wraiths. He felt fear clench his heart as he realized his mistake: He'd taken his eyes off of Hibiki. He'd lost him.

_Oh Kami... Oh Kami, oh Kami, oh Kami..._ Prayed Geoff, as something else whizzed by above him, soon followed by another distant explosion. _What have I done? Why didn't he tell me, tell anyone he was training near the ARID LAKE?! Why didn't WE tell him NOT TO DO THAT?!_ The Eagle slowed himself down, unable to reliably fly at such great speeds so close to the ground, and in such thick grass. _Why didn't the Boss tell me that he didn't know?!_

He swallowed thickly through a dry throat as he realized that he literally had no other choice: He had to breach the forbidden place to find his summoner. He had to defeat, or sneak by, the Wraiths - something no other eagle had done in history - and find Hibiki.

_Damn it... Damn it, damn it! Why didn't I go Combat Caste?!_ Thought the terrified Eagle as he soared closer to the Wraith. _Okay... Speed, if I move fast, I can dodge it, right? It can't hit what it can't track!_ With those thoughts, the eagle burst forth from the grass and soared straight into the air.

Immediately he regretted his decision.

There were tales of the Wraiths, they were usually used to scare chicks to staying close to the forests and their mothers, and away from any predators. It had been a long time since Geoff had heard these tales - having stopped believing them since his second year as a Scout - but the more time he spent here, the more his mother's hushed tales came to mind. There were the Wraiths that could destroy you before you even saw them, like the one that had blown Hibiki out of the sky, and then there were the Wraiths who could hit you even if you flew faster than a Scout. Before Geoff could even blink, the sound of constant, never-ending thunder exploded from in front of him, and a line of bright white fire burst forth, trailing behind him by mere inches, following his every movement. Barely a second later, another Wraith added its fire, and then another, and another, and soon the air was filled with the staccato of Wraithfire, and it was everything Geoff could to to outpace the multiple crisscrossing lines of fire.

He got the briefest of glimpses of what lay behind the wraiths, and in that brief instant, all he had time to focus on was where Hibiki had landed - far behind their defensive line, he hit the ground hard, bounced, and left a crater as he dragged to a halt.

_Shit!_ Thought the Eagle, as he hairpin-dived straight for the ground again, which got torn apart by the Wraith's technique for a few seconds, before all was silent again, save for the sound of him flying through the grass. _I can't do that again!_ They didn't even need to know where he was going, there were so many of them that he couldn't dodge them forever, and he didn't want to risk flying along the ground to try and get underneath them - Kami only knew what the Wraiths had defending their land.

_Okay... New plan!_ Desperately thought the eagle, _they... I... It took them a second or two to find me and then start attacking, so maybe I can hit them with a wind bullet and then dive back into the grass._ No other plans available, Geoff thrust his wings powerfully and flew straight into the air.

For just a brief second, he looked down and around. He saw one of them - the horrifying, rustic red pill-shaped back, the multiple, spinning beaks. It took not even an instant to start turning to him, and that act alone scared Geoff so badly that he almost dived for the ground again, but he narrowed his eyes in determination, built up his chakra within him, and blasted it with a wind bullet, full-force.

The impact did absolutely nothing, save for denting its back. Its beaks started spinning rapidly, with a horrendous grinding noise, Geoff dived for the ground just as they spat hot fire and screamed thunder - he felt the heat of their techniques pass by his tail, and a sharp stinging pain told him he'd been hit, but he prayed it wasn't bad, because he couldn't afford to stop moving and check himself for injuries.

Hurtling through the tall grass, Geoff was desperately flying for his life and for time to make a plan. If his only _good_ long-range attack barely even hurt these monsters, what hope did he have of fighting through them to get to Hibiki? He didn't want to test the Steel Wing technique on these things - he feared they would just rip straight through them. He considered just flying straight up, so high that they couldn't see him, but he and Hibiki had been just below the clouds earlier, and so far that even Geoff's eyes couldn't make out all of the Wraiths' details, and they'd still seen them both, so how could he even hope to fly so high he could evade their sight, dodge their attacks, and dive back behind their lines without them noticing? What if there was something even worse behind them?!

_No, NO! I NEED to find a way past them! My summoner - my friend - is dying, and I'm the only one who can help him!_ Twice now he'd burst up from the grass and it had taken the Wraiths a couple moments to find him - that meant they couldn't move or see as fast as he or Hibiki could. If he could build up his speed, he could burst straight past them and make it to Hibiki! It was his only shot! _I can't use the Steel Wing, it'll weigh me down and make me fly slower... I have to put everything into the air technique - I have to fly straight past them! I can do this!_ Thought the determined eagle as he channeled all of his natural chakra into the air bubble surrounding him, saturating the air so much that it looked like an orb of green light was hurtling through the grass, twisting and turning and avoiding phantom attacks.

_NOW!_ Geoff burst up into the sky and hurtled for the Wraiths, flying so fast that things were blurring together even to him. In what seemed to take an eternity, he flew straight for a gap between two Wraiths as they turned to meet him and started spinning their beaks. Just as he crossed between them, they started firing - but they couldn't track him when he made it behind them, they couldn't turn any further than they had, their attacks flew into the sky, harmlessly hitting nothing but air.

_Ha ha! Yes!_ Geoff turned to look back at his victory, but when he turned back, he almost dropped white. _NO!_ He crashed through a half tree-trunk shaped building, it tearing at his feathers and skin as he smashed through its wall, collided with several other objects inside, and hit the ground a few moments later, a large gust of wind following him as the air caught up with the formerly speeding eagle.

_"Ow... Oh, ow..."_ Groaned the scout, as he dug himself out of a reddish pile of metal and clothe. He was bleeding from several wounds, but he was alive - and he didn't hear any Wraiths cawing in anger, or trying to find and kill him _"Okay... Find Hibiki..."_ He looked around, it was dark where he was, the only light coming from holes in the ceiling, foggy, opaque objects, and the hole he'd made on entry. He leapt into the air and flew through one of the larger holes, but kept as low as possible on exit - he didn't trust anything in this kami-forsaken place.

Quick as he could, the eagle landed and took cover behind one of the dark orange walls, he risked a peek over where he saw the Wraiths; they were slowly, laboriously, scanning the areas they could see, but for whatever reason they weren't turning around, which only made Geoff's hear-rate climb higher: If they were hard to escape, and they kept people out, what would force him out now that he'd gotten past them?

The scout swallowed thickly, _okay... Where's Hibiki?_ He gazed around his surroundings, looking for the craters and debris he'd seen earlier. He was surrounded mostly by overgrown vegetation, thick grass and large, entangling vines, just a few feet in front of him was a massive expanse of stone, flattened and running long in both directions. There were buildings in the distance, all a deep rustic red, with tinges of dark gray, and there were the shattered ruins of buildings as well, they looked like tree-trunks without roots or branches. It reminded Geoff of human architecture, but he'd never really seen anything like this during his work with Hibiki. He saw a tower in the distance, though it looked as if a chunk had been ripped from its top.

Geoff ripped his eyes from the horizon - he wasn't here to learn the secrets of the Wraithland, he had to find Hibiki, and it took him only a moment more to do so - several large stones and a great deal of debris strewn about. With another dry swallow, and a peek over to the Wraiths to make sure they hadn't finally turned around, Geoff leapt forward and glided along the ground for a few meters before he made it to Hibiki. There was a large slab of stone covering Hibiki - who was on his back, one arm bent at an unnatural angle, and the other splayed out in another direction.

_Okay... Just move the stone._ Heavy lifting wasn't his forte, but he could pull his weight - and this stone, while heavy, was nowhere near as heavy as he was on any given day, or Ami was any given night, it relented to his strength with little resistance, and Geoff nearly dropped it, retching, when it was revealed to him Hibiki's sorry state.

"Oh no..." Geoff's nasally voice shook, as his wings slumped and he took in his summoner's health, or lack thereof.

Much of Hibiki's front side had either been blasted, burned, or ripped off on impact. A bone was sticking out of his left ankle, the skin on his right leg had been rubbed raw, with some muscle and bone exposed to the open air, his face was outright missing some skin - though thankfully his distinguishing features and his eyes were still present - but what was most horrifying was his chest. Either the Wraith's attack had exploded much closer than Geoff had thought, or Hibiki had hit the ground entirely too hard, because the skin and muscle from his chest had been blasted off and was scorched black, and his rib-cage was gone. Literally gone - all that was left were broken, jagged edges, covered in bright and dark red blood, and revealing his internal organs. The pale, fleshy sacks with large dark burn-spots, the odd, reddish-purple organ, the - Geoff's wing went up to his beak to hold back in vomit, as the pale white fleshy sacks slowly started inflating, with a rasping, tortured sound.

_Oh dear Kami, those are his lungs!_ A second look revealed to him that the reddish purple organ beat in sync with the blood leaking from his puncture wounds, meaning that was his heart! This tortured soul was still alive!

Geoff backed up a few steps, not believing his wide-open eyes. There was no possible way that Hibiki could still be alive, but here it was, right in front of his eyes - his charred lungs were expanding and contracting in time with Hibiki's weak rasps. Geoff felt his own heart start beating faster, and his breaths came quicker and quicker - what on earth was he supposed to do? He wasn't a medic, and even if he was, Hibiki was _human_, he wasn't an eagle! This was literally outside of his realm of expertise, and he couldn't go to Konoha and retrieve Hibiki's mother - without Hibiki there to summon him, Konoha was entirely too far to travel the conventional way. There were no humans around to help him. He was slowly becoming so frantic that he failed to notice the jet black, scorched parts of Hibiki's lungs were slowly receding, he was too busy trying to find any kind of solution. He couldn't just leave Hibiki here, but he couldn't move him either, he didn't know what would happen if he tried such a thing, he could make the damage worse, he could even kill the poor thing!

_Oh man... What do I do? What do I do, what do I do, what do i do? I never should have suggested this, we should have told him about the Arid Lake, why were we so -_ Geoff blinked, and burst into the sky with a powerful thrust of his wings. The _lake!_ There was a Hibiki clone there, he would know what to do - it was Hibiki, after all!

Geoff could hardly recount a time when he'd flown so fast in his life, even just mere minutes ago in breaking the Wraiths' line paled in comparison to the speed he was generating at this moment. He'd flown past the Wraiths so fast that they'd barely even been able to register him in that brief pause they needed, and when they did, he was already far away, speeding towards the Arid Lake.

It took him sixty seconds to make it to the lake, he didn't know nor did he care how far he'd travelled, he flayed his wings out and broke mid-air. He inhaled deeply and called out, _"HIBIKI-SAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN!"_ So loud that it echoed far and wide in the silent land, there was no way the clone didn't hear it.

Save for his distant echoes, there was silence.

_Oh Kami, no..._ Geoff came down to land, _"HIBIKI-SAN!"_ He cawed, _"HIBIKI-SAN, CLONE-SAN, PLEASE ANSWER ME!"_ He searched around desperately, looking under anything, even diving under the lake's surface, he found nothing. How did Hibiki's clone technique work? He thought Hibiki had told him that these clones were supposed to take big hits and stay alive - _SO WHERE WAS HE?!_

_"Oh no... Oh Kami, oh no... I have to go to the Boss, there's nothing else I can do - he'll know what to do."_ It didn't fucking matter if he got expelled from the caste, if he didn't save Hibiki he would never live it down.

Geoff took off with enough force to send out a shockwave in the nearby lake, and blasted off towards his homeland, praying to every deity he had ever heard of - and even a few he made up on the spot - for his flight to be swift and his arrival to be timely. It didn't matter that his tail was bleeding, or that it would take hours to get home, or that he'd even been attacked by Wraiths, all that mattered was that he was the stupid scout that had left his summoner in the cursed Wraithland and that his summoner was dying.


	37. Wraithlands

Chapter 36

* * *

The displaced man's mind was a haze of pain and agony. Sensory overload of such an impossible caliber that his body had just shut down. So severe were his injuries that even his subconscious could not quantify it through the influencing of his dreams. He was in so much pain that he was quite literally paralyzed by it, barely able to force his lungs to inflate to draw in wheezes of air. Even his heart was having trouble, beating weakly and erratically.

Through the thick haze of his pain-induced coma, without warning, Hibiki felt the presence of another. Without even realizing he'd done so, Hibiki slowly released himself from the ball he'd curled up in to to look up at the figure. Hibiki was so far gone, physically and mentally, that he couldn't tell whether or not he was dreaming. Where was he? Who was this deeply gray-skinned man, and why did he look as alien as he did human?

The mans mouth moved, but Hibiki could hear nothing - whatever was causing this pain was too great, and it seemed like the man knew this. He opened his eyes wide, the rippling, purple orbs piercing Hibiki's own onyx eyes, and the man bypassed all barriers - speaking not to Hibiki's pain addled mind, but to his very soul.

_Let go._ The man said, firmly.

Hibiki clenched his jaw and shut his eyes tight, trying to block out the pain for even a moment to gurgle out a response.

The man seemed to know what Hibiki was going to say before he could even think to say it. _Let go. All will right itself if you just let go._

Hibiki had no idea what this man was talking about. Let go of what? Why was he in so much pain, and who was this man? Was he hallucinating?

_Let go. Things will only deteriorate if you do not. Let go. _There was a pause, _please... Let _go. The man 'spoke' with almost a pleading edge to his voice, as if he were begging the Senju heir to follow his command. _You do not know what you are doing... You do not know what he has done. I beg of you... Let go._

Hibiki clenched his jaw, tightened his chest, focused everything into just three words. _"Who... Are... You?"_ Though Hibiki was more concerned as to why it felt like his body had been smacked repeatedly by a cheese grater, broken in half, and then smashed into a field of acid, he was somewhat curious as to what this thing was and whether or not it was some kind of hallucination.

_I am as you _should_ be. Please, let go. You and I may never get this chance again, you have never been so close as you are now - you can make the decision. Let go._ _Return to the sleep, cross the river, become pure. Things will only deteriorate if you do not. _

Hibiki stared at the man with narrowed, confused eyes, before a blinding white light grew from behind him. The pain increased twofold, and the floating, gray-skinned man widened his eyes, as if in fear, or panic.

_Please. Do not do this - do not wake up. Let go. _

_"Of... What?!"_ Croaked Hibiki, coughing violently as he fell to his knees, his body suddenly feeling a great deal heavier.

_Your second life._ Said the man, as Hibiki laboriously turned his head to the light. _Things will only get worse if you do not._

Hibiki raised his head to look at the man, and slowly turned it to the bright light, as it continued to grow.

_No... No, don't do it, don't wake up - I beg of you David, LET GO!_ He cried out.

Hibiki blinked, as the light enveloped him. What did he just -

* * *

Consciousness hit him like a ton of bricks.

_Okay... Fuck flying._ Groggily thought the Senju heir, as he slowly, exhaustedly, started to rouse from his forced slumber.

_Wait... Wasn't it daylight?_ His eyes burned, as if they hadn't been closed or used in a while. He blinked hard, multiple times, staring up at the bright night sky from his position on his back on the ground. It was a nightly shade of jet black, with countless pearly white stars gleaming above him, as opposed to the bright blue just a few seconds ago. _Okay, get -_ Just as soon as he'd started moving, did his entire body flare up in pain, from his face, to his chest, to his feet, it all seemed as if it had been set on fire and then ran across a cheese grater.

Hibiki slowly, laboriously, turned his head - which, he could feel, was being propped up by several large slabs of rubble - to look at his body. From what he felt behind and underneath him, he was in some kind of crater, he'd landed hard enough to break the stone ground and carve himself a decently sized gouge in the earth, and he must have bounced once or twice, judging from the pain all over his body and the position he'd landed in. After a few seconds, he finally managed to make his head loll about to a position where he could see everything, and he instantly wished he hadn't.

His front was burned and scorched black, and so much skin was missing from his chest that he could see his missing ribs. His entire body was covered in his own blood, his legs were shredded and burned, his shirt was just gone, and he didn't even want to consider what his face must look like. For everything his healing factor was doing, he must have either been lower on chakra than he'd initially realized, or his injuries were far more thorough than his likely blood-starved brain could process. He felt his heart begin beating faster, as he started breathing frantically_,_ both of those factors woke his body up faster, slamming him with the full force of all of the ungodly pain he was dealing with.

_Calm down, damn it!_ Hibiki forced himself to think, _healing factor or not, I'll bleed the fuck out if I start panicking. Calm the fuck down! I got punched in the face by superman, surviving an explosion will - ARE THOSE MY FUCKING LUNGS?!_ Pale, fleshy sacks, covered in blood, were inflating in time with his inhales and exhales. He saw a few dark, burned patches, but they were slowly shrinking before his eyes - his healing factor working its magic, but nowhere near fast enough to remove this vision from his mind.

_HOW THE FUCK AM I EVEN ALIVE?!_ Hibiki mentally screamed. _HOW THE FUCK IS THIS POSSIBLE?! HOW DOES CHAKRA MAKE THIS POSSIBLE?! FUCK THIS, I CALL BULLSHIT, WAKE ME THE FUCK UP, RIGHT NOW!_ For his part, Hibiki _was_ trying to calm down, but seeing his ribcage missing and his lungs exposed to open air - and to his own eyes, no less - was just a little disconcerting.

Even more terrifying were the noises he was hearing. Tortured groans, the sound of raw pain trying to escape from the heavily injured throat of a dying being. It took him a few seconds to realize that those noises were him trying to scream in pain - what was wrong with his face and his throat that he couldn't even scream?!

_Fuck... Fuck! Calm down, damn it! Calm down!_ He mentally yelled at himself, _this is just like at Headquarters, back home. If a victim has a bone sticking out - oh, FUCK this! This isn't some goddamn victim, I have CHAKRA, use it, damn it!_ He searched through everything he knew, for anything he could use.

_"Ffffffffuuuuuuuuuuuck."_ He croaked, the effort taking almost everything he could do just to speak. _Okay... Okay. I... My wolverine release... I can grow bones and make weapons with them... What the high holy hell is keeping me from replacing my _own_ skeleton?_ All of Tsunade's medic books and his own knowledge, however faded it may be, from Back Home told him he could _do this._ He knew what a ribcage was supposed to look like, he knew how many ribs he was supposed to have, all he had to do was make the bones.

Hibiki clenched his eyes shut tight and concentrated. He felt that liquid, runny feeling that came with building new bones. When he made weaponized bones, it felt like skin, muscle, and sinew tearing - obviously that was impossible in the given circumstances, but it did give him a somewhat unique feeling - he had no skin, muscle or tendons in the way, so he could feel exactly what consciously making new bones felt like. The closest comparison he had was in his second life, when he'd been making the barrel for his rifle - to make sure he hadn't deformed or pierced it in any way, he'd placed it in a cold environment and chilled it, before he ran some warm water through it. Feeling the metal go from chilly to warm as the water traveled down it had been surreal, but it was what he equated this to - his chakra being the water, his lungs being the barrel of the gun. He could feel his chakra flowing _inside_ his bones like a warm sludge, and soon he felt his bones growing outwards, recreating themselves from the miracle energy-source that chakra was.

After a few minutes, he let out the breath he hadn't even realized he'd been holding - gasping for air, coughing and wheezing in great pain as he did so. He opened his eyes, and would have smiled if his entire face wouldn't combust whenever he moved it. His rib-cage was back, which was good, but he could physically feel the absence of his chakra, his body had burned a _lot_ of it repairing his internal organs, he could feel it slowly working its magic on his dry throat.

_Fuck... I don't... I can't... Shit._ He knew concentrating would accelerate the process, but that burned more chakra, and he didn't have a lot of that to spend. _What the fuck happened?_ He sighed, leaning his head back and letting it loll about, eventually coming face-to-face - so to speak - with his right arm, which was very obviously broken, given the unnatural angle it was bent, and the ungodly pain burning it.

_Fuck._ Broken arm, _missing_ ribs, and his tibia was sticking out of his skin. His chest was missing, muscles and all, it felt like the right half of his face was gone too, given how raw and enflamed it felt. What the _fuck_ hit him? He'd tanked Sparky-Sparky-Boom-Lad's explosions, Emi Miu's feminine rage, even Katsuo's monster strength, and none of that had done anything even remotely close to this.

_What, did I run into a missile? Hug a block of C4? Inhale dynamite? What the -_ No second thoughts, he forced himself to reach over to his right arm with his left, and force the lopsided portion back into position, "_FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK did -"_ He coughed, falling back to his original position as his face, throat, chest, his entire body exploded into pain, and to make things worse, he started coughing his lungs out, which wasn't the best metaphor to use, given the fact that his lungs had been exposed to open air not three minutes ago. _"I -"_ He hacked and wheezed, _"-hit?"_ The ailing Senju heir gasped. He swore he felt his new ribs and his left arm creak and crack under the stress of his sudden movement.

Oh, would you look at that? His pants were shredded.

_Well fuck my life, those were my favorite pair._ Hopefully he could steal a pair from his clones, Something From Nothing being the cheat code it - he felt his heart drop. "_Oh... god... damn it..."_ He croaked, realizing that this kind of shock, stress and pain would have translated to his clones, they all would have burst, or been knocked out. His mind was too foggy from the pain to focus on finding any new memories, but he was certain he was right, which mean his Chakra Clones back in Konoha were down for the count, killing that part of his plan for Kiri.

Had he been able to, Hibiki would have chuckled mirthlessly. _If I even make it to fucking Kiri._ He could feel his healing factor healing his throat, but eventually he would run out of chakra. _Oh... You know, that may be it._ He stared at his burst chest, _maybe... I feel so drained, because my wolverine blood is using **all** of my chakra to keep my in a kind of... Chakra-stasis. Keeps me from dying, but it also means that if I run out, that's it - I'm dead._

_"Shit."_ Croaked the Senju heir, leaning his head back in his impromptu rubble-bed. _Where the fuck am I? My world for a Byakugan. _He mentally shook his head, forcing his thoughts on the here and now. _Okay... I **know** I can influence my healing factor... I need to change its focus. My throat can goddamn wait, I need my chest back... So, first order of business, fix my arm. _He clenched his burning jaw. _If I can fix my arm, I can focus the healing factor on my chest, and do a diagnosis technique, check for... Uh... I dunno... Fucking... Uh... Word... Shrapnel!_ He gasped, again not realizing he'd held his breath in an attempt to drive away the pain. _God damn it..._ He clenched his eyes again and focused on the runny feeling running towards his arm. It took a few minutes, but eventually the sharp burning dulled down to a constant stinging. He clenched his right hand, and gave the arm a few test movements.

_"Okay..."_ He croaked, laboriously lifting both arms and bringing them to his eyes, which he soon opened again. His arms were in bad shape, but the healing factor he'd focused on his right arm put it in a better position than his left, but that didn't remove the fact that his skin was red raw and pulsing blood in time with his heartbeat. He tried calling on medical chakra, but nothing happened.

_Gah... Focus, damn it!_ He clenched his teeth and his hands, soon enough the green chakra sparked to life, though it was even more muted and grayish than usual. _Alright... Now... My chest._ He focused on his chest, as he brought his hands towards the charred skin, and slowly passed them over. The data from his diagnosis technique, while garbled, told him everything he'd expected: No skin, no muscle, scar tissue on his lungs and his heart indicative of shrapnel wounds, and most of his exposed skin was suffering from fourth degree burns.

Hibiki blinked.

_Oh fuck - _Just as he realized it, he screamed in pain as his healing factor started undoing the damage of his burns, repairing his nerve endings and exposing them to the full force of the damage to his body. If the pain before had been unbearable, then this was nightmarish, even hell-worthy. He didn't stop screaming as his chest slowly, lethargically knitted itself back together from the inside out.

_Jesus fucking zombie Christ getting stabbed by Satan's salty toothpick in a FUCKING GAS-STATION RESTROOM THIS HURTS!_ Mentally screamed the Senju heir. _What the fuck did this to me, how the hell did I survive, how the hell am I still alive, god, fuck, Jesus, shit, DAMN IT!_

It felt like it took an eternity for his chest to close itself, he could see it happening before his eyes, it moved to slow that for several tortuous minutes, Hibiki convinced himself it _wasn't_ healing, and he was only alive through spite, and his life would slip any moment now. After that eternity passed, however, Hibiki realized that his chest had healed. It was still bright red and felt like it was on fire, but sweet _jesus_ it felt good to see skin on his chest, and not gore.

Hibiki's head fell back to the ground, his throat felt raw from all of the screaming, which compounded with whatever had happened earlier. He still felt like hell, but at least now he didn't have a chunk of his chest ripped out. Without really realizing it, he lost consciousness.

* * *

When next his eyes opened, it was broad daylight, he was freezing cold, and still in pain.

_"Oh... Fuck. I'm still alive."_ Muttered Hibiki, slowly bringing his hand to his throat and rubbing it as he realized he'd been able to speak without his throat feeling like it was on fire, though that didn't fix the fact that his throat still felt raw and drier than sand. _"Okay... Status report."_ He rasped in his native tongue. _Left arm..._ He clenched his left hand and bent his arm, it was stiff as all hell and it still hurt, but it didn't feel like fire anymore. _Good enough... Right arm._ He did the same, and got about the same. _Good enough... Neck._ He turned his head to the left and right, bent it, his neck was stiff and it ached, but it didn't feel like his spine was crushed or that he had a thousand needles sticking out of it. _Fine... Head..._ He raised his hand and dragged it across his face, pressing on it and feeling for anything out of the ordinary. A lot of the skin on the lower left side of his face and around his jaw was rough and tender, he must have gotten hit hard on his face, too; thank god he didn't have access to a mirror when he'd still been raw and dead-looking, he wouldn't have recognized himself.

_Not as handsome as I used to be, but I'll be good. Chest..._ He looked down and rubbed his hands over his chest, it was sore and raw-feeling, and touching it made it sting like it would if he'd been punched, but feeling around, it didn't feel like anything was missing. _Damn._ He thought, _might be slow... But I'll be damned if this damn healing factor isn't a life-saver. Leg - ah fuck._ He hadn't fixed his leg yesterday, and the wound was still fresh and open, his tibia sticking out. _Okay, I take it back. Why the fuck didn't it at least patch me up? And I thought I controlled my bones' durability. Why the fuck did it break?_ He leaned forward, bones creaking as he did so. He had no theories or explanations as to why his healing factor didn't at least close the skin around this wound, or why he hadn't died from blood-loss, but he'd think more on that later.

_Alright... On three._ He gulped thickly, and grabbed the bone, his leg flaring in pain as he did. _One... Two -_ He shoved downwards, an audible 'crack' coming from his leg and a sickening sucking sound as the bone entered the leg again. He groaned loudly, jaw clenched tight as he set the bone and pressed hard as he waited for the healing factor to do its stuff.

_Okay... Now that I'm not actively dying, where the fuck am I?_ He looked up and around. He saw the light gray sky above him, meeting the ground, making the world look empty until he found what looked like a building.

He squinted his eyes and leaned a bit closer, as if that would help. _A building? Okay... I'd be tempted to think there might be something in there, but whatever hit me hit me good, and I hit the ground pretty fucking hard too, so there's no one in there, else they'd have looked for me... Buuuuut, that doesn't mean I won't find any new clothes._ He looked back to his leg and lifted his blood-covered hands. His leg was swollen, but the wound had sealed itself up, he could tell the bone wasn't broken, and he could move his foot.

_I must be really, really fucking low on chakra, if my leg is swelling up and not healing fast._ He sighed, slowly dragging his legs closer to him and planting his hands on his lap.

_"Alright... Fuck."_ He pressed down and slowly stood up, groaning into the curse word as he did so. He stood after a moment's struggle, he swayed on his feet, but he was able to stay on his feet. He tried to take a step forward, but the formerly broken leg was still pretty weak, and he stumbled forward.

After the bloody Senju heir regained his balance, he limped out of his crater and stretched his stiff back. _Okay... I don't have enough chakra to fly... So... _He inhaled deeply, _"GEO -"_ He couldn't even finish the cry before he started hacking and wheezing. _Bad idea..._ Thought the displaced man. _Okay... Let's just get inside. Get a game plan then... Start a fucking_ fire! He straightened up and, rubbing his arms together and holding them to his core, he took a look around. The environment around him was largely empty, he'd landed on a wide expanse of rock, stretching several hundred meters away in a runway-like fashion, surrounded on both sides by vegetation, and in his immediate surroundings he could see some vegetation growing through the cracks in the rock, nature's way of flipping concrete the bird. It gave Hibiki fuzzy recollections of some of the apocalypse flicks he'd seen Back Home.

He turned towards the building he'd seen earlier and started limping towards it, biting through the cold as the frigid air blew at him, chilling all of his exposed bits, from his chest to his feet, and even his partially exposed genitals. Priority number one was finding some clothes, or something to burn, because sweet _Jesus,_ it was cold. As he got closer, and got a better look at the massive stone building, he couldn't help but get a feeling of deja-vu. It looked familiar, towering over him with an ovular shape, and a set of enormous, rusty, rectangular bay-doors which, from afar, looked shut tight, but as he got closer he realized that they were partially open, earning a sigh of relief from the Senju heir, he wouldn't have to finagle his way inside.

He got to the building and had to sidle his way in. Inside was completely empty, from the ground around him to the curved ceiling, with its crisscrossing, heavily rusted support beams above him. He cursed to himself as he realized that there wasn't even a temperature difference in here, and what with how empty it was and how it looked like it would come down if he even breathed wrong, he cut his losses and didn't even try to loot the eerily silent place.

Stepping back outside, leaning heavily on his strong leg, Hibiki gazed around again. He didn't see much, a couple small buildings in the distance - one or two looked like they'd finally obeyed their rusted supporters and collapsed under their own weight - but other than that, not much else, until he saw what had to be the tallest building in eyesight. Even from this distance, Hibiki could tell it was enormous, and that it was probably supposed to be bigger, as it looked like it had had a chunk ripped out of it.

_Well... Fuck it... What have I to lose?_ He started limping forward, thinking on what he saw - or, more appropriately, didn't see - in the building behind him. He might not have really paid attention, but who in the Elemental Nations used metal in their architecture? Most of what he'd seen had been made out of stone and wood, with some plaster mixed in here and there. The only times he'd ever seen metal were in machines or weapons; despite its clear advantage over wood, no one had ever really adopted it as a building material, even the frames of buildings were wooden.

Of course, he _was_ in Amerigo, the eagles' land, so there was a lot of margin for error. For all he knew, he wasn't necessarily in another dimension, just another part of the world, and there used to be humans here. It wasn't too much of a stretch, if he really thought about it. After all, working in the hospital had exposed him to things he'd almost not even recognized - medical equipment. _Actual, working,_ _technology. _Heart-rate monitors, low-end computers, it wasn't much, but it was a head and shoulders above the other paltry excuses for 'technology' he'd seen. Truly, outside of the lightbulb, the medical equipment had been the first bits of home he'd seen in his entire second life. So, if that existed in Konoha - and could arguably exist in the other villages - it wasn't too much of a stretch to conclude that people overseas figured out how to work with metal in their architecture. The Elemental Nations could be their version of pre-colonial America, and he could have stumbled upon their version of Europe, which would explain a lot, except for one thing:

Where did they go?

* * *

Hibiki stood still, a few dozen meters from his target building, staring up at the tall building that had gotten his attention earlier, eyes narrowed, mouth agape in silent contemplation. The building looked familiar, it stretched high into the sky, with a thick base and a top that ballooned outward, though it was missing that big chunk. If it had ever had any color, it had long since faded into a slush-like gray, and large rips and tears in its concrete base pockmarked the whole thing, it was _old,_ and it had survived one hell of a beating, but the thing was still standing, and it looked like it was growing something too, if the vines and leaves growing up one of its sides had anything to say.

_"Well... I don't really need an excuse to go inside..."_ Hibiki thought aloud, with a brief shrug of his stiff shoulders. _"I _do_ need to find some clothes..."_ Though with how old this and the other buildings were looking, he was starting to doubt anything he'd find would even be wearable at this point.

Against the urges of a few of his more primal instincts, Hibiki started searching for a door. There were a few small pillbox-buildings surrounding it it, and the one connected directly to the base had a convenient gouge ripped right out of its side, leading inside and hopefully into the tower. When he reached its threshold, Hibiki felt a chill run down his spine.

_"Whoaa..." _Muttered Hibiki, with one hand on one side of the v-shaped tear in the building, the other on his head, trying to shake that feeling. He suddenly felt like he was being watched, the hairs on the back of his neck were standing on end. He turned around, gazing over his surroundings, looking to the sky, looking for any eagles flying in to find him. Nothing.

_Weird..._ Had he had the chakra to spare, he would have flipped on his Sharingan and looked for any ambient chakra, but even though the drain on his reserves was getting smaller and smaller with continued use, he wanted all of his remaining chakra going to his healing factor, so he just kept his wits about him as he ambled inside, and froze.

There were skeletons everywhere, hiding behind overturned desks and what Hibiki could guess was sandbags, with the number of skeletons getting larger the closer they got to the door leading to the tower. They all were wearing tattered, faded clothing, but what had Hibiki's eyes wide was what they had clutched in their hands, and what his foot had brushed against upon entering. Clutched in their dead hands were rifles, and scattered about the floor was a sea of spent, heavily rusted, even crumbling shell casings.

_"What... The... fuck?"_

From the way they were stacked up, it looked like they were trying to guard from a frontal offensive - he looked to his left and confirmed that there was indeed a doorway there, though it had long since rusted off of its hinges and was now resting on the ground. Whatever they had been fighting, they had been trying to keep them out of the tower; the way they were all turned towards Hibiki's impromptu entrance, it looked like they'd been blindsided by an attack from their left.

Hibiki's gaze left the dead, and went to the doorway they were guarding, his brain having long since ground to a halt. What were they guarding? He blinked once and started limping further inside. There were less corpses in the spiraling staircase, but there were still skeletons and spent casings littering the ground. More than once, as Hibiki walked upwards, his bare foot crashed through the rotting wood, but careful, shinobi-like steps let him get to the top, where again he froze.

The top of the tower had a ring of desks lining the walls, with one other desk in the center of the room. All of these desks had ancient, rusted, dilapidated monitors on them, and keyboards that had long since had their letters weathered off. Hibiki felt his heart picking up as, unbidden, the name for this place came to mind. He was in a tower, with a three hundred and sixty degree view of the surrounding area, with the long expanse of concrete in prominent view. The concrete, however, wasn't just a random placement of nature, it was by design. God didn't build in straight lines. He wasn't looking at some rocky expanse, he was looking at a runway. He wasn't in some random building, he was in an air-traffic control tower.

He wasn't in an abandoned village, he was in the nerve-center of a very dead airport.


	38. A Whole New World

Chapter 37

* * *

There were so many questions running through Hibiki's foggy head that it actually started to ache. What did this mean? Had he woken up? Was it all a dream? Where was he? What kind of airport was this? Why were there dead people everywhere? Who had they been fighting?

_Wait..._ Hibiki looked to the distance, he found the craters he'd made on impact, and traced them back to where he'd flown in. _Did I get shot down? Are there people alive here? _He felt a smile play his features, before reason came in. _No... If anyone's alive here then they would have tried finding me after they shot me down. Even with how dead I looked, they would have seen me healing, and would have taken me in... Or... Something. So how did I get shot down? Automated turrets? Everything here is rusted and rotting, how the hell would they still work? Where do they get their power? What the hell happened here?_ He took a few steps forward and held on to one of the shattered walls of the chunk ripped out of the ATC Tower, looking around with his new birds-eye view.

_Jesus, this is a military air-field._ There were a lot of pillbox buildings and hangars, and even with all of the wear and tear, they all had that uniformity that only a military could draw up. _God damn it... I need to sit down..._ He slowly stumbled back, his rear eventually finding a seat to collapse into, but he failed to take into account the age of everything else around here. The moment he put his weight on the chair, it collapsed underneath him and practically exploded, he hit the ground with an 'oof', and actually managed to shake the whole room with the impact.

After he extricated himself from the floor, he sat upright, but didn't bother standing back up again, he was thinking too much. There were so many questions running through his head, no answers, and worse was that he knew there would be no answers to be found here. Even a cursory glance around showed him that this whole tower had been exposed to the elements for a very long time, and the whole airfield had been exposed for just as long, what with all of the overgrown vegetation permeating every possible surface.

_Wait... So... these people were fighting something, or someone, I dunno. I didn't see any bodies down there... Granted I didn't look too hard._ Hibiki hauled himself to his feet, thinking that maybe, _just_ maybe, if he looked closely he might be able to find signs of the enemy force. Bodies that looked like they'd fallen rushing for the defenders' direction.

A rush downstairs nearly ended with him falling through the stairs, but upon arrival, he was disappointed. All of the ancient, decayed corpses looked like they were fighting on the same side. None of them looked like they'd struggled with each other, there were no corpses that looked like they were going against the grain, swimming upstream, fighting against the tide. They all looked like they were fighting together, not against eachother.

But there were no enemy corpses. Absolutely no traces of what these soldiers had died fighting against, except for their bodies and the destruction wrought. What did _that_ mean, they were fighting ghosts? Zombies? Zombie ghosts? Thinking on it, as he ambled his way outside from the hole in the wall, Hibiki concluded that that couldn't really be possible. Zombies would leave bodies, ghosts couldn't be killed by bullets. So back to square one. What were they fighting that raw numbers - and _firepower - _couldn't at least kill _one?_

He looked around again, slowly walking to the other side of the ATC Tower. He entertained for a brief moment the notion of retrieving the black box off of one of the jets here, if there were any, and if jets even existed in this crazy hidden history, but he quickly threw away that notion. Even if jets existed, and he found one here, he didn't know what a black box looked like, he didn't know if he could get it working, he didn't know _how_ to get it working, and he didn't know how to retrieve the data. Assuming these corpses had technology like his - which they likely did, given the monitors and computers he saw up in the tower - that meant everything they did relied on computers, and while he had seen medical equipment, he'd never seen a computer in Konoha.

He sighed, turning the corner and slowly coming to a halt. On the other side of the tower, he found the airfield proper. Hangars with varying degrees of destruction were what he noticed immediately, and some exploring netted him some even more interesting finds. Take, for instance, what he found after he took a short cut through some tall grass: A _tank._

Not just any tank, however, but a tank that had been flipped onto its side like the hulk had came over and kicked it like a can. Hibiki was willing to write up a lot to the evil mistress that was the physics of explosions, but what kind of bomb did _that?_ Upon further inspection of the tank, he saw that the hatch leading inside the tank had been ripped off, though he didn't bother checking to see where it landed. He leaned inside to see if there was anything interesting; the inside was just as rusted and old as the out, the biggest characteristic being the dead body crushed into a corner, clutching a pistol even so long after death, with several spent shell casings scattered about. Its chest had been caved in, as if from a major impact , and there were dried blood stains covering the wall behind him and around him.

Hibiki stared at Dead Fred for a second, eyes narrowed in thought. What on earth had they been fighting, that could crush a man's chest like _that,_ while that man was inside an upended tank? Had it even been human? Logic would stand to reason that even if it hadn't been human, the raw numbers Hibiki was seeing this place display, the firepower, and now the vehicles, this place brought to bear during its prime would reason that they would have killed at least one, so where were the bodies?

Shaking his head, Hibiki straightened up outside of the tank and kept walking, looking for anything interesting he could find. He was secretly hoping he'd find a jet, or maybe a bomber, or some kind of big-ass airplane. His thought process was, if what they were fighting was as mysterious then as it was enigmatic now, then they would have been trying to study it, and the best way to get it to a place where it could be studied would be to seal it up in a body-bag and toss it in an airplane. So, if he could find a cargo plane, he might be able to find an answer or two.

With that goal in mind, when he finally exited the patch of tall grass, he headed for a hangar that looked relatively intact, and - perhaps most importantly - had wide open bay doors. If any of these places had an airplane they were trying to get to take off, it would be the one with open doors. His theory was only compounded when, as he limped closer, he saw the ancient remains of a battle long since finished. There were toppled, burst open sand-bags everywhere, rusted vehicles with skeletons manning their turrets, dead bodies and destroyed tanks scattered about, all leading inside the hangar.

Without warning, Hibiki heard the sound of a buzz-saw in the distance, startling him and making him jump.

_"Gah!"_ Hissed Hibiki, as he landed on his bad leg and fell to his rear. "What the fuck?" He looked over to the sound of the buzz-saw. Soon, it stopped and he heard the busied, frantic cawing of avian creatures and raised voices in the distance, about the same general direction as the crater he'd woken up in. A few seconds later, the buzz saw started up again, followed by more caws and screeches.

_Oh, damn, that must be Geoff._ Hibiki slowly paled, _wait, Geoff was there when I got hit... Is he okay?_ He thought for a moment, and shook his head. _He has to be. Couldn't have brought help otherwise._ The problem was, he couldn't really signal for help at the moment - his chakra levels were tanked, so he couldn't try and use a flashy technique to get their attention, and his throat was still raw and sore, so he couldn't shout for them. However, when the buzz-saw started up again and he heard what sounded like the death-cry of an eagle, he realized that whatever had shot him down was proving too much for the Eagles - they couldn't do like he did and survive their way in, they were trying to penetrate the airport's defenses, and failing.

_Oh shit..._ Thought the Senju heir, as he disregarded the sheer impossibility that any automated defenses could last so long, exposed to the elements, without any maintenance, or _power, _he just limped over to the sounds of _modern_ warfare as fast as he could. _Shit... Shit!_ Thought Hibiki, as he barely covered any ground after two more buzz-saws.

_God damn it... _Groaned the Senju heir, _okay... I... I have to have enough chakra for one good jump... Just get a running start._ He kept limping, getting faster and faster as he crossed the ground, gaining speed until he was at a full run. He barely felt his chakra, but he felt that there was some in there, bubbling underneath the surface. Even if there wasn't a lot, he'd make sure it was enough, as he clenched the chakra coils in his hands and feet and built up the pressure behind them.

_I've got enough for one good jump, after that I don't know what I'll do._ He was praying that, with it being fixed, his skeleton was back up to being steel-strong again, else he'd snap his legs upon landing.

Without any further hesitation or thought, Hibiki blasted off from the ground, soaring high into the sky through the power of his chakra alone. He got a brief bird's eye view of the eagles in the distance. They weren't fighting as much as they were flying for their lives, and it looked like they were dodging bursts of gunfire. Hibiki traced the lances of gunfire to their respective sources, and as gravity took control, he sailed over the ATC Tower, and started sailing back towards the ground, he got only one good look at the 'attackers'. Now, he wasn't too well versed in the defensive weapons from Back Home, but he swore that the defense turrets shooting at the Eagles looked like a post-apocalyptic, rustic version of the automated AA cannons they hooked onto aircraft carriers.

Hibiki took his eyes off of the distant turrets, and pointed them back to the rapidly approaching ground. Hibiki braced for the impact, and when it came, he rolled forward - the impact on his bent legs jarring him to the very bone, and tearing apart the skin on his exposed feet, but fortunately not destroying his legs as he rolled forward, going from falling down to rolling forward. He felt several bruises start forming and blood start flowing from a moderate amount of cuts on various parts of his body. As he recovered and tried to stand up, he realized almost immediately that his lack of planning had screwed him over - right now his feet were so damaged that he couldn't stand properly. Worse, with no chakra, he couldn't cheat and fly his way over there, and he couldn't just wait a few seconds for the damage to undo itself - with how low he was, it would take a few minutes at _best. _He looked up in the distance, seeing the eagles dodging gunfire, and feeling his heart drop when he saw one of the eagles fall out of the sky.

_Oh... Fuck this!_ Hibiki thought, groaning deeply as he forced both hands flat on the ground and pushed himself up. Even if his feet were covered in blood and flaring up in pain with every twitch, he'd make it work. It hurt to stand, it hurt to walk, and it hurt to run, but he wasn't going to let those Eagles continue to die if he could help it.

Hibiki stumbled, he tripped, he fell, but he kept getting up, he kept running until his lungs burned, until his feet were literally covered in blood and leaking it constantly. It took him what felt like forever, to the point where he was getting enraged at himself and the situation. His anger helped the pain bleed away into a dull throb, until it was eventually just gone. He kept running, getting faster and faster until he was finally there, right up against the automated cannons.

They were about twice as big as he was, massive, and rusted all over. How they were still managing to move and fire was beyond him, but at that point he was so focused on finding a way to break these things that he wasn't even thinking that thoroughly. He took one second to size up the competition - there were six turrets, all of them active, but only two of them firing, the others just tracing the eagles through the air and spinning, but doing nothing else, likely having long since running out of ammunition.

_Okay... They're tracking the eagles, they recognize flying targets... _His first instinct was to attract one of the eagles' attention and try to get them to get one turret to shoot another, but this wasn't a movie and those eagles were both too afraid to get any closer than they were, and too busy to even hear him. _If I could use my chakra, I could just blow these damn things up and be done with it, but I don't have any..._ He looked at his hands, knowing that there was one way to get a lot of chakra fast, but he really didn't want to experience it first-hand; but, one more look at the terrified eagles and their determination, and Hibiki knew he had no other choice.

With but a thought, he forced open the first two of the eight gates and felt the barely noticable trickle turn into a torrential tidal wave. The first one, on its own, wasn't enough to revitalize him, it just removed his body's limits - the second, more dangerous, one was what he wanted. It might damage his body, but right now he wasn't too concerned - with the revitalization that came with it, he'd undo any damage given time.

_At least I hope I will._ He took a step back and extended both hands, pointing one at each of the firing turrets, and collecting explosive chakra in his palms, before blasting them away. The dual detonation was massive, and the shockwave sent Hibiki flying. Upon impact with the ground, Hibiki felt his world darken, but he shook his head and forced shut the eight gates, closing the loop and ending Hibiki's exposure to the eight gates.

Slowly sitting up, Hibiki checked himself over for any other injuries, glad to feel his feet and other extremities healing up nicely, but worried that he wasn't feeling any other after-effects. He'd just opened two of the gates, and he hadn't shredded his body?

_I'll have to look in to this... Might just be a bad first... And second... Experience, but I swore that opening even one gate was worthy of crippling myself._ Thought the Senju heir as he looked to the sky and saw the Eagles recovering and scanning the ground for him. Hibiki wasn't too far away from his explosion, and given the eagles' appropriately eagle-vision, he knew they'd see him. He waved his arm to get the eagle's attention, and one was almost immediately hurtling straight for him, diving through the air like a missile. Hibiki had barely enough time to get back on his feet before the scarred scout skidded to a halt and pulled Hibiki into a disturbingly tight embrace.

_"Dear KAMI, _Hibiki-san!" He heard Geoff's nasally voice call out, as the sounds of other flapping wings joined what Hibiki swore sounded like sobs. _"I thought the wraiths had taken you! I thought I had failed you! I thought, I, I thought -" _

Hibiki chuckled, returning the hug. "Geoff, I'm fine." Well, fine _enough._ It would likely be nightfall before he was physically back to one hundred percent, eight gates be damned, and then well into the next morning before he had all of his chakra back, and had fully recovered from whatever the two gates had done to him, outside of solving every problem he had at the moment.

_"FINE?!" _Geoff released him, looking the boy up and down. "Do you know what you looked like after the Wraith hit you?! You had... You were... Exploded!" He gesticulated with his wings, "how the _hell_ are you even _alive, _let alone..." He looked at Hibiki's still raw chest. "Uh... Not... Exploded?!" He said, as the other eagles came in for landing, Hibiki noticed several were sporting a few freely bleeding injuries, and even Geoff himself was hurt in his tail.

Hibiki shrugged, "I heal real fast." He said, "what were you talking about? What Wraiths?" He looked past the Eagles, back towards the smoldering turrets. They couldn't be talking about _those,_ could they?

"The demons, of legend!" An eagle supplied.

"The killers of all winged folk!"

"The harvesters of souls!"

"The things that attacked us, Hibiki, that you _KILLED!_" Said Geoff, who soon shook his head, and waved over a brightly-feathered eagle who somehow managed to keep a pair of glasses on his face. "We need to leave here as soon as possible. This is forbidden ground - we shouldn't even be alive right now!" Geoff said, "let Doctor Gwaihir take a look at you before we go." He said as the bespectacled eagle came forward.

Hibiki didn't protest the good doctor, but he did look guilty as he responded to Geoff. "Geoff... I can't leave yet."

Even the Doctor paused in his diagnoses, none of them believed what Hibiki had said.

"I... You..." Stuttered Geoff, _"WHAT?!"_ He cawed, "Hibiki-san, you almost died here! I almost died here - _they_ almost died here! And the Wraiths will find us, we need to leave before they do! There is nothing here for us or for you, we need to go now!"

"Geoff..." Hibiki sighed as he felt the medic's chakra running through him, checking for permanent or other damage. "Look around you. Everything here is old and falling apart. I don't know how they were even functioning, but I just blew up the only real threats in this entire place, and if there are any more, we'll take care of them." He really didn't want to use any more of the chakra he'd gotten from the second gate - he still didn't know if there were any lingering after effects, or if he actually _was_ as good as he felt, but if a situation arose, he would deal with it. "Geoff... I _need_ to look around more... I... There's something here I _need_ to find." Failing that, he had to figure out if there were any other places like this, so he could search them.

The scarred scout shook his white-feathered face. "No no _no!_ You can find it anywhere else, Hibiki-san, you're risking your very life just _STANDING_ here! The wraiths kill everything that steps foot in this place - there are more! If we stay any longer than we have to, we'll all _die!"_

_How the hell do I explain the degradation of machinery to a sentient animal who has no _concept_ of machinery? _Hibiki asked himself. "Geoff..." He _really_ didn't want to pull the 'too bad, I'm your summoner' card, but in a situation like this, he _was_ prepared to. The prospect of answers, even if they weren't to the questions he was asking, was too great to turn down. "Do you trust me?" Hibiki finally asked, after a moment's pause.

Geoff was about to argue his point, but his beak snapped shut. "I... _damn it,_ Hibiki-san, that's unfair."

Hibiki looked to the other Eagles, "do all of you trust me?" They all stayed silent, likely thinking the same thoughts Geoff had voiced. "I'm your summoner, guys. I have a lot of skeletons in my closet, but I'm asking you all to trust me on this... If I'm right about this place - and the more time I spend here, to more I know I _am_ right - then as long as we stay behind those... Wraiths... We'll be perfectly fine. And if we find others, and they prove dangerous, I have a plan for that too." He said, "so... _Please..._ Just give me time. I need to search this place." He implored.

Slowly, all of the present eagles' eyes gravitated towards Geoff's. He sighed, shoulders slumping. "Hibiki-san... You don't know the stories about this place." He said.

"Then you can tell me all about them... when we get back to Amerigo." Said Hibiki, "but for now... We need to look around." He looked to the medic, "so what's up, doc?"

The eagle shook his head, stepping back a bit. "I don't know how your body handles it, but you're healing yourself. There's a lot of damage in you, ranging from lesions to burns to cracked bones to everything in between, but your body is just undoing it... Physically, you're fucked, but you're _un_fucking it." Hibiki instantly knew he'd like this man. "So... I'm grounding you until tomorrow morning, and I'll check you again then."

Hibiki grinned, "alright, I can handle that." He nodded.

So, with that settled, Geoff cleared his throat. "So, Hibiki... what are you looking for that's so important?"

Hibiki sighed, and brushed his hand through blood-matted hair. _Back to work. _He turned around, staring at the ATC tower, and thinking of the hangar that lay beyond it. "Answers, bud" Said Hibiki, "it's a real long story, but... I don't know. I've got to look in to this." He just didn't know what was going on here - was it as 'innocent' as it looked? Just the remains of an ancient, forgotten civilization that fought a war and lost? Or did this rabbit hole go a lot deeper? He yawned, and rubbed his hands up his chilly arms, "come on." He nodded towards the tower.

After they made it as far as Hibiki had before he'd turned back, a Combat Caste spoke. "So, lord Summoner -" He began, as they followed the human, before Hibiki turned to look at him over his shoulder with a raised eyebrow. The eagle repressed a sigh, "Lord... Hibiki-san. You seem to know, what are we looking at here? These are cursed lands that no eagle has ever flown through, and yet... You have the look about you that you know where we are."

Hibiki grinned in victory, but turned back forward, pausing in his stride as he made it to a pile of sandbags. There was a group of four corpses here, their skeletons in varying states of destruction. One was missing one of its arms, another had its chest caved in, a third looked like it had been burned alive, the last looked like its skull had been crushed. They all had fallen in positions that suggested that they had been surrounded and had begun fighting back-to-back, like in the movies.

_Matter of fact... _Hibiki turned to the Combat Caste. "What's your name?" He nodded to the thick, burly eagle, who was at least twice as big as the Senju heir, and yet managed to be compltely cowed by the comparatively tiny child.

The eagle bowed its head deeply, "Kyorigur." He said.

Hibiki blinked at the eagle, his face blank, before he looked to Geoff. "What the hell is it with you people and names I can't pronounce?" He let a grin play on his features, just in case Geoff was still too high-strung about the 'Wraiths' to figure out he was kidding around, and he turned back to the Combat-Caste. "Mind if I call you..." His first instinct had been 'Kyo', but Aoi's dog had the same name, so after a moment's thought, he grinned wide. "Igor?" He asked, with a raised eyebrow.

Even better for Hibiki's comparison was the way 'Igor' stood when he had to look at the Senju heir - almost as if he had a hunch back. Igor, unfortunately, didn't draw the Frankenstein comparison, so he considered it for a moment before he ruffled his feathers in a manner similar to shrugging. "I would be honored, Lord -"

"One catch - stop it with that 'Lord Summoner' stuff." Hibiki nodded to Geoff, "Geoff figured out fast that Hibiki would do fine. You can call me Senju if you _must,_ but I prefer Hibiki."

Igor nodded, "I understand, Lord Hibiki."

_I'm going to have fun with you, Igor._ "To answer your question, I both know and do not know what it is we are looking at." Hibiki knelt down and firmly grasped the rusty, ancient rifle clutched in the one-armed man's only remaining limb. It took a little bit of effort, but he was able to pry it free. He stood up and held it out for Igor to grab. Igor extended his wing and fumbled with it for a bit - lacking any true digits or fingers - but was able to make it secure enough so he could bring it back for inspection. "How old would you say that was?" Hibiki asked.

Igor was silent for a few moments, the other Eagles - Geoff included - inched closer and crowded around him to see the rusty rifle for themselves. Igor looked conflicted - one look at him and Hibiki knew that the burly eagle had no idea how old it was, but the combat-caste didn't want to disappoint his summoner, so he was trying to come up with something that at least sounded close to correct. "I would say this is... Centuries?" He turned his eyes up to Hibiki, face still pointed at the gun, Hibiki's face didn't betray his thoughts. "Millennia?"

"Point is, it's _old."_ Said Hibiki. "Way... _Way_ older than I am." He reached up to his back and unsealed his own rifle. "So given that... Why the hell does that look so close to this?" He held out his own gun, several eagles' heads whipped back and forth from Hibiki's gun to Igor's, aghast and unaware of what to make of it. "I know why _I_ have _mine..._ But I don't know why Cadaver Carl here -" He tapped CC's fractured skull with his foot, "- has his own. Or why Stiff Steve, or Carcus Marcus, or _ANY _of these people -" He waved his arm around, indicating the entire 'Wraithland', "- have one. That's what I want to figure out. I want to figure out exactly how old these bodies are, I want to figure out who they were fighting, and I want to figure out how they got guns."

Igor slowly nodded, partially understanding his summoner's reasons, as the summoner in question sent his weapon back into hammerspace. Hibiki took the ancient gun back from the eagle, and placed it back in Cadaver Carl's arms.

"So... Since my chakra's... Well, right now I don't want to use it, given the volatile way I generated it, I need you all to help me with this." He pointed at the Doctor who had helped him out, "you know what human corpses look like, right?" The doctor nodded. "Then search the skies - but stay _low._ I do _not_ want you to risk tripping any remaining Wraiths'... Traps. Search for anything that these people could have been fighting, it most likely won't have been human, and it most likely would have decomposed by now, too." He turned to Geoff, and the few scouts he'd brought with him, glad that most scouts preferred to wear goggles as opposed to Combat Caste's helmets, it helped with the differentiation. "Geoff, take your buddies and search the other buildings. I'm looking for..." He paused, trying to find the right words. "Big... Metal... Birds." He said slowly, with a nod for each word.

One scout, with significantly darker plumage than Geoff's, blinked, then looked to Igor, then back to Hibiki, "Big?"

Another tilted its head, "Metal?"

Geoff's shoulders slumped, _"buildings?!"_ He said, "I crashed through one of those things, Hibiki... I... I - I don't like them. What if there are wraiths in there?!" He leaned in and faux-whispered.

_Oh, so close._ Hibiki sighed, and raised a hand and placed it on Geoff's shoulder. "Geoff, you're a _scout._ I can guarantee you that there is nothing left in these... Wraithlands... That is capable of flight - save for you guys." He looked around and made eye contact with all present eagles. "So if you find trouble, don't ask questions - you get the fuck out and you fly as far and as fast as you can. Use the opening I made when I blew up those other Wraiths, earlier. Just keep flying." He said firmly, "that goes for _all_ of you." He added after a brief pause. "this means a lot to me, but none of this is worth any more of your lives." He stepped back, frowning silently as he considered how many Eagles had died just to get to this point, and that he was asking them to keep going. "Okay?"

Geoff and the rest of the eagles, after a few hesitant moments, nodded. Igor, however, tilted his head. "Lord Hibiki... What about me?"

Hibiki frown turned to a grin, "oh, Igor. You got the shit job." He nodded to the target hangar, "you get to follow me in there." There was about as much chance for something being in there as there was for something being anywhere else, but given all of the bodies obviously spent defending this place, and the wide open doors, Hibiki had a good feeling. "Ready?" Everyone nodded, "break." The scouts and the doc all took off - only staying a few dozen meters above ground, not daring to go any higher - and Igor watched them.

Hibiki yawned again, deeply. _"Damn..._" He muttered in English, "I'm tired, cold, hungry... Really hope I find whatever soon." He nodded to the hangar, "come on."

The walk to the hangar was mostly spent in silence, Hibiki stopped to examine a few of the more interesting-looking corpses. Some looked like they had been crushed in something comparable to a giant's grip, others looked like they had been detonated from the inside, whilst others only had bits and pieces left remaining with dark scorch marks, indicating that they had been scorched alive. A majority of them had simply been brutally beaten to death, but a lot of them had been burned, blasted, crushed, or any number of things.

If anything, it kind of reminded Hibiki of shinobi battles, though he hadn't seen the aftermath of those anywhere near often enough to make a true connection.

After a few minutes, the two of them made it inside the hangar, and Hibiki fell to his knees. It was the most beautiful thing he'd ever seen, ignoring the corpses scattered about. It was the sight of something going _right_, for once in either of his lives. It was God giving him a pat on the back and saying 'I got your back'. It was exactly what the displaced man had asked for.

A motherfucking _cargo plane._ It was almost as massive as the hangar in which it rested, and its exterior was now a deeply rusted red. One or two of its jet engines was thoroughly destroyed, another had been ripped off entirely, but none of that really mattered right now - Hibiki had found what he was looking for.

_"BIG... METAL... BIIIIIIIIIIIIIIRDS!"_ Hibiki shouted victoriously, clenched fists thrusted up into the air, before they went right back to his face as he coughed violently. After this coughing fit was finished, he cursed, shook his head, and sighed. "Okay... Now we find a way inside." He climbed back to his feet, giving Igor a quick glance, and grinning at the eagle's slack beak.

"What on earth _is_ that? Is that a dead Wraith?" The burly eagle inquired, surreptitiously adjusting the fit on his thick flak jacket.

Hibiki shook his head, "oh no. Much better. That, my friend, is a cargo plane, and if anywhere, what I'm looking for is in there." Hibiki limped his way through the hangar, largely ignoring the bodies as he ambled around the plane, looking for a way inside.

The hangar was dark inside, the only light sources being the pale gray light from the door they were getting further and further away from. The plane was obviously the biggest thing in the room, and took up a great deal of its free space, and whatever it didn't take up was taken by corpses, some of which were slightly less decomposed than the ones outside, but only due to the fact that they were less freely exposed to the elements as their allies were. Unfortunately for Hibiki, the big rusty bird ceased to help him when, after making a full orbit, Hibiki found no entrances.

_Of course there wouldn't be anything, they were trying to take off... But that begs the question of just how they managed to fend off their enemies._ There were deep gouges and scratch-marks on the plane's surface, but no actual holes or piercings, no ways in. _Hm... Okay, let's try something crazy. These planes have to hermetically seal themselves, or... I dunno, point is they seal the inside off from the outside, before they take off. So the inside should be a lot less _dead_ than the outside... So... Where's the door? _He looked up and inspected the side of the plane. _Or the emergency exit? Where - bingo, motherfucker!_ It was faint, but there was a door-shaped outline on the side of the plane, and it looked like there was a wheel on its outside, likely for repair crews to get inside whenever its ramp wasn't lowered.

"Igor, front and center." Hibiki said, staring up at the door. Igor arrived, and Hibiki spoke simply, "I need to get up there." He pointed at the rusted door, "and open that door."

"What is a door?"

"Don't worry about that." Said Hibiki, "so I need you to levitate us both."

The fighter blinked, "Lord Hibiki... I draw the line at letting you ride me like a pet." He said, lowly.

"Well, I don't want to _blast_ it open..." Hibiki muttered, "I don't want to use chakra _period,_ right now... Not if I can avoid it." He said, looking around for another way. The problem was, while the hangar may be filled with random bits and bobs, Hibiki didn't trust any of it, due to their age; he didn't even trust the _plane,_ but he more or less had to if he wanted it to reveal its secrets.

The eagle, however, did not budge. "You will not ride me."

"Okay, okay." Hibiki could tell from the edge in Igor's voice that it was a touchy subject, so he dropped it. He sighed, leaning back; thinking on it, opening that door may be something approaching impossible - it was rusted shut after god knows how long, and the handle may even crumble apart if Hibiki gripped it too hard, or break off completely.

_So... How do I get up there?_ He looked up, _or... Wait, do I even need to get _up_ there?_ How many times had Hollywood helped him? He was willing to put it at almost one hundred percent certainty that this idea wouldn't work, but hell, nothing ventured, nothing gained. So, that in mind, he stopped looking up, and started looking _down._ He checked the plane's belly, looking for anything he could use to get inside, anything he could pry apart or force open. There had to be come kind of maintenance hatch down here in the dark, or some way to get into the plane.

Unfortunately for Hibiki, he found nothing. It wasn't that there wasn't anything to be found, he just didn't really know what to look for in the first place. He stepped back out from under the plane, and found that Igor was missing.

The Senju heir blinked, "uh, Igor?"

_"Up here, Lord Senju."_ He heard the deep-voiced eagle call out. _"I believe -"_ There was a loud screech of metal grinding against metal, before the sound of something breaking completely, followed by a loud whoosh of air. Soon after, the door fell to the ground, followed by Igor. "I have found our way in."

Hibiki blinked, staring blankly at the combat-caste. "I think I should be calling you Hulk, Igor." He chuckled, and turned around to look at Igor's handiwork. The emergency door was gone, ripped from its hinges by Igor's apparently monster strength. "Was that how you were planning on getting me home?"

"Yes."

Hibiki nodded, "makes sense, now. So, if you won't fly me, will you give me a boost?" He asked, staring into the deep black doorway. Hibiki received no response, prompting him to speak again, "Igor? Did you - _WHOA!"_ With no warning, Igor grabbed Hibiki by his sides and chucked him up at the plane, Hibiki careened right through the doorway and into the plane with a loud yelp. He landed inside with a loud metallic clang and a heavy thump. _"I'm going to get you for that..."_ Groaned Hibiki, as he got to his feet and dusted himself off, feeling a bruise forming and disappearing on the back of his head.

Ignoring the welt that was forming on the back of his head, Hibiki looked around, and felt his shoulders slump as he realized that he'd forgotten one important part in his master plan: The power was out. There wouldn't be any lights on, so the massive fuselage was as dark as his uncle's sense of humor. This would be a non-problem if he had chakra, or, more specifically, chakra he wasn't on some level scared to use, he could just flip on his Sharingan and he'd see just fine - it had appropriately perfect night vision.

_Note to self: Stop trying to force past the seventh gate, focus more on what makes these gates tick. I can't just go through life cowering for a few hours if I open a gate with my Alpha body. If this chakra isn't volatile like it is with later gates, then I'm literally just making everything more difficult for no damn reason._ He sighed, hearing Igor land in the opening he'd torn off, coughing and shaking his head.

"What is this damned orange dust that covers the Wraith?" He said, "it tastes disgusting." He looked up and around, "so... This is the inside of a Wraith?"

"Hm." Grunted Hibiki in the affirmative, as he got to his feet. He turned to face Igor, but in so doing he caught sight of a small ray of light, coming from the main cockpit, shining down almost angelically on what looked like the outstretched hand of a skeleton. The small light source from the cockpit and Igor's open door did at least help Hibiki confirm that the inside was in much better condition than the outside - he couldn't see a hint of rust.

Hibiki strode over to the small ray of light and bent down, the hand had in it a small leather sack, which, after Hibiki picked it up to examine it, Hibiki realized was a wallet. It was old, falling apart, and mostly empty, save for a picture of a bald man, a woman, and a small child. The picture was faded, but he was able to tell that the child had her father's eyes and her mother's sandy-blonde hair.

Hibiki lowered the wallet a bit. The corpse that had been holding it was curled up in around itself, and unlike the bodies outside, its clothes hadn't been disintegrated by god-knows how many years of exposure to the elements. Hibiki put down the wallet and crouch-walked closer to the corpse, pulling it into the light. The way it was curled up, Hibiki didn't have to wonder too long how the man had died - his faded clothes had no bloodstains, and his bones didn't show any signs of injury. He'd starved to death.

Hibiki clenched his jaw and sighed. _Alright, man... Listen. You were a soldier, I'm pretty sure you had something against looting corpses back in your day, but... I've... Kind of got a bigger need of these things than you do. _They wouldn't fit at all, but Hibiki could make it work.

"Alright, Igor. Keep watch, I'm taking this guy's clothes."

There was a brief pause, "okay." He heard Igor turn around and the light from the doorway was blocked off.

First off of the corpse were the pants. There was a dark joke brewing in Hibiki's mind about buying the starving man dinner first, but he didn't voice it. He inspected the pants closely, they were grayed from age, but still had flecks of a green and gray color in their old camouflage patterns. They didn't smell bad, so Hibiki hoped whatever bacteria they had been carrying had rotted away with the smell. They were several sizes too big for him - length and width wise - but Hibiki rolled up the pantlegs to make them fit his size, and used several torn strips of his old clothing to fashion a belt. It wasn't perfect - as a matter of fact it was damn awkward - but it would work for now. Next off of the corpse was his shirt, which, upon removal, revealed a deeply grayed undershirt, which Hibiki had to struggle to remove. Hibiki looked closely at the coat, and saw that there was a nametag on it - it read Hawkins.

Hibiki's gaze shifted from Hawkins' coat, to Hawkins' corpse.

_I... For what it's worth, I'm sorry, Mister Hawkins._

Like the pants, the shirt was much to big for Hibiki, but there wasn't much he could do about it. The coat, however, Hibiki threw on and was able to roll up the sleeves until they hit his wrists. After being fully clothed, sans shoes, Hibiki ran a hand over his new clothes. They were very old, but the texture of the material was familiar to him. Hibiki's hand hit an irregularity on his chest, the side opposite where he'd seen Hawkins' name. Another patch, Hibiki assumed, as he slipped off the coat to read it.

Hibiki blinked, he held the coat closer, he held it up higher so it would catch more light. His hands started shaking, he blinked his eyes and narrowed them, he rubbed them hard and held the coat closer again. Nothing he did changed what he read, nothing he did changed the revelation. Hibiki slowly fell to his rump, with a loud bang that startled the combat-Eagle. The patch - like the one before it, Hibiki realized - was written with English lettering, but more damning than that was what it said in big, bold, proud stitching.

_U.S. ARMY_

Eyes wide, hands shaking so much that he dropped the coat, Hibiki slowly backed his way into a corner, staring at the piece of clothing with pure terror in his eyes and on his face. When he hit the wall, his hands slowly reached up to his head and he clenched his hair.

_That... That wasn't... No, I was seeing things. That didn't say what I thought it said..._ He looked down at his pants again, he knew why they looked familiar - however faded, they were the same camouflage pattern from the same military the coat claimed to be from. _"No... No, no, no... No."_ Hibiki clenched his eyes, his entire body shaking. _No... I'm... This is a dream. That explosion, it knocked me out - I'm in a coma. That truck! That thing didn't kill me, there was no Kenichi - I'm still fucking dreaming! I have to be! _"No..."

"Lord Hibiki-san?!" He heard the hurried steps of a concerned eagle, "what is the -" Without realizing it, the eagle tripped over a rubber bag, and his razor sharp claws ripped the thing clean open. With a surprised caw, the combat-eagle regained his balance and rushed his way over to the convulsing Senju. "Lord Hibiki-san?"

_This isn't real... This can't be... How is this possible? How can that even be real? It can't be - it isn't! _Hibiki swallowed thickly, forcing his heart to slow down. Panicking wouldn't do him any good, and he knew this, but that coat and what it meant, Hibiki just couldn't help it.

"We need to leave..." Said Hibiki in a shaky voice, that Igor realized was completely void of the confidence and age that it had previously shown, it was hesitant, scared, like a frightened, confused child.

"What is wrong, lord Hibiki-san?" Igor asked, looking at the corpse.

"We just - we, we need to leave." Hibiki grabbed at the wall, hand clenching around some of the rope-like webbing that covered it, and he forced himself to his feet. He took several hurried steps towards the door, but tripped and fell, right in front of the rubber bag Igor shredded.

Hibiki came face to face with a placid, paper-white corpse with leaf-green hair. Its eyes were closed in death, and several of the exposed bits of its body were riddled with bullet holes.

_What the fu - _Not wanting to deal with it, just wanting to leave the airplane and get some fresh air, Hibiki roughly grabbed the corpse's head and made to shove it out of the way.

The second his hand made contact with the corpse's skin, it exploded into a bright green light and sent Hibiki flying back towards Igor. Igor caught the Senju heir, and they both shielded their eyes from the blinding display. After a few seconds, it calmed down and the light died down. There was now a small hole in the canopy of the plane, through which a tree had torn, growing upwards from the corpse Hibiki had touched.

His gaze turning from the large tree growing out of the corpse's chest, to the green-haired, pale-skinned corpse itself, Hibiki could only utter, "huh?!" before the torture began. He screamed in shock and in pain, as it felt like something was stabbing at his brain and burning his heart from the inside out. He could hear in his mind the cries of the damned. It sounded as if there were billions of them, all calling out to him, all begging him to acknowledge them - it didn't matter how. They wanted him to acknowledge their existence, directly, indirectly, in passing, they didn't care, they just cried out for him. Their collective screams were far more powerful than Hibiki's, they deafened him to everything else, even the feeling of blood pouring out of his nose and a panicked Igor scooping him up and soaring out of the plane, calling out for his brethren.

Hibiki clenched his eyes, but wished he hadn't almost immediately after. The darkness he saw from behind his eyelids wasn't the same muted light that usually came with closed eylids - it was oppressive, all-consuming. There was a thick bluish-gray haze everywhere, and it seemed that even the smallest parts of the haze were screaming at him, shrieking for him, calling to him, begging him. Billions of voices all screaming at the same time - he couldn't understand them even if he wanted to, all he wanted was for the pain to stop. He craved silence, he craved an end to the pain, he wanted anything that would stop these ceaseless shrieks.

He got close to what he wanted when, with an unheard apology, Geoff smashed his head hard enough to knock him out.

* * *

As the eagles scrambled to take the unconscious Senju heir to the sky, a new individual rose up from the depths of the ground. At first it was just a shapeless black mass with inhuman, solid yellow eyes, but as more of it emerged from the ground, it slowly grew into a human shape, standing six feet tall, completely devoid of color. Its skin reflected no light, and its wide, circular eyes didn't even blink as it watched the eagles make their retreat.

_This is an interesting development._ Thought the creature; after it stared after the eagles for a few minutes, it turned and looked inside the ancient hangar, staring at the nose of the rusty red cargo jet, feeling ancient flickerings of fear and remembering the horrendous sound of thunder and whistling death it brought.

_I'm surprised this place is still here... I must have forgotten about it... How many others have I forgotten about? Mother will be displeased._ It frowned, narrowing its yellow eyes and staring at the tree that had exploded upwards from the inside. _An interesting development indeed._ It strode inside, the difference in light from the outside and the in making no difference to him.

Making it inside the ancient cargo vessel, the black creature almost seamlessly blended in with its dark surroundings. It reeked of stale air and rusted metal, and though no nose alive could detect it, the creature could even smell the scent of death, though there was an unfamiliar smell in the air as well. It reminded him of chakra, though it was corrupted somehow, almost as if it were dead, impure even.

Making a clicking sound with its tongue, the creature concluded that it must be because of the evil memories and the innumerable corpses that pervaded this place. If humans were good for one thing, it was throwing countless bodies towards the pursuit of a doomed cause, though these days they had nowhere near the numbers of their ancient eras. All of these corpses, all packed into one place, even so long after death, it _would_ have an effect on the natural chakra.

The black creature looked down and saw the ancient rubber sack, which had preserved the drone so well for so long. It knelt down and placed its hand on the face of the drone that had been flashed, turning it as he inspected the ancient cadaver. _It would have taken an exceptionally powerful life-force to do this to this poor thing... I doubt even _his_ would have sufficed._

_"Hm."_ Grunted the creature, as he placed his hand on the corpse of the cadaver, slowly absorbing it into his own essence; orders were orders, no matter how old they were. _"An interesting development indeed."_ The black creature repeated, as the corpse finally vanished, leaving not even dust.

It stood up again and turned to the other cadaver, the one that the boy had disturbed in his half-baked desire for coverings. It strode forward and gently, reverently picked up the coat which had begun the whole sequence of events. The ancient thing had long since grayed with age, though its proud pattern was still recognizable, a relic of the stubbornness of that entire era. The creature was tempted to tear it in half, but it was a relic - tainted by war though it may be, it was a relic nonetheless - and even if he was supposed to destroy these places, the boy's discovery of this place gave him an idea so terrible, so awful, that his jagged grin reached all across his face with the implications.

_I suppose there is no other way around it. _He placed the coat on the ground, folded it up nice and neat, and rested the head of the ancient corpse upon it, before crossing its arms over its chest. _I'll have to tell him._ He brought his fist up and smashed it down on the corpse's brain case, before he melted back into the ground.


	39. Blitzkrieg: Letting Loose -I-

Chapter 38

* * *

They had been laying there, in one position, hidden, spread out impossibly thin, for hours now. Anxiety was running high and no one truly knew what was going on, why they hadn't gotten the signal to attack yet. The Monster of Kirigakure, whose name had been revealed through intelligence reports to simply be 'Katsuo', could sense chakra, no matter how well it was suppressed or hidden. Every single second they spent hiding was another second that their focus could slip and that monster could find them hiding on the outskirts of the deceptively massive village hidden in the mist. One Jonin in particular had his jaw clenched and a slightly worried look in his onyx eyes. The kid liked to play things close to the chest, true, but he was never _late._

_Well... _The Jonin thought, _never... Too late._ But an hour? He had been expected to return either around early-morning or high noon, and both times had passed by and nothing had happened. Had something happened to _him,_ in that land he had gone to? Had those summons attacked or injured him somehow? What excuse could he have for being so late? The plan hinged on the fact that he hadn't been there for the planning of the attack - it was all supposed to begin when he arrived, but if he never arrived, it could never begin. If he never arrived, they would be discovered, and if they were discovered, the plan was scuppered, the element of surprise lost, their chance for a 'Lightning War' gone forever.

The unclean Jonin wanted to flip his Sharingan on, but they had been expressly ordered to suppress all chakra and not use any techniques until the kid came and began the attack - if Katsuo discovered them before the time was right, it was game over.

_Hibiki... Where the hell are you?_ Dante Uchiha asked himself, as he listened carefully to the swampy environment around him, focusing on any changes in the ambient noise. The animals singing, the frogs croaking, the birds flying, the distant sound of thunder. The last realization snapped him out of his trance, and his eyes turned upwards, facing the west. Just barely he could hear it, in the distance and closing in, the sound of thunder, the sound of death, of his heart stopping.

They had been found. This was almost the same exact sound as had been heard when Katsuo had arrived in the village and began destroying everything in his wake. Katsuo was here, he was coming to the village, he would sense them all, and Dante wasn't the only one reaching this conclusion, he heard others speaking over their headsets.

_"Is that him? Is that the Monster?"_

_"Have we been found?"_

_"What do we do? What are our orders?"_

It was slowly devolving into a muted chaos. Some were questioning abandoning the mission, others were considering starting the attack, some more drastic ones were demanding dojutsu users to confirm. Dante himself was steadying his breath, forcing his heart to calm itself, he stared out in the direction of the noise, as if glaring at the sky would force it to reveal to him its secrets. It was as it got closer that he realized something was missing from this scene. From his memories of the fights, whenever Katsuo flew, he was enveloped in a deep green, flame-like aura of chakra, and in the distance Dante didn't see this green glare.

_There is no way he actually did it._ Jiraiya had told him that Hibiki's goal had been to learn how to fly - though the why of it was anybody's guess - and after being told, Dante vividly remembered laughing. Hibiki was good - hell, he was _damn_ good - but there were just some things a ten year old boy couldn't do, and defying gravity was among those things.

_"It's him."_ Dante said deeply, _"it's Hibiki Senju."_ He decided, henceforth, if Hibiki - or someone Hibiki knew - said he was going to do something, Dante would damn well believe him.

_"How can you tell?"_ One shinobi asked.

_"How can you be sure?"_ Another demanded.

_"Just watch and wait. Those were our orders."_ Dante stated, as the distant roar grew closer.

With little more delay and even less warning, the one Hibiki turned into two, turned in to four, turned to eight, to sixty four, doubling until there were thousands of Hibikis all flying through the air, leaving wispy white contrails in their wake. The Alpha Hibiki flipped around so his feet were pointed at the village and his back to the ground, with his hands held above his head, collecting a large amount of chakra as several other Hibikis broke from the pack and flew upwards. The Alpha threw his orb of chakra to the village's entrance as the village began exploding into activity in response to the noise and the chakra he was emanating. When the orb hit the village it detonated in a massive, blinding explosion, destroying the entrance gate wholesale and sending a shockwave through the entire village, and well past the Konoha shinobi.

Dante nodded, that was as good a signal as any, he supposed._ "That's our signal, GO!"_ He and a few other shinobi called out, before the might of Konoha's shinobi attack force presented itself, Hibiki's shadow-clone army attacking from the east, the Shinobi from the west. It took a few seconds for the Toad and Snake Sannin to call forth their summons, and more time for the Hibiki clones to call their own, but in mere minutes the village hidden in the mist had gone from silent and peaceful to full on pandemonium. As Dante dashed inside the village and blasted buildings apart with fireballs and sought enemy shinobi to surprise and dominate, he heard in the distance the rapid thunderous sound of Hibiki's attacks, his Sharingan actually showing him the projectiles that spat out from his weapon as they hurtled, spinning, through the air.

Dante made it inside the village and was almost immediately engaged by a Kiri jonin, who held tightly in his hand a kunai, silently challenging Dante's right to destroy. Dante, in response, thrust forward his hand and zapped the man with a powerful jolt of lightning, keeping his forward momentum, penetrating the man's defenses, and smashing his gut with an electrified fist and a loud crack of lightning. The unprepared Jonin was lifted into the air and stunned by both lightning attacks, but Dante, using his Sharingan, followed his first two attacks with a third one blisteringly fast, piercing his forehead with a rapidly drawn kunai, and then hopping lightly into the air and launching the corpse forward with a powerful spinning back-kick.

Dante landed lightly on the roof of a small building and skidded to a halt, he watched for a moment the corpse fly through the air and land in the marsh below them. He smiled briefly, thinking that it had been a _very_ long time since he'd been able to cut loose like this. The only thing he was missing was his old mask.

Dante heard the sound of the air whistling, and leapt backwards, dodging a needle-thin blade by mere inches. His head whipped to the left and he was greeted by a shinobi clutching a length of ninja-wire tied to the blade that had crossed the large distance that separated the two of them. Dante's blood red eyes narrowed, they had planned for this, of course, but that didn't remove the fact that he had to be the one to fight one of the Seven Swordsman, and so early, too.

The thick-haired, blonde shinobi yanked his sword back, and it returned to him as he made eye contact with Dante, who stared back.

_Okay... Which blade is that? The longsword?_ He saw the swordsman turn his head upward, and then raise his sword in defense. Dante followed his gaze and saw the Eagles hurtling towards the ground ahead of their Boss, how and where the Senju heir had gotten the chakra to summon so many, Dante didn't want to know, but he saw an opportunity when it presented itself, and he launched himself forward, kunai in hand, hurtling straight towards the first of seven swordsman of the mist village.

The swordsman sensed Dante hurtling towards him, and leapt back, sword held defensively, batting away pebble-sized fireballs as rapidly as Danta spat them. The swordsman scowled behind his mask and, upon landing, dashed forward, swinging the sword savagely, forcing Dante to the back-foot as the Konoha jonin deflected the blows with a kunai. The swordsman and the unclean jonin traded bladed blows with blinding speed, the sound of metal striking metal filling the air around them, though drowned out by the sounds of gunfire in the distance.

Dante and the thick-haired swordsman both sensed an incoming object, and leapt back just in time for a human-sized eagle to slam into the building and skip off of it like a rock on water. The brief delay was exactly what the swordsman needed to leap forward and horizontally slice at Dante's midsection. Dante barely dodged the blade thanks to his Sharingan, but he felt it nick his arm, and before he knew what was happening, his arm was wrapped in ninja wire and he was being swung over the swordsman's head like a ball and chain.

With a loud yell, the swordsman swung Dante off of the roof of the building, careening over the edge and smashing through its outer wall and inside the building itself. Dante, with only a few moments to recover, got one good look at his arm, seeing that it had been wrapped up in a tight, blood-restricting bundle of ninja wire.

_Well... This isn't good._ Dante thought, planting his feet on the ground and locking them to it with chakra, before channeled a great deal of lightning chakra through the wire, sending the lethal amounts of electricity through the wire and into the swordsman. Not a second later he felt the wire go from taut to slack, though not before he heard a pained yelp.

_Now, for phase two of my master plan._ Dante looked straight up, and his eyes mutated, the three tomoe all fusing and forming a flower petal made of interlacing circles.

* * *

Resting atop the head of the Boss Toad, Jiraiya the Toad Sage watched as six eagles plus the Boss ravaged the village from the air.

"You seein' this, Doto?" Jiraiya asked, over the sounds of the toad wreaking havoc and causing wanton destruction. "That kid summoned _seven_ eagles!"

_"You know as well as I do that that kid used clones to do it, young'un." _The massive toad bellowed, as he smashed buildings, swatted away attacking shinobi, and tanked ninjutsu.

"Doesn't make it any less impressive, though." Jiraiya felt a noticeable pull when he summoned _three_ toads, and that was without Shadow Clones weighing him down, this kid got enough clones and gave them enough chakra to summon six eagles and their boss, that was almost frightening in how much chakra it suggested the kid had.

The toad grunted loudly as a joint water technique smashed into his face, forcing him to stumble back a few steps as he brought a hand up to his face. _"Care to help out? Or are you just going to sit up there and feckin' _wait?!"

Jiraiya stretched his arms and got to his feet, rubbing his thick mane of hair. "And here I thought you would be fine on your own."

_"I ain't as young as I used ta' be."_ Said Gamadoto, drawing back his fist and smashing it into the ground where the shinobi had been before they'd fled. _"Got 'em?"_

"Yup." Jiraiya leapt off of Doto's head and, after a brief flip, he landed on the ground, soon surrounded by three enemy shinobi, covered in head to toe in the standard, pin-striped kiri garb. "So, gentlemen, who's going to -" Before he could finish, the ground was raked with gunfire, startling Jiraiya into leaping back; when the gunfire stopped, two of the shinobi were dead and the third was heavily injured. Jiraiya was in a defensive stance in an instant, looking up in the sky, in the direction where the explosive technique had come from, only to find a trio of Hibikis floating there. One hefted his weapon up and rested it against his ribs, the other hand held aloft in a balancing fashion, as the chakra streaming out of his feet died down slightly, allowing him to come down for a landing.

"Looked like you needed help." Said the clone, with a grin, as he came in to land.

"I feel the strangest sense of deja-vu." Said Jiraiya, with a grin, as his eyes scanned the horizon. He saw a great many other trios of Hibikis flying or leaping around, their weapons held tight in their hands and blasting apart unseen targets, whilst, elsewhere, Konoha shinobi clashed with the Kiri shinobi who weren't attempting to kill Hibiki clones.

The clone shrugged, as its partners landed and crouched down low, keeping the two covered while they spoke. "Is our blond blur here, or did Minato get ordered to sit this one out?"

Jiraiya grinned, "the little gaki is good, but a week isn't enough to get him up to scratch for what is essentially a war. They're trying to keep Genin presence here as limited as possible - take the ones best suited for combat and get them some experience, but anyone else has to stay back and defend the homefront with the Military Police."

Hibiki nodded, "so, aside from causing as much chaos and as..." He sighed, "high... A bodycount... as possible... What are we doing here? What are our orders?"

Jiraiya shrugged, "to keep it short..." He looked down to Hibiki, brow furrowing and head slowly tilting as he took in the oddly colored and patterned garb the Eagles had given him. "And... Concise." He added, silently telling Hibiki that though they might not be engaged, there could be people listening to them, taking advantage of their lack of activity. "We're just fighting." He said, with a firm nod. "You just need to worry about staying alive and keeping them all off balance." He looked to the trio of dead and dying shinobi. "And do that more often if you can." He nodded to them. "But otherwise, just fight. We'll know when we've won, or if we've got to run." He said, as the mist around them slowly started getting thicker. "And we've got company."

Hibiki raised an eyebrow, "oh?" He looked up and caught the eye of a passing eagle, who saw the unnaturally thick mist cloud and understood the unspoken instructions, unleashing a massive gust of wind that cleared out the mist quickly, revealing a pleasantly surprised swordsman with an angular face, a bandaged body, and a massive sword similar in appearance to a butcher's knife resting upon his shoulders.

"I'll admit, I haven't seen that trick." Said the man, with a hoarse voice, his eyes wide and his pupils dilated almost to a pinpoint. "You two interest -" He was interrupted by a single shot from each Hibiki, hitting his chest, left shoulder, and dragging across his shoulder.

Two of the clones, and Jiraiya, all looked to the clone who'd missed, who shrugged his shoulders. "The sun was in my eyes?" He said, looking up to Jiraiya and shrugging with a raised eyebrow. "I got nothin -" He was interrupted by a blur of gray and white motion, before he was impaled on the massive executioner's blade, his blood spraying out of his back and flowing down his front and onto the blade.

With a croak, the clone vanished in a loud poof of smoke, and the swordsman was savagely kicked in the side of his ribcage by Jiraiya. The man skidded back several feet before he slammed his blade into the ground and halted wholesale. The swordsman stared at Jiraiya and the Hibikis with a savage, toothy grin, seemingly unfazed by the injuries he had just sustained.

The clones, deciding that a problem that couldn't be solved with one bullet could be solved with dozens, leveled their rifles and opened fire, but the moment they had begun raising the weapons, the man ripped the sword out of the ground and held it in a reverse grip, with the blade covering most of his body and deflecting all of the bullets that slammed into it. The blade displayed its impossible durability by sustaining the assault with only a few pockmarks and chips in its metallic surface, which seemed to be repairing themselves by attracting and absorbing the blood that coated it.

After the Hibikis were done shooting him, he raised the sword again and it went back to resting haphazardly on his shoulders, his savage grin still plastered on his face. "Want to try that again?" He asked, as the Hibikis retrieved magazines from the seals on their left thighs.

Jiraiya blinked once, vividly recalling how such a savage assault had destroyed dozens of Konoha shinobi back during the invasion. He leaned in close to the clone at his side, "please tell me you have chakra." He said, his face blank save for the tightly pursed lips and wide eyes.

The clone shook his head, "uh... No. Didn't really plan on any extended confrontations. I've got one trick, but I don't want to use it yet." His bloody red eyes flicked up past the swordsman, then back to the swordsman. "But... I think we'll be fine." He said.

"What do you... Oh." Jiraiya straightened up, looking past the swordsman, who finally couldn't refuse the bait and similarly turned to see what was going on behind him.

Almost as soon as his eyes had been taken off of them, Jiraiya and Hibiki sprang unto action, with the former launching himself straight at the man and both of the latter blasting into the air, with one seated upon the other's shoulders so one could focus on shooting, and the other on flying. The swordsman didn't even flinch, swinging the sword around to block the flame bullets the toad sage spat out at a rapid pace, swinging the sword around so fast that it almost seemed unnatural, given its obvious weight. He next used the blade to parry Jiraiya's follow-up punch, and responded with a savage punch of his own to Jiraiya's gut, which launched the Sannin airborne long enough for the swordsman to swing around his blade and carve a deep gouge in Jiraiya's chest. The sage, for his part, bit through the pain and ignored the freely flowing blood as he launched an earth technique at the man, distracting him long enough for the flying Hibikis to come soaring in with a ferocious ballistic assault.

The swordsman, despite being riddled with several bullet wounds, all of which were bleeding freely, swung his sword around again and smashed the sharp end into the Hibiki who was keeping the two airborne, completely bisecting him and sending the clone on his back flying with the momentum. The clone landed on the roof and rolled to a halt a few meters from Jiraiya, who had one hand pressed against his bleeding chest and another clutching a kunai tightly.

"So..." The swordsman grinned, "what's next?"

* * *

_"Find the Alpha, protect him at all costs."_ Were their orders. One could consider these orders simple, but the problem then arose that even though they had spent years with the boy, neither Noboru Hyuga or Suboro Nil, or Suboro Kurama depending on who was asked, knew how to tell the difference between one shadow clone, another clone, and the original. There had to be over a thousand Hibiki clones blasting apart Kirigakure, and the two Genin didn't know where to start. Their first guess had been to try outside of the village, perhaps the cave they had retreated to when rescuing the Senju heir, but the problem was that that meant Hibiki would be like a beacon of light in a field of darkness, compared to being a candle next to a bonfire. In other words, it would be easier for a sensor to catch him if he hid outside of the village, where there was no fighting, as opposed to hiding inside a village, where thousands of large presences of chakra were all situated, making him stand out much less.

So, Suboro reasoned, all they had to do was look for the place where Hibiki clones were streaming out of to reinforce everyone else, but it seemed Hibiki had thought of this eventuality too, and there were several buildings with Hibikis streaming out of them, indicating multiple clones with large levels of chakra spawning more clones with minimal amounts of chakra. The same could be said for the building with the most Hibiki clones guarding it - all of the buildings with Hibiki spawners had armed guards with enough chakra to fight capably. None of the three of them had the time to search all of these buildings, the Alpha could very well be under attack and in danger before his team ever even got close to him.

The question, therefor, was if they couldn't _find_ the Alpha, how could they make _him_ find _them?_ Unlike Dante-sensei, Lords Jiraiya or Orochimaru, or any of the other combatants, they were specifically avoiding combat, they weren't causing a disturbance, bringing them to the present, where Noboru stared at Suboro incredulously, his blank white eyes almost radiating skepticality.

"Seriously, Noboru, it's fool proof - with a thousand of him here, there's no way he'd _miss it!_ All we have to do is make a little noise. He'll get word quick - a dark zone in the village where shinobi enter, get caught in an inescapable genjutsu. We let a few survivors escape and they'll spread word about how anyone who isn't killed by the genjutsu is killed by the Gentle Fist." The shaved genin explained, his eyes conveying that he knew this plan would work, because he - like Noboru - knew how Hibiki thought. "He'll send a few clones to investigate, and before we know it - we've got his location!"

Noboru nodded, "but consider what would happen if we find a foe that is immune to your genjutsu as I am, or Hibiki is." He said, briefly pulsing his Byakugan to confirm that they were, indeed, still alone and hidden inside their collapsed home. "You and I are powerful, but it will likely be a Jonin-level opponent we will be facing. We are not Hibiki, our names are not known for routinely facing opponents above our level." He said firmly.

"Are our names even known at all?" Suboro asked jokingly, holding his hands up to the side and tilting his head with a shrug. "Point is, we're a combat team. If that kind of situation comes around, we'll deal with it. We can do it, else, what was all of Dante-sensei's training even for, then?"

Noboru shook his head, "okay. Where will we strike, then?" He asked, to receive a wide grin from Suboro.

"I had just the idea..." The bald genin said.

* * *

With no warning, and even less time to react, the roof underneath the swordsman collapsed, and he found himself clenched in the massive bloody red hand of the Uchiha shinobi's spectral guardian. It clenched tight, not giving the swordsman even an inch with which to move his blade or his fingers, whilst the shinobi controlling the partial form of one of his most powerful techniques leapt out from the hole he had created, and turned to face his opponent, blood red fire radiating off of his body.

"Oh... I wish I had the time to keep this up." Said the unclean Jonin, as he ran a hair through his greasy, unkempt locks, his bloodline eyes noticing a small, nearly imperceptible flash of reflected light running along a long and thin length of ninja wire. He grinned, and his chakra construct clenched harder, eliciting a groan from the swordsman, and the ugly sound of bones crushing. "But why don't you reveal yourself?" He asked, uninterestedly, as his eyes went back to their true onyx shade and the skeletal arm sprouting from the right side of his fiery cloak vanished.

The swordsman hit the ground and promptly disintegrated into a puddle of water. The true swordsman soon revealed himself, walking up the wall on the far side of the building, keeping his distance from the Uchiha. "I have heard about those eyes... They could only belong to one man. Konoha's Black Rose... Dante Uchiha." Said the man, his voice deep and gruff, muffled by the mask he wore.

Dante smiled, "I've got to admit, you're the first person to actually recognize me since the last war." He chuckled, wiping the blood from his eyes as he did so. "Now, I'm not as versed in Kiri culture as I should be, but I think I can recognize Nuibari when I see it. It gave a friend of mine a bit of trouble, last war." He stretched his back, "but it was a different man wielding it back then. His hair was red."

"Indeed... My former mentor's demise was some time ago." Said the swordsman, as he lifted the blade. "But I remember it fondly, I carried it out, after all."

"What is it with you people?" Dante shook his head, "I really don't know. Us old timers, us teachers, they call us _teachers_ for a reason, you know. But, I'm one to talk, my students teach me about as much as I teach them... Speaking of, you want to know something I picked up from one of my kids? It's actually a pretty damn good trick." He grinned, brushing his hair back with his hand and then tightening the knot on his headband.

"I am enthralled." The gangly swordsman growled.

"Shadow clones. If you know how to use them, and can use them in the first place, are an ingenious little tool. Good for - among other things - buying time, fooling the enemy, the works. But despite what I just implied, my personal favorite feature is rapidly becoming what I call the 'damage index'. You see... One of my students taught me that s shadow clone feels everything that happens to it, and that damage is certainly sent back to the master in the form of memories... But the physical harm? That doesn't." Dante said with a smile, "so... In other words..."

The swordsman's eyes widened the moment he caught on, and an instant later he leapt to the side to dodge a second massive spectral fist as it slammed into the building. The rest of the construct swung upwards, revealing the upper half of the shadow clone's blood red, samurai-looking construct, its Uchiha crest emblazoned proudly upon its armor. Before the swordsman could recover, the clone swung its own sword in a wide horizontal arc, forcing the swordsman to dive for the ground to dodge it.

The swordsman, thinking fast, leapt upward into the sky, left hand clenched tight around a length of ninja wire protruding from Nuibari. He pulled tight on this wire and swung in the opposite direction, narrowly dodging a backhanded attack from the Dante clone. As the transparent, spectral hand swung over him, the swordsman swiped at it with his sword, which violently rebounded off of it, and as he began to obey the forces of gravity, both the clone and the original Dante leapt forward. Dante smashed his foot into the swordsman's back, and the clone thrust his construct's blade forward. The swordsman twisted and kicked his legs, creating circular momentum which started spinning him rapidly, by the time he was less than a meter away from the clone construct's sword, he threw out his strong arm, flooded it with chakra, and smashed Nuibari into the construct's blade.

The force of impact was just enough that it deflected the enormous sword from its original course, allowing the swordsman to use the contact between his blade and the clone's as a fulcrum to swing himself onto the blade. His feet coated in chakra to increase their durability, he then sprinted down the length of the blade, chopping at it with his own sword as he did so, each powerful, blisteringly fast swing being rebounded with a loud metallic clang and red chakra flying off in all directions. When the swordsman reached the hilt of the blade, he leapt up - both to avoid a wall of kunai thrown from the Alpha Dante and to avoid being thrown off of the sword itself when the construct threw his hand out to the side - and held his sword with both hands in a reverse-grip as he flew into the air.

As gravity took control again, he fell straight for the red samurai's head, and upon landing he smashed his blade into it with a loud, nearly deafening clang.

_"Nuibari -"_ He interrupted himself and kicked behind him with a loud grunt, smashing his foot into the Alpha Dante's chest and sending him back to the ground. _"- can cut anything!"_ The swordsman yelled as he tried to force the razor-sharp cutting edge through the chakra construct.

"You can't cut through _this,_ swordsman." Calmly said the clone from within its blood red protector, as it slowly lifted its left arm to grab at the swordsman like an ant crawling across his forehead.

Behind his mask, the swordsman of the mist grinned. "And whatever it cuts, it _BINDS!"_ He leapt upwards and with a small tug, the chakra construct was covered in ninja-wire, which too bathed the roof of the building which was their battleground, immobilizing the construct and pinning its blade to the roof.

The swordsman landed on the roof, and spun around the moment he touched down, throwing his blade towards a charging Uchiha. Dante threw his feet forward and slammed them on the ground, skidding to a halt as Nuibari flew towards him; he raised a hand and twisted his body in a counter-clockwise motion. The shinobi clenched his hand the moment his Sharingan told him the tip of the blade was within his grasp, and when his hand finally closed, he had the hilt of Nuibari safely in his hand. In this brief flurry of activity, the clone vanished in a massive plume of smoke, causing the entire mass of ninja wire to go slack, meaning Dante, no longer struggling against taut wire, stumbled forward just a half step too far. The swordsman was in front of him in an instant, and smacked his left hand out of the way before he headbutted Dante and grabbed at Nuibari. He wrenched the blade out of the Uchiha's hands and stepped forward, now chest-to-chest with Dante. In a flash, he bear-hugged Dante with one hand and with the other he lifted up the blade and brought it down in a reverse-stabbing motion, piercing Dante's back.

When the tip of Nuibari penetrated him, the swordsman jumped upwards and threw out both of his feet, so when the sword made it through Dante like a needle through threat, the swordsman was safely out of harm's way. He grabbed the flat of the blade and pulled it the rest of the way out, but before he could do anything else, the bleeding Uchiha smashed his face with a lightning-cloaked fist, before throwing both of his hands in the air and letting the lightning chakra arc back and forth between them. He brought both fists down, but missed when the swordsman hit the ground and sprinted forward with chakra-enhanced feet, the speed drew a great deal of the ninja wire through Dante's chest wound, the speed through which the wire was dragged through him actually managing to cause enough friction to cause it to smolder slightly.

The swordsman skidded to a halt at the edge of the roof, one foot hanging off, the other half off. The swordsman had the wire pulled tight, Dante had both feet planted firmly on the ground, chakra keeping him held fast, a scowl on his face and his bloody red eyes wide, he knew what the man's next move would be.

With a two fingered, lazy salute, the swordsman jumped off of the edge of the roof, and the mass of wire covering the roof came to life, coiling around Dante.

* * *

So fast that, without the Sharingan, the Hibiki clone wouldn't hae been able to see it coming, the swordsman sprinted forward, straight towards him, sword held low, dragging along the ground. The swordsman slashed at Hibiki, who barely managed to dodge the swing by bending down low. The swordsman followed this up with an upward slice, which Hibki - out of any other options - parried with his rifle. The swordsman was about to take another swing when Jiraiya blasted him with a fire technique, giving Hibiki the time to leap back and take aim. Hibiki pulled the trigger, but immediately realized that his earlier parry had had more costs than just a deep groove: The magazine had been cut clean off, and the barrel was missing a large chunk, the rifle was useless now.

The Senju heir leapt back as the swordsman and the sannin engaged, the sannin dodging the deadly swings and the swordsman trying to add to the man's injuries. Disarmed, Hibiki tossed the rifle away and pulsed a bit of chakra into the seal on his wrist - but came up with nothing.

_God damn it!_ With everything he'd been doing - from his month of recovery to his dash to Amerigo - Hibiki had still forgotten to take back his revolver from Minato. _ Okay... New plan! _Hibiki, however, had an idea - whether or not the man registered the injuries, bullets _did_ hurt the man, so all Hibiki had to do was use them. The problem, however, was that without his gun the bullets couldn't be fired. But that didn't mean he still couldn't detonate the primer and the gunpowder - all he needed was a spark, and if there was anything Dante had taught him, it was that the basics should never be forgotten.

Hibiki leapt back and pulsed chakra into the seal on his left thigh. Out popped a magazine for his rifle, and he quickly ejected six bullets, all of which went between the digits of both hands, creating a wolverine-esque set of claws out of bullets. If Hibiki didn't time this perfectly, he'd likely blow his hands off, but now wasn't the time for caution - he leapt into the fray as Jiraiya caught the blade and stopped it wholesale with the bracers on his forearms. The swordsman grinned savagely, but the grin was wiped away when he saw Hibiki flying towards him, both clenched fists held back and ready to punch. The man wrenched his blade out of Jiraiya's cross-guard, and swung it in Hibiki's direction.

Jiraiya, thinking fast, punched upwards - cracking several of his knuckles, but also throwing the massive butcher's knife completely off course, allowing Hibiki to get within the swordsman's defenses and launch his assault. Hibiki threw his right fist forward, his Sharingan eyes blazing a bright bloody red, everything he had was focused into their perception increase. Time seemed to slow down for the Senju child, as his fist crawled towards the Swordsman's chest, the three bullets clenched between his fingers. When they got within three centimeters of the man's chest, Hibiki focused his lightning-natured chakra into his arm and down to his fist, and when his fist impacted, the three bullets went off as one in a simultaneous thunderclap, tearing through the man's chest in a bloody display.

The swordsman of the mist immediately realized what Hibiki was doing - though he'd destroyed the weapon, the weapon wasn't what was injuring him so, it was the explosive brass projectiles. He reacted almost instantly and brought his knee up to catch Hibiki in the jaw, before his fist smashed into his chest and sent him flying away. The swordsman leapt back to the edge of the roof, but found himself underneath a large shadow.

_"NOW, DOTO!"_ The sannin yelled.

Out of instinct, the swordsman whirled around and brought his blade up to defend him, an act that would save his life as it caught the full force of the boss toad's own tanto. The weight and force of the attack nearly caused the swordsman's section of the roof to crumble beneath him, and it actually managed to partially cut through the executioner's blade, almost immediately putting the swordsman on the defensive. He launched a kick to his back as he sensed one of the two rushing towards him - noting with glee that he caught the boy in the chest, judging from the lighter-toned grunt. Unfortunately for him, this placed the entirety of the weight of him, his sword, and the toad's sword on one leg, which proved too much for the roof which finally crumbled beneath him.

Back on the roof, the toad-sage and his nephew exchanged glances. The Hibiki clone cleared his throat, "is he dead?"

Jiraiya shook his head, his hand slowly going back up to his chest injury. "Just regrouping." Jiraiya gazed over to Hibiki's discarded rifle, "grab that. Don't let it fall into enemy -" Before he even finished, the roof beneath them exploded outwards as the executioner's blade flew up, creating a hole large enough for the swordsman to leap through. In the blink of an eye, the swordsman caught the blade and swung it around - savagely carving up the Hibiki clone's chest and hurtling straight for Jiraiya. The toad-sage, out of instinct, brought up his arm to brace against the attack, but what happened next showed him the error of his ways, as the momentum of the blade and its sheer mass meant it had enough force behind it to cut straight through Jiraiya's already weakened bracers.

With a pained grunt, Jiraiya leapt back, watching as his right hand fell to the ground, completely severed from his now heavily bleeding arm.

The swordsman, grinning viciously, lifted the blade so Jiraiya could see his blood covering it - and watch as the blood seemed to flow of its own accord, making for the damaged part and almost being absorbed by it, undoing the damage and leaving the blade as good as new. The toad sage hazarded a peak over at his boss toad, but saw - to his dismay - it being engaged by another swordsman, this one with a massive, squirming blade covered in bandages.

_Shit..._ Thought Jiraiya, as he clenched his bleeding stump with his good hand. _Now what do I do?_ He asked himself, scowling at the laughing swordsman, who had his blade resting on his shoulders once again.


	40. Blitzkrieg: Biggie Smalls -II-

Chapter 39

* * *

"Well... I seem to be in quite the situation." The white-haired toad sage thought aloud, as he clenched his stump tightly, cradling it against his chest. He straightened his stance, slowly lifting his gaze to the swordsman, who still wore that wicked, evil grin.

"Indeed..." The hoarse man said, slightly adjusting his hold on the massive butcher's knife. "I would have thought that one of the three-sannin would have been... Stronger. More deserving of the legends... Or perhaps Hanzo the salamander was far weaker than most made him out to be." He goaded, his stained, ugly teeth bared in a malicious smile.

Jiraiya shrugged, "I like to think of it the other way..." He leaned his head over. "I _don't_ know how you do it." He said to the Hibiki clone on the ground, who was struggling to get to his wobbling, weak feet. The swordsman blinked, slowly turning from the Sannin to the clone, the latter of whom gazed at Jiraiya with a questioning glare. "This shadow-clone thing. Making them is easy enough, but how you always seem to get them to treat their life as seriously as the real one would... It's odd." Jiraiya looked up to the sky, "I feel the sense of self preservation, and yet... It seems distant. Almost forced."

When it dawned on the Senju heir, he groaned. "Oh you've got to be fucking kidding me." The boy let go, slumping back to the ground, head buried in the crook of his arm. A drawn out, muffled, "god damn it" could be heard from the boy.

The swordsman, who too realized what the Sannin was talking about, soon lost his grin, as the implications fell upon him with a violent intensity. His neutral scowl slowly turned into a livid glare, as he lifted his sword and pointed it at Jiraiya. "One, two, even three of you. I shall defeat your original as swiftly as I disarmed you."

Jiraiya's face grew into a wide grin, "clever." He said, before he vanished in a plume of smoke.

The Swordsman growled, and whipped around, intent upon ending the Senju clone's brief life before he focused on destroying the true Jiraiya. Unfortunately for him, this opened him up to another attack from the massive toad. He barely managed to bring his blade up to block this next one - the force of impact sinking him several inches into the weakened roof. He grunted loudly upon impact, but his eyes widened as he saw the toad sage sliding down the flat of the blade, hands a blur as he flipped through handsigns.

The swordsman attempted to throw off the blade, using both hands and all of his strength, but found himself unable to budge it even an inch. Before he could make a snap decision, he heard a loud, toad-like croak, before his world became slick and wet. He was showered in an obscene amount of pale oil, and barely a moment later the sannin reached the tip of the blade and leapt upwards, flipping as he did so, so his feet were pointed to the sky and his head face the head of his enemy. With a brief belch, he unleashed a constant torrent of flame which immediately lit the swordsman's whole body ablaze.

The swordsman roared as he felt his flesh roast, but could not move more than a few inches as the toad pressed more and more of his weight upon the little man, letting him know clearly that he was in control, and if the man moved even an inch out of turn, the toad's tanto would break free of their struggle and end his life. What the toad hadn't planned on, however, was the swordsman's willingness to do such a thing. The swordsman yanked his blade to the side, scraping it out from under the toad's tanto, which soon came crashing down, taking a massive chunk out of his shoulder, though the wound quickly stopped bleeding as it cauterized within seconds of being exposed to the open flame that coated his body.

With an animalistic roar, the swordsman, both hands tightly clenching his enormous blade, spun in a wide circle, managing to catch the side of the toad's tanto just before its momentum allowed it to sink fully into the building. The strength behind his spin added with the sudden stop caused by the impact with the tanto was all immediately transformed into momentum, sending the swordsman flying backwards through the air, where he collided with the Sannin, who grabbed him with both arms and used the man's own trick against him, spinning him around the air and slamming him into the ground with force enough to shatter its foundation.

Jiraiya, seeing the man burning to death right below him, slowly straightened up. "All you've got to do is surrender... We're not monsters."

The burning man scowled, "you invaded a village and sent your summons to smash it to pieces." He said, almost as if he didn't even register the flames licking and scalding his skin.

Jiraiya said, "well, we're not -" Jiraiya was interrupted by Gamadoto, who ripped his tanto out of the building, sending debris and boulders flying in all directions and managing to shake its very foundations. Jiraiya gave the toad a pointed look, the toad shrugged but otherwise showed no reaction to his wanton destruction as he sheathed the blade. "Okay, fine... But we're not evil, either." He shook his head as the swordsman tried reaching for the blade, and he kicked it away with the tip of his foot. "So... Mind answering a few questions? I'll put you out if you -" The swordsman leapt up with a loud bellow, but Jiraiya smashed his palm into the man's chest and sent him back into his small crater. "- oh, okay. I get it. Loyal to the end. Typical swordsman stuff - don't give in period, keep fighting as long as you can, bla bla bla." He looked up to Doto and gave the toad a brief nod, the toad responded in kind and turned around to continue wading through the city and interrupting and finishing as many fights as he could. The Toad Sage belched out a large dollop of water, which put out the flames, though it still left a heavily burned, blackened man who only kept conscious through sheer force of will.

"Seriously." Jiraiya leaned down, hearing the Hibiki clone laboriously get to his feet, but keeping his focus on the smoldering shinobi. "We're not here as conquerors. We're just trying to end a war before it can escalate. If you surrender, we won't treat you viciously. If you help us, we'll help you." He said, sparing a glance at the man's nearly missing shoulder and his scorched body. "I happen to know a _damn_ good medic, and one or two of her students. Three of them, working together, isn't a single thing they can't do."

"Uh... Uncle -" The clone was silenced with a kunai to the forehead, he vanished in a plume of smoke, and a hurried apology from the toad sage, who didn't need the chunin ruining the ruse accidentally.

"And what... Ruin the chance of getting another good war in?" The hoarse swordsman gurgled, lifting his arms and resting them behind his head, despite the obvious pain and the audible cracks and groans of his blistering, blackened skin. The swordsman smiled a malicious grin, "you call this peace? I call it the prologue. You know as well as I do that another war is inevitable, and so is another one after that, and after that one too... And those pauses between those wars? Guess what - they're just wars fought in the shadows." He was overcome with a coughing fit, blood flying out of his mouth.

Jiraiya shrugged, "whatever..." He looked up at a trio of flying Hibikis, as they soared through the air and raked the ground with gunfire, dodging a few water techniques and making sure they didn't collide with other flying Hibikis; the toad-sage sighed. "Whatever keeps the kids out of the battlefields, you know? Come on..." He looked down at the smoldering man, "even you have to have a soft spot for kids... Didn't the bingo book say you were training one of your own?"

The swordsman chuckled, "if that's what your book says, then you've been terrible mis-" He coughed, "misinformed. No one even close to that level of skill."

Jiraiya shrugged, "it's not like you people make it easy. But regardless - you're losing time and so am I... So tell me, what do you want more? To die here, loyal to the end, or the chance to die in battle? Because we _both_ know... Even if this manages to buy us time, war in our lifetime is inevitable."

* * *

Unlike barbed or regular razor wire, ninja wire was unique in the sense that, even with the most minute amount of chakra, it could very well cut through anything. Most shinobi didn't attempt to use ninja wire to its fullest potential simply due to how wild and unruly it could be - even the Uchiha, who were more proficient in its use than other clans, very rarely attempted such a combat style, for the simple fact that kenjutsu was a much safer substitute. Chakra-laced ninja wire was so so sharp that some who attempted to take on its combat style often lopped their own heads off during training, thus the style's name, 'Bloody Threads'.

The swordsman who wielded Nuibari seemed to recognize the simultaneous strength and danger inherent in a Bloody Threads combat style, and as such employed a generous middle-ground, using his sword as both the weighted end of the wire and as a safety measure: Instead of whipping around a wire with a kunai or some other weight tied to its end, he used the wire spun around the sword as an extension of the sword itself, meaning that he relied on the sword first and foremost, but was able to use its ninja wire as a way to increase its cutting power. In short, the wire was a bonus, not the focus.

To Dante Uchiha, this meant that in scant seconds would be all he had before he would be cut into a pile of spaghetti noodles, blood, and gore. Worse was that, to him, these few seconds would drag on forever as his Sharingan increased his rate of perception, making a flurry of activity to anyone else feel like the monotonous movement of a million years to him. He saw his death approaching at a slow crawl, but fortunately for him, he had an ace up his sleeve.

Or, rather, his true self did. The Dante clone burst into smoke just as the wires began digging into his skin, meaning all of the tension he was causing on the line, all of the resistance, it vanished, stumbling the swordsman of the mist as he started falling down the wall much faster than he had been anticipating. The swordsman slammed his feet into the wall, his chakra helping him to skid to a halt, but before he could cease his movement, the side of the building exploded outwards as a massive fireball slammed into it from the inside. Leaping out from within the building was the unclean jonin, a deep scowl planted on his face, his fist reared back and streaming lightning.

The mist shinobi, acting fast, yanked hard on the wire connecting him to the building, pulling it taut once again and catching himself on it, immediately turning his downward plunge into outward momentum as he swiftly swung out of the way of the Jonin's punch. The Jonin, however, spun around in midair and belched out another fireball, which forced the swordsman to yank downward on his taut wire. The brief airtime granted by the wire-pull gave the swordsman the maneuvering space he needed to bring his blade to bear and bat aside the fireball, only to be hit full force in the chest by a lightning bolt. The convulsing swordsman soon began obeying gravity again, and though it was not as quick as it once was, he swung again out of the way. When the swordsman regained control of his body, he swung his legs behind him and increased his speed, channeling a minute amount of chakra into the ninja wire so it would cleave through the roof as it was dragged around. The newfound lack of friction meant that the shinobi swung faster and faster, and after a moment his feet hit the wall of the building, he kept his momentum by breaking out into a sprint - tearing apart the building with his wire as he ran around it.

When the swordsman reached the side he'd left Dante on, he cut all chakra from Nuibari's wire and leapt forward, digging his feet into the wall as he grabbed the wire with both arms and pulled with all of his might. All of the wire on the roof, plus the building's weakened structural integrity, meant that the building only needed one good push to topple over, and the swordsman gave it that push, right in the direction of Sharingan shinobi.

Dante stared up at the towering building as it slowly started falling in his direction. His blood red eyes narrowed as he focused on the instigator, who snapped the wire off of his sword and leapt forward. Dante realized that the man was using the building as an added threat, but by no means was giving him the chance to use it as a smokescreen. Dante nodded his head to the side, slightly impressed, but also growing bored - apparently, the man wasn't catching on. With a grunt and a scowl, Dante was covered completely in his blood red spectral guardian, which grabbed the swordsman out of the air with one hand, and with the other, protected the both of them as the falling building hit the ground, massive chunks of debris, clouds of dust, and the occasional body part from the people who had yet to be evacuated.

The building crashed down, creating multiple deep splashes and large geysers of water, as well as the occasional thunderclap as the debris impacted itself or slammed into other parts of the much smaller building Dante stood upon. The air was saturated with dust and the ground - both the roof they stood upon and the swamp below - was covered in debris, and through the thick dust cloud shone the blood red spectre that protected both the swordsman and the Uchiha.

Dante shook his head, "you know, this has been fun and all - really... It's been a _long_ time since I've gotten to stretch my legs like this and cause some wanton destruction... But, if all you're capable of is dropping a building or two, you're not really that impressive. I mean, hell - you yourself called me by my old war name. I'm somewhat surprised the other swordsman haven't arrived yet... Isn't there one with a blade that eats chakra? Where is he?" Dante asked, as in the distance a building exploded in a massive fireball, briefly catching Dante's eye. "More to the point... Where is _he?_ Katsuo, the Monster of Kirigakure? Or, maybe the Lord of _Iwa_gakure?" Dante asked, his eyes drifting back to the immobile swordsman, who struggled in the spectral grip of the blood red construct. "I would have expected the man who formed the alliance between your two villages to be here by now." He mentioned.

The swordsman smirked behind his mask, "if you think... That we've merely created an alliance between _two_ countries... You are mistaken, Uchiha." He groaned from crushed ribs.

The Uchiha arced an eyebrow, "oh?" He inquired, "intriguing... And what would this third village be?"

The swordsman was silent for a moment, as his grin turned into a sneer. "Turn around and see for yourself."

Dante, with a scowl, expected an attack and crushed the shinobi in the hand of his construct almost on instinct. Finally done with that threat, he whipped his head around and tossed the bloody, crushed corpse away in a shower of thick blood, Nuibari falling to the swamp below, but was greeted by nothing. Dante squinted his eyes as his construct vanished, scanning all he could see for even a hint of what the swordsman was talking about, when he saw it - a cloud of chakra expanding over a small section of the village, and in its center was what Dante could only describe as a contained lightning storm. It clashed with the cloud of chakra, as the cloud tried to envelop it, pierce its impenetrable armor, but the lightning did not budge.

The Uchiha squinted his eyes, focusing on that area, and soon saw it all as clearly as he would if he were standing right there. On one side of a narrow street covered in corpses, was his own squad, the three of them standing tall and staring defiantly at their opponents, who stood at the other end. Given their skin color, their opponents had to be from Kumo, though their disparity in age gave Dante pause - one had to be in his early twenties, whereas the other was too small to be teen-aged like Noboru or Suboro, he couldn't be any older than Hibiki. They both had bleached white hair, and the elder of the two had a goatee proudly displayed on his grimacing face, but what sold the terror for the Uchiha was what he saw enveloping the man - a cloak of lightning.

_"Oh Kami..." _Breathed Dante, as it finally clicked. An elder and a younger shinobi, both from Kumogakure, and one wrapped in lightning armor. It wasn't just any random pair of shinobi, it was the prospective leader for Kumogakure no Sato. _"Oh... Shit."_ He cursed, running a hand through his dirty hair as he tried to gauge how much chakra he'd used in this last fight. It wasn't hard to discern why they were here - if Katsuo had set up an alliance between Iwa and Kumo, and subsequently between Iwa and Kiri, it stood to reason that Kumo would send a small delegation to at least make greetings, and who better to send than the prospective Raikage? Get him some practice in politics, and some time together with his tag-team partner.

In all honesty, Dante was torn. On one hand, he knew beyond the shadow of a doubt that his Genin team - even working together - couldn't take the two of them on, but on the other, he wanted to see what they would do. Unfortunately for him, whether or not he would have reached the 'help them' conclusion on his own, he sensed something approaching him at a rapid rate. On instinct, the unclean jonin leapt to the side, and the ground he had just been standing upon was destroyed, obliterated by a massive impact. Dust and debris burst into the air, leaving a deep smokescreen that was easily pierced by Dante's sharingan eyes.

Emerging from the small crater was a horrifying creature, easily ten feet tall and with dark brown skin; its deep gray hair flowed in a thick mane down its head. The creature growled, breathing in and out in deep rasps, its massive muscles rippling with each stretch and compression of his chest. It had deep purple chakra radiating off of it, and its bright yellow eyes were locked onto Dante's red orbs.

"Hibiki mentioned you in his report... Insane strength and a bone-release to boot." Dante began, wondering if this creature could even understand him. "If you're here, does that mean Katsuo is as well?" The burly creature growled in response, turning to face Dante fully. "Do you even understand me at all? Can you speak common?"

The creature slowly lowered itself into a combat stance, the amount of chakra radiating off of its body increasing dramatically, practically covering it in a deep purple blaze. Dante sighed, watching as its muscles practically convulsed underneath its skin in a grotesque manner. He saw a few protrusions begin stretching out from his back, chakra focused in them so heavily that they would be visible even without the Sharingan.

"I guess not." Barely a second before Dante finished speaking, the massive creature blasted forward, so fast that it was somewhat difficult to keep up with without a Sharingan. The creature's fist swung forward and caught Dante in the chest, the impact cracking bone and sending him flying.

* * *

_Three Tango Charlies, surrounding Konoha Jonin. Two clones killed, Konoha safe. _

_Two Tango Juliets, one Konoha Chunin, seriously injured. One clone, two, three, four killed, Chunin injured, currently extracting. _

_Field report - dead zone near central Kiri, reports of vivid genjutsu, jonin-level. Anyone who enters killed by phantoms.  
_

_Field Report - Uncle J's fine, is extracting E-POW._

Through the constant, never-ending flashes of memory, the ever-rising tide of status reports and sudden death, Hibiki Senju narrowed in on one series of memories in particular, opening them as if they were a picture album, seeing what they had in store. There were burgeoning reports of a dead-zone in the center of Kiri, anyone who entered it was ensnared in a dastardly genjutsu. Reports on the illusion itself were next to nothing, there were few survivors that were naiive enough to focus on those details, as opposed to the other, perhaps more important ones, such as the fact that whomever was too weak to break out of the genjutsu was killed by the illusions they experienced, or that whoever sought out the caster was attacked by a crushingly powerful hit and run, and that no matter where they hid, these two combined forces always found them.

_It's a message._ The long-haired Senju heir concluded. No genjutsu caster worth his salt, or master tracker worth the title, would let survivors flee, they would hunt them down to preserve the illusion of business as normal - it would make their trap all the more effective. They hadn't missed these survivors, they had allowed them to leave to spread the message - there was a genjutsu trap in central Kiri, and this genjutsu killed whoever it caught, and whoever escaped or wasn't caught was found, invariably, and dealt with swiftly.

_Noboru and Suboro are in Kirigakure._ The Senju Heir spawned a clone and popped it just as quickly, and in the blink of an eye, all of the clones he had flying around Kiri and shooting anything wearing the wrong headband were searching for the two.

In mere minutes, they had their target.

* * *

The trio of flying Hibikis were over central Kiri in seconds, the roaring wind in their ears vanishing as they hit the mid-air breaks and briefly gazed over the scene. They could see over a dozen corpses strewn about the circular area of nearly one kilometer, with few, if any, signs of trouble. The clones' Sharingan eyes also afforded them the ability to see the finer details of the deadzone, such as the small scuff marks marking where Noboru had slid to a halt and the angles at which his victims had landed after being smashed by his palm.

The trio quickly fell to the ground, a brief pulse killing their momentum to allow for a safe, non-bone-breaking landing. The two clones with less chakra quickly raised their rifles and started setting up a perimeter around the one who still held the most chakra. He knelt down, focusing past the distant sounds of gunfire and, no matter how strange it sounded, trusting himself to keep himself protected. Looking closely at the ground with his matured Sharingan, he saw the otherwise imperceptible scratches and grooves on the ground, as if someone had slid to a fast halt. Looking to his left, there was a bloated corpse with a crushed chest resting in the wall of a building, slumped over and still.

_A perfect hit and run..._ He traced it with his eyes, _he bolted down, skidded to a halt... Bam - hit the guy, sent him flying, and then ran again._ He thought, staring at the scattered dirt and scuff marks of a chakra-assisted jump. What caught his eye, however, was a specific injury on the shinobi with a slit throat. The man's shirt was caked with blood, but the blood hadn't streamed down from his throat, much the opposite, it came from underneath.

_Suboro isn't sociopathic, he doesn't injure just for the sake of it..._ Hibiki quickly scanned his horizons, though he knew he was within Suboro's 'deadzone', he was also in the center of a _war_zone, and if anyone saw him just lolling about, searching bodies, they would likely take an opportunity to strike. When he confirmed the coast was clear, he drew a knife from his pouch and cut open the armored Kiri shinobi's vest, and then his shirt, revealing a peculiar chest wound.

It was an arrow, pointing to Hibiki's left.

_Gross... But effective._ Thought Hibiki, as he looked to his left, and saw, several dozen meters away, barely balanced on the edge of a circular building, another body. Hibiki hopped into the air and pulsed his chakra, almost double-jumping to the body. This scene was much the same as the last, but with three bodies strewn about in an almost perfect circle, with curved lines of dust, debris, and gouges carved into the ground, direct evidence of the usage of a heavenly rotation technique. In the center of the circular devastation was a body, this one with a knife in its temple.

Hibiki's 'guards' landed a moment later, and he strode over to the body. This one, like the last, had blood that was not consistent with the kill wounds, and another surgical shirt removal showed another set of directions, though these were much more direct than the last. It was a simple word, 'DOWN'.

Hibiki stood up and took a few steps back, staring hard at the roof of the building. They were inside, though the question he kept asking himself was why did they send him on this hunt when Noboru had a Byakugan? If he were acting as Suboro's eyes whilst Suboro kept up the deadzone, shouldn't he have seen Hibiki - _three _Hibikis - by now?

The short answer, of course he did, they were just having a bit of fun with their friend. The long answer, they knew it was a clone, and could afford the time, and that the clone would know almost instantly that few people were audacious enough to try something like this, when the direct approach worked just fine. The dark-haired Senju heir grinned, "alright, Noboru, I've found you." He said, very clearly pronouncing every word, so the stoic Hyuga would be able to read his lips.

A few moments later, a door opened up, and his friends and teammates appeared on the roof. The white-eyed Hyuga smiled softly, whereas the buzz-cut Genin merely abandoned all pretense and ran up to give the first Hibiki he could find a bear hug.

_"What'd I say?"_ He called out, lifting one of the Hibiki clones from his feet. _"What did I say?! I said - "_ He put down Hibiki, "_it will work, Noboru. I said it! And YOU -" _He whirled around and pointed at Hibiki, "now you can't say I skipped fights! Matter of fact, I had a better first fight than _either_ of you! My first fight was a_ war!"_ He said loudly, an ear-to-ear grin spreading across his face.

Hibiki raised an eyebrow, watching as the chakra radiating off of Suboro died down, signifying that he was killing his technique. "I dunno..."

_"Don't you start!"_ Suboro brought his hand closer to his face, still pointing at Hibiki.

"I think he is right, Suboro. Technically, this is none of _our_ fights... This is Konoha versus Kiri." Noboru smiled, "welcome back, my friend." He nodded to a grinning Hibiki.

"Glad to be back." Said Hibiki, as he got a pulse of memories from a clone, taken out by a surprise attack. "So... Two Genin and a Chunin walk into a war."

"We are here to protect you... Lord Hokage figured two trained Genin, prospective Chunin, no less, would be better than a motley crew of Rookies." Said Noboru, as he folded his arms into his white sleeves, to the backdrop of more memories from Hibiki's clones.

"And while you were out doing Kami knows what with the Eagles, we got some _real_ training done!" Said Suboro, triumphantly.

"Oh really?" Said Hibiki, "we'll talk about that another day. For now..." He trailed off, as more memories came, faster and faster with each passing second.

His teammates caught on quickly, "what's wrong?" Noboru asked, quickly activating his Byakugan.

"Something's taking out clones... Fast." Hibiki shut his eyes and focused. "Lightning techniques... It's either a lot of men, or a few really fast ones." He got another flash of memories, "did they just clothes-line me?" He opened his eyes and blinked heavily.

"What is clothes-line?" Suboro asked. Hibiki grinned, and barely a second later, one of his guards demonstrated, knocking Suboro onto his rear with a loud, angry yelp. "Hey, that's not fair!" Suboro was on his feet, but the clone had vanished in a poof of smoke, leaving a growling Suboro to turn back to the clone leader.

Noboru, however, looked pensive. "I think I have seen that before... In my clan's archives."

"Something we need to worry about?" Hibiki asked, before he was assaulted with another blast of memories. "Oh... Never mind." He got concerned glances from his teammates. "Two Kumo shinobi, they just issued a direct challenge." He said, as he looked to the distance and saw Gamadoto rampaging through the village, Jiraiya riding atop him.

"Just two shinobi?" Suboro reiterated.

"Kumo?"

"One big buy, about Dante-sensei's age, maybe younger, and one kid, maybe my age." Hibiki said, "they're wise to my game." He waited a moment, and then got updated orders from the Alpha. "And it looks like I'm going to spring their trap."

"Why? What is happening?" Noboru asked.

"They're moving through the village, taking out my clones as fast as the Flash... of... Lightning." Hibiki barely caught himself, making the analogy almost out of instinct rather than habit, and silently praying they would chalk it up to fatigue, or information overload. "They caught one before it could dispell, and used it to send a message: If they don't find the true Senju, they'll wipe out his clone army, no matter how high they fly or how fast they run."

"And you're _accepting_ this challenge?" Suboro asked, though Noboru was nodding.

"I can't afford to let them take out my army - for various reasons, I don't have anywhere near as many soldiers as I'd originally intended, so if they take 'em all out, I'll have to burn more chakra to bolster the numbers." He winced at another flash of memories, one of which included being clothes lined by two people at the same time, and feeling the pain of having his chest explode and be crushed simultaneously.

"If you fight him yourself, you'll risk _all_ of the clones dispelling if he kills you." Noboru pointed out.

"Do you two have _no faith_ in me whatsoever? I'll answer his challenge, but _I_ won't be fighting him... I've already made a clone that's combat ready, he's setting up an arena." Said the Hibiki clone, looking to the sky and watching as two more clones descended. "They'll take you to it."

"Why us?" Suboro asked, wiping some sweat from his shaved head. "Why not send us to the real you?"

"He has to make the ruse complete." Said Noboru, "and he is. Sending us to the Alpha Hibiki, that is." He blinked away the Byakugan, "what is it you always say?"

"The best way to hide a secret is to shove it under everybody's nose." Said the grinning clone, as the others landed, and motioned for the Genin to grab on, piggy-back style. "Or, in this case, under everybody's battlefield."

* * *

Three more cloned children destroyed before even most Jonin could blink an eye, the larger Kumo shinobi flicked his soaking wet arm, blood spraying off of it in all directions. He turned his gaze to the sky, his resting scowl meeting the blood-red eyes of another clone, this one defiantly hovering right above him. His head held high, he raised an eyebrow, as if silently asking the clone if it had any tricks up his sleeve, as the other shinobi, hands in his pocket, slowly strolled around him, tracing A's gaze up to the flying Chunin.

"I would hope that the heir to the Senju would have something more to show than a parlor trick." The larger shinobi finally said, over a distant thunderous cacophony, his tone radiating pride.

The chakra flowing from the Senju's hands died down, and he slowly descended to the ground. He came to a halt a few feet from the duo, his head tilted in a curious fashion. "I am answering your challenge, but I do just have to ask... What is Kumo doing in Kiri?"

"Whoa, ya fool! You 'spect us ta answer it, just like tools?!" Demanded the smaller one, whose 'unique' way of speaking instantly stole the attention of the Senju, who stared at him, eyes wide and expression blank.

Aside from the war in the background, everything was silent between the three of them, before the Senju shook his head, almost in disbelief. "Oh... Oh, _fuck_ that." He reached up behind him, his right hand hovering just above his shoulder.

It was then, thanks to his blood red eyes, that he saw it all happen in astonishingly clear detail. The moment the air started to distort around the seal on his back, and the smoke began to generate as he summoned his rifle, the larger one was immediately covered in chakra. In barely a microsecond, the cloak of chakra screamed to life, lightning flowing around him and covering his body like an aura. For all of Hibiki's increases in perception rate, the larger man still moved comparatively at a normal speed - meaning that, to everyone else, he was moving faster than even a Jonin. Before Hibiki could even react, the larger of the two had sprinted across the meager gap between them and, his arm outstretched, slammed Hibiki's head into the crook of his arm. It was over before Hibiki could blink.

"Yo, bro, c'mon." Said the smaller one.

"He was about to attack." Said the larger of the two, with a shake of his head, as he heard thunder above him. He looked up and saw another clone, this one flying away. "Follow him." He pointed at it, "it is flying slow on purpose." He grimaced, and leapt into the air, soon followed by his partner.

* * *

Standing in the center of an abandoned street, flanked on both sides by large buildings, Team Six waited for their opponents to arrive. With little warning, Hibiki blinked and threw his head back, his eyes growing wide as he got a flash of memories. "Oh... Oh, _fuck that!" _He said, shaking his head and wiping some sweat from it, silently despising the hot, humid air.

His buzz-cut teammate's head whipped around, "what? What happened?"

Hibiki was chuckling hysterically, holding his head in a hand and shaking it lightly. "Oh... God damn it. I thought I'd escaped that bullshit." He breathed, a disbelieving grin stretching across his face. "Okay..." He turned to his teammates and held up one finger, looking like he had something to say, an idea to voice, but after a moment, he sighed and shook his head again. "Jesus fuckin' Christ..." He felt his heart beating in his chest as he shook his head once again, his hair whipping about.

Now Noboru, his Byakugan bulging, turned his head to face his hysteric teammate. "What is it, Hibiki?"

_"Hell._ Hip-hop _hell_." He responded, a grin stretching across his face as a horrible, _ridiculous_ idea came to mind. "But it gives me an idea... A very, _very_ stupid idea, but we _do_ need to distract them." He rationalized, sounding as if he were trying to convince himself more than he was trying to sell the idea to his teammates.

Noboru and Suboro exchanged glances, "Hibiki... What are you -"

"Just... Let me do the talking." Hibiki interrupted, again chuckling despite himself, as his eyes gazed upwards and the clone he'd sent to guide the two Kumo shinobi flew by. "And _pray_ it buys us enough time." He gave a look to Noboru, "you know the drill."

Noboru nodded, "they are nearly here." He turned his head to the direction the two dark-skinned shinobi were approaching from. "And I can sense they are powerful... _One_ of them is nearly as powerful as all three of us, and the other is stronger than even that." He said.

Hibiki grinned, and grasped Suboro by the shoulders with one arm. "That's why we have our secret weapon." He said with an almost teasing tone, "time to nut up or shut up, dude." He turned his gaze forward, and at the other end of the street, the two shinobi landed, skidding to a halt and slowly turning to face their three young opponents.

Before the two Kumo shinobi could exchange silent glances, Hibiki hopped forward, waving both hands in the air. "WAAAAAAAAAIT!" He screamed, his voice barely cutting over the sounds of gunfire and battle. The two shinobi blinked, giving Hibiki just enough time to point at the smaller one, "you! Where, when, how, and _why_ did you learn to speak like that?!"

The young one blinked behind his sunglasses, giving Hibiki an angry look, "fool, you makin' fun of my rappin'?!" He took one step forward and pointed straight at Hibiki, "you _know_ we gon' be scrappin'!"

It took every ounce of Hibiki's self restraint not to scream as loud as he could and tear his hear out by the roots. He pointed at the young one, "you..." His face was turning red, as he blew air through clenched teeth and pursed lips, "did not..." He was trying to remain calm, but everyone present knew that by merely speaking, the smaller Kumo shinobi had completely bypassed his normal reservations and destroyed any defenses he'd have set up. "Answer... My fucking question!" He pushed the last words out in one breath, suddenly finding himself panting. "What the _fuck_ is your name?!" Hibiki demanded.

"My name, you see, it's Killer Bee!" Said the man proudly, a grin stretching across his dark face, he stopped midway through making a triumphant pose, his smile melting away as he said lowly, "gonna have to remember that one, son..." Before the red-faced, hysterical Senju heir could even blink, he had a notebook in hand and was writing down his previous rhyme.

His eyes almost bulging from his head, Hibiki sputtered, "you just - that was -" He clenched his lungs, slowly letting out what air they still had in them, as opposed to screaming at the small stupid child.

Hibiki took another step forward, the taller one immediately assumed a defensive stance, but Hibiki merely held up a hand. "Just... Give me a second..." He breathed, shaking his head. "I can not believe I'm about to do this..." He felt his heart rate climb. "I'm about to fucking do this..." He swallowed through a suddenly dry throat.

"Hibiki?" Noboru spoke, his expression confused.

Hibiki held up his other hand, silencing his teammate. "I have to do it. I literally cannot pass this up. I will regret it for the rest of my life if I do." He said, "so just... Whew!" He shook his head and dropped both hands. "Alright... Fuck it." He turned back to Bee, "alright... If you're serious about that shit... Let me jumpstart you, help you skip the development stage." He inhaled deeply, puffing out his chest, before blowing it all out, forcing his heart to slow down.

_Whatever you do, Hibiki... Do not... Fucking... Laugh._ Another inhale, "Oh boy..." He whispered.

Bee, a perplexed look on his face, tilted his head, quickly exchanging glances with the older shinobi. "Say what?"

"I said..." Hibiki couldn't help but allow the single biggest shit-eating grin to stretch across his face. His head whipped up and he locked eyes with Killer Bee, who reflexively took one step back as Hibiki pointed right at him. "I said a hip, hop, hippie to the hippie, the hip, hip a hop, and you don't stop, a rock it to the bang bang boogie, say, up jump the boogie, to the rhythm of the boogie, the beat." Now that he had started, there were several parts of Hibiki's mind that were begging and pleading him to shut up and to quiet down, but an even louder part of him was merely telling him to enjoy the moment, because when, in either of his two lives, had he ever gotten such a perfect opportunity as this one? With a quick gulp and a gasp of air, Hibiki continued, "now, what you hear is not a test - I'm rappin' to the beat, and me, the groove, and my friends are gonna try to move your feet." He was well aware of the slowly dropping jaws of his teammates behind him, the utterly dumbfounded look of Bee's teammate, and the increasingly awe-struck expression of the young rapper himself. "See, I am Wonder Mike, and I'd like to say hello, to the black, to the white, the red and the brown, the purple and yellow. But first, I gotta bang bang, the boogie to the boogie, say up jump the boogie to the bang bang boogie, let's rock, you don't stop, rock the rhythm that'll make your body rock." He took in another breath, slowly raising his hands to his sides, as Noboru and Suboro exchanged similarly stupefied glances, and the older Kumo shinobi turned to stare at the younger one, whose jaw was firmly locked open as he stared at the Senju heir. "Well so far you've heard my voice but I brought some friends along, and the next on the mic is my man Hank, C'mon, Hank, sing that song!" He spawned a clone with as little chakra as he could, and the clone took over.

"Check it out -" The clone pointed at the two shinobi, who were so stunned that neither of them had the courage to try and shut the chunin up. "I'm the _C-A-S-A_, the _N-O-V-A,_ And the rest is _F-L-Y,_ you see I go by the code of the doctor of the mix, and these reasons I'll tell you why: You see, I'm six foot one, and I'm tons of fun when I dress to a T, you see, I got more clothes than Muhammad Ali and I dress so viciously." He adjusted the fit of his gray shirt as he recited the lines, taking a brief pause to try and remember what came next, disguising it as a breath of air. "Eeeeverybody go Ho-tel, Mo-tel, Holiday Inn, Say if your girl starts actin' up, then you take her friend." He finished, turning his back to the Alpha Hibiki, as the both of them crossed their arms.

Beyond the sounds of distant war, everything was silent.

Hibiki swallowed, "uh... That's all I got." The clone vanished with a pop. "I hope that's enough." He cracked his neck, disguising a quick glance to the windows of the buildings that flanked the two groups.

The larger of the two shinobi stared at Hibiki, not believing anything of what he had just seen. "What... The -"

The smaller one, whose name Hibiki was almost entirely certain was anything _but_ 'Bee', however, interrupted the man. "TEACH ME YOUR WAYS! SHOW ME WHAT TO SAY!" He screamed, tears openly falling down his upturned cheeks.

_Dude, I'd need a lot more alcohol if I ever want to do this again._ Thought Hibiki, before he got another flash of memory. "Uh... Thank yeh, thank yeh very much." He said, snapping both fingers and pointing at the two shinobi.

His signal said, all of the windows on the street lit up as, from inside, dozens upon dozens of Hibiki clones pulled the triggers on their rifles. Hibiki leapt backwards, as Noboru threw both palms outwards and swung them around, chakra spraying out of his tenketsu as he began spinning. Hibiki made it inside Noboru's chakra barrier just as the bullets started flying, but his wasn't the only one to react fast enough - the larger shinobi saw the change in Hibiki's posture a split second before the guns appeared. Before the bullets had even left their barrels, he threw out both arms and was cloaked in lightning chakra, with Bee twisting around behind him and using him as a shield without delay or hesitation. The wall of bullets converged on the duo and slammed into the lightning-cloaked shinobi, bouncing off of him with the sound of metal striking metal.

A deep scowl on the man's face, the moment there was a break in the gunfire, the shinobi called out, _"Bee!"_

_"Ready!"_

Appropriately lightning fast, the Kumo shinobi whirled around, his arm outstretched. He caught Bee's raised hand and clenched tight, and on the next revolution, he hurled him into one of the buildings with a large explosion of dust and debris. There were many shouts as the Hibiki clones started retreating, but the sounds of gunfire quickly abated to the sounds of clones popping. The taller Shinobi blasted forward, crossing the distance between him and Team Six in the blink of an eye. He clasped both hands together before he slammed one fist into Noboru's Revolving Heaven. The Hyuga cried out in great pain as his chakra dome shattered like glass, a whirlwind buffeting the gathered four as the chakra briefly rampaged out of control.

_"Uh, Hibiki my gen -"_ Suboro tried to warn, but Hibiki had dashed forward the moment Noboru had lost his balance and stumbled to the ground.

_"Your bloodline sucks - NEW_ _PLAN!"_ Hibiki called out, the jagged black lines of the cursed seal of earth stretching across his body as he slammed his fist into the Kumo shinobi's stomach.

There was a dull clanging noise, like a frying pan hitting someone's face, and the shinobi didn't budge. Wide eyed, a blinking Hibiki slowly looked up to the lightning-streaming Kumo shinobi, and the two of them looked down at Hibiki's fist.

"Uh..." Hibiki slowly backed up, flicking his stinging hand, "that... Changes things." He said.

"After hearing of your performance against Iwagakure's jinchuriki, I had hoped for better." Said the shinobi.

_Oh... Fuck... Me._ Some part of Hibiki had prayed that the man's technique had only _just_ made him bullet proof, similar to Katsuo. It seemed, however, that it exponentially increased his durability, and not only that, but upped his strength to monstrous levels. He made eye contact with the man again.

"Hibiki?" Said Suboro, as he pulled Noboru to his feet.

_Brute force ain't gonna work here._ Thought a wide-eyed Hibiki, as he maintained eye contact with the towering shinobi, almost as if breaking the contact would spell doom for them all. He swallowed deeply, _new plan..._ He thought, breathing deeply, his Sharingan slowly spinning to life. _Oh... Of course. Fuck._ His mind started operating fast, several conclusions hitting him in rapid-fire. Hibiki hopped back and grabbed the scruffs of his teammate's shirts, chakra blasting out of his feet as he tried to take them airborne.

Unfortunately for him, even without his technique, the shinobi was able to move faster and react sooner than the Konoha team - before Hibiki had even reached waist-height, the dark-skinned ninja was in front of them, hand swinging in a wide chop. Hibiki was hit in the face and sent spiraling out of control, flying through the air before he slammed into a building to their right. He called out in pain as the wall burst into dust around his head, he and his teammates scraping across the floor and slowing to a halt as Hibiki cut the chakra to his feet.

"What just happened?!" Suboro demanded, stumbling back up to his feet.

Hibiki was on his hands and knees, shaking his spinning head. "Noboru, you're our best bet!" He groaned, as the Hibiki clones tried again to turn the shinobi to Swiss-cheese. "You need to create a chink in his armor!" He said, forcing himself to his feet. "the only way we can beat him is to take him out fast, but that cloak, it's protecting him."

Noboru struggled to his feet, "Hibiki, that is a _Jonin..._ And he is not holding back."

_And he isn't trying to take me in, like Katsuo... Fuck!_ "Noboru... You're a Hyuga. Suboro is a Kurama. I'm a Senju." He turned to the hole in the building, squared his shoulders and spread his feet shoulder-width apart. "If we can't take down _one_ Jonin and a rapping retard, we can't do anything..." He was getting several flashes of memory a second, the shinobi and his student were busying themselves with the clones. "Now _think..._ You two. His cloak protects him from Suboro's attacks, and I can't pierce it with raw force... So _what do we do?"_ He turned his head around, his blood red eyes locking onto Noboru's pale white.

"Run." Noboru said seriously, "find Dante-sensei... Or your uncles."

Suboro, however, had a different answer, as realization dawned in his deep brown eyes. A surprised, slack-jawed grin slowly grew across his face as he made a show of rubbing both of his palms, and Hibiki nodded. "We just need to make a chink in his armor. None of us can take them on alone, but none of us _are_ alone." He turned his eyes to Noboru, who watched Suboro with growing understanding.

"Hibiki... That is a long shot." Noboru said, raising himself from his knees to his feet, and brushing the dust and debris from his combat robes. "While... It is possible..." He said, being careful not to explicitly state what their minds were synced on. "I doubt my ability to pierce Kumogakure's lightning cloak."

Hibiki grinned, "this coming from the same asshole that _improvised_ a way to pierce a tailed-beast cloak." He said, turning back to the hole in the wall, purple chakra slowly streaming off of him and radiating into the air. "Alright... So, plan: Noboru, you need to hit him as many times as possible. Create a chink in his armor..." More bursts of memory kept streaming into his mind, as the gunshots died down and their own building began shaking. "I'll hammer it as hard as possible..." The other two members of team six assembled around him, each standing back-to-back, covering all avenues of attack. "Then Suboro, you hit him as hard as you can with your biggest technique. If all works well, we'll win."

"And if it doesn't work?" Noboru asked, his Byakugan bulging, simply watching as the two Kumo shinobi approached from opposite sides of the building.

"Run. Find Dante-sensei, or my uncles." Hibiki shrugged.

"And what do we do about the small one with the speech impediment?" Suboro asked.

"Handle him as-needed. The big one is the biggest threat." Hibiki certainly had the eight gates as an option, but he didn't want to hit the point where that was his first and last line of defense. Even with his body as ill-developed as it was, if he came to rely upon the eight gates and his curse mark for every fight, he would never become strong enough to fight on his own. "Where's Biggie and Smalls?"

"The lightning cloak is approaching from the left. The..." Noboru sighed, "Smalls, from the right. They are tearing through your clones."

"It worries me how easily they're dispatching clones that literally don't pop unless they die." Hibiki lamented, as the floor beneath their feet began shaking more and more. "Get ready." Barely a second later, the walls on both sides of Team Six were obliterated, debris flying outwards in all directions and dust blanketing the air. The sound of lightning filled the team's ears, and the two dojutsu-wielders' eyes widened fully as they searched for their target.

Hibiki was the one who was in Biggie's line of sight, whereas Noboru got saddled with Smalls. Hibiki crossed both arms in front of him, "Suboro, plant 'em!" He called to the genin standing behind him, just before Biggie's fist slammed into his arms. His buzz-cut teammate's feet were instantly cloaked with chakra, and firmly locked to the ground, Hibiki skidded back half of an inch before his back hit Suboro's, the two bracing themselves against eachother. As the scowling Biggie struggled against everything Hibiki had to defend himself with, Noboru threw his left hand up to catch a spinning roundhouse kick from Smalls, an audible clap echoing out as the ankle slid into Noboru's chakra-coated hand.

_"Noboru, below the belt!"_ Hibiki shouted, as he tried to push back on Biggie, but found himself completely outmatched in raw physical strength, had it not been for Suboro behind him, he would have been thrown back long ago. Noboru followed Hibiki's instructions and smashed his palm into Smalls' groin, chakra blasting out of his hand and sending the boy flying backwards, tears comically streaming from his eyes. He instantly whirled around and struck the side of Biggie's throat with his palm, stunning him just long enough for Hibiki to rear one hand and throw it forward.

Just like the first time, Hibiki's chakra-streaming fist slammed into Biggie's face with a dull thud and little other effect. _"Damn it!"_ He cried, before Biggie backhanded the ten year old Senju. The Hyuga noble, however, was able to follow up his first strike with two more quick jabs to Biggie's side, and Hibiki, as he flew backwards, was just able to see the effect Noboru's Jyuken had on the Kumo shinobi. Like a pebble dropping in a still pond, Noboru's strike to Biggie's tenketsu sent a small ripple all across his lightning cloak, it briefly lowering in intensity before flaring right back up when Biggie elbowed Noboru in the side of the face.

Hibiki flipped around in mid-air, his feet dragging on the ground with a squeaking noise, before he launched himself forward, just as Suboro whipped around to face the towering Kumo jonin. Suboro threw his hand forward with a wide right cross, just as Hibiki reached Biggie and threw his left in a powerful straight punch. Both of them, however, had the same effect: little more than a dull thud.

The two allies traded glances, before they both unleashed a series of multiple lightning fast, thunderous punches, each bouncing off of Biggie as easily as a rock off of a tank. Biggie stared at the two of them for a moment, before he sensed the Hyuga approaching, and even then, he didn't even move, as Smalls intercepted the Hyuga and whirled him around, slamming him onto the ground before landing and ground-pounding him, each punch shaking the foundations of the building and sending dust and debris into the already choking air. Biggie growled and clenched Hibiki and Suboro both by the throats, bodily lifting them into the air before clobbering the two together and spinning around, throwing each like a sack of potatoes. Hibiki hit the ground hard, Suboro landing several feet behind him, the two sliding back several feet before they collided with dark wall.

Hibiki scrambled to his feet, his blood red eyes wide and his mind moving as fast as his dojutsu-enhanced senses would allow. He knew that Noboru's Jyuuken had an effect, and he knew that his punches did not. Noboru was their only bet at piercing Biggie's defenses and getting Suboro a shot in at killing him with his genjutsu, but the problem was Smalls - keeping Noboru and the others pinned down and distracted, he was the wild card, the monkey wrench in their machine, he could single-handedly ruin their plan. So, a deep scowl on his face, Hibiki threw both hands behind him and braced one foot on the wall, before he bellowed out as loud and as deep as his ten-year old lungs could allow. There was the sound of air blasting around in all directions, the dust that clouded up all of the fighters' vision started whipping about, clearing fast as Hibiki's chakra built up. He stood there for a second longer, building up power, before he unleashed it all, hurtling forwards at dozens of miles per hour, crossing the distance between him and Smalls in less than a second.

The Senju heir tackled the small shinobi and locked his arms around him in a tight bear hug, roaring out as he did so,_ "Noboru, I'll be right back!"_ He blasted through the building and into the far wall, crashing through it and back outside, Smalls elbowing him in the back as they hurtled through the air. Hibiki groaned and grunted with each hit, angling his legs downward so they flew higher and higher into the sky, carving a pale contrail through the air as they picked up speed.

After they made it several kilometers into the air, Hibiki howled out and threw Smalls as hard as he could, sending him higher into the air. Hibiki didn't even pause, he put on the afterburners and rushed up to meet Smalls, smashing his fist into the boy's gut and following it up with a spinning roundhouse to his face. Smalls, for his part, only needed a second to adjust to his new position, fighting at the whim of his momentum and the earth's gravity. He backhanded Hibiki's next punch with his left, and smashed his right into Hibiki's face, a lot of the force behind it lost due to the lack of ground beneath his feet, but still enough to stun the Senju. Smalls followed it up by whirling his arms around, spinning him in mid-air like a top, smashing Hibiki's face four times before the Senju grabbed one of the hands and flipped him around, swinging him as if his body were the ball and the arm the chain, before releasing him and hurling him towards the ground.

Smalls, though he was hurtling towards the ground at ridiculous speeds, flipped through several handsigns and quickly threw his hand forward, saturating the air with lightning and sending it all towards Hibiki, who threw both of his hands and feet forward and had to weave through the air to dodge the techniques. The moment he had an opening, he cut his chakra thrusters and flipped around, angling his head towards the ground, before he blasted forward with everything he had, the chakra streaming from his hands creating visible cones of translucent blue energy as they roared through the air. Hibiki caught up with Smalls in seconds, Smalls threw his legs upwards and smashed the flat of his foot onto Hibiki's face, managing to stomp on it twice before Hibiki punched the back of his knee and flipped him around. Now with both of them facing the ground, Hibiki flew through a few handsigns, coating his arm in lightning chakra and using it to punch Smalls, each blow acting like a high-powered taser, with Smalls eventually starting to smolder as they grew closer. Smalls, however, wasn't even phased, elbowing Hibiki's thigh twice before kicking him once in the face.

When the two of them reached the building they had blasted out of, Hibiki, his face throbbing with pain, punched Smalls one last time, forcing him down several feet, giving Hibiki enough time and space to clap both fists, leach, and catch his chakra. Hibiki, rocketing downwards, reared his fist, and with a guttural bellow, he threw his fist back forward, slamming it into Smalls' stomach with a thunderous explosion of chakra. Smalls blasted downwards like a cannonball, breaking through the ceiling and floors of the building. Hibiki cut all of the chakra to his hands and feet, the next part of his hastily improvised plan requiring all of his focus. He flipped around in mid-air, his feet facing the ground and his arms held out to his sides, his eyes wide and taking in all details as he slowly spun in a horizontal circle.

He fell through three floors before he found the one he'd been looking for. Barely one meter in front of him was Biggie, deftly dodging Noboru and Suboro as if they weren't even there. Hibiki clenched his jaw and narrowed his eyes, pulsing his chakra and sending him hurtling towards the burly Jonin. Before the man could even react, Hibiki was on his back, and his manipulable skeleton was bursting out of his skin in a spray of blood and gore. Hibiki wrapped his arms around Biggie's head in a tight sleeper hold, and wrapped his legs around the man's waist, as his bones wrapped around Biggie's arms and chest, and coiled around his legs, quickly hardening to a tensile strength similar to steel.

_"NOBORU! HIT HIM AS HARD AS YOU CAN!" _Hibiki hollered, as he put his everything into keeping the man immobilized.

Before Biggie could flex his muscles and try and break the Senju heir's iron grip, the Hyuga noble was in front of him, his Byakugan bulging and a deep scowl playing his features, as he envisioned an eight-trigrams circle expand outwards, with him as the center. Moving as fast as he possibly could, knowing time was of the essence, Noboru forgoed calling his attack, deciding the potential morale effects were outweighed by his need to brutalize the jonin and move as quickly as possible. He knew in the back of his mind that, starting the attack at high speeds, he ran the risk of outpacing himself and ruining the entire technique, but the time for training had passed - he'd spent years building his short-term speed, it was time for the training to pay off.

In a blur, Noboru's palm soared forward, his chakra streaming outwards and molding into microscopic needles, directed into Biggie's body by the Hyuga's hand. His eyes wide, he saw the desired effect, a small ripple spreading all across the man's lightning cloak, with the impact point sputtering out entirely, as the other tenketsu streamed more chakra in an attempt to cover the crippled one. Noboru spun around and slammed two palms into the man's side, two more ripples streaming outwards and more of the cloak fizzing out of existence, like popping bubbles from a carbonated drink. The Hyuga kept it up, each series of strikes increasing in speed and intensity, his muscles straining by the sixteenth, and burning by the thirty second. Biggie's cloak was wavering, rippling like a water balloon being violently shaken about in one's hand.

As Noboru threw everything he had into the final series of strikes, Hibiki ripped himself from Biggie's back, his immobilizing bones constricting around the man's body. However, as Hibiki fell and Noboru was halfway through the final strikes, Smalls made himself known again, bursting through the floor several feet to Noboru's right, and hurtling towards him, lightning covering his outstretched right arm, and his angry eyes visible from behind his cracked sunglasses. Noboru mentally cursed, unable to break the technique lest it become effectless, and Hibiki simply wasn't able to react quick enough to try and turn and attack. Smalls, lightning streaming from his crooked arm, made it less than a foot from Noboru before his face was caught in Suboro's hand. The shaved genin, yelling wildly, had leapt from his position on a wall and hurtled towards the Kumo genin, and he overtook the boy's velocity and ground him into the ground.

_Sorry, guys._ Thought Suboro, who clenched his eyes tight for a brief moment. He felt inside of him for the looming presence of his Executioner, the cold chakra of his bloodline, the icy grip of being enveloped by sheer power. _This isn't the plan, but I've gotta do it._ If Smalls had been left to attack Noboru, Noboru's attack would have been nullified, and then Team Six would have been doomed. He had to take out the kid and reveal their trump card, at least then they would be able to completely focus their efforts on Biggie.

Suboro's eyes snapped open, and Smalls' world flowed away as easily as they dissolved into gory rivers of blood.


	41. Blitzkrieg: The Hulk -III-

Chapter 40

* * *

Before he could even blink, Smalls saw the shaved genin's eyes begin to melt into gruesome pools of blood, almost looking like they were being disintegrated in the most violent, bloody fashion possible. As blood began to poor down Suboro's face in rivers, Smalls threw the Konoha genin from him with a frightened yelp. It barely took him a second to realize he was caught in a genjutsu, as he narrowly avoided a demonic wolf-hound that appeared out of nowhere and tried to claw his back and bite his shoulder. Smalls skidded backwards and threw up a simple handsign, the genjutsu flowed away, but he had no sooner blinked than did something worse replace it. Where once he was in the destroyed building with his adoptive brother, two opponents, and future master, he now stood in an inverted world, with the sky beneath his feet and the ground above his head.

Smalls was struck with the most intense sense of vertigo in his life, as he tried to brace himself against the 'ground' beneath his feet, and found that any time he moved he was struck with the sense that he was falling far and falling fast. He would fall, stop, move, and fall again, until his ears were filled with such a loud and intense roar that they actually began to bleed. His head whipped around to face the source of the sounds, and was greeted by a titanic creature of immeasurable size, garbed in a loose-fitting, thick black robe, its face covered in an ovular, porcelain mask with rectangular holes carved out for its eyes.

"Whoa, son." Said the kumo shinobi, as he tried to focus more chakra into a dispelling technique, but the moment it pulsed through his body, his world went jet black. The sun was extinguished, the sky below and the ground above vanished in a wave of darkness, and the feeling of vertigo was replaced briefly by a feeling of claustrophobia. "Now what've I don-" Before he could finish, he felt the crippling darkness press at his entire body, constricting him, crushing his lungs and, after a few moments, he felt thousands of infinitesimal needle-point objects pricking his skin, drawing minute amounts of blood, but before he could even register the dull, throbbing pain, it all vanished, the light returned, the ground was now beneath his feet and the sky was above his head.

Beyond the reorientation of gravity, Smalls noticed that the massive, masked figure, still oriented as if the sky were the ground, was much closer, and wielded in his right hand a massive butcher's knife, covered in crusty blood and as long as the figure was tall. Smalls stared at it, his eyes narrowing, silently trying to figure out where his perception of time had gone - _no one,_ no matter how masterful in the genjutsu arts, could manipulate time so well.

_And I know this is a genjutsu... But how do I break through? _He started bopping his head, a beat slowly forming as he grinned. _And a genjutsu by who?_ He looked down to his body, through which blood was slowly seeping. _Is that true? If that's what he do... Then I may know who..._ He stopped bopping his head, a light scowl playing across his features. _Damn it. That wasn't legit. I need to speak to the Master, he's a way faster caster. _He looked up to the looming figure, which simply stood, waiting for Smalls to make his for the creature, Smalls knew on some level that he was in a genjutsu, and his first attempt at fighting it had told him that that was everything his opponent wanted.

Smalls blinked, and when his eyes opened, his head snapped up, the massive robed creature had gotten within mere meters of him, and was looming over him, still oriented for reverse gravity, meaning that its masked, hooded face was scraping against the ground, staring lifelessly at Smalls. Smalls' eyes widened ever so subtly, as he stared into the jet black grooves of the porcelain white mask.

_Can't dispell... I'm in hell._ Thought the young rapping shinobi, _Pain won't make it wain. _He'd hurt earlier, and a quick, harsh bite on his lip told him that even pain of the self-inflicted variety wouldn't snap his mind back to reality. _Can't let it go, it'll get me fo sho'... Can't fight it, it don't get hurt by shit._ He frowned for a moment, before his face grew into a large, one-sided grin, and he sat down cross-legged, holding his fist out to the monster. "Sup?"

* * *

Suboro and Smalls flew across the room and, with Suboro's fingers digging into Smalls' face, the two ground into the floor and skidded for several feet. As they skidded across the ground, Smalls' body began bleeding profusely as a large diagonal gash opened up from the bottom of his stomach to his collarbone, bruises swelled up all over his body, and his chakra levels tanked as his body tried to keep itself alive. Suboro clenched his teeth and scowled for a moment as he pressed his hand into Smalls' face, squishing it into the ground, before he let him go and shakily got to his feet, as his Hyuga teammate unleashed the final, most powerful blow in his clan technique, and blasted the small genin's elder brother across the room.

The man, however, barely flew back six feet before he planted his feet firmly onto the ground and skidded to a halt, smoke and dust flying into the air as his feet ground against the floor. His eyes were wide, his jaw quivering, and his face livid as he traced the small groove in the floor to the point where Suboro and Smalls had slid to a halt.

_"Ah... Shit."_ Groaned Hibiki, as he rolled to his front and got to his feet. "Suboro... I think you fucked up."

Suboro bit back a snide remark about how he'd taken down an opponent, when he saw the look of pallid fury on Biggie's face. The man's pupils were dilating, his fists clenched so hard that his arms shook, and his breaths came in deep and fast. His eyes were locked onto Smalls, whose own breaths were raspy and slow as a pool of blood began forming around him and permeating his clothes. The man's hair and his goatee bristled with rage, and the air seemed to take on an electric current.

"Noboru... Is there _anything_ that can open tenketsu back up after you hit them as hard as you did?" Hibiki asked, panting as he swallowed through his dry throat.

Noboru nodded.

"Are _any_ of those things good for us?"

Noboru shook his head.

"Okay..." Hibiki's eyes melted into his Sharingan, as he tried to buy himself as much time as possible, real or perceived, to think of some kind of solution. Their best weapon was still Noboru's jyuken, but now with Biggie firmly on the defensive, and thoroughly enraged, they wouldn't ever get another shot at that. Biggie's furious gaze slowly raised to meet Suboro's, as chakra started flowing around him and his hair began standing on end.

_This technique he uses... He ups his durability, his speed, and his reaction time, to the point where I think you'd need to be Dante in order to be able to react as fast as him. It's not like Katsuo's invulnerability, this guy's doesn't break... It _might_ if I use the eight gates, but... __I still don't know if I did something to myself back in the airfield, even if it's a clone, I can't take that risk. Exacerbate something that's pre-existing... So the first order of business is to pierce this... Lightning armor. Only option is to hit him with Noboru's jyuken, which cuts through it like a surgeon's knife. Then we've got options, either beat him senseless, which will be somewhat impossible given his skill, or kill him with Suboro's genjutsu, which will be difficult, if not outright impossible, because he'll be ready for it. So... The plan is to not change the plan? If we lose _either_ of those two, the whole thing goes down the drain._ He thought, as he saw the air around Biggie get saturated with thick lightning chakra, his hair standing on end. _And he's going Super Saiyan... So if we make _one_ misstep, we're fucked._ Hibiki squared his shoulders and braced his feet in a defensive posture. _I... Think I've got an idea._

"Noboru, Suboro... Do you remember our Genin test?" Hibiki asked, not even bothering to try and whisper, as Biggie's livid eyes shifted in turn to him and then Noboru.

Noboru blinked, not even bothering to afford Hibiki the courtesy of turning his head, as he activated his Byakugan. "Yes."

"Y...Yeah." Said Suboro, as he glanced back and forth from his team to the Jonin, whose chakra was only growing brighter and brighter, as his unyielding rage forced open the tenketsu closed by the Hyuga noble.

Hibiki began breathing in deeply, as his heart rate climbed in preparation for his plan. "I need you two... To do what I did." If he could hide them as ants, or some sort of very small creature still capable of seeing and hearing everything going on around them, he could simultaneously remove the possibility for them getting hurt or crippled and removed from the fight, and make it so all of the attention was put on him, the one man they could more or less afford to lose.

_I literally hit that guy with everything... And he's here bulking himself back up. _He bit back a grin, _so... I guess I've just got to do what I do best: Steal. His. Shit. _The flow of chakra was exploding outwards from his core, but halting _just_ at his skin, before it began flowing through the man's veins, cackling like lightning. It permeated his muscles and wrapped around his bones, constantly collapsing in upon itself and fortifying his inner body, before finally exploding outwards in the electric aura the trio had come to fear.

_So... Obviously, running electricity through my body is a very, very bad idea to do without any kind of practice or forethought. I could set myself on fire from the inside-out, I could fry my brain, I could do any number of things... I'd need to..._ His eyes narrowed. _Okay... That might be useful. If I open just... One gate. Two at the most. I'd have the chakra overload I'd need to supercharge my healing factor, and thus I could undo any damage as fast as I cause it. Very, very temporary... But unless I want to open up _six_ gates, it's what I've got to do._ He swallowed, _one gate. One gate._ He saw Biggie's eyes shift to him, and the moment they made eye contact, he gulped.

"Right now." He told his squad, just as he felt something within him shatter, and a wave of chakra wash over him as the first gate opened. Lightning fast, Suboro and Noboru threw up handsigns to perform a transformation, as Hibiki hopped backwards and Biggie thundered forwards. Hibiki crossed both arms in front of him as he improvised the method and channeled all of the lightning chakra he could call upon and focused it on himself. It all built up within him and coursed through his body, radiating outwards from his tenketsu, to his bones, to his veins, his muscles, and then finally his skin. Everything around him slowed down to a crawl, but he still moved at normal speeds, and his opponent, at shinobi speeds.

_Not good. _Hibiki braced himself as Biggie crossed the distance between them in an instant, and slammed his fist into Hibiki's crossed arms. Hibiki's feet hit the ground and the two of them skidded across the ground for several feet, all of the chunin's muscles bulging and straining as they struggled against the might of the Kumo shinobi. _"Better..."_ Growled the Senju heir, as he laboriously raised his blood red gaze to meet the enraged, shocked eyes of the Kumo shinobi. _"Oh... Yeah."_ Said Hibiki, as he noticed, out of the corner of his Sharingan eye, that Noboru and Suboro had yet to even transform, with Hibiki and Biggie moving and experiencing the world so fast, that everything _but_ them moved arduously slow.

Hibiki locked his left arm in place, holding it in front of him and keeping Biggie's fist from inching any further forward than it already had. Slowly, Hibiki reared his right fist, though given he was unprepared for his newfound speed or strength, his arm whipped back so quickly that it nearly popped out of its socket. Hibiki threw the fist forward, it whipped through the air before it was caught by Biggie's massive, dark-skinned, callused hand.

_"You killed my brother... And now you've taken my technique."_ The man growled, as he crushed Hibiki's hand in his grip. _"I will ensure you die in battle."_

_How the hell am I hearing him so clearly when we're obviously moving and perceiving everything at such an increased rate that sound should - Agh!_ Hibiki fell to one knee, his guard stunned enough so that Biggie's free hand passed his arm and smashed into his face, but Biggie kept ahold of Hibiki's right hand and swung him around before tossing him through the room.

Hibiki crashed into the wall, rocks and debris tumbling down over him, his gray windbreaker suffering from a large gash in its back and a ripped sleeve. As Hibiki groaned, he saw the world accelerate back to real time, and he began smelling the thick smell of cooked meat; a quick glance down showed him that the smell was coming from him, as was smoke from his smoldering body. Whatever he was doing to mimic Biggie's technique, he wasn't doing it correctly, and was literally frying his insides like they were bacon, if it weren't for his healing factor being supercharged by the first gate, he didn't think he'd be able to keep moving, let alone keep fighting.

Groaning, Hibiki labored to his feet and saw, out of the corner of his Sharingan eyes, Noboru and Suboro vanish in clouds of smoke, a pair of ants scurrying across the ground and searching for the safest corner with the best vantage point. With his hand planted firmly on the wall, Hibiki hauled himself to his feet, the proto-lightning-armor still streaming off of his body. Hibiki swallowed thickly, then let go of the wall and assumed a defensive stance, and the moment his head snapped up to meet the gaze of the burly jonin, the world slowed down again, and the two sped up.

Hibiki launched himself across the apartment, and as he flew through the air, Biggie side-stepped him and grabbed his arms, again swinging him around in a wide arc. Hibiki, however, felt his feet drag across a wall for a fleeting moment, and he locked them onto the wall with his chakra, his stop sudden enough to stun Biggie and cause him to break his grip and stumble forward. Still latched onto the wall, Hibiki roared loudly as he threw three quick left and right jabs at Biggie, who dodged them all without looking, before he dropped to his hands and pushed upwards, kicking out with both feet. Hibiki threw his upper body to the side, feeling the scuff of Biggie's boot scrape against his cheek, the man was still blisteringly fast, even with Hibiki stealing his technique and using his Sharingan.

Hibiki leapt off of the wall, chopping the back of Biggie's knee as he flew over him. When Hibiki was above Biggie's back, he latched both hands onto him and, with his feet angled upwards, blasted his chakra out of them as powerfully as he could, forcibly slamming the burly jonin into the ground, creating a large crater and shaking the building, dust and debris flying in all directions. Hibiki launched six furious blows into Biggie's back before Biggie, growling, threw an elbow at Hibiki so fast that Hibiki had barely been able to bring up an arm to block it. Unfortunately, blocking had been all Hibiki could do, he couldn't halt the attack or deflect it, and as such he was sent sprawling off of Biggie's back. Hibiki hit the ground and quickly flipped up to his feet, yelping in fright as he saw Biggie already on his feet and throwing forward a blindingly fast straight jab.

Hibiki dodged the first strike by ducking low, before he bent over backwards to dodge the other hand. The livid kumo jonin kept throwing punches, and it took everything Hibiki had to dodge or deflect them, the man was just too strong for Hibiki to try and block his blows wholesale, unless he had been prepared for it, like earlier. Hibiki ducked down low and dodged a wide, fast haymaker punch, and launched a flurry of punches into Biggie's iron, dark-skinned abs, each impact feeling like Hibiki was punching iron. He sloppily dodged an uppercut, which obliterated the part of his coat it managed to tag, before he tried another series of quick jabs, these ones aimed at Biggie's face, but these ones with the same effect: Absolutely nothing.

Hibiki cursed silently and hopped backwards, despite his constant compounding of strength - the first gate, his curse mark, and now the proto-lightning cloak - he just couldn't make any lasting damage on this guy. He noticed, however, that Biggie seemed to have the same problem with him, despite how botched his execution was, Hibiki's lightning armor _was_ working as intended, and was upping his durability to Katsuo levels, as evidenced by the fact that the man's elbow only stung, and didn't create any lasting, debilitating damage. On the surface, it looked like the two were at an impasse, but in reality, with the way Hibiki was drinking his chakra, and with his only remaining trump card being the remaining seven gates, the two were still vastly separated in terms of sheer power.

Hibiki grimaced as he landed on the ground, he clenched his right hand and out burst multiple jagged, blood-dripping bones. Hibiki launched himself forward and threw a straight jab at Biggie, who dodged it effortlessly. Hibiki, however, threw his free hand back behind him and pulsed his chakra, sending him flying forward just as fast as he would have if he'd done it himself. His bones dug into the man's gut and scraped against the lightning armor, but the man, not wanting to see what tricks Hibiki had up his sleeve, grabbed at Hibiki's arm and crushed it in his iron grip, before palming Hibiki in the face with his open hand, careening him down to the ground with a loud, thunderous crash that shook the building. He tensed his grip again and managed to shatter the bones Hibiki had tried to stab him with, but then he immediately realized his mistake, as jet black seals instantly sprang out and covered the shattered, split bone fragments. Cut off from their source of chakra, the seals had been triggered and almost instantly went critical as they tried to execute too many conflicting commands, and as any seals master knows, when a seal cannot perform its duty, it explodes.

With dozens of fragments of bone, both large and small, and all of them covered in so many seals that they had gone from white to black, it was almost as if Biggie had several blocks of C4 right in front of him. With barely any time to spare, Hibiki threw both of his hands and feet forward and blasted his chakra, flying out from underneath Biggie just as the bones began glowing, and not even a second later, they all detonated in massive, fiery explosions, sending Biggie sprawling to the side. Hibiki leapt to his feet and cradled his throbbing arm, scanning the jonin with his perfect vision, searching for any possible injuries.

_This is going nowhere fast._ Panted Hibiki, as his arm stitched itself back together and Biggie got back to his feet, ready and rearing for round two. _How do I -_ Before he could finish the thought, he heard a poof behind him, and Noboru and Suboro were beside him in an instant.

"Hibiki, give me your thunder weapon." Noboru said quickly, "I have a plan."

Hibiki didn't even bother questioning the Hyuga noble, he spawned a shadow clone and it retrieved its weapon as Biggie launched himself forward again. Hibiki ducked down beneath the man's lightning-fast jab, and launched several furious punches into the man's gut, just as Suboro came up from behind him and stabbed downward with a kunai, the knife completely shattering on the man's nigh-invulnerable body. Biggie kneed Hibiki in the chest and swung around, managing to grab Suboro by the throat. He slammed Suboro into the ground, roaring out as he did so, _"you! Hurt! My! Brother!"_ He punctuated each word with another body slam or another savage punch, blood quickly spraying out of Suboro's mouth.

Before Hibiki could try and get the man off of him, he heard his gun go off, and saw everything that happened next in slow motion. The bullet entered his field of view, and he saw it spiraling rapidly, but surrounding it wasn't distorted air, but _chakra._ Countless minuscule chakra needles were flying out in all directions, the bullet had been oversaturated with Noboru's chakra and was spraying it everywhere, like a wet dog attempting to dry itself off. Hibiki watched as it hit Biggie and, amazingly, created the same ripple effect as Noboru's Jyuken strikes.

Hibiki's gaze snapped over to Noboru, who was breathing heavily and also holding the weapon in one hand, the other pressed against his shoulder in pain. Hibiki snapped back to Biggie, who too had recognized what Noboru had done, and was taking a second too long to react to it.

_"Shoot his chest!"_ Hibiki roared as he launched himself forward with his legs and a brief pulse of chakra, spinning around and slamming his lightning-coated foot into Biggie's face, the blow just strong enough to stumble him backwards. _"Short bursts or you'll lose control of it!"_

Hibiki didn't need Noboru to tell him that this improvised ranged Jyuken would take a _lot_ of chakra - he more than anyone knew how much chakra untested, improvised techniques took - but he also knew that Noboru had found their edge, and would do anything it took to take advantage of it. As Hibiki kicked Biggie twice more, he saw, out of the corner of his eye, the white-eyed Hyuga shoulder the weapon again, awkwardly trying to aim the gun. Hibiki cursed as he landed on his feet and dodged two wide swings from Biggie, before he launched an uppercut and followed it up with several wide punches, trying to keep the man on his toes as he strafed around him, both of their electric chakra cloaks almost melding together and creating a lightning storm. Hibiki threw a powerful right at the man, who caught it with his left, Biggie threw a right, and Hibiki caught it with his own, albeit with a loud grunt of pain. The two were deadlocked, though the vastly superior physical strength contained within Biggie saw him quickly winning the confrontation.

Before he could fully overpower Hibiki, however, the dark-skinned shinobi was once again sprayed with bullets, this time, however, instead of just bouncing off of him, they all slammed into his cloak and disturbed it like dumping rocks into a pond. Each bullet hit the man's cloak, and the chakra-needles exploded outwards, containing just enough force to penetrate his body and seal his tenketsu. When the magazine clicked on empty, the man, however stunned, finally managed to overpower Hibiki and slammed the chunin into the ground, but before he could deliver a follow-up, Noboru flew forward, one palm raised defensively and another reared for a powerful strike, just as Suboro flipped to his feet, braced them behind him, and clapped both of his hands together.

The man, befitting of his enhanced reflexes, whipped around and caught Noboru, but just as he threw the Hyuga noble at Suboro, the Byakugan user vanished, to be replaced by a small pebble, which bounced off of Suboro harmlessly. The real Noboru appeared from behind Suboro, whirling around him, before he slammed his palm into Biggie's stomach, completely shattering his lightning cloak and leaving him vulnerable to Suboro's assault. Suboro's eyes snapped open and he thrust one hand in front of him as Noboru ducked underneath and around a blinding fast kick from Biggie, quickly finding himself next to Hibiki, to whom he extended a hand.

Instantly, Biggie began lurching as Suboru assaulted him with everything he had, sweat pouring down his buzz-cut head. Wounds began opening up all over his muscled body, pouring blood, as he slowly went down to one knee. His entire body began convulsing as he brought a dark-skinned hand to his head, his eyes shutting tight and a deep scowl crumpling his face.

_"Get..."_ He rumbled, as, behind him, Hibiki took Noboru's hand and hauled himself to his feet. _"Out..."_ The lightning around Hibiki died down, he felt like he had a wicked hangover as the full force of what he'd done to himself hit him. _"Of..."_ Hibiki and Noboru turned to look at the man, the former's shoulder's slumping, the latter's eyes widening, both of them feeling the fatigue of this battle draining at them. _"My..."_ The man clenched his teeth and the enormous muscles underneath his dark flesh began clenching, as if trying to physically push Suboro's genjutsu out of his body. _"HEAD!" _He roared, so loudly that it shook the building they stood in.

Noboru's eyes snapped open and he stumbled back, crying out as the copiously bleeding, partially broken man forced his genjutsu to shatter. The burly jonin slowly, laboriously got to his feet, turning his livid gaze to Hibiki and Noboru, his face heavily bruised and bleeding. The man was breathing heavily, and as he turned to fully face the two, they saw the extent of the injuries Suboro had inflicted upon him: There was a large chunk literally missing from his chest, drenching him as it constantly poured out blood. His eyes, while bulging in pain, were still alert and still radiating with barely-contained fury.

"How much chakra do you have left?" The panting Senju heir asked, as the two slowly began backpedaling.

"Very little. The thunder technique did not use chakra-conducive metals."

"I'll work on that." Said Hibiki, as he racked his brain for a new solution. "For now..." His blood red eyes quickly scanned the environment around him, he saw Suboro, though cradling an arm, slowly sneaking up behind Biggie, while the building creaked, groaned, and shook with Biggie's every footfall. "Okay, I've got an idea." All they had to do was drop a building on themselves, easy. "I just need you two to distract him."

Noboru swallowed, "that shouldn't be too -"

"For sixty seconds." He said, as the man sparked with electricity, and his cloak flared into life again, sputtering and sparking like a bad engine, but still managing to weakly cover him. "And considering he can kick our ass in less than ten... Ah, I'm sure you two can handle it." He managed to gasp out, with a grin.

Noboru squared his jaw, and stumbled forward for a few steps, before he picked up speed and activated his Byakugan. He ducked under a lightning-fast kick from Biggie, and slammed his palm into the man's leg, groin, and back, rapidly spinning around the shinobi as he did so, keeping him off balance. The man barked out in pain as his unmentionables suffered the assault, and when he tried to throw another punch, a kunai attached to ninja wire wrapped around his thick arm, and Suboro, feet planted firmly on the ground, kept him immobilized. Noboru whirled around in front of the man and jabbed him three times in the stomach, making doubly sure that _nothing_ would open those tenketsu again for at least a few days. Biggie threw a knee forward, but Noboru double-palm striked it, sending it back down to the ground and leaving Noboru with throbbing hands. With a growl, Biggie yanked his immobile arm forward, ripping Suboro from the ground and digging up the floor beneath his feet; Suboro flew through the air, twisting around and slapping downwards, practically leap-frogging over the elbow that would have hit his face otherwise.

As Suboro flew through the air, Noboru dodged two more lightning fast swings, and brought up his right arm to block another. As he skidded across the ground in a small circular arc, he threw his free palm forward and created another chink in Biggie's armor, the man's lightning cloak wavering violently, so weak that it was less lively lightning and more muted chakra, barely able to even flow in the first place, what with all of the damage to the man's tenketsu. The heavily bleeding shinobi scowled, and caught Noboru's next strike, but Noboru hopped up in the air and, using the man's iron grip to his advantage, let all of his weight go and caused the man to stumble forward, providing Suboro with an excellent chance to grapple onto the man's back and grab at the back of his head with both hands. Suboro poured as much of his chakra as he could into the man's system, trying to overpower his defenses and his will through sheer mass of chakra, and while the man's eyes certainly glazed over, his grip slackened, and his chakra flow was heavily disrupted, his face was still livid, and with a loud roar, he reached back and grabbed Suboro by the head, before hauling him over his own and drop-kicking him into a wall. Noboru, however, was now behind Biggie and was chopping away at his back with a flurry of palms. Biggie tried to whirl around and swat at the Hyuga noble, but was forced to deflect three kunai from Suboro, whose left arm was hanging limply from its socket, completely dislocated.

Suboro's right fist tightly clenched his dislocated, bleeding arm, and he was scowling heavily as a great deal of weight was placed upon his left leg. "Come on, Hibiki! Whatever you're doing, do it _now!"_

Hibiki, for his part, resisted a snide remark, as he focused as much of his chakra into his hands as he possibly could, both of them visibly radiating with thick purple fire. "_Noboru..." _ He groaned, as he braced one foot behind him, and raised both hands in a light offensive stance. _"Hit him as hard as you can!" _He launched himself forward with a loud grunt, and after he clapped one fist in his other hand, he called out, _"NOW!"_

Noboru, seeing where Hibiki was flying in from, spun around again and hopped back, standing firmly in front of Biggie, who was distractedly looking over his shoulder at the leaping chunin.

Noboru himself lept forward and slammed his palm into Biggie's stomach, just as Hibiki reached the big man's back and called out, _"FALCON..."_ He reared his fist, coming within striking distance of the dark-skinned jonin. _"PUUUUUUUUUNCH!" _He smashed his chakra-coated fist into Biggie's back.

The force and chakra from Noboru's strike pierced the jonin's defenses and ravaged his insides. With the strength Hibiki had behind the blow, in any other situation, it would have merely hit him, blasted through his insides, and then out of his front, leading to a conical shockwave that would have ravaged everything in front of him him as he himself flew forward; however, what led to something else entirely happening, was the presence of the Hyuga noble in front of the man, adding his own strength to the dual-attack. What happened instead was Noboru's jyuken-strike acted as a 'cap' of sorts on the enormous energy Hibiki was blasting into the man, and without the ability to pass through him, it reflected backwards, only to hit Hibiki's fist, and reflect again inwards. The result was a cascade effect, as the energy, now unable to exit, simply kept bouncing around inside Biggie's body, its power building continuously, doing exponentially more and more damage with each passing second, before finally, after what felt like years, Suboro leapt into the air double-hand struck Biggie in the back of the head. The man stumbled to the side, breaking contact with Suboro's palm, and giving the energy from the Falcon Punch somewhere to go: Out.

The resultant explosion rocked the building to its core, and after a moment, proved to be the proverbial straw that broke the camel's back. The apartment building they all had been fighting in had sustained too much damage in too little an amount of time, and this explosion finally set it off, and it began to collapse in upon itself, crumpling into one, massive heap, burying everyone inside.

* * *

Dante Uchiha dug his hand into the side of another massive, conical building, skidding to a halt, as he crouched down horizontally. His raven-haired head whipped up and his blood red, matured eyes instantly locked onto the dark-gray skinned hulk, which leapt from rooftop to rooftop, his feet tearing them apart as he rampaged towards his opponent, carving large contrails through the swampy mist and the war-made dust and debris cloud that permeated Kirigakure.

Dante cursed, _I've only got this last clone, which means I've only got its chakra stores to utilize its Mangekyo techniques._ He thought, a part of him wishing he'd taken that chance and spawned a third clone, but dividing his chakra into four pieces would have made the original, the 'Alpha', much more vulnerable. _This thing's chakra reminds me of Hibiki's cursed seal... But... Much more powerful._ He thought, as he leapt off of the building and dodged a thunderous punch, that managed to blast a house-sized chunk off of the building. _This... Thing, it has to be approaching jinchuriki levels of chakra, and I'm running on a third of my maximum strength. _The volatile nature of the hulking shinobi's chakra made it more or less immune to being hampered and chained by a genjutsu, even one as powerful as Dante could cast, and its clearly physical strength meant he couldn't engage it in a physical match without his spectral guardian, but _that_ took so much chakra to keep up that he wouldn't get more than ninety seconds out of it before his clone would hit absolute zero, and he'd be on his own.

Dante soared through the air and hit the side of another building, before he bounced off of it like a ping-pong ball, and soared for the swamp-ground. With all of the water around, all he had to do was submerge the hulking beast for a _second,_ and he could potentially end it. The creature followed him down to the wetlands and hit the water with a huge splash, skidding back several feet on the frictionless surface, his tremendous girth held aloft only through the strength of his chakra alone. The man clawed and beat at the water like some kind of deranged beast as he skidded backwards, but when it gained traction on the water, it thundered forward, each footfall sending up a small geyser of water. Dante, thinking fast, leapt directly at the creature and twisted himself around in mid-air, causing his opponent to miss its chance to hit him. As he spun, chakra saturated the air and quickly caught fire, a firestorm spinning to life as he executed the fire twister technique. The sudden change in air pressure and temperature made the wind whirl and howl as it all rushed towards Dante and the gray hulk. Dante flipped around and dug his feet into the water, coming to a halt after just a few feet, before he whipped around and the flower-petals grew out of the tomoe in his eyes. Barely a second later, the air that had once rushed in, exploded outwards as the bright red fire turned jet black and expanded, covering everything from the gray-skinned shinobi to even the water he stood upon.

Dante kept the black fire up for only two seconds before the pain became unbearable and he was forced to shut his bloodshot eyes, his hand pressed tightly against them as they leaked thick rivers of blood. It felt as if someone were trying to hollow out his eyeballs from the inside, with a dull, rusted spoon. He wiped the blood from his eyes and shook the pain from his head, when he opened his eyes his vision was slightly blurred, but switching on his dojutsu mitigated the effects, at the minute cost of his chakra. Remaking eye contact with the monster, he saw it thrashing about, trying to put out the fires, before finally submerging itself in the water. Dante snapped on his chance and flew through several handsigns, before slamming both of them onto the water.

_"Lightning stream!"_ He called out, before dozens of lightning bolts shot out from his hands and slithered across the ground, electrocuting everything in range in the water. Dante felt some of the feedback, but it paled in comparison to what the creature in the water felt. With his black fire already burning at a solar intensity, combined with the electricity increasing the local temperatures exponentially, a great deal of the swamp water flash boiled and filled the air with mist.

Dante stood up and hopped back several steps, his clan-garb flapping about in the wind as he scanned the swamp below him with his Sharingan, it piercing the mist and the water with no difficulty. His eyes snapped open wide and he pushed down on the water hard, leaping into the air just as the gray-skinned creature burst out of the water, a massive pike made purely of his own bones encircling his hand. What scared Dante, however, was that the pike was covered in his own black fire, the man had intentionally spread the unending flames so as to make his own attacks more deadly.

_But he isn't immune to the amaterasu's effects..._ Thought the Uchiha jonin, as he saw the man's scorched skin smoldering, even after having submerged himself.

Dante peaked in the air and began falling back down to the ground, blasting the shinobi with a fireball as he fell, stunning it enough to cause it to miss its attack. When Dante landed, he forced himself to activate the mangekyo again so he could extinguish the amaterasu flames, no matter how damaging they may be, he couldn't have the thing trying to use them against him. The hulking shinobi hit the water again, and was on its feet in less than a second, breathing heavily, rapidly, as it turned its massive, eight foot tall frame to face Dante fully. The man's sclera were jet black, whilst his pupils were a deep, muted yellow, and they both were locked onto Dante's bleeding Sharingan.

On the edge of his vision, he saw a trio of flying Hibikis soaring straight towards them, their thunder techniques strapped to their backs. He narrowed his eyes a fraction. _Alright..._ He thought, _let's work with this._ He threw his hand forward and zapped the gray-skinned, muscled creature with a low-cost lightning technique.

The creature stumbled back, as if physically punched. It roared loudly, its voice sending ripples across the water, before it launched itself forward with its tree-trunk sized legs. Dante hopped to the side, dodging its slow swing, but he was unprepared for the creature's next move, as multiple appendages grew out of his dark gray skin, and began blasting out chakra. The jet booster technique, localized only to his arm, spun the hulking shinobi around in an instant, and his fist, itself the size of Dante's chest, caught the unclean jonin in the back, and sent him flying forward, blood and spittle gathering up in his mouth as he felt several ribs break. Dante hit the ground as the Hibiki clones arrived and, whilst still in mid-air, took aim with their weapons, but the monster, not to be deterred, grew more appendages out of its back and jet-boosted out of Hibiki's line of sight, just as the place he had been was raked with gunfire.

Blasting across the ground as fast as a shunshin, the creature, with the booster appendages still on both arms, threw his fist forward. Its speed greatly enhanced by the chakra blasting out of it at the elbow, the force of his attack was multiplied exponentially, and the only way Dante could block it was by briefly summoning his guardian's ribcage, but even that managed to crack under the sheer power displayed by Katsuo's ally. The hulking shinobi skidded to a halt and, with jet-booster chakra blasting out of both arms, proceeded to rapidly punch Dante's red chakra ribcage with the speed of a machine gun, and the power of a tank, the banging sound of skin striking metal filled the air.

Dante was forced back several feet as he suffered the relentless, lightning-fast assault, before the Hibiki trio intervened and sprayed the creature with more gunfire, forcing it to leap back by blasting chakra out of small protrusions in its hands. Blood leaked out of its muscular body, and when it slowed to a halt on the water, the three Hibikis landed next to their sensei, who dispelled his chakra construct and slumped forward, rasping.

"I... Don't... Know _how..._ You do it." Dante gasped, his bloody eyes shifting briefly to the Hibiki at the head of the pack.

The Hibiki in question turned to glance at his sensei, before realization dawned in his eyes. "Self preservation?"

Dante nodded, "I can... _Feel_ it... But it's... Forced. Dulls my reflexes. I don't _want_ to be dispelled... But I cannot get over my knowledge that I _am... One."_ He said, not wanting to reveal the secret outright, just in case the monster was as smart as he was clever in combat.

Hibiki sighed, "is _everyone_ stealing my party trick?" He asked, as he turned back to face the monster, who was staring at its left bicep, which sported several bullet wounds.

"It's a _very good _party trick, Hibiki." Said Dante, "but it's... _Hard..._ To not dispell after any big hit. When we get back home..." He swallowed thickly, gasping for air as he did so. "You'll have to tell me your secret." He cradled his chest for a moment, before extending to full height.

"How much chakra do you have?"

"Not much."

"Considered the second gate?" Hibiki asked, "it re-energizes the body, tops off your chakra. If you're fighting... _Like me..._ It's good for topping off your reserves without needing to pop another clone."

"I considered it, Hibiki." Gasped Dante, as he forced his heart to slow and his breath to calm. "But there's a reason I consider the eight gates a last resort, and it has nothing to do with the fact that I do not heal like you do." He said, watching the creature inspect its injuries, slathering its blood all over it as it patted down each individual entry wound, whilst finding no exit wounds, its muscles and skin far too dense and thick to allow for such a thing.

"Alright... Stories for later." Hibiki said succinctly, "so... One cloned jonin, one foot in the grave... Three clones with little chakra... Versus the Hulk. I'd say we're fucked, but..." He squinted his eyes, and watched as the Hulk's skin began stitching itself back up, the bullets popping out of his body and the wounds healing before their very eyes. "Yeah, okay. Nevermind. We're fucked. We only know it has that... Gray skin, thing, and the bone bloodline." He said, "but if he's with Katsuo, that means he likely has a lot more up his sleeve."

"So what do you say we do?" Dante asked, as the Hulk made eye contact with them.

"What's your absolute strongest technique?"

"My Susanoo, I created a technique for it... But that will take all of the chakra I've got, you'll be on your own until the real me can get here." Dante eyed Hibiki, "can you handle it? We can't let something that monstrously strong out of our sight for even a second... It would do too much damage, to our side and theirs."

"Ignoring that I don't know what Susanoo is, will it work?"

"It _might..."_ Dante looked back to the hulk, whose final wounds were sealing back up, and it affixed the sensei and student with a livid gaze. "But I won't be able to keep it up for more than a few seconds, at _most..._ We'd only have one shot."

"I've got a backup plan or two, but let's try yours."

"Don't want to play your hand?"

"I'm worried it'll literally blow up in my face. It's something I've been developing for Katsuo, but it's nowhere near perfect." Hibiki responded, "alright, on your go." Barely a second after he'd finished speaking, the hulking creature launched itself forward, hurtling towards the three Hibikis and Dante.

One Hibiki leapt to the side and two took to the air, all three of them taking aim and firing when they recovered, while Dante hopped to the side and spun on one foot, a gigantic, blood red skeletal hand made from pure chakra appearing in the air. The speed generated by Dante's brief rotation and the strength behind the skeletal arm both slammed into the hulking shinobi. The hulk, however, caught the fist with both of his own, which had their jet boosters blasting at full strength, quickly halting Dante's attack. The gray-skinned monster attempted to grab the chakra arm and throw Dante over his shoulder, but the arm vanished in a small red firestorm, before the same blood red construct grew again, this one fleshed out and covered in samurai armor with an Uchiha crest. Dante clapped both of his hands together, his construct glaring into the small space between the two hands with great intensity, as Dante himself began roaring out in both pain and effort.

The hulk threw up its left hand and out from it shot several inch-long, senbon-thin bones at muzzle velocity. The bones were shot from the air before they'd made it halfway to Dante, and a second later a Hibiki clone, landed in front of the unclean jonin. The Senju heir stood up, one rifle clenched in each hand, and a scowl etched firmly on his red-eyed face. The monster growled and raised its other hand, as the two other Hibiki clones landed next to the rifle-wielding one, each one with their hand hovering above their thigh, ready to spawn ammunition.

The clone fired its bullet bones, dozens from each hand, each shot out just as fast as Hibiki's own bullets blasted out of their barrels. Hibiki, his arms clenched, widened his eyes; thanks to the perception increase afforded to him by the Sharingan, he saw everything happening in slow motion. The bones were comparable in size to his bullets, and traveled just as fast, so Hibiki depressed the triggers on both rifles and bullets shot out at breakneck speeds, the swamp lighting up like a lightning storm as the rat-a-tat sounds mixed with the sounds of steel striking bone and filled the air. The bullets met the bones mid-way between Hibiki and the hulk and the resultant impact shattered the steel-hard bones and destroyed the bullets, pelting the swamp with flak and shrapnel. When Hibiki hit empty, he depressed the magazine release buttons and flicked both guns to the side, their magazines flying out just as they were replaced by the clones, who pulled the chambering mechanisms and cleared Hibiki for further gunfire. They missed out on several projectiles during this two second interval, Hibiki felt some tear through his thighs, one pierce his stomach, and one graze his left arm, but he grimaced and kept firing regardless, adjusting his aim for lost time. The bullet barrier created by Hibiki steadily moved back as he kept having to reload, until he was shooting the projectiles just as they came within six inches of the barrels of his guns.

Hibiki knew this was an unstustainable situation, but just as he considered a new tactic, Dante called out from behind him. _"It's ready!"_

The reloading clones leapt to the side, the gunner took off into the air, and the chakra-cloaked Dante leapt forward, one blood red hand reared back and clenching a great ball of roaring black fire as if it were a baseball. The hulk's head snapped up and he took a cautionary step back as he saw the massive, chakra-cloaked Uchiha flying right towards him. The creature knew the black fire hurt, so it leapt backwards and launched itself away. However, what it didn't expect was to be clobbered from behind by one of the flying ten year olds, the chunin carrying just enough force to knock the man back on track with Dante, who caught him with his off hand and slammed him into the one wreathed in flame.

The hulk began roasting, his pained cries clearly heard over the sound of flames and skin burning. The susanoo's hands began shaking and jerking as the monster tried using its immense strength to physically break out of its prison, but Dante was immovable, refusing to capitulate for as long as his clone had even a drop of chakra. The Uchiha jonin kept the hulk caged for a few more seconds before he reared his flame-wreathed hand and threw the gray-skinned shinobi high into the sky. Dante threw out his right hand and inside it formed a massive chakra katana, which he clenched with both hands. As the hulk crested in the air and began falling down; when he came within range, Dante swiped at him with the chakra sword, managing to cleave a massive gash in the creature's chest, just before the Dante clone and its chakra construct vanished in an enormous plume of smoke.

The inflamed hulk hit the water, large patches of his body having been burnt to a crisp, and he himself still covered in deep black flame. He was breathing heavily, in intense pain, but when he heard Hibiki approach, he scrambled to his feet, quickly assuming a savage battle stance. He paused, however, when he saw Hibiki holding his rifle at rest, a conflicted look on his face. The rasping, roasting hulk's first instinct was to attack, to kill, but in the back of his mind, he knew that the Firstborn would disapprove, and the mere thought of the white-garbed man brought some semblance of control back to his mind, enough so that he had enough sense to at least listen to the Senju heir.

Hibiki clenched his jaw, "do you speak _English?" _Hibiki finally growled out behind clenched teeth.

Hearing the language of the Firstborn froze the burning shinobi, and against its baser judgement, it nodded its head slowly.

"_What's your name?"_ Hibiki growled out, in his native tongue. _"Fast. We don't have a lot of time."_

The gray-skinned, yellow eyed hulk tilted its literally flaming head. _"Aojiroi..."_ It growled out.

_"I remember you from when Katsuo took me, a month ago. Say what you will, you're the freakin' Hulk."_ Hibiki said, as his clones, both as uneasy as him, quickly gazed around their surroundings. _"But that doesn't matter. You work with him, Katsuo. You can get in contact with him, right?"_

The creature slowly grunted a tentative affirmation.

_"Then tell him I..."_ Hibiki swallowed, _"need to meet him. Neutral ground... Rain country. Two weeks. Just us. No fighting, no backup. I have something he _wants_ to see."_ The king's english felt almost foreign to Hibiki, after spending ten years without speaking a lick of it.

Aoiroi growled deeply, his partially exposed muscle mass slowly building as purple chakra began leaking out of his frame. _"I would have to... Survive."_ He growled, trying to swat out the black flames that covered his frame. _"This."_

_"That's a non-issue. You're one of the Graverobber's experiments, and he built us all to last."_ Katsuo was invulnerable, the Viper could survive gunshots to the head, and this thing was the Hulk, Hibiki knew that it would take more than black fire to kill them, and he wasn't afraid to admit he feared learning what _else_ Kenichi had created, and if he'd have to fight _them_ too.

_"I can see him."_ One of the clones said, before Hibiki raised his rifle towards Aojiroi.

_"You're about to fight an exhausted Jonin, and three clones with no chakra. Stop playing around."_ Hibiki told his fellow displaced man. _"But I'll warn you... If you kill my sensei, the deal is off, and I'll hunt you down and kill _you."

_"Fine."_ The creature straightened up, and vanished.

Hibiki was barely able to keep up with it with his Sharingan, Aojiroi went from standing still to moving faster than a jet in less than a microsecond. Aojiroi wasn't _just_ the Hulk, he was the Hulk with the Flash's speed. Add in his wolverine blood, and Hibiki suddenly began wondering just how he would have beaten this thing without pulling the parley card. Aojiroi moved so fast that he was a blur even to Hibiki's Sharingan, and in the time it took Hibiki to blink, the hulking shinobi slammed his fist into Hibiki's face, crunching his dense skeleton and nearly breaking his neck, the impact happening so fast that he dropped his rifle. Hibiki's clones grabbed the rifles and rolled to their feet, but when they pulled the triggers, before the bullets had even gotten halfway through the barrels, Aojiroi had already sprinted around one of the clones, planting his massive foot on the clone's back and kicking him with the physical force of a missile. The clone was sent soaring through the air as the other one opened fire, adjusting his aim as the bullets were blasting out of the gun.

The gray-skinned shinobi growled, he felt himself slipping back into the bloodlust, but before he could try to regain control of himself, try to flee the fight or end it in a way that wouldn't piss off the graverobber's 'magnum opus', he was blasted in the face by lightning. Lightning, moving multiple orders of magnitude faster than Hibiki's bullets, was unable to be dodged by the gray goliath, who stumbled backwards as the unclean Jonin arced through the air and landed on the swamp, his hand constantly streaming electricity.

Dante, his Sharingan spinning violently, bared his teeth as he saw one of the clones hauling himself back to his feet, and the other hastily reloading his weapon. Dante almost didn't believe what he'd seen, he'd thought that the Hast clan had been wiped out _decades_ ago, so where in Kami's name did this creature get the swift release? He landed on the water and skidded to a halt, small waves of water streaming out to the sides of his feet as he slid. He gave one of the clones a brief glance, but it merely shook its profusely bleeding head, blood splattering everywhere as the clone visibly struggled to stay alive; its limited chakra trying to prioritize and heal the damage done to him by Aojiroi.

Dante suddenly felt the pressure and the struggle against his lightning technique lessen considerably, and without thinking, he leapt up into the air to dodge the hit he knew was coming. Unfortunately for him, he'd barely gotten an inch off the ground before the super-speeding Aojiori made it behind him; the gray hulk snatched Dante's leg and swung him over his head, slamming him into the water repeatedly, sending water splashing into the air. He kept this up for several seconds before tossing the man into the air and, in a fraction of a second, transforming his arm into a piston, which slammed into Dante's chest in the time it took the unclean Jonin to blink, sending him flying away, his ribs cracked and broken in multiple places.

As Dante flew away, Aojiroi spun around and saw several bullets soaring through the air, though thanks to his enhanced reflexes, he saw it all in slow motion. With an infuriated growl, Aojiroi dashed out of the way and curved around in a wide arc before slamming his piston-fist into one of the remaining clone's head, managing to snap the clone's spinal cord and dispel it in one fell swoop. The speed at which the gray goliath sprinted sent water spraying into the air, but he himself moved so fast that it seemed as if the world needed a moment to catch up with _him,_ as the water flew into the air in the same wide arc he sprinted, lagging behind him just a second, making it look like the water was trailing him as he ran.

He heard more gunshots, and decided now was the time to show the 'magnum opus' just how much of a failure it was. Again moving faster than even the world could react to, Aojiori grew armor plates around his hand with his bones, and whipped around, his hand raised. He saw each bullet soaring towards him, so he thrust his hand into the air and caught and deflected each bullet individually. To Hibiki, it happened in a _just_ perceivable blur, but to everyone else, it looked as if he was moving just as fast as the Senju heir's projectiles, and blocked each one individually, his reflexes going _beyond_ 'ninja', the creature had just pulled off a feat worthy of the _Jedi_. Before Hibiki could try and launch a counter, or even a quick quip, Aojiroi clasped both hands together, his entire body bulking up as he channeled his deep purple chakra. It all traveled upwards, causing his body to balloon upwards as the chakra traveled to his head, and when he felt it build up behind his clenched teeth, he let it go, roaring louder than a bomb blast. The chakra-laced air from his lungs traveled in a wide cone in front of him, while the soundwaves from the sheer vocal power he produced traveled outwards, creating shockwaves and ripples on the swampland.

Hibiki scowled and braced himself against the attack, placing the butt of his gun on the surface of the water and cowering behind it as if it were a shield. He felt the chakra-laced wind slam into him as hard as a truck, shredding his soaking wet, gray coat, tearing into his skin and flaying some of it from his very bones. He peeked open one eye and saw Dante sprinting towards him, but one glare with Hibiki's Sharingan eye halted the Jonin. The Uchiha got the meaning - this was a _clone,_ not worth risking life or limb to protect. Hibiki slowly opened his other eye, both of them squinting at Aojiroi, as he tried to stand against the raging winds and shoulder his gun. He started sliding back across the water as he took aim, but before he could even pull the trigger, he saw chakra surge out from Aojiroi's feet, and he recognized this flow - Aojiroi was using his Wolverine release. Hibiki's eyes flicked downwards, and he saw bones exploding outwards from Aojiroi's feet and spreading out along the floor of the swamp, before shooting upwards - right under Hibiki!

Hibiki clenched his chest tight as he braced for the hits to come. A second later, a massive _tree_ of pale white bones exploded upwards in a shower of warm swamp water, the multiple 'branches' all twisting around and shooting outwards towards Hibiki, dozens of them impaling him with extreme prejudice and sudden brutality. The clone's corpse barely lasted a second before it vanished in a plume of smoke, and in the distance, Dante loudly cursed as he leapt into the air, more bones blasting out of the water, multiple bone structures bursting out of the water in massive, thick columns, each one sending connecting to its neighbor and expanding their reach and power. Dante could barely stay on the water for more than a second before more bones burst outwards, and when he tried to nip the problem in the bud by blasting the gray shinobi, he saw that the man had been cocooned in a sphere of bone and was slowly sinking into the water.

_Hell..._ Dante clenched his eyes shut, feeling a pressure build up. _"NO!" _His eyes snapped open, revealing his flower pattern, and his spectral guardian flared into life, before thrusting its blade forward, cracking the bone cage open like an eggshell, and impaling the gray-skinned, inflamed shinobi. Dante's eyes widened as he saw what the shinobi had been doing inside his protective cage - he'd been slicing off his own skin and siphoning off his bones, wherever the black fire burned, effectively brute-forcing a protective measure and dispelling the technique. He also saw that the profusely bleeding, but quickly healing shinobi, had caught the tip of the susanoo's blade, and was holding it barely an inch away from his stomach.

Thinking quickly, Dante let the chakra construct vanish, and Aojiroi stumbled forward just as, in the distance, the both of them heard an ear-shattering explosion. Dante hit the water and somersaulted forward, and on the up-roll, he summoned up the susanoo once again, slicing outward in a wide horizontal arc. He felt the blade catch the gray goliath's midsection, but the pain in his eyes and the vacuum feeling in his stomach forced him to dispell the technique again. He clenched his face as he tried to bite through the pain, but barely a second later, all of his instincts told him to _dive,_ so without questioning it, he leapt beneath the water, barely dodging a bolder-sized wind bullet from the monster.

Before Dante could try and flee and create space, he saw Aojiroi land on the spot he'd just dived from, and raise his fist. Dante's eyes widened as he saw the jet-powered piston technique rest just above the water: there was _no_ dodging this. The gray goliath slammed his fist into the water multiple dozen times per minute, and while a great deal of the energy of his blows was absorbed by the water, cripplingly powerful shockwaves still blasted through the swampland and rocked Dante's body to the core. The Uchiha felt each shockwave pass through him, and each one felt like he was taking a mallet to the everything, his bones, his organs, his very core managing to simultaneously shake itself apart and get crushed under the sheer force of the shockwaves traveling through the water. This relentless assault lasted for several seconds, before Dante's body could no longer take it, and all of the air vacated his lungs in one brief shout, followed by a spray of blood leaving his mouth and mixing with the water.

When the hulking creature saw that the man beneath the surface of the water had finally lost consciousness, he had to use everything he had to _force_ himself to stop attacking. The Uchiha slowly began drifting beneath the water, sinking to the bottom, the light leaving his onyx eyes, but before he died with his lungs filled with water, a column of bones began growing from beneath him, and they shot him to the surface of the swamp. Aojiroi took one look at the waterlogged Uchiha and slammed his fist into the man's stomach, forcing all of the water to blast out of his lungs, and barely a second later, Dante took in a big, shuddering, rasping gasp of air. The Uchiha, floating on the surface of the swamp, coughed and wheezed, struggling to swim away from the gray shinobi.

Aojiroi growled deeply, knowing that the Jonin wasn't the kind to quit. He took one step back, before thundering forward and kicking Dante in the stomach, full strength, full speed. The combination of his mass and his speed multiplied the already awesome force of his blow exponentially, and sent Dante rocketing away. He watched as the jonin arced through the air, and eventually crashed into and through one of the stone buildings in a large cloud of dust and debris.

The gray-skinned goliath inhaled deeply through his nose; _Aojiroi... Calm down at once._ He heard, in the deep, dark recesses of his mind.

Slowly, the massive, gray-skinned shinobi began shrinking, turning from a burly, gray monster into a thin, lanky man with sunken eyes, and pale skin. His dark gray hair fell off in clumps, falling down to the water and leaving him bald as he surveyed the village around him. He saw the smoke from the fires, he saw the flying eagles, he heard the sounds of gunfire and steel clashing. Explosions littered the landscape and the war cries of shinobi engaging in life-or-death duels filled his ears, but one thing was clear above all:

Konoha was winning.

Kirigakure's central building, in which the Mizukage worked, was under heavy siege. There were dozens of flying Hibikis circling the building and raking its multiple levels with gunfire, there were battles raging inside and out, and on the flat roof that capped the building Aojiroi could _just_ see a massive battle raging between two terribly powerful opponents. The only way this village could emerge victorious is if Lord Katsuo, the Firstborn himself, came to turn the tide, and when he'd learned of the attack, he'd _specifically _forbade anyone's presence but Aojiroi's. This village's defeat was a foregone conclusion, and as Aojiroi felt the pull of chakra exhaustion, he thought back to the boy, Hibiki's, words.

_Three weeks... Rain country. _Aojiroi narrowed his gray eyes and as he felt his wounds stitching themselves back together, he clenched his jaw, and leapt to the east, leaving the village to its fate.


	42. Thunder God?

Chapter 41

* * *

Hibiki heard muffled voices, as he laboriously pushed at the dozens of pounds of rubble that blanketed his body. The muted, distant sounds of warfare all sounded like they were passing through a pillow before they made it to him. He managed to separate a few thick slabs of stone and create a small opening for light and air to bleed through, just big enough for him to stick his small, bleeding arm through. There was a muffled shout, and soon he felt someone grab at his hand, as someone else began snatching the rubble and pushing it to the side. With a loud groan from whoever was grabbing him, Hibiki was pulled out from the collapsed apartment building, and he saw Noboru and Suboro, both gasping for breath, both bleeding and bruised, the latter's arm having been forcibly set and swelling horribly. Hibiki kept ahold of Noboru's hand and hauled himself wobbly to his feet.

Hibiki felt a sharp pain in his hand, and he looked down to it; his knucles were scorched, cut, and burned, the entire back of his hand was red raw and bleeding. "Damn..." Cursed Hibiki, as he flicked his hand, trying to wave away the pain. He looked around, taking in the collapsed building, and when he made eye contact with Noboru, he saw that the Hyuga noble's palm was in similar shape to his fist: burned, cut, bruised, and otherwise injured from their dual attack. "You okay?" Noboru didn't heal like Hibiki did, and furthermore he wasn't a clone like the Senju standing before him, so his injuries _stuck._

"I will be fine... But there is bad news." Said Noboru, as he briefly flared his Byakugan.

"Don't do it." Hibiki practically pleaded, as a small, disbelieving grin spread across his face. "You tell me he's dead, and you tell me he's dead right now." He laughed despite himself, already knowing Noboru's answer.

"Unfortunately..." A dark skinned fist burst out from beneath the rubble as Noboru spoke, followed quickly by another as rubble exploded out in a large, loud shower of falling rocks and dust. "Not."

_"BEE!"_ Biggie roared, whipping his head back and forth as he tried to locate his partner, but soon finding his eyes landing on Team Six, as the three exhausted shinobi took up battle stances. The bearded man growled, his teeth clenched, before he took another look at the rubble beneath him, again yelling out, _"BEE!"_

Hibiki, quietly, muttered to Noboru. _"Please tell me Smalls isn't dead. We're fucked if he's dead."_

Noboru briefly shook his head, _"two meters southwest. Faint heartbeat. Fading."_

Biggie's ear twitched, and his white-haired head whipped over to the three Konoha shinobi. Hibiki gulped, but before he could even react, the man had launched himself forward and over the three of them, bypassing them entirely as he landed on the rubble and began throwing aside parts of the building, searching desperately for his partner. The Konoha shinobi exchanged glances, as they slowly turned around, each of them wondering what they should be doing. Biggie finally unearthed Smalls, who coughed once as air filled his lungs.

_"Yo..."_ Whispered Smalls, as Biggie scooped him up in his burly arms, and turned his livid gaze to face the trio. His eyes were burning with rage, but Hibiki realized in that moment that they were at an impasse.

"Let him go."

Suboro almost lost his balance, _"what?! Hibiki!"_

Noboru, however, nodded, quickly finding Hibiki's train of thought.

"We might have him on the ropes, but if we keep fighting, he'll kill us. And if he fights us, Smalls will die." Hibiki said lowly, Biggie's eyes narrowing as he heard everything the Senju heir was saying. "It's a lose-lose situation. We have to let him go." His onyx eyes made contact with Biggie's, and he gave the man a nod. "Go."

The man stared at him, "my name is Ay. I look forward to when we meet again." He said, as a drop of blood fell from his head, before he finally leapt away, covering hundreds of meters in a single leap.

Hibiki, Noboru, and Suboro watched as Ay leapt across vast distances, until he vanished beyond the horizon. When he was certain that A and B were both gone, he let exhaustion overcome him and he flopped over backwards, barely even feeling the pain that sprouted up when he bodily impacted the rubble beneath him. Noboru and Suboro quickly turned to face him, concern written across their faces, but Hibiki shook his head and held up his hand.

"I'm down below. It's clear." He said, before he vanished in a plume of smoke.

The two bleeding shinobi exchanged glances as the smoke dissipated into the air, "down below?" Suboro asked, as Noboru flashed his Byakugan.

"Evacuation tunnels. The civilians... It seems they used those tunnels to evacuate them to designated safe zones outside of the village. Hibiki has set up shop in a tunnel beneath us." Said Noboru, with a nod, as he turned to the southeast, "the entrance is this way."

* * *

Underneath Kirigakure, Suboro and Noboru cautiously walked through the underground escape tunnels, slowly making their way deep underground and away from the fighting. It took them several minutes before they found Hibiki, who sat on the ground, both fists pressed together, his curse mark active, and his eyes shut. The boy was flanked on both sides by two other Hibikis, who held thunder techniques in their hands, both of which snapped up and were aimed firmly at Noboru and Suboro when they were discovered.

_"Thunder!"_ One of the Hibiki clones called out, his voice cutting through the silence like an explosion.

Noboru and Suboro knew what to do in this situation, they both held up their hands, "Flare!" Noboru responded.

The clones waited a moment, before lowering their weapons and nodding to the two genin, gesturing for them to hurry up, as the two clones sealed up their rifles again, and their hands were wreathed in muted green chakra. Noboru and Suboro rushed over and, on the clones' urging, sat down, whereupon the two clones placed their chakra-wreathed hands on their backs.

"He's focusing." The clone behind Suboro said, in regards to the Alpha Hibiki. "Some stuff happened in Amerigo and he has a lot less chakra than he'd planned on, so he's trying to make his numbers spread as far and last as long as possible."

Noboru narrowed his eyes, "my clan's archives say nothing of a telepathic link between shadow clones. They transfer memories, but that is all."

The other clone nodded, humming as he did so. "So he's got to play speed-chess with a time delay." As he spoke, the Alpha Hibiki quickly spawned a new clone, and then dissipated it in less than three seconds. "Orochimaru is fighting the Mizukage, and the fights in the capitol building are starting to spill out, so he just sent out orders to make sure no one got close to them." He supplied, before the Alpha grimaced and spawned six new clones, who quickly sprinted down the tunnels and out of sight, their loose-fitting, oddly patterned clothing from the eagle's world flapping in the wind. "Those were sent out to retrieve Dante-sensei. An agent of Katsuo's was in the village, and he was fighting Dante."

"What happened to sensei?"

"It was an agent of Katsuo." The clone repeated, "the guy who fought all three Sannin, Dante, Mito, an ANBU, and our Hokage, and won. Should give you an idea of how powerful they are."

Noboru nodded, "that doesn't bode well, then." He said, as he felt his wounds stitch up. "You mentioned something happened in the world of the eagles."

"We're still not sure what all happened, but we're fine now." Said the clone healing Suboro, "it... Was a hit and run type deal. Might have been the hawks, pissed that I... _He'd_ helped the eagles end their war." It was clear that sometimes the 'I am real' aspects of the clones still managed to leak through, leading to moments to where they referred to themselves as the Alpha Hibiki.

Noboru nodded, his pale white eyes resting on the dark-haired boy sitting in front of them. The clone hadn't lied to them, but Noboru had spent enough time with Hibiki to know how he lied - he told half truths to conceal the bigger lie. It wasn't like Hibiki to lie to him and Suboro, but what could have happened in Amerigo that warranted him to keep secrets from his _team?_

"Does it have something to do with your... New clothes?" Noboru pressed, turning his eyes to the very faded green and yellow pants, and the deep, faded gray shirt Hibiki and his clones wore.

"Yes." Simultaneously said the clones, though they had no further words on the matter.

"So, what the hell was that with... What were their names? Ay and Bee?" Suboro asked, "why did you... Sing? Like that?" Ever the one to latch on to the less important details, Suboro changed the subject, though Noboru would admit that Hibiki's display had made him curious as well.

"It's a _loooong_ story, that I _really_ don't want to tell." Muttered the Alpha Hibiki, through a slight, knowing grin. "But all I'll say is that it was totally worth it." He added, as he leaned his head forward and frowned slightly, some of his raven hair fell to cover his face.

"So you _can_ hear us." Suboro grinned, "now you can't _ever_ say I skip out on fights!"

The three Hibikis, in unison, said, "you skip out on fights."

Suboro frowned and quieted down. Noboru, on the other hand, turned to his healer. "The invasion has been going on for several hours, now, and we caught them by surprise. When do you two think it will quiet down?"

"Ninja wars, historically, take very long to complete. Ninja battles, however, are the exact opposite." Said the clone standing above Noboru's, "so, given that Uncle O is fighting the Mizukage, I'd say that when he wins, the battle will be over." The Hibiki explained, "and it'll be over, soon."

Suboro blinked, "how so?"

"Because Uncle J is on his way too. Two Sannin against one exhausted Kage, it wasn't a fair fight to begin with, but now? Now it's even less so."

* * *

The grass cutter swung through the air in a wide arc, before colliding with the sharp edge of the third mizukage's katana. The two blades rebounded but, in a fit of inhuman elasticity, the paper-white snake sannin snapped his arm back and forth like a whip and quickly brought his longsword back around, cutting a deep gash into the black-haired, bloody kage's arm. The kage in question grunted as his arm began streaming blood and he leapt back several feet, his deep black, pupilless eyes narrowed in a deep scowl, as he breathed heavily.

Several feet in front of him, stood the paper-white snake sannin, who was breathing as calmly as if he had just awoken from a deep and restful sleep. He was covered in blood, but little of it was his own, master of substitutions as he was. His pale yellow, snake-slit eyes locked onto the black eyes of the mizukage as his lips curled up into a sneer.

"Come now, _Lord_ Mizukage..." He said in a mocking tone, that all but leaked confidence. "I believe we have gone on far enough. I can see my... Louder teammate is on his way on the back of a toad the size of this building." He said, looking over the Mizukage's shoulder as he spoke. "And my nephew needs only my word to rake this rooftop with his thunder." He added, his snake-slit eyes darting up to the sky and trailing after the multitude of soaring Senju heirs. He turned his gaze back to the gasping Mizukage, "I wouldn't want to see the powerful lord of the bloody mist be killed in battle..." He grinned a falsely sincere smile, lifting his blade into an offensive stance as he did.

The heavily breathing Mizukage turned his head to gaze over his left shoulder, confirming that the massive, pale green toad was wading its way towards his capital building, held up only briefly by the shinobi that attempted to attack it. The white-haired toad sage, though clearly sporting his fair share of injuries, was riding atop the massive amphibian's head. The Mizukage turned back to the snake sannin, his deep black eyes narrowed in anger, as he tried to create a plan to get out of this alive, and then lead his village to victory. The 'tag team' delegate from Kumo should be arriving any minute, they could help, and there was Lord Katsuo's Pallid Rage, who should have already _been_ here and thrashing the Konoha shinobi. Where were they? Had Kirigakure been abandoned? Was this fight truly worth it, with no allies to count upon?

The Mizukage swallowed thickly through his dry throat, his attention turning to the sneering snake sannin. The man was truly worth the legend, powerful enough to fight Hanzo the Salamander on equal footing, and with his partner on the way, suddenly it was one Kage versus two Sannin, each as powerful as a Kage in their own right. He could call for backup, but with that _damned_ Senju heir's limitless army flying around and blasting apart anyone that interfered with his and Orochimaru's duel, his backup wouldn't last for long. He could try and hold out for the Pallid Rage and the Tag Team to arrive, but if they weren't here already, it was very, very likely that they wouldn't arrive at all, likely having written Kiri off as a lost cause.

In the end, he had two choices. If he fought to the bitter end, the Sannin, Konoha's best, and the Senju limitless army would ensure that anyone who refused surrender, meaning his _entire village,_ would die. The entire civilian population, having been evacuated, would roam the lands, leaderless, never to return to Kiri, which would soon turn into an empty ruined village like Uzushio. Refusing capitulation would result in the complete, total, and systemic destruction of Kirigakure, with all of its secrets given to Konoha. On the other hand, if he capitulated, if he surrendered, his village would survive, his people could return, albeit under the occupation of Konoha. It would take time for them to build up their strength in secret, years, decades, likely a generation, before they would finally be strong enough to oust Konoha and take Kiri back for themselves. The problem with that was the potential for the next generation to grow up sympathetic to Konoha, for the bastards of the leaf to win their hearts and minds and to impose their 'will of fire' upon the next generation of Kiri's shinobi, meaning Kiri would therefor be destroyed anyways, but this time by proxy. The question, therefor, became which was better? To live on one's feet, and die on their knees? Or to die on one's feet, and live on their knees?

The Mizukage gritted his blood-stained teeth. He cursed himself, he cursed Katsuo for failing to uphold his alliance, he cursed Kumo for abandoning them, and he cursed Konoha's new war tactics. A battle, a war, as fast as a bolt of lightning. Overwhelming force designed to throw off balance and never allow recovery. Whomever had created this tactic, this lightning war, would change the face of warfare forever. Kiri was to be made an example of: Konoha wasn't content with letting the world move on around it, and Konoha under Danzo would usher in a new era of power. They would no longer settle for being a great power, respected by the world, they would only accept being something more, something better than great. Konoha would, by conquering Kiri, display its desire to be a _Super_power.

And there was nothing the Mizukage could do to stop it.

All he could do was pray that Katsuo's alliance would be powerful enough to topple them, as they had done to him.

The Mizukage's blade fell limply from his hand, and buried itself, blade-first, two inches into the roof. He raised his hands in a placative gesture, palms facing the sky.

His gaze locked submissively to the ground, the Mizukage called out. "Speaking for the whole of the Village Hidden in the Mist. I, the latest of three Mizukage... Do hereby surrender to Konoha." He said, as his eyes challengingly raised their gaze to meet Orochimaru. "On _one_ condition." Orochimaru, as he lowered his sword, smiled and tilted his head. "In the coming... Third world war... Konoha fights _for_ Kiri, just as savagely as they fought _against_ it.

Orochimaru twitched an eyebrow, "ignoring that I have neither the power nor the authority to grant such a request... Could we expect the same ferocity? A war-forged alliance?" He asked, humoring the man.

"Kirigakure knows nothing _but_ ferocity. You seek to delay the oncoming war by crippling us, but you may very well have kickstarted it. And because you will inevitably occupy us... We will be attacked by those who seek to war with you. As we fought you, we must fight them." His right eye twitched, a solitary display of weakness, showing his incomparable rage. "So should Konoha fight for us... We will fight _with_ them."

Orochimaru's one-sided grin turned to a vicious sneer. "I see... I cannot grant nor deny these requests, so a ceasefire will be held until you speak with Lord Fourth." He explained, as his jaw dislocated and stretched to inhuman proportions, and he swallowed his blade in a grotesque display. As the two of them spoke, several Hibiki clones soared over them, trailed by multiple eagles, as the former raked the ground with gunfire and the latter blasted the ground apart with wind bullets. "Make the announcement." Orochimaru ordered, his tone leaving no room for debate. "We shall see, after that." Orochimaru indicated the ground, as the massive red toad finally made its arrival. "Kneel."

There was a look of unrestrained fury on the Mizukage's face, as he knelt down, and slowly turned his gaze to the ground, letting his head hang as the shame, disgrace, and rage of what he was doing fully began dawning on him.

* * *

Three days passed after Kirigakure's formal surrender, Hibiki and every shinobi ranked under Jonin was sent home to regroup, whilst other Chunin and above were cycled back in to begin occupation operations. All of the injured Shinobi were transported back to Konoha, either by Hibiki clones who flew them there, or by other Shinobi that utilized shunshin. Team Six didn't even realize Dante had been evacuated until one of the Jonin mentioned seeing him loaded onto a stretcher and sprinted home. Hibiki spent almost the entire trip dead silent, only speaking when spoken to. Fortunately, many interpreted it as an overload from the thousands of Shadow Clones whose memories Hibiki had taken in over the course of the day, but the two there who actually knew him almost instantly recognized it as something else: The Senju Heir was thinking. He had lapsed back into the silent reverie characteristic of his early Genin years, and it worried his teammates, moreso when he wouldn't directly answer their questions, only going so far as to assure them it wasn't anything related to Post Traumatic Stress from the battle.

Upon returning home, those who were injured were sent to the hospital to get checked up, and though they fully expected Hibiki to skip out on it, Noboru and Suboro were surprised to see him following them to the hospital. He explained that there had been a moment in Amerigo when he'd needed a _lot_ of chakra, fast, so he'd opened a few of the eight gates without spawning a clone first, so he had to make sure he hadn't done any damage his healing factor couldn't undo.

Upon arriving at the hospital and explaining the situation to his mother, Noboru and Suboro were nearly deafened by her outraged shouts. The slug sannin's apprentice inspected Noboru and Suboro in one half of the room, whilst in the other half, Tsunade went over every inch of her son, from his skin to his organs to his chakra circulatory network.

"You have no _kami-damned idea_ how lucky you are, Hibiki!" The two of them heard the slug sannin yell from the other side of the room, as her raven-haired apprentice applied bandages to their more serious injuries. Hibiki, she had explained, was good, but there was only so much a field job could do. "Do you know what that chakra does to people?! It burns their bodies from the inside out! The more gates you open, the more _toxic_ and _raw_ that chakra becomes! The only damn reason I haven't objected thus far is because you've been using your _kami damned shadow clones_ to open them!"

Noboru and Suboro exchanged humorous glances, and the former leaned back to look over the latter's shoulders, so the both of them could watch their friend and ally get destroyed in ways enemy shinobi could never accomplish. The buzz-cut genin couldn't hold back a grin, but was shoved back into a straight seated position, so Shizune could forcibly set some of his dislocated vertebrae. The Hyuga noble, meanwhile, simply watched the exchange out of the corner of his paper-white eyes, a soft smile poorly hidden on his stoic face.

"Well, I can tell you right now, kid, _no more!_ I don't care _who_ you're fighting or _why_ you need the chakra, you're not opening the eight gates again, and if I have to get Jiraiya to install a sealing matrix on your stomach _you better believe I will!"_ The blonde Senju yelled, as she raised both of Hibiki's arms, her hands glowing a muted green and soon running over both of his sides. "Damn it, Hibiki!" She said again, exasperatedly. "What were you thinking?" Her left hand paused over his final few ribs and she tilted her head, before she grinned and quickly smacked his ribs with her chakra-coated hand, obviously causing some pain and discomfort to the boy. "Your ribs healed wrong. I have to reset them. That healing you do can't fix everything perfectly, you know." Her right eye twitched, as another thought occurred to her. "And why the hell do you suddenly have a new layer of skin and muscle over your entire chest? What did those eagles do, drag you across the ground? Blast you out of the air?"

"Yes." Hibiki responded, snidely, and with a grin on his face.

On the other side of the room, Noboru had to bite his tongue, and Suboro started coughing, so the both of them could cover up their laughter. "Don't you lie to me!" Tsunade snapped, running a hand through her hair and placing her hands back on Hibiki's chest, before the green chakra took on a more vivid tone and everyone present heard Hibiki's steel ribs snap back into the correct position. "And I shouldn't have to tell you that you can't solve every problem you come across by just multiplying your chakra levels! _Kami_ knows what your uncle's damn seal is doing to you every time you turn _it_ on, but taking that and adding the eight gates is like throwing your life away! And _why, in kami's name, is my diagnoses telling me you've been electrified from the inside out?!"_ She all but shrieked, causing the walls around them to actually shake.

Noboru and Suboro, across the sterile white room, exchanged another set of glances, these ones caught by Tsunade's apprentice, who smiled sheepishly. "She gets like this." She told the two, quietly. "He's the only family she has left." She explained, sparing a quick glance to the other side of the room, her sheepish smile slowly turning into a fond one, before she shook her head and turned her attention back to the boys.

"You know..." Said Suboro, in the same hushed tone. "My first instinct was to say 'we know'... But we actually do not."

"First time we've ever _really_ seen Hibiki and Lady Tsunade interact for more than a few seconds." Suboro whispered, leaning over conspiratorially. "It's kind of funny, actually. Hibiki usually doesn't act like this when anyone else tries pulling this on him."

_"YOU DID WHAT?!" _Now Tsunade was actively screaming at her heir, a vein visibly throbbing in her forehead, as her eyes went wide and almost rabid, almost unable to process that she'd just been told he'd brute-forced his way into replicating Ay's lightning armor technique.

"Hibiki Senju's one weakness is his mother." Noboru smiled and, after being given the okay from Shizune, slid to the back of the bed and leaned onto the few pillows, listening to his teammate get an earful.

"Oh, I think he's got a second one." Now Shizune was grinning, which only sought to widen when she caught the confused glances of Suboro and Noboru. In response to their unasked questions, and because she couldn't have been heard over Tsunade's deafening admonishments, she silently nodded to the nearby windowsil, where a small beetle was leisurely entering the room from the outside.

Noboru and Suboro again gave eachother a brief glance, and then looked back to Shizune. "Agreed." They said in unison.

* * *

Hibiki had barely been able to escape the hospital without having his chakra pathways medically closed. Aside from something to fix his almost bleeding ears, he hadn't needed any bandages or any medical procedures, really, he had just needed the clean bill of health from his mother. She had never once said that he wasn't suffering any adverse effects from using the eight gates, but she hadn't had to - she wouldn't have lectured the Senju heir so harshly if he had lost the ability to use them.

Now, in the middle of the night, Hibiki found himself standing in the center of a mostly empty street, turning his gaze from the northeast, where the training fields were, to his left, where stood the shinobi hot springs. His gaze continually shifted between the general area of the fields, and the hot springs to his left, unable to make up his mind as to which one he wanted more. After a few moments deliberation, he decided that the hotsprings would likely be his best bet - he was still wearing clothes he'd looted from a _god_ knows how old corpse. These clothes had literally been rotted in, he needed to get out of them and wash himself as soon as possible. Fortunately for him, he'd stopped at home first to grab a change of clothes, because no matter what he did, train or bathe, he'd need to change after it anyways, hence the clothes.

Hibiki strode into the hotsprings and into the men's locker room. He found the first locker he could and channeled a bit of chakra into the lock, the locker swung open, and Hibiki peeled off his shirt. He placed the shirt inside, swapped his pants for shorts, and then reached up to undo his headband, when he realized something. Looking down at his bare, slightly tanned chest, he didn't see anything. Specifically, he didn't see his mother's necklace, which he'd forgotten about _again,_ only this time, he actually knew where it was.

_Well... Shit._ He had been wearing it in Amerigo, and the only chance he'd had to lose it was in the airfield, after he'd been shot down. _So... Is it destroyed, now?_ He blinked, and reached up to rub his eyes, feeling very tired. _"God damn it..."_ He cursed, with a deep sigh, "things for later." He said to himself, as he shut the locker with a loud bang.

Hibiki ran his hand through his shaggy, black hair, and walked across the pale blue, tiled floor, into the hot springs. He dropped a few ryo so he could use some of their toiletries, and waded into one of the smaller pools. The onyx-eyed Senju heir squeezed a small dollop of shampoo onto his callused, ten year old hand and lathered his hair with it, before he shut his eyes and dipped down into the pool.

_Alright... Let's try to ignore all of the people I killed three days ago._ Thought the Senju heir, as he listened to the sound of the water-logged universe and scrubbed his scalp roughly. _Amerigo. Airfield. US Army patch. Guy named Hawkins. English lettering. Big fucking bombers. Tanks. Corpse that turned into a tree when I touched it. _Modern_ war. What does it all mean?_ He began exhaling through his nose, feeling the bubbles burst out in turn and begin floating to the surface, the sound of the air rushing through the water and bursting on the surface was heavily muffled by the water that surrounded him. _That is just... So much information in one go. _ Hibiki turned his head up and surfaced, his thoroughly scrubbed hair now plastered to his skull and swept back by both of his hands.

Hibiki wiped the water from his face, feeling the ends of his soaked hair tickle the back of his shoulder blades, which made his skin crawl. He swept the hair back onto his neck and flicked the water from his hands. He stared off into space, watching the ripples spread across the pool and distort everything they swept across. The water, unlike his mind, calmed after a few moments, showing Hibiki the reflection of his youthful visage. He found his round, young face and his jet black eyes staring back at him, slowly coming to the realization that he had actually begun to recognize this face as _him._ It had nothing to do with Kiri, or with Amerigo, it was just one of those things about reincarnation he found himself finally adjusting to.

Hibiki shook his head and reached over to his body wash bottle, feeling his hand brush against a sheet of paper. He blinked, and turned his gaze to the small pile of toiletries, finding an envelope waiting for him. A crease forming in his brow, Hibiki waded over to the edge of the pool and picked up the envelope. He flicked on his Sharingan and, finding no chakra emanating from the paper, opened the note.

_Same place as last time, three hours. _

_Enjoy your bath._

_-Dai._

Hibiki stared dully as the paper, his shoulders slumping. The first thought that went through his mind was how the _hell_ her beetles had managed to carry this in here, but the second one being that Dai _clearly_ didn't understand baths. If one wanted to _properly_ enjoy a bath, one would need at _least_ three hours. The water had to cool off completely before one could call it a successfully enjoyed bath experience.

_I wonder if Noboru and Suboro said something._ Thought Hibiki, as he folded up the semi-soaked letter and placed it back in the envelope, before he grabbed his body-wash and began soaping up. _But, back to the airfield. Just... Assume no assumptions. Facts. That guy had a camo-coat on, with a US patch, and English lettering, clearly assembled in the English language. There were tanks, jets, guns, and corpses everywhere. So what do I know from this? It was some kind of US air strip, a big one, clearly._ He dipped back under the water and scrubbed the soap from his chest and back, more bubbles streaming from his nose. _They were fighting something... Something that left no bodies, except _one... _And that _one_ body looked like some kind of albino with green hair, and when I touched it, it turned into a tree and gave me a seizure. It felt almost exactly like that banshee attack Katsuo used on me. _He wiped the last of the soap from his chest and surfaced again, not even breathing heavily. _So... That doesn't answer anything. How can the US exist in another dimension? What were they fighting, and did they win?_ He again swept his hair back out of his face. _This can't be _earth... He told himself, _it can't be. Magic and chakra doesn't exist where I'm from. Our world obeys the laws of physics, science _is_ magic... But sufficiently advanced technology is just indistinguishable from magic._ He looked at his hand, and sat down on one of the flat rocks in the pool. _But even technology... Can it even _do_ this?_ He channeled chakra into his hand, and the blue fire radiated off of his hand and into the air. _This kind of stuff... I don't think all of the sci-fi macguffins in the universe could make this. So I have to be in another universe, that's fact. But then I have to ask, where the _fuck_ did that airfield come from? Did we test out some kind of trans-dimensional portal something or another? _He shook his head and let the hand fall back under the soapy water.

_No... We advanced fast where I come from, but not _that_ fast. By the time we got anything close to that, I doubt the US would even exist anymore. So where did that coat come from? Where did that airfield, those tanks, where did all of that come from?!_ He squinted his eyes and frowned. _What don't I know?_ He leaned back and rested his head on the edge of the pool.

"Usually it's around now that guy shows up." Hibiki thought aloud, his mind conjuring up images of the silver haired totally-not-an-ANBU. A part of him thought the man would take the bait and show up out of nowhere, but he knew better: With most of the Jonin out occupying Kiri or coming back to treat injuries, all of the ANBU were on duty. Sakumo wouldn't be showing up to offer sage advice tonight.

Hibiki let his hands float about in the water, he thought he could feel bags form underneath his eyes. He was _ten,_ he shouldn't be this _tired_ all of the time.

_And I've got to go to Katsuo with this. There are things the both of us don't know. He could very well be setting the world on fire for the wrong reasons. If I could just slow him down with this news, get him to give me the time I need to try and find answers... I know that airfield will give them to me. I just need to find them. _He wondered how much time had passed, he was feeling the water cool down.

The dark-haired Senju groaned, and stood up, the water cascading down his muscular, ten year old body, leaving it a temporary glossy sheen that reflected the bright white lights above him. He stepped out of the pool and made his way into the locker room, snatching a towel off of the wall as he did so.

_I guess I'll go talk to Dai. Then get back to my thoughts._ One day, he was going to set a day aside, and just enjoy the hot springs, let all of his thoughts just melt away in the hot water.

* * *

Though he wanted to make an entrance and _fly_ in, Hibiki took the conventional entrance into the forest of death. His Sharingan burning, Hibiki slowly strode through the forest, keeping clear of the more dangerous predators and staying wary of the traps set by both animal and human alike. It took him a few minutes to navigate to the clearing he had occupied the last time he'd been here, but he knew he'd found it when he saw a lone, hoodied Aburame sitting cross-legged in the center of the clearing.

"You know, I haven't even been home a _day._ Miss me that much?" He called out, attracting the gaze of the sunglasses-clad beetle user.

"I thought _you_ would miss _me."_ Dai said in a slightly mocking monotone that matched Hibiki's. "Clearly you did, else you'd still be at those accursed hotsprings."

Hibiki grinned, his ears tuning out the sounds of insects calling out as he focused on the Aburame he was approaching. "What, jealous of my hotsprings?"

Hibiki was only able to see it thanks to the perception increase granted by his Sharingan, which easily allowed him to pierce Dai's sunglasses and see her roll her eyes, nor did he miss the coy grin that played at the corner of her thin lips. "Hardly. As much as your uncle likes to peep on women, so too do some women in this village like to peep on the men, and I wouldn't be too shocked if there were a certain few who were interested in the _younger_ men. I was doing you a favor."

Hibiki didn't miss the opportunity, a sly grin tugging at the corner of his mouth as he sat down with a brief groan. "So, now that we're done talking about you." He crossed his legs and caused Dai to blush lightly. "Are we here to talk about me?" He asked.

Dai cleared her throat, and pulled her arms out from the baggy sleeves of her dark gray hoodie. In one of her hands was a black, leather-bound book, which she handed to Hibiki. "Congratulations."

"A book." Hibiki said, taking the small leatherbound thing. "Wow, Dai, I..." He took another look, and realized it was a bingo book, one of the books that made the rounds through every hidden village, cataloguing the list of the most dangerous shinobi known to walk the lands. "Oh you've got to be fucking kidding me." He undid the leather strap on Dai's book and opened it, flipping through the A-ranks. "Wait, I'm not in here." He said, as he flipped through the pages like a flip-book, his Sharingan granting him the luxury of not having to actually scan the pages.

"You're not an A-ranked threat, Hibiki." Dai said, an amused tone permeating her words.

Hibiki blinked, "I thought the Bingo Book didn't list B-ranked shinobi."

"It doesn't." Said the Aburame, whose coy grin was turning into a full smile as she suppressed laughter.

Hibiki stared blankly at the book with his blood red eyes, before he finally gave in and flipped to the S-ranks, not even needing to flip two pages before he found his face staring back at him. The neutral expression, the onyx eyes, the konoha headband tying down the shaggy black hair, it was him alright.

_Hibiki 'Thunder God' Senju, Chunin, Konohagakure, S-Rank_

_Notable for being the first shinobi to reach an S-rank before the age of twelve, Hibiki Senju is the last in Konoha's Senju bloodline, and has shown to be adapt in several styles of ninjutsu and taijutsu. Feats include defeating the heir to Iwa's Gelignite clan twice, defeating the jinchuriki of the four tails, being instrumental in driving off the invasion force during the battle for Konoha, fighting Katsuo the Monster to a standstill, fighting and defeating Kumogakure's A/B tag team, and single-handedly launching a successful assault against Kirigakure, managing to kill hundreds of chunin and Jonin with a combination of thousands of shadow clones and his thunder techniques. _

_Do not engage alone, Hibiki is a master of the Shadow Clone technique__, meaning he never fights by himself, and ___has enough chakra to summon thousands of shadow clones in one day and continue to fight other A and S ranked shinobi._ He has shown a remarkable affinity to replicate the abilities of clan-related bloodlines, including the Explosion release, the Sharingan, and the Shikotsumyaku, and has displayed an innate control over the eight gates through his clones, thus the power he or his clones display at any given moment can instantly and drastically change.  
_

Hibiki read and reread his page six times, before looking up to Dai. "Thunder god?"

"Your weapons seem to be your defining characteristic." Dai giggled, "congratulations."

"How the hell did they even find out about Katsuo, or Kiri? All of that happened... Recently."

"News travels _fast,_ Hibiki." Dai responded, taking back the book. "Though you seem troubled..." She trailed off, her amber eyes trailing up and down the Senju heir from behind her deep black sunglasses. "Are you not happy that the world acknowledges your skill?"

_It means I've got a world of trouble coming my way, so no, not really. This is like bragging that you made the FBI's top ten most wanted._ "It's not that." He said, knowing from the slight dip in her shoulders that Dai had been eagerly anticipating this news, he put a smile on his face. "It's just... _Thunder God?_" He flicked his eyes from the book to the Aburame, "that's the best they could come up with?"

Dai, however, wasn't buying it. "Did you know that, in addition to increased bloodflow and an erratic heartbeat, when people lie their chakra flow changes? It triggers a very, very slight release of pheromones, so subtle that even ninja hounds cannot detect."

_Bullshit. She's trying to bait me._ "But your beetles can?" Hibiki raised an eyebrow.

"Indeed."

"Did you know the Sharingan acts as a lie detector? I can _literally_ see the most minute changes in people, including the way their skin _barely_ bulges and flutters when their heart pumps blood through their body, or when blood rushes to their cheeks or their nose, all of which have key things to do with detecting lies." He tilted his head and rested it on his fist, a smile on his face.

Dai blinked, and after a moment, frowned. "What ails you, Hibiki? I do not need tricks to see what your dojutsu hides." She said.

Hibiki pursed his lips, sighing.

_I suppose... If anyone, Dai is the best person to talk to about this. She's also the only person I've got, that isn't trying to start a war, anyways._ "You remember that stuff we talked about, last time we were here?" Hibiki asked, straightening up and letting his dojutsu melt away.

Dai nodded, feeling her breath catch in her throat.

"When I was in Amerigo, I found something. Something I can't explain." He began, "something that reminded me of home." He paused, and took a kunai out of his weapons pouch and started digging at the ground with it. He created a large rectangle, and sectioned off a box, before digging several long grooves through the rectangle. "Thirteen bars, to represent the thirteen original colonies." He said, before he started poking small divots into the sectioned off box. "Fifty stars, to represent the fifty states." When he was finished, he wiped the dirt off on his pants, but didn't stow the kunai. "I went to Amerigo to learn how to fly, and I did. While I was seeing how far I could push it, I inadvertently crossed over into into some kind of... Forbidden territory, they called it the 'Wraithlands'." He explained, shaking his head. "You remember I told you about airplanes?" He looked up and into her eyes.

Dai nodded, "you said they were vehicles that allowed anyone to fly."

"Well, for obvious reasons, airplanes can't just _take off. _Not the big ones, anyways. They had to get moving fast enough to fly under the power of propulsion alone, so they needed a lot of space to get going. So we had designated areas, we called them airports, where these planes would have the space they needed to take off and land." He reached forward and, next to the symbol he'd drawn, he dug a long groove in the dirt. "Long, straight strips of land. So, as I was flying around I got shot out of the air. But it wasn't by an eagle testing my reflexes, or some other animal thinking I was a predator, I got shot out of the air by a _gun,_ that made this -" He jabbed the kunai into the ground and unsealed his rifle, holding it by the barrel and pressing its stock into the ground. "- look like a shuriken. The projectiles these things launched..." He resealed the rifle, "were about as big as my head. And I got shot with one."

Dai's brow furrowed, "but, you said these kinds of weapons do not exist in our world." She pointed out, "only you and Katsuo have them."

"That's what I thought, and that's what makes all of this so confusing." Hibiki explained, "after I woke up and healed, and dealt with a couple other things, I searched the area around the AA - anti aircraft - guns. I discovered an _airfield,_ an honest to god military airport. Inspecting this place led to me discovering bodies, bullets, guns, tanks, planes... I found so much, and it told me so little. There were _clear_ signs of conflict, the entire place was torn and blasted apart, but there was no sign of whatever they had been fighting."

"Are you sure they weren't fighting themselves?"

"Without a doubt. Even with guns and explosives, you can't flip a tank on its treads. The way everyone died, they died next to eachother, signifying that they weren't fighting eachother. And even if they had been fighting themselves, I would have found those bodies, so whatever they were fighting was _strong,_ and cleaned up after itself." Hibiki explained, "and I don't have anywhere near enough facts to make any conclusions. I'll be going back, soon, to try and get more information, I want you to come with me."

Dai blinked, "wait, what?"

"I've got to go back to Amerigo, to the airfield. There's _got_ to be something there that can give me answers, but I can't do it alone." Hibiki explained.

Dai felt her heart skip a beat, "uh... Can't you use the Shadow Clone technique? That would make searching anywhere faster than bringing me along."

"You misunderstand me." Said the Senju heir, "I can't do it _alone._ As in, by myself. But I can't go to Katsuo with this, because..." He paused, trying to find the right words to match is thoughts. He broke eye contact with Dai and looked to his left, dully gazing into the forest. "From my interactions with him, however few they were, Katsuo isn't the kind of man you would want stomping around million year old ruins, and I don't trust him enough in the first place to help me with this search." That didn't stretch so far as to _giving_ him the information he obtained, but in the actual hunt, Hibiki didn't trust Katsuo to be open with whatever he found, and the same could be said for Kenichi's other experiments. "I need someone I can trust. Someone I can talk to about this... Someone who can tell me..." He clenched his jaw and cut himself off.

Dai, however, caught on quickly. "I don't think you're crazy, Hibiki." Hibiki didn't respond to her, he just kept staring out into the forest. "If you want my help, you need only ask, Hibiki."

Hibiki sighed, wearily. "Will you help me?" He asked, "will you come to Amerigo with me and help me look for answers?"

Dai smiled, and got to her feet, before extending her hand to Hibiki. "Of course, just tell me when we go."

Hibiki nodded, and grabbed her hand, hauling himself to his feet. "Pack your bags. I doubt we'll be there for more than a day or two, but I'd prepare for a week. We'll head out early, tomorrow." He nodded, "and eh..." He said, as he let go of her hand. "Thanks."


	43. History: A Mystery -I-

Chapter 42

* * *

"Washita, you misunderstand -" Hibiki had tried to gently break the news to the Boss Eagle.

_"I will not allow it. End of story. No further discussion."_ The house-sized bird didn't take it well.

Hibiki sighed, clenching his jaw and shaking his head, as he paced inside Washita's massive nest, the early-morning sun beat down on the both of them, and the red-orange sky cast them both in warm colors. "I'm not asking for you to give her a tour, and I'm not telling you to train her as you did me. I have more respect for you than that." Hibiki said, turning his head to face the towering eagle. "But I need to go back to the Wraith -"

_"Hibiki!"_ Washita roared, his thunderous voice echoing for miles, and Hibiki swore he saw an actual shockwave spread from his beak. "That place is _dangerous. _Five eagles nearly died just trying to _get_ to you! It was a miracle that none of them died getting you _out,_ and you not only want to go _back,_ you want to bring a _stranger_ to our _sacred lands!"_ The massive bald eagle gesticulated with his bandaged wings, causing powerful gusts of wind with each gesture. "I understand that you are our summoner, I know what terms we stipulated, but this is something I can _not allow!"_ He shook his head, his white plumage ruffling with each movement.

Hibiki broke eye contact with the enormous avian, and turned his gaze to the east, to watch the rising sun. "Washita, I _need_ this." He said, his youthful voice low, pleadingly so. He kicked a foot back and forth, displacing twigs and dragging it across thick branches. "Right now my Alpha is in Konoha, _preparing_ for this. I'll blindfold her if I have to, I'll put her under a genjutsu if you want me to. But I _can't do this alone."_

"Then ask one of _us!"_ Washita made a wide, sweeping gesture with his wing, before he flinched, and brought the bandaged appendage back to his chest, the creature was still recovering from Iwa, it seemed. "Any one of us is willing to fight and die for you. Not but three days ago we _proved that!_ Why must you bring a human? A human that has not signed our contract, and that already has a blood-born contract with another species entirely?"

The Senju heir turned his gaze back up to the boss eagle, he saw in the big bird's eyes that it wasn't as angry as it was confused and surprised, and Hibiki understood why: Amerigo was the sacred land of the eagles, Hibiki was only allowed their because he possessed their contract, and had earned their loyalty. Dai had neither of those things, and Hibiki was trying to impress upon them that they allow her here. Hibiki's own eyes, by contrast, were narrow and pleading, begging Washita to see his way.

"I'm trying to answer questions, Washita. There's a war coming, in the human world, and if I get the answers I'm looking for I might be able to avert that war."

"Forgive me, Hibiki, but you are human. Where one war is avoided or averted, another will inevitably take its place. That is just what your people do." Washita said with a heavy sigh. "There is more to this than you think, Hibiki. If I summon an unaffiliated human to our sacred woods, my place as the Alpha can be rightfully challenged. Our elders could question my devotion to our ways. My chicks would have to live with the shame of a father who broke ancient and onset laws, and my mate..." His beak opened as if he were to continue to speak, but it closed with a sigh. "She would turn in her grave. I _can not do this._"

Hibiki bit his lip, turning to face away from Washita as he tried to think of something. He didn't want to screw Washita like this, but it wasn't something he could just accept, either. As he faced the horizon, and watched the sun fully rise above the edge of the world, he asked, "what if you summoned us outside of the woods? We wouldn't be inside your sacred lands -"

"But someone could see, and doing it in secret could be worse than doing it in the open." Washita cut the Senju heir off. "I am sorry, Hibiki, but I can... Not..." Washita slowly drifted off, causing Hibiki to turn around.

The Senju heir saw the slack-winged boss eagle staring up into the sky past Hibiki, so he turned to follow Washita's gaze. After squinting his eyes, Hibiki saw what the massive eagle was staring at: One small figure, lazily flapping its wings, drifting towards the two. Hibiki blinked and inclined his head, but before he could say anything, the figure came close enough that it wasn't cast in shadow by the rising sun, and it slowed down upon entry. It was an extremely elderly bald eagle, covered in significantly dulled brown plumage, with some feathers having lost their color entirely and simply bleached white, and several elongated feathers hanging lazily from beneath its beak, looking astonishingly similar to a sparrow-styled beard. It landed gingerly upon Washita's enormous nest, and folded its wings against its chest, gently plodding its way towards Hibiki and Washita. Hibiki heard the sound of branches and twigs groaning, and upon turning around, he saw Washita had bowed low, both of his massive, bandaged wings extended and pressed against the ground.

_"Choro-sama, I -"_

"Dispense with the formalities, laddie." Said the eagle, in an old, crackling tone, and an accent that Hibiki hadn't been expecting in the slightest. "Yere makin' yerself look weak in front'a the summoner." Choro turned his paper-white head to Hibiki and bowed it slightly. "A pleasure to finally make yere acquaintance, Senju Hibiki." He said, very formally. "Me name's Choro. Elder Choro if ye wish, but that's just excessive, at that point." He laughed.

_Where the fuck did you learn to talk like that?_ Hibiki almost blurted out, but he managed to swallow his tongue and bow in response. "The honor is mine, Mister Choro." He said, "I would assume you to be one of the elders of the Eagles?" He asked as he and Washita both straightened up.

"Aye, that be me." The eagle's head bobbed up and down with a rapidity that belied his age. "Ah'm also pretty damn tired, someone's incessant cawing could be heard from tha center of tha forest."

_Why do you have one accent, and everyone else has another?!_ Hibiki had to force himself not to demand, despite the question taking up almost all of the space in his mind.

Behind the Senju, Washita coughed and cleared out his throat. "My apologies, Choro-sama... I was speaking with Hibiki, and -"

"'Hibiki?'" Choro cut the massive eagle off, "laddie, this boy's our summoner, you'll do well to treat him as such!" The elder eagle snapped.

Hibiki's jaw snapped and he forced himself not to grin, as he turned to the massive eagle, whose eyes were wide and whose entire body was shaking, though out of fear or something else, Hibiki couldn't say. "I apologize... I was speaking with _Hibiki-sama,_ and he requested to bring a committed human here, and -"

"He _wha?"_ Choro turned his eyes to Hibiki, "why on earth would ye wanna do _tha',_ boy?" He asked, his head inclined and dark brown eyes slightly narrowed.

Hibiki swallowed thickly and cleared his throat, "I did not mean any disrespect, Mister Choro, but I need someone to accompany me on my return to the Wraithlands, and I trust her with what I may learn there."

Choro blinked and shook his head, "tha bloody _Wraithlands?!_ Why the hell would ye want to go _there, boy?!"_ The eagle demanded, turning to face Hibiki fully, as he plodded up to him, the eagle easily a foot taller than the human. "That place, it's _evil... _If I remember correctly, ye yeself _know_ this, so why would you want to go back?"

Hibiki clenched his jaw, holding his ground as the eagle came to a stop just a few feet away from him. "It's a long story, sir, but suffice to say they aren't as dangerous anymore, and they might have answers to some questions I've been asking for ten years, now."

"And ye want to bring another _human_ here, ta do tha'? Another human who's already signed themselves to someone else?"

"Well... Kind of. She's an Aburame, sir. It's a bloodline."

The elder eagle, however, shook his head. "They be lyin' about tha'. Don't matter, anyways. It all depends on how ye write the contracts. Some of us leave our sacred lands behind forever to fulfill these things, the beetles were no exception. My grandfather's grandfather was around when tha' trade went down, and he wasn't even an egg when the hornets left. The Aburame humans boast that 'tis a bloodline, but rather 'tis a very, very extensive series of contracts between them and the Kikaichu. So yer girl, she's spoken fer as far as we're concerned, and you're askin' to bring 'er _here._" The elder eagle leaned in close, making direct eye contact with the Senju summoner. "Ye understand the disconnect, here."

_Well... A lot of that was news, actually, but I do understand._ Hibiki nodded, "for what it's worth, sir, I trust her."

The eagle raised a wing, wagging it almost like an instructor would wag a finger. "Ah! But! Ye dunno the Kikaichu, boy. Even before they left, damn things were crafty. Ain't no one out there that knows how to feign non-sentience like a bug, and the beetles could do it better than most with their hive-mind. Stories say they were worse than the _snakes, _and if yere a Senju, I doubt I need to tell ye what _tha'_ means." The elder eagle straightened up, "used 'ta be, even one Kikaichu beetle made it past yer scouts, and all yer lands and all yer secrets were at risk, breedin' like they could. Those damn things used 'ta be called 'Tha secret nobles', 'cause they had the power, just not the summoners, not 'til the Aburame humans." It started pacing back and forth, "and let me tell ye, boy, ain't nothing in this world that holds a grudge like a bug, 'specially a bug with chakra, but the Kikaichu were unique in tha' regard." He turned his head to Hibiki, "ever heard of an Aburame human openin' yere eight gates?"

Hibiki shook his head.

"Tha's 'cause they _can't._ Kikaichu queens feed off of tha' raw chakra, it's how they reproduce so fast, and how they can do tha' selective breedin' nonsense. I remember bein' a chick, readin' stories 'bout how lone Kikaichu queens could take down _toads._ Ain't nothin' in this world that the Kikaichu love more than ingestin' chakra, and ain't nothin' in this world quite as good as the raw chakra made by humans." Choro halted his pacing and pointed at Hibiki's stomach, "only thing better'n that is Biju chakra, or Natural chakra, but both of those are pretty hard to come by for those bugs." He turned to Hibiki again, "even if we were to... Say... Summon 'er _miles_ outside our forests, if her beetles got yer scent, wouldn't be hard for them ta follow it back here... Then say ye piss 'er off one day, or earn the ire of the clan, or even the summons. Then, to weaken you, they'll go after _us, _and I can speak from experience on this one, boy: It takes a _very long time_ to end Kikaichu infestations." The elder eagle turned his gaze to Washita, and then back to Hibiki. "Are yer 'answers' worth tha' risk? Do you trust her tha' much?"

Hibiki frowned, "I thought that Aburame controlled their beetles." He said, slowly, as if he were trying to convince himself as much as he was trying to convince Choro, but his shoulders dropped as Choro again shook his head.

"Only insomuch tha' _you_ control _us._.. But fer them, it's a... Waddaya call it... A symbiotic relationship. The queens get ta feed off of that raw chakra, and in return, they filter the rest through their host, and provide their host with their offspring, for fightin' purposes. Now, it _looks_ like they control the bugs, but that's usually because if the beetles say no, it's usually their _lives_ that are at stake." He said, "I know the lad's answer, and I think I know mine, I want to hear yer's before I render final say."

Hibiki stood there, his hands in the pockets of his gray windbreaker, as he absorbed the information presented to him by the elder eagle.

With a sigh, Hibiki shook his head. "I'm willing to make any accommodations you request, mister Choro... But I need her to help me with this. She's the only one who _can._" At least, she was the only one who could, in his timeframe, and allow him to avoid making other people think he was certifiably insane, especially after Kiri, if he started spouting off his story, they'd lock him up and seal his chakra.

The elder eagle sighed, "alright... Then this is what we'll do."

* * *

Hibiki specifically took the longest route to get to the forest of death, to make his meet with Dai. He needed the time to figure out exactly how to break Choro's terms and conditions to her, running through every possible way the conversation could go, trying to account for every way she could over react to it.

"Okay." Was not the answer he expected to get.

The dark-haired Senju heir stared at the Aburame for a moment, trying to process the enigma that was this girl. "You're _sure?"_

The Aburame adjusted her glasses as she nodded, her dark gray hoodie ruffling with each movement. "I want to help you, Hibiki. If I must wear a seal that induces anosmia, then so be it."

_There's a term for it?_ Hibiki thought, as he retrieved the piece of paper his clone had given him; according to the Eagles, this seal would neuter Dai and her beetles' sense of smell, to the point where the beetles would have a hard time detecting their _own_ odors, nevermind the odors, scents, and pheremones of Hibiki or the Eagles. "I..." Hibiki looked Dai up and down, the sheet of paper held limply in his hand, "would have thought you'd be against this." He finally said, slowly placing the piece of paper in Dai's hand, a part of him fully under the impression that this had gone by entirely too easy.

"Oh, I am." Dai said, as she grabbed the sheet of paper and rolled up the sleeve on her left arm, revealing a forearm that had small dark holes bored all over it. "But I understand their reasons. Even though they may be mistaken, they think the Kikaichu are summons animals." She explained, as she pressed the paper against her arm and channeled chakra into it. "And I may not know summons realms well, but I know that all of the summons are very protective of their sacred lands."

Hibiki listened to her, his head tilting as she let slip that she didn't know the Kikaichu _were_ summons animals, wondering now who was correct - the elder eagle, or Dai? He shook his head and turned his gaze skyward, the morning sky still dark and the chill still hanging thick in the air. "They're really antsy about it." He mumbled. _Perhaps they're both right... She thinks it's a bloodline, Choro knows differently... Could the Aburame head be keeping this a secret? To what end?_

He heard Dai giggle, which jarred him from his thoughts. He turned his gaze back to her, as she covered her arm again. "Does my arm unnerve you, Hibiki?"

Hibiki blinked, "er..." He shrugged. "Didn't really know what to expect, to be honest. They all have to come from somewhere, right?" He took one of his hands out of the pockets on his windbreaker, "you _sure_ you're okay with this?"

Dai nodded, "if it will assuage your conscience, the queens are clawing at my mind, begging me to strike you down and remove this accursed seal. They wish for me to find my way to these 'Eagles' and cover their land in a pestilence unseen since the time of the Warring Clans, for even _daring_ to neuter them, however temporarily." She said, with an innocent smile and a light tone. "And I am having to constantly remind them that you are the one who defeated a jincuriki, a kage-level threat, and the prospective kage of another village, all in pitched combat, and to attack you with intent to kill would be tantamount to suicide. They don't believe me."

Hibiki shrugged, "much better." He said, before he extended his hand and knelt to the ground. "Shall we go?"

"Hm." Hummed Dai, as she took Hibiki's hand with a tender grip.

Hibiki placed his free hand on the ground, and the circular summoning seal exploded outwards over the grass and dirt. There was a moment's pause, before the both of them were dragged into the seal, vanishing with a plume of smoke.

* * *

The two Konoha shinobi arrived far outside Amerigo an instant later. Hibiki, as he stood up in the massive, grassy clearing, blinked once, taking a look around, momentarily concerned that something had gone wrong. His concerns were wiped away when he saw Choro, who nodded once and took off without a word, leaving the two humans alone in the center of an enormous clearing. The sun was setting to the west, providing a stark contrast to the barely risen sun from Konoha's morning. The land was almost dead silent, save for the sounds of wind blowing through the air.

Hibiki and Dai both watched Choro fly away, with Dai's eyebrows slowly raising. "This is Amerigo?" She asked, breaking eye contact with the eagle and scanning their surroundings, taking a few steps through the hip-high grass. "It is so warm, here... Where are the trees?" She asked, her pubescent voice filling the windy air.

"Way... _Way_ back there." Hibiki pointed in the direction the elder eagle flew. "Matter of fact... This place feels familiar." Hibiki looked around, noting the humid smell in the air. With his eyes narrowed, Hibiki raised his hands and blasted up into the air, flying upwards for several dozen meters, before he found what he was looking for: The Eagles' 'Arid Lake', it was barely a kilometer away.

"Hm." Hibiki let himself drop, he landed with a brief grunt in a patch of grass, flattened by his take-off. "They took us really far out..." He turned to Dai, whose eyes were wide behind her glasses, prompting Hibiki to tilt his head. "What?"

"You can fly?" Dai asked, in a questioning tone that almost suggested she wasn't even surprised.

"Picked it up when I was here last." Said Hibiki, "okay... So the lake is over there." He pointed an arm at the lake, and turned to face it. "When I took off from here... I went..." He turned southward, scrunching up his face, before he made a slight correction, now facing the southwest. "That way." He pointed in the direction he was facing, and then looked at Dai from over his shoulder. "I think it's about... Thirty, forty kilometers out, maybe more..." He yawned deeply and stretched his hands behind his back, turning to Dai in the process. "Ready to go?"

Dai raised an eyebrow, as she shifted her position and rested both of her hands in the pockets of her hoodie. "That depends, are we flying, or walking?"

Hibiki grinned, "why, Dai, it almost sounds as if you're asking me to _fly."_

"Shinobi can jump, Hibiki, but they cannot fly." Dai said, before breaking eye contact with him and slowly turning her head to the side, a light blush playing her features. "Don't make me ask." She mumbled.

Hibiki gave Dai an incredulous, albeit amused look, "aw... Is someone shy?" He leaned forward, "come on, we're only flying to a ruined military base filled with decomposed skeletons. All you've got to do is ask... Say, 'Hibiki, will you fly me to the horrible death place?'." He grinned.

Dai frowned, trying not to smile at Hibiki's antics, though a part of her was glad he wasn't being so aloof at the moment. She wondered if it was because he enjoyed spending time with her. She swallowed thickly through her suddenly dry throat, and whispered something intelligible.

Hibiki turned his ear to the Aburame genin, "sorry, still ten, my ears haven't developed like yours are."

"Hibiki... Will you fly me to the horrible death place?" Dai growled.

Hibiki chuckled, "one thing you'll learn soon enough - when you see an opportunity, even if you think you'll regret it in the moment, you've _gotta_ take it." Hibiki grinned and shook his head, saying, "one day I'll tell you about how I _sang_ during the Kiri invasion." as he turned around, "now hop on. Piggy-back style."

Dai swallowed thickly, before obeying Hibiki and mounting his back. "Now hold on tight, 'cause I need both hands."

"You, wait, what!?" But before Dai could demand Hibiki repeat himself, he launched the two of them into the air, far higher than any chakra-assisted jump could propel them.

They soared several kilometers off of the ground, Hibiki's first goal to gain some altitude. He managed to suppress a full-blown smile into a light grin at the sound of Dai's shriek, and as he came to the top of his arc, the Aburame latched onto him with all of her strength, burying her head in the crook of his neck. Hibiki hovered in the air for a moment, just long enough for Dai to wonder if it was over, before he angled himself to the southwest and blasted forward, eliciting another shriek from Dai, which was only partially drowned out by the wind howling in their ears. Hibiki's hands and feet were both angled outwards, propelling him forward at dozens of meters per second, his clothes flapped uncontrollably in the wind, and he felt Dai's hood get ripped from her head as the air caught it and threw it backwards, flattening it against her back.

The two soared across the sky for several seconds before Hibiki lightly butted his head against Dai's. _"You miss this view, you'll regret it forever."_ He called out, his eyes slowly morphing into their blood-red Sharingan forms as he took in the rapidly shifting landscape.

Slowly, he felt Dai lift her gaze, her raven hair dragging against the side of Hibiki's head as she nervously tilted her head upwards. He felt her trembling, and the arms wrapped around his neck tighten their grip as it dawned on her with every passing second how high up they were, but when she finally opened her eyes, his grin turned into a full blown smile as he heard her gasp. True, though they were moving at blistering speeds, the view from so high up was still one she had never seen before. She saw for the first time the world from the point of view of a bird, she looked up and saw, as Hibiki slowly gained altitude, the pale white clouds get closer and closer. She looked down and saw the grass below blur together into a sea of green, and in the distance she saw the earth curve away from her. Her eyes kept getting bigger as she looked around, wondering for a moment if she just reached up, could she touch the clouds?

She turned her gaze forward, and she saw, just curving over the horizon, a massive expanse of gray and brown. The sunglasses-clad Aburame squinted her eyes and craned her neck, the cold, harsh grays of the oncoming structures provided a stark contrast warm, friendly greens and reds of the world around them. Hibiki angled his hands higher, and the two began descending to the ground. Barely a minute passed before they came upon the airfield, and Hibiki straightened out, his feet pointed to the ground and his hands thrown out in front of him, as he slowed the two of them down. The two came to a hover just a few meters above the ground, before Hibiki touched down.

Dai looked around, the entire world seemed to be different here, the sun didn't seen to reach this place and bathe it in its warmth, the grass didn't seem to be able to bless it with its color, the air didn't seem to be able to breathe its life into the place. She saw buildings in various states of disrepair, some simply having succumbed to weathering, some looking like they had been blown apart. She couldn't see any birds or bugs, and she got a horrible feeling running down her spine, that made her shiver involuntarily.

"Dai?" Came Hibiki, his voice cutting through the silence like a cannonblast, yet conversely it set Dai's fears and anxiety to rest, to know and hear something else alive in this place of death.

"This place is... Terrifying."

"That it is... But... Can you get down, now?"

Dai blinked, and she realized with a start that she hadn't let go of the Senju heir. "Oh!" She yelped, "sure." She slid off of Hibiki's back and onto shaky legs, taking a few steps back and reaching to the sides of her neck to throw her hood back over her head. "Why is it so cold here?"

"Couldn't answer that." Said Hibiki, as he ran a hand through his black hair, "so..." He reached down into his scrolls pouch and retrieved a small one. He unfurled it and placed his hand on the seal, and with a plume of smoke, a sheet of paper appeared in his hand, which he placed in his mouth so he could re-wrap the scroll and stow it in his pouch. He grabbed the paper again and handed it to Dai, "I remember your bugs have a hive mind going for them, and they can relay whatever they see to their queens, right?"

Dai nodded, letting the laughter and the brief glee she had felt during their flight fade into memory as she fell into shinobi mode. She took the piece of paper and straightened it out, but her brow furrowed as she failed to recognize any of the chicken-scratch that covered it.

"That is the English alphabet." Hibiki said, answering her unspoken question. Hibiki stepped over to Dai and leaned in close, his head just passing her shoulders. "We don't really have time for the whole thing, so I'll give you the crash course... Instead of using kanji, we used characters to phonetically represent the various sounds a human mouth could make." He pointed at the first one, "A, B, C, D..." He listed off each one, before he demonstrated each sound. "We put these letters together to form words, which therefor correspond to the sounds made." He pointed at the bottom of the page, where a simple sentence had been written. "This is a pangram, or something that uses all letters of the alphabet..." He cleared his throat, _"the quick brown fox jumps over the lazy dog..._ Every letter phonetically corresponds to its pronunciation, and there are other circumstances, but it doesn't matter for the moment." He gestured to the whole page, "I need your beetles to start searching the buildings, looking for _anything_ with these characters on them."

Dai, her brow furrowed in concentration, slowly nodded her head. "Okay..." It was a good bit of information to take in all at once, but she got the basic gist of it. "Is there anything specific we are looking for?" She asked, as she lowered the piece of paper and turned her gaze to Hibiki, who took a few steps forward as a cloud of beetles began to fly out from beneath her hoodie.

"Books... Maps... Those take precedence, but anything that's been written on could be useful." He nodded forwards, gesturing for her to follow him. "But I know where _we're_ starting." He said, as the two began walking and as Dai stuffed the sheet of paper in her hoodie.

"Where?" Dai asked, as she dashed forward a few steps to keep pace with the Senju heir.

"The belly of the beast." He nodded to their front right, "see that big building over there?"

Dai turned her gaze to where Hibiki had indicated, seeing a large towering structure with a domed top in the distance, that looked like it had a large chunk ripped out of its top. "Yes."

"That's an air-traffic control tower. It's situated _well_ above everything else, and it's the tallest structure here because, back when, they used these things as a way of keeping an eye on the airfield. They directed the planes and essentially controlled all inbound and outbound traffic." He explained, before turning to face Dai, "planes would come in to land from that direction." He pointed in the direction they had flown in from, walking backwards as he did so. "And land on this big strip of concrete, the landing strip." He turned around, indicating the massive flat strip of concrete as he did so.

The two passed a small crater, Hibiki only spared it a passing glance, but paused as something caught his eye. Dai slowed down, turning her eyes from Hibiki, to the crater, back to Hibiki. "What is it?"

"First time I was here, last week, I got shot down, like I said." He walked towards the crater and knelt down, "I landed here. I don't know if it was the explosion or the impact, but my entire chest had been torn off." He grabbed his chest with both hands and thrust outwards, before he tilted his head to the side and chuckled. "And despite it all, _this_ freakin' thing survived." He leaned forward and tossed a rock out of the way, picking up a small green gem from the rubble.

"What is that?" Dai came close to Hibiki and leaned forward, the light gleaming off of the gem catching her eye.

"My mother's necklace. I keep forgetting about the damn thing." He stood up straight and pushed it into a pocket, "boy will she be pissed if she figures out I forgot it here. Let's go." He turned towards the tower and began walking.

Dai caught up with him, "you say your chest got torn off?" She asked, leaning slightly forward, as if to ensure that Hibiki's chest was, in fact, still where it should be, shrouded behind its black t-shirt.

Hibiki nodded, and patted his chest for effect. "Funnily enough, it didn't hurt until the skin and muscle regrew. I figure it was because there were no nerves to send pain signals from, so _I didn't feel it._" He rubbed his chest and shuddered briefly, before he shook his head. "It's _surviving_ crap like that that makes me doubt whether or not I'm in a dream. Chakra or not, you don't survive the loss of chest." He rambled, as he stuck his hand back in the outer pockets of his jacket.

"What shot you?" Dai asked.

"Anti aircraft guns... But that bit is what confuses me, actually. Unless this place went down... Say... Five? Six years ago? They shouldn't have had power." He paused, "their lights shouldn't have been working."

"Oh."

"And even then, without fuel or lubricants for the moving parts, it shouldn't have worked like that. Maybe these peoples' technology incorporated chakra." He shrugged. "I don't know how that would work, though... Ten years studying my _own_ chakra, and I've never found a way to definitively measure it, let alone find some physical attribute."

Dai, however, perked up, "my father once told me that there existed very early prototypes of armor, in the land of snow, that could amplify chakra levels." She said, "does that apply here?"

Her words caused Hibiki's ears to twitch, and earned her a brief glance from the Senju heir, as the two crunched stone and dirt underfoot, but he shrugged. "It proves that there is potentially a way for technology to manipulate chakra, and that it isn't as metaphysical as some would believe... But I doubt what you're thinking of applies to what I'm thinking of. They could just be adept at seals like the Uzumaki were, but they apply the seals to armor... If I had to guess, this armor leaches chakra from its user and stores it away, for them to unlock at their leisure." Though, he didn't say, the concept of chakra power armor sounded rather appealing to both him, and the part of him that had taken inspiration from Iron Man, so he could take flight. The red-eyed Senju, however, noticed Dai dip her head down and nod, he clenched his jaw for a moment, before amending himself. "But, I've been surprised before. I found computers in the hospital... So it's not impossible that the Land of Snow is experimenting with more... Contemporary methods. Gotta start somewhere."

He managed to drag a smile out of the Aburame with that one, before she nodded again. "So... If these Anti Aircraft Guns don't use chakra, and it has been more than five years, what do you think kept their lights on?"

Hibiki shrugged again and turned back to face the tower, which they were quickly coming up on. "_Maybe..._ And it's a _biiiiiig_ maybe... But they could've been using solar panels for power. But that gives a whole host of new problems. Nuclear or geothermal energy are both possibilities, but I haven't seen the reactor, or the power plant." He paused, "uh... Sorry, it's surprisingly easy to slip back into the old jargon." He sighed and swept his hand through his hair, shaking his head.

Dai shook her own in response, "no... I think it is healthy. You always look so sad and forlorn when you think to yourself... There is clear passion in your words, Hibiki." She said, as more beetles crawled out of her jacket and dispersed. "I would prefer you confuse me and speak, than to spare me and torture yourself with your thoughts." She turned her gaze away, "but... You were convinced that this was not your world, on account that chakra did not exist. So, is it therefor possible that the people that lived here simply had different ways of keeping their lights on?" She asked.

Hibiki nodded, "that's _very_ possible, and even more probable, actually. But then that begs the question - why does everything look the same on the surface? If it looks like a duck, walks like a duck, and smells like a duck, then why does it bark like a dog? Different designs beget different aesthetics. That's why there exist many different kinds of swords." He explained, as the two came upon the tower. "Now, here's the fun part." He said, pointing to the large gash in the wall of the tower's entrance. "Look at this..." He placed his hand on the wall and stepped inside, becoming shrouded in shadows. "These people..." He said, as Dai ambled inside herself, and was greeted with the sight of dozens of bodies, all strewn about as if they'd died fighting back to back. "The way they're positioned, they were expecting to take fire from the front." He turned and pointed to the main entrance, indicating the door that had been blown off of its hinges.

"Okay..." Dai affirmed, nodding as she slowly came to the same conclusion: There were bags filled with sand, overturned barriers, and clear signs of fortification, but they were all placed in such a way to resist movement from the direction of the door.

"But instead, it looks like they were blindsided from here." Hibiki pointed at the gash in the wall, and then indicated several corpses scattered across the ground. "They were thrown back, before that door -" He pointed back at the entrance, through which pale light streamed, carving apart the darkness. "- was blown apart, and their enemies came streaming in."

Dai nodded, "which ones were fighting which ones?" Due to the extreme age and weathering, all of the skeletons' clothes looked the same.

Hibiki shook his head, "that's the problem. Their uniforms are the same, and none of them have bullet wounds. So whatever attacked them... It clawed its way through that wall." He pantomimed the action, "and started tearing these guys apart... In some cases, literally." He said, indicating one skeleton that was missing an arm, and another that had been bisected from the chest down. "Then something else, just as nasty, came barreling in through the door, and then they all streamed inside and up..." He turned to the doorway that led further inwards. "But they had to be human sized... Because the doorframe isn't broken."

Dai looked at the frame in question, and aside from clear grooves and water-logged and rotten wood, it didn't look like it had been smashed or destroyed in any way. "So... What were they fighting, if not eachother? Can your thunder techniques do that?" She pointed at the groove in the wall.

Hibiki shook his head, "not like that. That looks like someone clawed it out of the wall. Guns make more angular, circular, burned holes." He explained, "I'd demonstrate, but I don't want to risk toppling a house of cards." He stowed his hands in his coat again, inspecting the area again. "You notice anything about this?" He asked.

Dai looked at the ground, the bodies, and the walls, her brows furrowing as a thought occurred to her. "If all of these people were on the same side... Where are their enemies?"

"Exactly. Come on." He nodded again and made for the door.

Dai blinked, "aren't we searching this tower?" She called over to him, as she stepped over the bodies and caught up with him.

Hibiki shook his head, "the only thing at the top is a bunch of water-logged computers." Hibiki responded, as the two exited the ATC Tower and back out into the cold, grey airfield. "Even if they had power like the AA guns did, local rainstorms would have flooded this place ten times over in a _year,_ and it's all but given this place has been dead for much, much longer than that. So, without explaining what computers are, and what they did back home, the only sources of information available to us are books." He looked at Dai sideways, "and I'm pretty certain your beetles didn't find anything up there, right?" He asked, with a raised eyebrow.

Dai shrugged, "so then... Where are we going?"

Hibiki pointed outwards, "there's a hangar bay in that direction, past the grass. There's an airplane in it, and I think it's our best bet at finding anything that isn't water logged, or overly weathered."

"Why?" Dai asked, as the two cut through a tall, pale green grassy field, the sounds of them pushing the grass aside and crushing it under their feet filled the otherwise silent air.

"Hm..." Hibiki frowned, as he tried to put air travel into words. It didn't help that these were things he hadn't thought of in _years,_ and he'd only had the night to re-read his notes. "Most airplanes could travel much higher in the air than we did, earlier. Like, hundreds of kilometers above the clouds, higher. Problem is..." He grunted and pushed some thick grass out of the way, "the air up there is much, much thinner up there than it is down here. So they have to seal off the insides of the planes and pressurize them... Essentially meaning that stuff outside can't get in and affect what's inside. So what we've been seeing, rotten everything, water-logged everything, broken everything, it won't be in that plane." He said, as the two of them exited the grassy field, and found themselves in the vast expanse of flat concrete, sandbags, and dead bodies.

The massive, opened hangar bay loomed over the corpse-filled concrete expanse of land. Hibiki wondered for a moment how these soldiers expected the plane to take off, given all of the piles of sandbags, tanks, and machine gun emplacements, but he concluded that, given the sheer size of the thing, it wouldn't have had much trouble just running it all over. Next to him, Dai's jaw slowly fell limp as she saw, even from a distance, all of the bodies that covered the runway in front of the hangar. Some bodies had fallen on top of eachother, some had parts strewn about, some were crushed into bits, but they all had fallen to the ground, and they all were lying in a sea of rusted bullet casings and blood stains.

"There are... A lot of bodies." Dai finally commented.

Hibiki nodded, before he patted Dai on the back. "They died a long time ago. Only thing we can do now is learn what they have to tell us. Give their deaths meaning." He rationalized, before pointing at the open bay-doors. "It's in there."

"Oka..." Dai drifted off, as she followed Hibiki, before her eyes were graced by the presence of one of the massive tanks. Her eyes widened and, as they approached it, she gasped. "What... Is _this?"_

Hibiki grinned, and climbed up onto the tank. "This... Is one of the single most powerful land vehicles to have ever been created by human hands. Just one of these things can change the tide of an entire battle." He said, as he ambled onto the barrel and sat down, letting his legs dangle and swing freely. "Just one bullet fired from this thing can kill a group of men, and just a few more can destroy a moderately sized building." He petted the barrel, "even the name is tough, and strong, like it. Dai, this is a _tank." _His grin faltered, and he lifted his gaze from Dai below him.

Dai followed his gaze, and her eyes landed on another tank, this one flipped on its side, and its barrel torn off.

"So, you just have to wonder... What the _fuck_ were they fighting, that _this_ couldn't kill?" Hibiki sighed, swung his legs back onto the barrel, and walked back to the top of the tank. He leaned down and inspected the hatch, rapping his knuckles against it and knocking a lot of rust off of it, but doing little else. "We're not getting inside this." He muttered, before he stood up and hopped off of the tank.

"I am confused... This is big, yes, but... How powerful _is _it?" Dai asked, as she followed Hibiki across the corpse-strewn battlefield.

Hibiki slowed his pace as he thought. He looked up to the sky and sighed through his frown, "think of it like this. A soldier, with one of these guns, is a Jonin. But a soldier driving a _tank,_ is a jinchuriki." He explained, as they came upon the hangar.

"I see..." Dai looked up as they entered, and blinked as her eyes beheld the massive, enormous, rustic bomber airplane. "Then what is _that?!"_ She couldn't help but remove her sunglasses, as if not trusting that her eyes weren't lying to her.

_"That..._ Is a bomber. An airplane. So, if a tank is a jinchuriki, this thing is the freakin' tailed beast." Hibiki inhaled deeply, and exhaled, as if he could smell the power radiating from the dilapidated vehicle.

Dai could barely process what she was seeing, this thing was almost as big as the Hokage monument, and Hibiki said it was mobile? That _people_ controlled it?_ Without chakra?_ He must have been mistaken, civilians didn't have such power, it wasn't possible. The massive red beast loomed above the two shinobi like a dead, gigantic, red predator bird, and Dai felt a chill run down her spine, it almost felt as if it were watching her. How was this thing even _built,_ let alone the question of how it worked. Metal was unruly, and the only way to manipulate it was to heat it up - even with chakra, people couldn't handle molten metal by themselves, so how did Hibiki's people build something like _this?_

"How... Did _anything_ beat these people?" Dai asked, lowering her gaze to Hibiki, who himself was quickly turning his head, checking their surroundings. "What's wrong?"

Hibiki paused, "I dunno... Feels like we were being watched." He shrugged, "ah well. Place is filled with dead people, it's natural. Come on." Hibiki jogged inside, "door's this way." He ran underneath one of the plane's enormous wings, and, after he found the door, he leapt inside with the help of his chakra.

Dai, however, took her time, slowly walking to the door Hibiki indicated, trying to take in and behold this massive machine. It was almost inconceivable, it must have taken these people _generations_ just to build it, and Hibiki spoke of it like there were hundreds, even thousands of them, to the point where they were commonplace. Just what _were_ these people, that could manipulate the world without chakra?

Just what was _Hibiki?_

_"WHAT THE FUCK?!" _Dai actually jumped at the volume of Hibiki's distant, echoing oath. She sprinted over to the door and slid to a halt, before jumping inside, both hands raised in a defensive stance.

"What is it?!" She quickly took in their dark surroundings, finding no hostiles. "What's wrong?"

"There was a fucking albino body right here!" Hibiki pointed at a wooden pallet in the center of the beast's innards, upon which lay a partially unzipped black rubber bag, which was completely empty. "Where the hell did it go?" Hibiki turned to his right, looking in the direction of the plane's pilot's cabin, "even if Igor had hit it, it wouldn't have just _vanished, _so -" Hibiki cut himself when he saw something else.

Dai lowered her stance as Hibiki dashed further inside, towards a small patch of the cramped vehicle lit by a lone, solitary beam of light. As he came to a halt next to a skeleton and knelt down, Dai took a moment to look around, noting how, even with how dark it was, there was a clear difference from the vehicle's outer layer and its insides. The outside was rusted beyond recognition, whereas the inside was much cleaner, almost sterling, the metal floors and walls were smooth, and the carpets, benches, and even clothes worn by the bodies were all in much better condition than those outside. Dai even noticed how a few corpses still had skin on them, though it was stretched taut over their skeletons and sunken in due to dehydration.

"This is... Not good." Hibiki groaned, as he sat back on his haunches and ran his hand through his hair.

Dai blinked and strode over to Hibiki, leaning down to inspect the corpse he was kneeling over. Its skull, which seemed to have been resting on a coat of some sort, had been smashed to pieces, and its arms were folded over its chest. His comrades, she figured, must have given him some kind of peace after he had died. "What is the matter?" She asked.

"First time I was here, there was a body in that bag -" Hibiki pointed over at the rubber bag, "and this guy still had a head. So _someone_ was here, after I left." He placed his hand on his head, trying to think things through. "It can't have been Katsuo. Even if Amerigo isn't in another dimension, it still has to be really far from the elemental nations, so he couldn't sense me." He stood up and looked to his right, further into the plane, his eyes wide and his brow furrowed as dozens of theories flew through his head, and he tried to come up with the one most plausible.

"What are you thinking, Hibiki?" Dai asked softly.

"Alright..." Hibiki stood to his feet and placed his hands in his coat-pockets, "so, my running theory is that... They _had_ a body in here, so whatever they were fighting, they were capable of killing, and if they could kill one, they could kill more, and it's clear based off of the lack of evidence of any _other_ enemy corpses, that whatever they were fighting did not want their bodies to fall into allied hands. So I'm thinking... These people killed a _lot_, during the course of their war, enough so that these creatures didn't have enough genetic diversity to rebuild their numbers when they won, thus explaining why they didn't just repopulate and why we haven't seen any of them... But, I'm thinking there are a few of these enemies left, and that they're still acting on their orders, which isn't a good thing."

Dai tilted her head, "why is that?" She asked, as Hibiki walked deeper into the airplane.

"Because..." Hibiki groaned, as he climbed into the cockpit and noted the lack of any pilots. "That means that, even without their numbers, they're still operating on these orders, and if their orders are _still_ to recover any and all corpses, that means their end-goal is human extinction, and the best way to ensure that reality is to make sure we don't know anything about their biology, that way we don't know the easy ways to kill them." Hibiki continued, his voice echoing out from the pilot's cabin as he started fiddling with knobs, pressing buttons, and rifling through any drawers and compartments he could find. "And if their end goal is our extinction, that's a very bad thing for us, because they've had a _very... very long time_ to figure out how to do it with their limited numbers." He came across one compartment that was locked, so, with a tilted head, Hibiki placed his fist against it and broke it open with his wolverine claws. "And let's assume for a moment that Amerigo, Mount Myōbokuzan, all of the Summons realms aren't alternate dimensions, but merely places far separated from our environment... Other parts of the world, in other words. That means that whatever happened here in Amerigo, however many x-thousand years ago, they've had more than enough time to find the last known pockets of human civilization." He made eye contact with Dai as he reached into the compartment.

Dai paled as she realized his implications, "us."

Hibiki hummed and felt around in the compartment, before he clenched his hand around a thick stack of papers, and pulled them out.

"But... What if you are wrong?" Dai asked, "if these things were powerful enough to take out..." She looked around, "_people,_ capable of mass producing your thunder techniques, and building things as enormous as this... Would they not have had the power to wipe out the elemental nations, ten times over?" She asked, lowering her gaze again to make contact with the Senju heir, who was seated on the ground and quickly looking through his stack of papers.

"That's why I said it was a theory..." Mumbled Hibiki, as he pulled a colorful sheet that looked to be made more of plastic than paper. "It leaves entirely too many questions, that one chief among them. If they had power enough to rip apart a technological superpower, which itself could potentially bomb the living hell out of the Elemental Nations, they surely would have had enough power to finish the job before the elemental nations ever even came to be. So I think... They might have purposefully _left_ that pocket of surviving humans, though for _what_ purpose... We need to find out." He peeked up at Dai, "have your beetles found anything? I think this is all we're getting out of here."

Dai stayed silent for a moment, before she nodded her head. "Follow me." She said, as Hibiki gathered up the sheets of paper and folded them into his pocket.

The two leisurely exited the plane and strode across the corpse-strewn airfield, Hibiki silently trying to make sense of his situation, and Dai trying to make sense of how Hibiki grabbed all of these theories from such little information. The world they were stepping into was as vast as it was confusing, and yet Hibiki was adapting to it almost as easily as he had adapted to combat, it almost made Dai wonder, for a brief moment, if Hibiki had actually been telling the truth, that he truly _was_ from another world.

She shook these thoughts from her mind, however, trying to rationalize that Hibiki wouldn't lie to her, not then and not now, so instead she focused on her mission: to help him. They went deeper and deeper into the airfield, leaving the massive grassy clearings, endless concrete expanses, and enormous hangar buildings, and now heading towards the living areas, filled with horribly damaged pill-box buildings and even more corpses strewn about the dark ground. The buildings here showed much larger degrees of damage, some having been blown completely apart, some having massive holes ripped out of them, some crushed to the ground.

"It's in this one, here." Dai said, pointing at one building out of many, this one square shaped and covered in moss and weeds.

The two entered through the front door, which had been blown off of its hinges. Hibiki took a quick look around the inside, the ceiling was visibly dented, there were beds and sandbags stacked up everywhere, with a single point in the center affording all of the protection. The two shinobi strode towards the center of the small building and found a desk, upon which had words stained in blood. Hibiki turned his head to the left and saw a skeleton laying underneath a dent in the thin metal wall, leading him to conclude that the skeleton had been the one to write on the desk with its blood, before it had been smashed by whatever it and its comrades had been fighting.

Hibiki hummed, and looked to the desk, his Sharingan eyes spinning as he tilted his head and took it in. The lines were thin, and the entire surface of the desk had been written upon, the man had obviously been bleeding out slowly, given how much time and how much blood it would have taken to write this.

_Thorn A Carmine Apace Rose Send Fee Command; __A Cool Rod. _

_Siesta If; Indited His; A Irk Suitor; Lowest; Waded Tinfoil._

_Mad Dudgeons; Cologne Thy; Reviewers Pulls_

Dai looked from the ancient, blood-stained table, to Hibiki, and then back to the table. "What does it say?"

Hibiki stared at it, "I haven't a fucking clue." He said, "it's gibberish... Doesn't even follow grammatical standards... But some parts almost make sense." He pointed at the table, "that there, it says 'command'... Over here it says suitor, you've got cologne here and tinoil there... Right here it says 'Mad Dungeons', but it's misspelled. This isn't a difference in language, the coat back in the airplane said 'United States of America' exactly as it was supposed to be written."

"Is it perhaps written in code?" Dai suggested.

"If it is, then it's useless to us without the cipher, and the odds of finding that cipher are... Not favorable." Hibiki stared at the table, as if willing it to divulge its secrets. "It separates useless phrases and lines with a semicolon..." He leaned onto the table, resting his hands on the edges, it groaned underneath the first weight placed upon it in decades. He stood there for a moment, before checking the drawers in the desk, but each one came up empty, save for one with a few ancient bullets. Sighing, Hibiki shook his head and stood back up.

"Perhaps the code is in the words themselves? You said they make no sense, is there a message hidden in plain sight?" Dai took a few steps away and started exploding the small building, peeking under desks, opening drawers, moving corpses, searching for anything that could be used, as Hibiki stared hard at the bloody desk.

_Mad dudgeons... God damn it, this doesn't help._ Thought Hibiki, _what could this... Mean?_ He blinked, "god..." A disbelieving smile started stretching across his face. He reached into his scrolls pouch and pulled out a scroll and some writing utensils. He wrote at the top of the paper 'Mad Dudgeons', and then labeled every letter.

"God..." He struck out a 'G', 'O', and a 'D'.

"Damn." He struck out those letters, now left with 'DUES'. "God Damn Dues... No... Deus? God Damn Deus? Makes no sense..." He looked over and saw a chair strewn across the floor; the dark-haired Senju heir grabbed the chair and stood it upright, slowly sitting down in it. It groaned loudly, but took his weight; satisfied, he scooted up to the desk and looked back at his paper. "_God Damn... Us? Then where's the DE go... God Damn Used?"_ He thought aloud, the words flowing out in his native tongue, subsequently attracting the eye of the Aburame shinobi. _"God... Damned Us? Fuck me..."_ Hibiki chuckled and bit his knuckle, "it's an anagram. Whole thing."

"A what?" Dai returned to her place by Hibiki's side.

"Different words made from other words. So you take these ones -" He pointed at 'Mad Dudgeons', "and rearrange them to make this." He pointed at his paper. "Turning gibberish into actual words. If you're _good,_ you can actually turn one phrase into a completely different one, but I don't think Dead Fred had the time or the wherewithal to actually put that kind of effort into it. My guess is that he just... Thought of the words he wanted to right, and meticulously wrote down and switched out every letter." Hibiki pointed at several large streak marks, "this is where he wiped the whole table down and started over, you see." He explained. "Guy was dying and wanted to leave something behind, but he had to make sure his enemies couldn't figure out what he was saying... So he made it _look_ like a code, and when they ransacked the place, the whole base, and couldn't find the codex, they just abandoned it and moved on... But what he really did was hide the code in plain sight... God help them if whoever he was fighting actually stuck around and stared at it for a while. If they were smart enough to take their corpses, even so long after the war was over, they would have been smart enough to figure it out given a few hours."

"But you figured it out in a few minutes." Dai pointed out.

"Indeed, but I was looking for it... And back when, my buddies and I loved word games like this. It's a little rusty through disuse, but my mind was once wired to look for small details like this." Hibiki explained.

Dai nodded slowly, kneeling down to head level with the desk, as she had no chair. "So what does it mean?" She crossed her arms on the desk and rested her head on them.

"God Damned Us." Said Hibiki, "so if Mad Dudgeons turns into that... The rest must turn into something as well." Hibiki sighed and rubbed his hands through his hair. "This is going to take me a while..." He muttered, before he turned to look at Dai. "Is there anything else here? Or was this it."

Dai was silent a moment, as she spoke to the queens. She finally nodded her head, "there were few places spared the elements. The beetles can find little else."

Hibiki leaned back and raised an eyebrow, "suggesting that they _did_ find something else?"

Dai grinned a sly grin, "indeed. Do you have something to..." She turned to his paper, "something _else_ to write with?" She corrected herself.

Hibiki grinned himself, and handed her some paper and a brush. The two stayed silent for several minutes, as the Senju heir tried to decipher the world's most confusing anagram, and Dai tried to copy down script she had never before seen, let alone written before. Minutes turned to hours, and with Hibiki eventually making several clones to help expedite the process - three helped him with the phrases on the anagram, two helped set up a small camp and a light source when he figured out the sun had gone down.

He noticed, as time wore on, that Dai was finished. She placed her paper on the desk and told him he could look at it when he had the time. He nodded thankfully and continued working, and soon Dai simply settled in to watch Hibiki work. Unscrambling words from random was enticingly difficult, but it got simpler as time went on, and when the moon was highest in the sky, Hibiki dropped his brush and banished his clones, his face pale and his heart hammering. Dai turned from the paper, to Hibiki, back to the paper, clearly able to figure out that he had done what he needed, but now unable to discern what message it had given him.

_"Jesus Christ..."_ Muttered Hibiki, as he rested his head in his hand. "_Jeeeesus... Fucking Christ._"

Dai stood to her feet, "what is it? What does it say?" She asked.

In the center of a fresh piece of paper read three lines of text.

_North American Aerospace Defense Command; Colorado;_

_It is Safe; It Is Hidden; It Is Our Ark; We Lost; We Did Not Fail;_

_God Damned Us; Technology; Will Preserve Us_

* * *

_A/N:_

_One year and 42 chapters ago, I made a promise that this wasn't a Self Insert story. _

_With this next arc, I will follow up on that promise._


	44. History: The Trail -II-

Chapter 43

* * *

_"NORAD. Fucking... NORAD._" Hibiki muttered, "Jesus Christ."

Seated in the center of a skeleton-filled barracks building, Hibiki Senju and Dai Aburame stared at a blood-stained desk. Upon the desk were several sheets of paper, an anagram written in ancient, dry blood, and one sheet of paper with the solved phrase written upon it. Standing to the side of the desk, Dai stretched her arms and legs after several hours of sitting on the weathered carpeted floor. In the corner of the room, bathing the entire pill-box building in warmth and orange light, raged a small fire, which sat upon a seal placed by Hibiki, that absorbed all of the smoke and made it so that it couldn't spread past the seal.

"Hibiki, what is it?"

Hibiki shook his head, "NORAD is... The country's bunker. _The_ bunker. North American Aerospace Defense Command. There were... Two or three facilities, if I remember correctly, but the one they're talking about is the only one that could survive however freakin' long it's been. It's designed to survive a really, _really_ big explosion, point blank. So, if the country is attacked, the military could still be coordinated from a capable command center." He explained. "So... Think of it like this: When Konoha was attacked, ANBU placed Lord Danzo in a central place in the village, one where he could command our forces easily, and they could defend him just as easily. NORAD is that place, but instead of stupidly putting our leader out in the open, we bury him underneath a mountain, in a facility that can... Do you know what a bijuudama is?"

"Yes."

"It can _tank _ten of those."

"Tank?"

Hibiki grinned, and gave Dai an incredulous look. "Didn't I just explain to you what those were? Using 'tank' like that is like saying you take the hit without even being hurt... So, if a civilian ran up and punched you or me in the face, we wouldn't even budge. We'd tank the hit." Hibiki shook his head, before he reached over to the corner of the desk and grabbed an overturned sheet of paper that Dai had placed there hours ago. "And _this_ helps greatly." He said with a grin, though he still felt his heart flutter.

"Are we at this NORAD?" Dai asked, walking behind Hibiki and leaning over his shoulder to look at her sheet. "What does it say?"

"It tells us where we are... And _this..."_ He reached inside his pant pocket and pulled out the stack of papers he'd gotten from the airplane. He swallowed thickly, before he opened up the plastic sheet. "Is a map." He spread open the map. "So... Your beetles say we're here, at Eglin Air-Force Base." He pointed at the bottom right corner of the map. "Colorado... Is here." He pointed near the center of the map. "I need to go there."

Dai blinked and tilted her head, _"you."_ She repeated, slowly straightening up. "I think I misheard you."

Hibiki sighed, "Dai, this is getting much bigger than I thought it would. The mere existence of _this map."_ He slapped the plastic sheet of paper, "means that..." He clenched his jaw, his breaths coming faster now. "It means that one of two theories is correct: Either the Summons animals _are_ in an alternate dimension like we all think, and that dimension is _my fucking world..._ Or that we all share the same dimension, which means that this... Place, this is Earth. _My Earth._ My _world."_ He turned to Dai, "this is what leads me to the answers to those questions I've been asking for ten years, now. I won't leave until I find my answers, and that means I'll be a missing-nin for... Go_\- Kami_ knows how long. One day, the village is willing to overlook, two, _maybe..._ But after three days and no appearances, people start asking questions, and questions are more dangerous than their answers. All it takes is for them to ask 'Is he a traitor?', and then I'm screwed. If you stay with me, you're running that very same risk, and I don't want to put you through that." He said, firmly, his blood red eyes boring holes into Dai's sunglasses.

Dai stared at him, before she shook her head. "Hibiki, you're the son of Tsunade Senju, and I'm with you. Those worries are null. And right now you just revealed to me that you still doubt your own sanity. I don't need to be a Yamanaka to know that sending you out on this trip by yourself would be a bad idea." She said, with more resolve in her voice than Hibiki had ever heard her speak with in their time knowing eachother. "So you and I, we're going to find this NORAD, and we're going to get your answers... And if you think about forcing me back home, I'll drain you dry and _carry_ you there." She said, extending her hand.

Hibiki sighed, and shook his head. "A bug on my head is telling me that this isn't a battle to keep fighting." He said, taking Dai's hand and hauling himself to his feet.

Dai grinned, "I'm starting to wonder where you would be without me."

Hibiku chuckled, and ran a hand through his dark, fire-lit hair. "I find myself wondering the same thing." He turned back to the map, "so we're here. Colorado is over here." He pointed at a small square in the center-left of the map. "I never wrote down in my notes where NORAD was, but I remember it was built under a mountain, and they used to do tours, so all we need to do is find a place that's survived this long, and find a brochure. It'll lead us to the base, and the base, to answers." He yawned, "I say we go in the morning. Get some sleep."

Dai, however, didn't buy it. "Hibiki... Come on."

"Hm?"

"Let's walk. We can fly when we're finished talking." Dai didn't say another word as she exited the room, briefly stopping to smother the fire.

Hibiki sighed as the room suddenly went from warm and bright to old and dark; he silently cursed and took another look at the map, and his solved anagram. He folded everything up and stuffed them in one of the pockets of his pants, before following Dai outside. His Sharingan provided him excellent night vision, to the point where he located Dai instantly, simply waiting on him, her hands in her coat pockets.

"Which direction is NORAD?" She called out through the night air.

Hibiki shrugged, looking up into the air. "The moon's right there, and it's been night for a few hours... So..." He paused a moment, "this way." He turned to the north-west.

Dai soon fell in step with Hibiki, and the two began walking. It took them ten minutes to cross over the threshold of the airforce base and into the grass and tree filled wildlands, which all looked varying shades of black and white, thanks to the unfiltered light from the moon and the stars. The two walked on, crunching grass underfoot and silently listening to the sounds of nature, of insects chirping, of wind blowing, and animals calling out.

Dai, eventually, broke their silence. "Are you okay?" She asked.

Hibiki blinked, turning his blood red eyes to Dai. "What do you mean?"

"I may not know you as well as your teammates, but I've spent enough time with you to know that you grow silent and pensive when there is a lot on your mind, and you throw yourself into training when you don't want to think." She turned to gaze at Hibiki, her head half-covered by her hood, and her eyes covered by her sunglasses. "And in the absence of anything else, you train your body on usage of your dojutsu... If I had to guess, you want to reach the point where your body generates more chakra than your Sharingan spends." She mused, before shaking the topic away with a shake of her head. "But that is neither here nor there. The point is, there are a great many things on your mind right now, and I think going to... 'Eglin', you called it, did as much bad as good... So are you okay?" She asked, her soft voice barely floating past the Senju heir to her left.

Hibiki shook his head, "I'm fine. It's just a lot to take in."

"Don't lie to me, Hibiki. It isn't healthy." She paused, and a beetle crawled over her hood. "For more reasons than one."

The corner of Hibiki's mouth twitched. "Alrighty then... Think of it this way: I'm all but convinced that, by the time we go home, I'll have as many answers as I have questions, and I'm not entirely convinced that this is a good thing."

"How so?" Dai asked, as the two came across the threshold of a massive expanse of trees, and crossed over.

"Like I said back at the airfield. I'm either crossing dimensions every time I come to Amerigo, or the Summons exist in the same world as we do, both of which aren't good... But both are just as impossible as the other. If the first one is the case, then how did the Eagles get here and get their hands on chakra? If this is my world, then it automatically _can't_ be due to their presence. If the latter is the case, that means our world is much, _much_ bigger than we initially understood, and everything beyond our borders is dead... And somehow, in years long past, a world so _tantalizingly_ similar to mine rose and fell." He explained, "and that is so mathematically improbable, it may very well be _impossible."_

Dai nodded, understanding what Hibiki was saying. "Hibiki... Is it at all possible that this really is your world? That something happened, to introduce chakra to it?" She asked, glancing at Hibiki from the side of her hood, as they strode underneath the towering trees, almost enveloped in pitch black thanks to the newfound lack of star or moonlight.

"No. It is _impossible._ If something even remotely similar to chakra existed back then, we would have found it, or proof pointing to it, long before I died." He stated, a light frown playing his features. "This... _Can't... _Be my world. There _has_ to be some kind of reason it just looks so similar." He repeated, softly. "Chakra is a violation of all known laws of physics. Matter and energy can neither be created, nor destroyed, yet with chakra, you can create lightning or rocks from _thin air._ Superhumans don't exist, and yet with chakra, they're a common occurrence. Chakra holds a very clearly symbiotic relationship with everything around it, but with the way it's permeated _every... Fucking... Thing..._ In this world, the only way it could do that is if it were some kind of explosively reproducing disease, or it's been here for a very, very long time. Like... Millions of years, long. The former suggests that it existed, just not here. The latter suggests that it's always been here, we just didn't know." Hibiki explained, "both are impossible to apply to my world, which operates _strictly_ upon laws that govern the entire universe. Those laws do not change. Our understanding of them, maybe, but the laws themselves _do not..._ So to have something so flippantly disrespecting reality in such a way that chakra does, if this were my world, we would have learned about it, and we would have figured out how to use it long... _Long_ before I died."

"How are you so sure, though?" Dai asked.

"Here... Humans are complacent. We see things are they are, and accept them. It is very few and far between do I ever find a human being who actively asks _why."_ Hibiki began, "but where I came from... That was all that we ever did. The sky is blue. _Why._ The night sky is black. _Why._ The moon is white. _Why._ The earth is soft. _Why._ The sun is hot. _Why... Why... Why?!_ If we saw something, we would not stop until we could answer _why._ That man died, why? He was stabbed in the heart and subsequently it could not reoxygenate his blood cells and as such he suffocated on himself. The sky is blue, why? The air is filled with infinitesimal water particles that reflect light, simultaneously explaining why the night sky is black - there is no light for the humid air to reflect. The moon is bright because it constantly catches and reflects light from our sun.

"We established the laws of physics because we realized that everything we saw - _every single thing -_ operated on a similar set of laws, and as our technology advanced, we got very, very good at finding discrepancies and figuring them out. Seeing something like chakra would have turned the entire scientific community on its _head,_ and they wouldn't have stopped talking about it, they wouldn't have stopped studying it, until they figured out just how it broke the laws of physics, or how it _did,_ and why we couldn't understand how. It wasn't a matter of 'could we find it', it was a matter of 'when' we'd find it, and by the time I died, we were _very good_ at looking at the universe from our sedentary position, locked on planet Earth. We would have seen the evidence, we wouldn't have stopped until we understood it." Hibiki petered out. "This can't be my world." He finally repeated, "it just _can't be."_

Dai thought for a while on Hibiki's words. "I pray it isn't, Hibiki." She didn't know what the boy would do if it turned out he was wrong.

The two continued walking through the deep, dark woods, until they reached the edge several hours later, and came across another expanse of road, which they had almost missed, due to all of the weeds, vines, and plants that had grown through the cracks. Hibiki bent down and placed his hand on the ancient concrete, before turning his head to stare down each direction. After a moment, Hibiki stood, and began walking down the road, followed silently by Dai.

"Hibiki..." Dai intoned, softly.

"Hm?"

"You mentioned science, and the 'why' of things... Have you ever asked why, in regards to chakra?" Dai asked, her tone one of genuine curiosity.

Hibiki grinned, despite himself. "Every day." He said, "I'm no scientist, but I did have a decent education, one good enough to make some educated inferences."

"And?"

"I think chakra is... A middle-ground. It would take a very long time to explain the intricacies, but suffice to say, in the universe there exists two things, and two things only: Matter, like the ground beneath our feet, and energy, like the heat from the sun." Hibiki explained, "to keep things simple, the laws of physics, which are the laws that govern the universe we live in, state that matter and energy can neither be created, nor destroyed, they can only change forms." Hibiki explained, "so you can smash a rock all you want, but you aren't completely obliterating it, you aren't erasing its existence, you're just turning it into rubble. And you can cool the air down so it's not as hot, but the energy is still there, just in a different state." Hibiki explained, as the two walked down the lonely road. "So, this plugs into chakra. I think it's a middle ground between matter and energy. By itself, chakra is useless, but with someone to direct it, it can either take the form of matter, or take the form of energy. So, using chakra, I can use an earth technique and create something from nothing, or I can create the energy needed to form lightning." Hibiki paused, "still with me?"

Dai nodded, "I think so... You think that chakra is something that can violate your laws of physics. It is a middle ground, able to create something from nothing."

"It's not 'my' laws, it's just _the_ laws, but yes." Said Hibiki, whose dojutsu-enhanced eyes caught the sight of a rabbit dashing away from the side of the road, several meters away from them. "That's why I think my people would have found it a very long time ago: Chakra is easily manipulable, and it latches on to living things. So even if you ignore the limitless, endless universe that we were constantly looking at, we would have found it on our home planet ages ago, and studied it _to death._ _Someone_ would have been born with an affinity for it, and had an accident, and revealed it to the whole world, but I digress." He removed his hand from his coat and waved it about, shaking the topic away. "I'm..." He slowed down as Dai seized her chance and wrapped one of her arms around Hibiki's, as he placed it back in his coat. "Off topic." He said, after a brief swallow through a dry throat. "Chakra allows people to breathe fire, punch mountains into dust, and create massively complex illusions that, in some cases, can actually _kill_ the people caught in them. But chakra isn't just a static entity, because if it were, bloodlines wouldn't exist. Things like the sharingan, the byakugan, the explosion release, my Wolverine release, it all points to some sort of evolution, which only happens with living things. So chakra is, on some level, _alive..._ And it cannot exist or change without living things, thus its pair-bonding with people.

"People take in chakra and cultivate it, allowing it to reproduce and evolve, and in return, it gives them the ability to be masters of the universe around them, it allows them to break the laws of physics and bend the reality to their will. It is almost the very definition of a symbiotic relationship. This again returns us to my theory about how this isn't my world: If chakra is alive and seeks to evolve, and humans and even some animals can grant it said evolution, it would have _long_ since sought out this relationship." He continued, "so given that _thousands_ of years of evolution and history had passed in my world, and there was no confirmed proof of wide-spread supranatural occurrences, it therefore _can not_ have existed in my world."

"Su_pra_natural?"

"Yeah. It's... Like... A whole 'nother level above su_per."_ Said Hibiki, with a grin and a suppressed chuckle.

"The way you describe it..." Said Dai, as she shifted her position and came closer to Hibiki, the two practically leaning on eachother now. "It almost sounds as if chakra is some sort of disease, or even a parasite."

"Both are technically feasible, but both also suggest the death of the host is the eventual conclusion, and chakra doesn't actively kill its host - much the opposite, the eight gates are proof that it actively seeks to keep us alive for as long as possible, whilst simultaneously proving that chakra is a living, evolving organism."

Dai blinked, "how do you figure?" She asked, softly.

"Eight Gates chakra is often described as 'raw', or 'hot' in nature, meaning that chakra has a sort of base-line form. It had to evolve and it had to change in order to become non-toxic to humans, but I have no _real_, definitive proof of that." Hibiki explained.

Dai hummed, "so... How in Kami's name did your people ever learn so much?" Dai asked.

"We never stopped asking. We pestered, poked, and prodded the universe until we pried the answers out of its cold, unwilling hands."

* * *

The two continued walking and talking for an hour, until Dai finally felt comfortable enough to suggest that it was time to take flight. In the hours they spent flying, the moon had gone from high in the sky to just setting in the horizon, with the sun trailing behind it. Hibiki's path traced along the route of the road they had found and begun following, until he finally found a highway, and Hibiki came in to land. Dai's hand came up to cover her mouth, in both a muted awe and also slight sorrow, as they landed in the inbound highway, as on the other, outbound, side, it was filled, bumper-to-bumper, with thousands upon thousands of ancient, rusted, and abandoned vehicles, for as far as the eye could see.

"What is this?" Dai asked.

"This is where we're going to catch our shut-eye." Said Hibiki, "a long-ass time ago, the leader of this country realized that it was kind of difficult to drive from one end to the other, so he made a series of _massive, _interconnected roads called 'interstate highways', that formed an enormous web of roads that connected every single state to eachother." Hibiki explained, as he hopped the median and started inspecting the cars, searching for the empty ones that still looked somewhat comfortable. All of the windows were frosted over and covered in layers of pale dust, dirt, and grime, making it difficult to see inside. "It was meant to make evacuation easier in case of a nu-... Er... Bijuu attack. But it didn't really work that well." He indicated all of the cars.

"All of these things held people?" Dai asked, inspecting the vehicles alongside the Senju heir, though she didn't really know what she was looking for, unlike the Senju heir.

"The small ones like... That one." Hibiki pointed through the dimly lit, early morning air to a heavily deteriorated sports car. "Could only hold two people. The big ones, like this one here." He knocked on the one he was inspecting with a light dinging noise, "were designed to hold a minimum of four, but by the time I was around, they typically could hold upwards of _ten,_ and still have room for all kinds of luggage." Saying the word jogged Hibiki's memories, and he spawned a few clones to start searching the vehicles that still had luggage strapped to their roofs.

"They look uncomfortable..." Dai mentioned, as Hibiki rubbed a thick layer of grime off of the window of a particularly large SUV and peered inside.

"Immensely so, some poor sods had to actually _live_ out of the things, but it's better than sleeping on the ground." Said Hibiki, who shook his head at the sight of a few desiccated skeletons.

"So... Why are they all here?" Dai asked.

"Traffic jammed up... If I had to guess, it likely happened during an evacuation of a major city." Hibiki walked over to the shoulder of the road and peered over, "see that ramp? It's got more cars, and even more behind it. If I had to guess, people eventually just decided to abandon their cars, take whatever they could carry, and run, figured that was faster." He said, pointing down to the exit ramp when Dai arrived to see what he was indicating. "Unfortunately for us, it looks like some people were stubborn enough to not abandon these vehicles." Hibiki saw, down on the ramp, several vehicles with impact-related damage. "And decided to just smash their way through."

"That doesn't seem healthy..." Dai commented, adjusting her hoodie to the chill of the morning air.

"Car accident was one of the leading causes of death in this country. Think of getting hit by a bolder moving about as fast as a body-flicker." He explained, pushing off of the shoulder and going back to inspecting cars. A significantly paler Dai pushed those thoughts out of her head, instead deigning to think about how _dangerous_ the world Hibiki was describing must have been.

After a quarter of an hour searching, Hibiki eventually found a vehicle that was much less rusted and damaged than the others. It was an SUV with loads of camping equipment loaded on top of it. When Dai asked how they would be getting in, Hibiki simply extended his bone-claws, and smashed a window, briefly expecting the alarm to go off, but pleasantly surprised when it didn't.

"Did people often do that?" She asked, referring to the window Hibiki had smashed.

"Yes and no." Hibiki climbed up onto the car and reached inside, unlocking the door and opening it up. "They had alarm systems, so if a window was broken, the car would go apeshit and scream and shout, telling everyone nearby that someone was trying to steal it. But..." Hibiki said, as he brushed the glass off of the sunken, aged leather seat and out of the car. He then reached back up to the door and tried the various buttons, with no effect. "The battery, the thing that keeps the lights on, it died forever ago, and the alarm with it." He climbed into the vehicle and over the center console, unlocking each of the car's four doors, and sliding open the back door. "Good news, the family probably had kids and the dad knew better than to get cloth seats, so it's leather."

"Good news?"

"Means it'll breathe less easily, but it still has a bit of give, and..." Hibiki trailed off and flipped onto the top of the vehicle, before he began rifling through the camping supplies. He tossed away the tents, as he had already packed some of his own, but grabbed the sleeping bags and the pillows, all of which had significantly deflated with age, but this family seemed to be prepared for such things, and they all had been sealed up in airtight plastic bags, meaning when Hibiki opened them up, they still had a great deal of fluff. "Won't need to use our own stuff." He hopped down onto the road and tossed the pillows into the back, and unrolled the sleeping bags and placed them on both of the backseats.

"Are you sure it is safe in there?" Dai asked, as Hibiki climbed back inside and patted down the unrolled sleeping bags, testing their comfortability.

"It's a x-thousand year old car with a mostly rusted exterior and an interior filled with previously stagnant air, surrounded by more x-thousand year old cars with rusted exteriors and filled with continued stagnant air, on an x-thousand year old highway that's getting taken over by nature." Said Hibiki, as he pointed to some of the roots and vines that were growing over the raised road. "Safety is a relative term... Clone'll take watch, if you'd prefer." He said.

Dai was silent a moment, before she eventually shrugged. "That's fine... But... Where, exactly, are we sleeping?"

Hibiki patted the back seats, "you take this row, I get the one in the back." As he spoke, he hopped over the seats and to the back of the car.

"Oh." Dai nodded slowly.

* * *

The two slept and recovered their energy for several hours, and upon waking, broke out their packed rations to eat and discuss the day's plans. The clone that had been delegated to searching the cars had, predictably, found little of use, the canned food had expired and the plastic in the water bottles had as well, all they got were more maps, and bricked technology.

Tossing the tech over the shoulder of the road, Hibiki used his chakra to push some vehicles out of the way so as to make enough space for him and Dai to eat in the shade. Dai was seated next to Hibiki, and in front of them lay a map, to which Hibiki was gesturing to.

"So, one of my clones flew around and figured out which highway we're on." Said Hibiki, "we're right here." He pointed at one small, gold line on the otherwise green and blue map. "Highway seventy, middle of Kansas, this square here." He indicated the patch of the map that was almost dead center. "All we've got to do is take this road aaaaaaaaaaall the way down this way, to Denver." He traced the route down to the interstate junction in the center of the square marked 'Colorado'.

"And this Denver is in Colorado?" Dai affirmed, to which, Hibiki nodded.

"Yup. So we get to Denver... I say we search around, if they fought _half_ as hard as I think they would have, there may not be much standing, if there's anything there at all that hasn't been reclaimed by nature. But, I'm certain there's bound to be a library or two somewhere in the city, maybe even a museum. We find that, we'll be able to find local maps, maybe even travel brochures. We find those, they'll lead us to NORAD, that will get us some answers."

Dai nodded, and took a bit out of her ration bar. "What if there is nothing to be found?" She asked.

"Then I'll send clones to scout the mountains, and you and me will start searching the outlying areas for places that could lead us to the base. Libraries with reference sections, military bases, government buildings, the works." Hibiki traced a spiral, outwards from Denver, with his finger. "If we're lucky, we'll get what we're looking for in a few days, and be at NORAD before our rations run out."

Dai nodded again, her hood resting around her shoulders, offering the world a rare glance at her uncovered head and her raven hair, which was held up against her head in a tight bun. "So... Where did you live?" She asked, "back then."

Hibiki grinned, and took a bite out of his own bar. "Down here, back where we came." He pointed at the lower right corner of the map, "place was called Georgia, a wretched hive of scum and villainy." He said.

"Truly?"

"Well, it wasn't _that_ bad, but it wasn't a good place to live either." Said Hibiki, "but we made it work, kept our heads down. Lived up here, in Detroit, for a good portion of my life, and my parents there for their entire lives until they joined the military, so we had a good history of keeping our heads down." He chuckled.

"And you said... This place." She pointed near the middle left of the map, "was the capitol of your country... Why are we not going there?"

"Only thing I can think of to look for up there would be the president - the Hokage's bunker, but I wouldn't even know _where_ to start looking for that, and they never offered tours like NORAD... Aaaand people didn't _die_ to make a coded message to go there." He explained, as he shoved the last of his ration bar in his mouth, and downed it with a swig of water.

Dai nodded, "so... Was there a place like Tanzaku Quarters, in this land?"

Hibiki blinked, "Tanzaku... That's the gambling hooker town, right?" He grinned, slowly shifting his eyes from their red sharingan to their onyx orbs. and back, as if briefly allowing memories to flash behind his eyes. "Oh yeah, we had a place like that." He pointed over at the left-hand side of the map, "this place here, it was called Nevada... I don't remember where it is, exactly, but somewhere in here we've got this place, it's called Las Vegas." He explained. "Gambling central. Had this one place, called the Vegas Strip, it was... I don't know how big, exactly, but... I'd say, about half the size of Konoha, maybe, and it was filled with big, enormous casinos, the lights were never off..." Hibiki paused for a moment, wondering if he shouldn't embellish a bit, before deciding against it. "You could see the strip for _hundreds_ of kilometers." He said, making wide, arcing gestures with his hands. "Though..." He grinned, "why would _you_ be interested in a thousand year old gambling den? Isn't one of the forbidden ninja vices gambling?" His grin turned into a full-blown smile as he saw her turn her head away, as if guilty. "Does someone have a guilty pleasure, Dai?"

"Yes, whores." She said, with a very straight face; the speed of delivery actually caused Hibiki to choke on his water, he was laughing so hard.

"Oh -" Hibiki coughed, his chin sopping wet. "Oh really?" He turned to look at Dai, a massive, humorous smile spread across his face. "And when, in between training for the war with your team, taking missions with your sensei, and stalking me, do you have time for whores?" He laughed.

"Perhaps I've managed to reverse-engineer a certain Senju heir's cloning techniques." Dai said, as she folded her arms against her chest and let a faux frown stretch across her face; it was a frown that said she knew Hibiki were calling her out on her blatant lies, but was keeping up her defenses because she couldn't not. "Maybe I've got much more time on my hands than I had before."

Hibiki shook his head, continuing to chuckle as he leaned back against the shoulder of the road. "Believe you me, Dai, even with a thousand clones, there's still not enough time in the world do do everything." He took a swig from his canteen. "That was fuckin' funny." He wiped his chin, still grinning like an idiot.

"Thank you," Dai finally gave in and grinned herself, as her face flushed and she finished her own ration.

Hibiki grunted as he leaned forward and screwed the cap back on his flask, and sealed it back in its scroll, before stuffing the scroll in his pouch, and folding up the map, which went in his back pocket. He stared at the concrete for a moment, his hand still in the back of his pants, before he nodded. "You know, there's one thing from back home that I miss. Like, more than anything else." He said, leaning back.

Dai inclined her head and turned to Hibiki, as she balled up her trash and set fire to it with a low-level fire technique. "Oh?" She asked, as she pulled her hood back up.

"Yeah. _Pants."_ Said Hibiki, "ten years, I've had time to think about this. And more than technology, more than the internet, even more than hot showers, I miss _pants_. But just, average, ordinary leg-wear, like these." He patted down his legs, the whipping sound of the cloth of his pants flopping about with every swipe reached their ears. "No, I miss _jeans._" He said, as he stood up, and bade Dai to follow him.

Dai, intrigued, screwed up her own flask and placed it with the rest of her supplies, before she hopped to her feet, and followed Hibiki over the median and onto the empty side of the highway. "What are jeans?" She asked, as the two of them began the long walk down the empty interstate.

"The single greatest, toughest, comfiest pants in the universe. They were called the 'working man's pants', but the basic gist is that they were leg-wear made out of denim, which was this tough kind of cloth. Jeans were these baggy type pants that could be worn in pretty much any environment - hot, cold, wet, you could wear a pair of jeans and be fine." Hibiki explained, before he patted down his pants. "I myself, I preferred jeans kind of like these. Baggy, a lot of pockets, loose fit. That way they'd last a _long_ time, and I had insurance in case I was going to gain an inch or two." He shook his head, "but these pants, they were comfortable and they were sturdy... And they _do not exist_ in the elemental nations."

Dai inclined her head, "they don't?"

Hibiki shook his head, his hair whipping about. "Nope. I've looked in the foreign trade catalogues, I've looked in every single town I've stopped in for missions... Hell, I was checking out the stores during the Kiri invasion."

Dai shook her head, an incredulous grin on her face. "You _were?"_ She giggled.

Hibiki laughed alongside her, "oh yeah. With as many clones I had, flying around the place, looking for ambush points and all that, I had the numbers." He stretched his arms, "one or two Konoha shinobi actually noticed, and they nearly blew up the clones, thinking I was searching for enemy shinobi or trying to clear out a bunch of seals." He chuckled, before he started waving his hands, "'no, Jonin what's-yer-name, no ninja in here, just looking for some pants!'." He laughed.

Dai shook her head, a grin playing at her pale features. "That takes dedication, Hibiki." She said.

"Jeans." Said Hibiki. "Are." He frowned, "worth it." He nodded firmly, trying to not let a grin betray him.

Dai shook her head again, before she noticed, in the distance, something standing in the air. "What's that?" She pointed up at it.

"Looks like..." Hibiki channeled some chakra into his legs and hopped forward, crossing several dozen meters in a few seconds. "It's a highway sign." Hibiki called out, "been so long, can't even read the damn thing." He shouted out over the still air, pointing up to the dark orange metal, his eyes tracing the edge and trailing down the metal frame that held it aloft. "Damn..." He muttered, as Dai came closer. "Surprised it's still standing." He leaned back, so she could hear.

"Is it not supposed to be?" Dai asked, as she got within earshot.

"Pretty much, no." Said Hibiki, "it's rusted to all hell..." He mentioned, while walking over to the shoulder of the road. "I think... It'd take one... Good..." He climbed up onto the shoulder and briefly peered over the edge, judging the distance to the ground, before he stepped back and braced one leg behind him. _"Kick!"_ He threw the leg forward and slammed it into the metal beams, the impact pulsing briefly in blue fire as chakra flew out. The metal disintegrated in less than a second, bursting outward in a cloud of orange metallic dust. The highway sign almost instantly collapsed under its own weight, the shrieking sound of metal grinding and snapping filling the air as the sign slammed into the ground and sent the rust into the air.

Hibiki backed up as the cloud expanded, pulling Dai with him. "Biggest weakness of making everything out of metal. If you don't take care of it, it'll just fall apart on you." He explained, before he waved at the slowly dissipating cloud. "Breathe that in, you get rust lung. Really bad."

"Then why did you kick it?" Dai asked.

"Science experiment. That wasn't even... A quarter strength. If we're going to a city, filled with buildings made of metal, one bad step and they'll fall apart all around us." Hibiki explained, "and that's assuming anything is still standing in the first place." He looked at his hands, inclined his head, and then raised them to his front. Hibiki soon locked his feet to the ground with chakra, and blasted the chakra out of his hands as if he were using them to fly. Powerful gusts of wind soon followed, and the entire cloud dissipated soon after. Hibiki nodded his head, "I'll have to experiment with that." He grinned, "come on. One of my clones saw something interesting a few kilometers that-a-way." He pointed ahead. "We'll take off after we check it out."

The two continued walking in silence, and after several minutes, the elevated highway began climbing even higher, until it leveled out and, in the distance, Hibiki saw what his clone had passed on: A destroyed section of the highway. The two kept walking until they hit the edge of the destroyed section, which stretched for several hundred meters. Hibiki leaned forward and squinted his eyes, "there are tanks over there." He said, pointing to the other end of the highway.

"There are tanks down there." Dai said, from next to him.

"What?" Hibiki turned to Dai, then looked down to the ground, where he saw a massive pile, tens of thousands of pounds, of rubble, and several tanks, all smashed or partially buried by the rubble. Hibiki looked back and forth between the highway and the rubble. "They blew the highway... They... _Wouldn't do that."_ He said, "not unless..." He turned around, looking at the cars piled up on the other side of the median, all of which were faced downwards, as if driving away from the destruction. "We were looking at it wrong. They weren't driving up, they were driving away. Likely from this, meaning they were evacuating somewhere." He sighed, "probably Denver." He ran his hand through his shaggy black hair and shook his head. "I'm willing to bet damn near anything we'll find more skeletons, but no enemies." He frowned, and turned back to look down at the tanks. "If they blew the interstate, that means that they were trying to stop their advance... And if they were desperate enough to destroy a freaking _interstate..."_ He quieted down and his frown became more pronounced.

"The land in that direction was lost." Said Dai, "perhaps these invaders, they came from that direction?" She suggested, looking to Hibiki with a furrowed brow.

"That's what I was thinking... Maybe these things began their invasion in the west... Maybe hit California, or Washington." He chuckled, "hell, maybe they hit Nevada first." He sat down on the edge of the destroyed highway and let his feet dangle off of the edge. "Know what this means?"

"What?"

"Ten to one these things hit Colorado, _before_ they hit Eglin... So that means there will hardly be anything standing in Denver..." He swallowed. "Assuming they didn't try nuking it. Because if they invaded on the west coast first, that means the command structure in DC was left standing, and they had ample time to evacuate the President, and convince him of the nuclear option."

"You said that was tantamount to tailed beasts, yes?" Dai asked, as she sat down with him. "Why is that a bad thing?"

Hibiki stretched his jaw and sighed, trying to think of how to properly describe nuclear radiation. "Alright, you know how poison gas can stay in the air for a few days, so you can't go back there when you drop the bombs?"

Dai nodded, "right."

"Well, nuclear bombs work... In a _broad_ sense... In the same way." Hibiki gestured with his hands as he spoke. "To avoid the specifics, when you drop a nuke, it poisons the air, but instead of settling down and dissipating in a few days, the poison stays in the air for _years... _Decades, centuries even."

Dai nodded, understanding Hibiki's simplified explanation well enough. "But if all of this happened thousands of years ago, like we think, then wouldn't the poison have settled by now?"

Hibiki shook his head, "_possibly..._ But the problem is I don't know much of anything when it comes to nukes. I know the... Poison can last for centuries, or it could last for _millennia. _Thousands of years. A nuke was a terribly effective weapon, and if the President thought it was even remotely effective at delaying the enemy army long enough for them to buy victory... Maybe call in some allies, field some new weapon, do something... But if he thought there was a _chance,_ against an enemy that clearly was strong enough to topple the country... He would have used it." He said, "so now, we're potentially walking into a poisoned city. Changes things."

"But that message, at Eglin... It said NORAD was safe. If this weapon was used, and it poisoned the air, then the wind would have carried it around." Said Dai, as she furrowed her brow. "Why would they say go to NORAD if it was covered in poison? Why would they lie?"

Hibiki held his chin in thought. "Maybe it was a ruse by the enemies. Could be that they intentionally set it up, to have a place they knew they could find survivors." He said. "What better way to set a trap than to make it look legitimate? Why would the enemy write an all clear sign in code?" He asked.

"That's a bit of a stretch, don't you think?" Dai asked, leaning back on her hands. "This all also depends on whether or not they actually dropped this nuke you've been describing." She added, as-a-matter-of-factly.

Hibiki nodded, "true. But it doesn't change the fact that things have changed." He pointed up and down the other side of the highway. "Those cars were fleeing something from that direction, the west. We already know that the country had been invaded. They wouldn't just destroy very, very, _very_ vital pieces of their infrastructure if it was early on and they thought they could save it." He paused, and turned to Dai. "You seem to know how I think. What does this tell us?"

Dai thought for a moment, breaking eye contact with Hibiki to look past the destroyed highway, the dead and forgotten tanks, and the abandoned vehicles, out at the horizon. The bright blue sky was lit brilliantly by the sun, and its rays beat down on the two of them, warming up the otherwise cool air. "It is as you said. They invaded from the west." She raised up her hands and indicated the left one, "and if we, according to your map, are right here." She moved her left hand halfway to her right, "and this is the east coast." She bobbed her right hand. "That means the enemy blasted their way through half of the country. So if we had a weapon that could slow them down long enough to buy us time to rally our forces and counter attack, we'd use it." She sighed, "so what do we do?"

Hibiki sighed, "I dunno." He said, reaching into his pocket and pulling out one of the maps he'd gotten from the plane. "None of these are local maps, just political ones." He said, flipping through each one. "Denver was our best shot, but it's looking more and more like it might not be available. Odds are, it's clean, it's ripe for the pickings, but we can't take that risk." He said, before he put down the pile of maps and summoned a shadow clone, which blasted off into the air, and then flew to the west.

"Is that going to check Denver?" Dai asked, watching the clone fly off into the distance.

"Yeah." Said Hibiki, as he opened up one of the maps, Dai scooted closer to him to see better. "Alright, so here's what I'm thinking. Denver was our best bet, but an equally straightforward bet would be the reference section of a library." He paused, before he pointed at it. "Alright, so, earlier, my clones scouted ahead and behind us, so I could draw a general idea of where we are. This over here, this is I-Thirty Five, it's behind us. This up here... It's I-Seventy Five, and it's ahead of us. So we... Are somewhere around here." He circled a small section near the center of the map. "So... According to _this_ map..." He grabbed another one from his pile, and opened it up, before finding them. "There are two cities right down here on this river." He dragged his finger down the paper, "you've got Dodge City, and Wichita. Straight shot south, from where we are." He tapped the map and leaned back, starting slightly when he realized he'd jarred Dai's head from its position on his shoulder.

Not the least bit nonplussed, Dai nodded. "And there will be a library there?" She asked.

Hibiki nodded, "yeah. Odds are, since they're listed on a map, they'll have been hit during the war... But, while we had a lot of nukes, I find it unlikely we bombed _every single city,_ else you and I would be dead by now." He explained, "so, one of these two places will be our bet, and I say we go to Dodge, because it's closer to Oregon, and if we find what we're looking for, it'll take less time to make the trip." He folded up the map. "Sound like a plan?" He asked, with an upturned eyebrow.

Dai nodded, "it does."

* * *

An hour of flight later, Hibiki and Dai landed in the center of the first area that looked like it had been populated and built upon, at some point in the distant past. From the air, it was nearly impossible to notice, there were trees everywhere, and most, if not, all of the buildings were, on some level, reclaimed by nature. The only reason Hibiki had been able to even realize they were over the city was due to a largely untouched church spire. The two touched down in front of said church, giving them a look at it and the city around it, up close.

"Damn." Said Hibiki, who stuffed his hands in his coat and nodded his head.

Even Dai, who had something to compare everything to, found herself in a state of awe.

The church, massive and looming in front of them, had weeds, grass, and branches growing up its stone walls, and the massive wooden doors were almost bound shut by the vegetation. Most of the windows were destroyed, which only allowed nature easier access to the inside, but the windows that were still in one piece were heavily frosted over, constant cycles of heating up, cooling down, and getting rained on leaving them with a permanent misty appearance.

"What is this place?" Dai asked, "it... Looks haunting." She finally said.

Hibiki chuckled, "it's a church, a place of worship. You should've seen it before it got the crap bombed out of it. Place was beautiful. There was very... Very little folks back when took as seriously as their religion." He said, before he grinned. "Let's go inside, I'm willing to bet actual, literal money that we can find a bible."

"But what about the library?" Dai asked, as she followed Hibiki towards one of the broken windows.

"It's not like we're pressed for time." Chuckled Hibiki from behind a one-sided grin, though he knew his time limit was two weeks, he also knew it would take much less time than that to find a library _somewhere_ in the country, and use its reference section to find out where NORAD was. "Besides, I can make a shadow clone..." Grunted the Senju heir, as he took ahold of some thick vines and weeds, and climbed up to the edge of the window. "If it's really... That..." He slowed to a halt as he saw what was inside the church. "Ah... Fuck." He breathed.

"What?" Dai asked, as she stepped up the wall with her chakra. "What is... Oh my." She gasped, her hand hovering in front of her head as she saw the dozens and dozens of pews, and the hundreds of skeletons all scattered about the floor.

Hibiki sighed, a frown scrunching across his face, as his Sharingan picked up how many of these corpses were dead of cranial and thoracic injuries. The entire church was clearly water-logged, having experienced multiple floods during its exposure to the elements. Any blood stains on the floors or the walls nearest the broken windows had long been washed away, the paint on the walls had long since begun chipping off of it, all of it mostly gone by this point, but there was some deep red-brown blood stains on the farther walls, and on the enormous hanging statue of the son of god, which, Hibiki noted, had holes punched in its hands and feet, and a deep gash on its wooden chest, blood stains covering all of it, as if in some ironic display.

"Did they all come here to kill themselves?"

_"No."_ Hibiki said, so quickly and so firmly that Dai nearly started. Hibiki swallowed through his dry throat, and took a deep breath. "Sorry... I wasn't a religious person, but my mother - my first mother - she was. Went to church every Sunday until I turned eighteen." He took a few steps inside and hopped down to the floor. "Their belief structure revolves around various unforgivable sins, and suicide is one of those sins. You kill yourself and you get damned for all eternity." He said, the sound of his voice hitting the walls of the church and bouncing off, echoing back inside as Dai entered behind Hibiki, who, she noticed, was clenching one of his fists so hard it shook. "I'm... Really starting to question this enemy of theirs." He voice shook as he bent down in front of a trio of corpses, two large ones laying on top of a third, tiny one.

"Is... There something wrong with attacking a church?" Dai asked.

Hibiki clenched his jaw and inhaled deeply through his nose, tilting his head away from Dai as it occurred to him that religion, by and large, didn't exist in the New Hotness, anywhere near in the same capacity as it did Back Home. That wasn't to say it _didn't_ exist, but just nowhere near in the same capacity as Back Home. "Think of it like this... Those temples that dot the elemental nations the... Er... Er..." He started snapping his fingers, "the fire temple, that one's pretty close to us. You know about it?" He turned to Dai, almost freezing her to the spot with the intensity of his spinning blood red eyes. Dai nodded silently, "you know how those places are sacred? It's more or less a general understanding to not touch them during times of war? Churches are the same deal. Only... Very... Very bad people bomb churches. They're like... Automatic neutral grounds. You don't kill in the house of _God_..." He sighed again, "the house of Kami." He performed the trinity above the corpses, and stood to his feet.

Dai nodded, now much more carefully stepping around the corpses that littered the ground. "So... What about this casts these enemies in a different light?" She asked.

Hibiki pointed up at the crucifix. "They're taunting us. _Them._" He said, "it's a very long story." He said, as he peered behind the various pews and pulled out books, most of which were somewhat spongy, others were faded beyond legibility. Hibiki placed them back in their proper places, almost reverently. "But that man was probably one of the most important people in human history. His name was... Christ. Jesus Christ. He was the son of God, and he preached about God, but back when he was around, people didn't really want to hear it, they believed other things. So they crucified him, they nailed him to a cross." He pointed at the cross from which the figure hung. "One nail through each hand, one through both feet, and then they put a gash in his chest so he would bleed out. It didn't stop him for long, but that's besides the point." He explained, "these enemies, whoever was so hellbent on destroying these people, hellbent on extinction... It looks like they didn't just want to stop at extinction, they wanted to break them. They wanted to squash any bit of hope they had left in their last hours... They wanted to _mock them..."_ He gritted his teeth, and unconsciously let chakra begin pouring through his system, radiating into the air in a bright blue fire.

"Hibiki..."

"They destroyed... A country. And if they destroyed one country, they destroyed two, and if they destroyed two, these _things..._ Whatever these green albino tree _things_ are... They didn't _stop_ at _just_ killing." He turned to the main doors of the church, and pointed at the ground below it. "Very... Very faint and faded scuff marks. _Someone,_ likely a rescue team, came _back_, after this happened. Bootprint outlines in the brown blood..." He started tracing his pointed finger down to him, and then up the center aisle. "They searched this place." He pointed down right next to him, indicating a very old blood stain in the shape of a boot, "searched for survivors, and they _saw this."_ He waved his hand all around, and then threw it up at the stature of Jesus. "Saw _that._ They then told people about it. Spread the story. Dropped morale. The enemy they were fighting knew that if they broke their enemy, it would then be _that much easier_ to kill them. They mocked their enemies because they knew they couldn't be defeated, because it would hurt their enemies _just as bad..._ As slaughtering the people who fled to a church for any modicum of hope and safety." He clenched his jaw, his hand slowly lowering to his side, a ball of light slowly building up in the palm of his lightly clenched fist, before it shrank back down and vanished, along with the chakra radiating out of his body. "And I don't know _why."_ He sighed, in a defeated manner.

Hibiki stared up at the statue of Christ, almost right in its field of view, able to make direct eye contact with the crucified son. He felt a hand on his shoulder, and he turned to face Dai, who had removed her sunglasses, to reveal her big, amber eyes, practically burning with concern. Hibiki's own blood red Sharingan remained locked onto her amber orbs for several moments, before he broke contact and looked away. "We need to find that library. A lot of these buildings were destroyed, but there were a lot still standing." He mumbled, stalking his way back to the broken windows.

"Fucking NORAD." He growled, as he climbed up and out of the church, followed swiftly by Dai.

It took them hours, but by following the main roads, he and Dai eventually found a medium sized, standing building made from stone, only partially taken over by nature. Upon inspection, the building yielded exactly what they were looking for.

"A massive fucking hole in the roof, right above the god damn reference section." Hibiki wished he could be angry, but upon seeing all of the aged, faded encyclopedias, the only thing he felt was defeat, as if the whole damn world was against him right now. The carpet below his feet had been soaked, dried, and soaked again so much that it disintegrated with every step, the shelves had fallen apart and books spilled all over the floor. The place had clearly seen some fighting - there were ancient blood stains on the walls near the entrance - but it hadn't been ransacked and destroyed like the other buildings they had searched.

Hibiki stood there, with one hand in his pocket and one rubbing his scalp, as he tried to come up with a new idea. He could potentially start searching local high schools and raid their libraries, but that had about the same chance of working as this did, even _less,_ if the military had used these schools' football fields as aerial evacuation zones. The dark haired Senju slowly revolved on his feet, the _rest_ of the library was in almost perfect, if incredibly unkempt, condition. The books looked only faded with age, and not exposure, most of the shelves were still standing.

"Perhaps there is another library." Dai softly intoned, but Hibiki shook his head.

"Look at the books they tossed around, and where the hole in the ceiling is. Right above the maps and the encyclopedias. _They_ had the same idea as us, raid the library for any information they could get, maybe local towns not listed on major maps, maybe military bases, police stations, historical monuments, anything they could destroy and kill people at." Hibiki narrowed his eyes, "but they left the fiction section alone." He said, a grin slowly spreading across his face. "Fucking _Hollywood."_ He jogged through the library and into the fiction section, the writing and the labels were very faded, but he found the 'C' authors after a few minutes of searching.

"What are we looking for?" Dai asked, as Hibiki started rifling through the shelves.

"Tom Clancy books."

"What?"

"Uh..." Hibiki paused, and started shaking his hand, "he... Er... Wrote military fiction. Primarily accurate, military fiction. Point is, his books told fictional stories, but they were set in realistic locations." He said, as he continued picking through the books. _"One of them_ had NORAD show up at some point, I know it. Guy fucking loved his nukes, and when nukes go down, NORAD seals up." He said, before he smacked the bookshelf with the back of his hand. _"Yes!"_ He stood back and spawned two dozen shadow clones, each of which grabbed a book and ran towards the lit areas of the library, their Sharingan eyes blazing as they skimmed through the books.

"Why would you look for a real place in a fictional book?" Dai asked.

"There were several kinds of fiction, science fiction, historical fiction, fantasy, you name it. This guy wrote primarily military - shinobi - fiction, and they all stayed true to the world we live in... They were _set_ on Earth, so _one_ of those stories - I just need _one - _had to go to NORAD, or even _mention_ it." Said Hibiki, "and with my Sharingan, I can instantly take in all details as I see them, so I don't even need to _read_ the books, I've just got to flip through each page until -"

_"I'VE GOT IT!"_ All the clones save the one that spoke vanished in an instant, Hibiki and Dai were by its side in a second. In its hand was the Sum of All Fears, and it was pointing at one page deep in the thick book, "Cheyenne Mountain Range, Colorado Springs, _Colorado!"_ The clone called out triumphantly, its loud, prepubescent voice filling the air, before it and its Alpha, in their victory, leaned back and cried out, at the top of their lungs, _"FUCKING NORAD!"_


	45. History: Old World Blues -III-

Chapter 44

* * *

_"I thank you," he replied, "for your sympathy, but it is useless; my fate is nearly fulfilled. I wait but for one event, and then I shall repose in peace."_

**_\- Victor Frankenstein_**

* * *

Hibiki had, once, wondered what it would feel like to push the very limits of the human body, when it came to speed and velocity. What did it _feel_ like to go faster than the speed of sound? What did it _feel_ like to blast off into space? What, on earth, did it _feel like,_ to travel so fast that the world bent to your will, and not the other way around?

Ten years and several months after the day of his death, Hibiki found the answer to that question: It felt _numbingly_ terrifying. Hibiki had never truly tested exactly how fast he could get moving with his flight technique, but when he'd found the location to the North American Aerospace Defense Command, he had managed to go from zero to half the speed of sound in less than ten seconds. The Aburame latched to his neck had almost had her grip wrenched off from the sudden acceleration, and had had to go so far as to enhance her strength with chakra in order to keep ahold of him. The ground had vanished from underneath them in an instant, the Senju heir hadn't even taken the time to sprint out of the building, he and Dai had blasted out of the hole of the roof in the library before the book held in the hands of the clone had hit the ground.

Hibiki's speed only continued to increase as he flew through the air. Dai had to close her eyes and bury her face in the crook of Hibiki's neck, her vision going black around the edges as her body began unconsciously began circulating chakra through her bloodstream, acting as an improvised, pressurized suit so as to keep her blood flowing correctly. Hibiki, on the other hand, had his Sharingan blazing which eliminated the tunnel vision effect as he continued to accelerate, while his durability and the Kaguya blood running through his veins provided a natural barrier to ensure proper bloodflow. He almost didn't feel what Dai was going through as he sought only to increase his speed even further, flying only a few hundred meters above the ground so as to ensure they didn't feel the effects of the thin air.

With how fast he was going, the Senju heir was leaving visible contrails in the pale blue air. The ground underneath him was a green and brown blur as he sped over it at blistering speeds, the air howling behind him as he traced the highways, it took them thirty minutes to cross the border into Colorado, and another fifteen to burn into Colorado Springs. Hibiki had had to throw both hands and feet in front of him and pulse his chakra as hard as he could to slow down, and when they came to a landing, he realized he'd been clenching the muscles in his legs so hard that they had crumpled up like jelly when they hit the ground.

Both Hibiki and Dai were breathing heavily as they hit the ground, Dai slid off of Hibiki's back and onto her rear as Hibiki's arms hung limply at his sides and he knelt on his shins. The dark-haired Senju heir tried to get to his feet again, but Dai grabbed at one of his arms, attracting his gaze. She shook her head silently, not even having to tell him that neither of them were in any state to be walking. Audibly huffing and puffing, Hibiki returned to a seated position, he and Dai remaining sedentary in the center of an ancient, dilapidated four-way stop. In their immediate surroundings, Hibiki couldn't see a single stop sign, as they likely had rusted apart and disintegrated ages ago. The road was cracked apart and covered in vines, weeds and grass. There were a few abandoned vehicles a few meters to their left and right, covered in rust and leaves, but what caught Hibiki's attention was the beautiful sight ahead of them.

Several kilometers away in the distance, massive, and looming over them with an appropriately mountainous presence, was the Cheyenne Mountain range. The enormous, triple-peaked mountain looked like the most massive thing in the world, even from its great distance. Hibiki grinned an almost exasperated grin as he took in its presence, he lolled his head to the right to look at Dai, but she was still recovering from the flight. Hibiki leaned over and elbowed her upper arm, attracting her attention. He nodded to the north, and Dai slowly turned her head to find what he was looking at; it took a few seconds for it to dawn on her that she was looking at their goal, so close at hand. The massive, rolling hills of green-topped trees stunned the Aburame, who had only ever seen the bare and rocky Hokage mountain.

The hooded Aburame opened her mouth to try and put her thoughts to words, to try and succinctly comprehend the massive, deep green and dusty brown mountain just resting ahead of them. She found, however, that she couldn't, that words simply failed her ability to describe the mass of green and brown that sat in the distance. The two simply deigned to rest at the four way stop, the road ahead of them stretching all the way to the mountain, but ending underneath a massive pile of dirt, stone, and rubble.

Finally catching his breath, Hibiki swallowed thickly through his dry throat, and lifted one hand to point at the mountain, whilst he leaned back on the other hand. "Fifty Ryo... Says that they bombed the mountain to bury the entrance and the parking lot in rubble." He said, pointing at all of the dirt and debris that covered the road at the base of the mountain.

Dai tilted her head, as she leaned forward and rested her arms on her knees. "What makes you say that?" She asked, "and what is a parking lot?"

Hibiki grunted and tested his legs, finding he could stand again. "I told you, back when, they did tours of this place. Entrance was visible to everyone. _You could walk there._.." He said, "a parking lot is where those things go when people aren't driving them." He added, pointing to one of the vehicle husks.

Dai nodded, and stood to her feet. "So... How do we find the entrance?"

Hibiki stood up, "what are the chances your kikaichu can talk to other bugs?" He asked, as the two began walking down the long and lonely road, bordered on both sides by tall and looming trees.

Dai gave Hibiki a look, "none. That is not how things work." She said with an amused huff and a small grin.

"I figured." Said Hibiki, as he stuffed his hands in the pockets of his coat. "My best guess is you can use your kikaichu to burrow under the dirt... Look for metal, or concrete. Hopefully we can just trace it back to the entrance." He explained.

Dai nodded, a frown stretching across her face as she considered the logistics of such a question. "I wonder, as it has been plaguing my mind, Hibiki... Would not these duties you have had me performing these last few days, be more befitting of someone possessing a Byakugan?" She asked, "why me, and not Noboru? You two have fought and bled together, he and Suboro both would be willing to help you on your search... And their collective skills would surpass those of a _tracker_-nin." She explained, a pause separating the occurrence of another thought. "And given what we have discovered... Should there be any kind of threat still lingering, their skills would be more suited to assisting you in dealing with said threat, than mine."

Hibiki raised an eyebrow, "you're no slouch when it comes to combat, Dai. Don't sell yourself short." Hibiki hadn't the foggiest as to exactly how her Kikaichu worked, but he certainly had ideas as to how she could use them for more offensive roles.

Dai shook her head, "still, Hibiki. Why _me?"_

As they continued walking, Hibiki turned his head to make eye contact with her, as he tried to put his thoughts to words. Aside from Tsunade, with whom he had only ever made very vague references on one occasion, she was the only person he'd ever told about Back Home, and was the only person with any idea of the sheer scale of what he thought about with his every waking moment, but there was another reason. Suboro and Noboru were very, _very_ clearly loyal to Konoha, to the point where they would die to defend it, but if he brought this up to them, the chance was very real that they would consider him crazy, and would report him for psych-eval, which would inevitably lead to him being interrogated or probed by a Yamanaka. The two of them trusted him, certainly, and he them, but the problem was perspective. Regardless of their age, they were soldiers in a soldier's world, and the most likely conclusion would be that, though they would feel horrible about it, likely for the rest of their lives, they would feel obligated to report whatever Hibiki said, not just for his own good, but for their good and the good of everyone Hibiki fought with. Hibiki was powerful - powerful enough to get an _S-Ranking_ in the bingo book, despite his early age, so, in their eyes, if Hibiki was insane, the kind of power he could bring to bear would therefor be at a very steadily increasing risk of being turned against Konoha shinobi. Madness, as they say, is like gravity, all it takes is one push.

Dai, however, was different from Suboro and Noboru, and the reason was as clear to the Senju heir as it likely was to everyone else he and she associated with: She was enamored with him. There was a very clear attraction on her end, Hibiki had begun noticing back in Suna. Given this attraction, there was much less of a risk of her turning him in - after all, if Hibiki was wrong and she actually was fully in love with him, she wouldn't want to risk him hating her for the rest of his life if she called him insane and turned him in to the Yamanaka. Despite her attraction, however, she was cautious and reserved, willing to make blunt inferences, but not willing to go out and make that first step, lest she feel safe enough to do so, she was waiting for _one_ sign from Hibiki, that he reciprocated her feelings, and as such Hibiki had to tread lightly the thread between disinterest and attraction. He couldn't make her think he wasn't interested, but he couldn't imply that he felt the same, and the best way to do so was to simply play the naive buffoon, wise in all _but_ matters of the heart. He couldn't convince her that he wasn't attracted to her, because then she could feel justified about turning him in, but he also couldn't affirm her feelings, because then he would be lying to her, every day.

It wasn't that Hibiki wasn't attracted to Dai, the problem he faced was one of age, and reality. If this world were real, then he was mentally approaching forty, about to enter a relationship with a fourteen year old. If this world wasn't real, he was toying with himself and upon waking in reality, would have the fading memories and experiences of this dream to drag him down and hinder any attempts at finding someone _else._ This was why he needed these answers, this was why Hibiki needed NORAD to exist, to be as safe as that ancient blood-written message had promised. Hibiki needed to finally be able to move on, or wake up. If this were the real world, he had to dedicate to it; if this were a dream, he had to find out how to wake himself up_, _bringing his thoughts back to Dai: He trusted her because he knew she was the only person in this world who literally could not fail him. One could say that any of the Sannin could be trusted, but in saying so, one would fail to consider that the knowledge Hibiki was seeking would irreparably shatter Tsunade, befuddle Jiraiya, and intoxicate Orochimaru. Dai, enamored as she was, was truly the only person in the world Hibiki could trust with any of this.

It rotted Hibiki's soul to shrug after only a second had passed, and frown innocently. "They aren't you." He said, "there's a different _kind_ of trust between you and me." He said, falling back on his age old practice: To properly lie, one had to reveal just a small truth. In order to get a fish to bite, one had to lure it in with bait.

Dai nodded slowly from beneath her hood, "but would it not have been easier to tell them, and not me?" She asked.

Again, Hibiki felt his heart shatter as he played it off with a joke. "Yeah, and I think I'll tell Minato, too. See how many people I can tell before one of them thinks like I do." He raised a hand and twirled a finger next to his temple.

Dai huffed, "you know what I mean." She said, with a light pout, that Hibiki grinned in response to.

"C'mon, Dai." Hibiki playfully shoved her upper arm. "I've got my reasons for everything. There's never not some kind of plan running through my head."

Dai nodded, "that is what I worry about, Hibiki. You needlessly shouldering all of this." She waved her arm around and indicated the forest that flanked them. "This is... _Entirely_ too much for one person."

"It's a good thing I've got another person, then." Hibiki said snidely, with a playful grin.

Dai shook her head, turning it to face Hibiki. Hibiki turned to face her as well, his red eyes making contact with her darkly bespectacled amber orbs. Dai couldn't find the proper words to convey what she was trying to express, so she simply resigned herself to a sigh and turned forward again. "So... Do we have any idea where this entrance may be?" She asked.

Hibiki nodded, "this road leads to the base of the mountain, and if you'll look up there, real close." He pointed at the peak of the mountain that faced them. "It's long since covered by trees and grass, but you can see a small crater, and evidence of a massive rockslide." He splayed out his fingers and waved downwards, "so I think, when we hit the edge of the uncovered road, you have your beetles burrow down until they hit concrete, then they trace the road up. We follow them, and when they find a... Cave, type thing, running into the mountain, you and I will dig in. Literally. They would seal off the entrance to avoid discovery, yeah, but they wouldn't risk a cave-in, should they ever decide escape was an option. So I say the entrance, and maybe a few meters in, will be blocked out, but inside it's all smooth sailing and high ceilings." He explained.

Dai nodded, understanding Hibiki's logic and his instructions. "So, this place, you say it is a bunker... Will we find people there?" She asked.

Hibiki couldn't help the smile that spread across his face. "God willing, yeah..." The smile died down, "but, realistically, no. Unless they initiated a Strangelove-esque breeding program, and found a way to grow crops without sunlight, I very much doubt they had the genetic diversity or supplies to survive too long." He explained, as the mountain grew closer, and the road began to end, its edge buried under hundreds of thousands of tons of dirt.

Dai nodded, "for what it is worth, Hibiki, even though we have only seen its dying form... I think your world is beautiful, Hibiki."

Hibiki shook his head, "first off... Still no confirmation on whether or not it's _my_ world... But you should have seen it during its prime. Buildings that scraped the sky, cities that lit up the night, vehicles that propelled us to space." He listed off, "it was..." He wanted to say paradise, but he knew better. "Beautiful."

They reached the base of the mountain, a massive pile of dusty-brown dirt, covered in patches of grass and some small trees, steeply inclining upwards and leading to the peek, over nine thousand feet in the air. Dai knelt down, digging up and tossing aside some dirt, revealing a smaller portion of the road underneath it, confirming Hibiki's theory. She placed her hand on the densely packed dirt, and a moment later several worm-like insects crawled down her arm and onto the dirt, digging downwards and vanishing into multiple, comparatively microscopic dark pores on the mountain's enormous surface. Dai stood back up and looked to her left, though she found no Hibiki patiently waiting. Instead, she turned her gaze upward and found Hibiki, arms still in his coat, slowly walking up the surface of the mountain, and out of the shadows cast by the trees at ground level. He turned and looked down at Dai, the sun blazing brilliantly off of his tan skin and being absorbed by his thick, unkempt hair.

Dai nodded and jogged up to Hibiki, grabbing his arm as she pointed down. "There is indeed more road, down there. I have beetles covering it, lengthwise, with a few inches separating them... This way."

They began a long, winding, and laboriously slow trek up the mountain, crunching grass and dirt underfoot as they followed the path laid by the beetles.

"So... How are we following your beetles?" Hibiki asked, as they wound their snake-like trail up the mountain. "They can't smell anything... So it can't be pheromones."

Dai nodded, "correct. But they have a hive mind with their queens, who can decipher their location based upon chakra." She said, "unfortunately for tracking purposes, that only works within a distance of one kilometer, and it is very taxing on the queens and the drones, which is why it is easier for them to track eachother over long distance, or in battle, by using pheromones." She explained, before pointing at specific points in the ground. "I cannot see or feel what they see or feel, but I know where each of them are."

"Okay... How many species can you guys carry?" He asked, to which, Dai shook her head.

"It is not so simple. Many believe we carry multiple different species, but it is all just one, the kikaichu. The differences come in the way they are bred, though I can say little else beyond the fact that the queens are instrumental in said breeding." She answered, as she and Hibiki continued walking.

_Well, I would damn well hope so._ Hibiki thought, wondering what kinds of insects bred _without_ their queens. Regardless, the Senju heir nodded, "so... How do they _work,_ anyhow?" Hibiki asked, "like... You say it's a bloodline and all, but people aren't _born_ with bugs in their blood... So..." Hibiki trailed off, keeping up pace with the hooded Aburame, as she led him by the arm.

Dai nodded, "there are things I cannot tell you, of course, but you are correct. Most Aburame get their queens implanted at birth." She answered, "the queens then numb the babies to pain, and produce specialized beetles to carve out the pores through which they can enter and exit our bodies freely." She slid her arm through the crook of Hibiki's, and used the other to roll up her sleeve, revealing the porous limb. She clenched her fist and began indicating the dark pores in her flesh, "as an Aburame ages, and the queens reproduce, more pores are formed in their sleep. To put it into perspective, most infants only have three pores on their arms." Her arm was covered in pores, almost bearing the appearance of someone who had taken a magic marker and just dotted it at random. "They live just under our skin, though the queens reside in the stomach." As she spoke, a few beetles crawled out of her arm, a sight that managed to make Hibiki's skin crawl, as the small insect poked its head out and gazed around, before crawling back inside.

"Wow." Was all Hibiki could say, as he shivered involuntarily.

Dai giggled, "to me, it is as natural as breathing. I hardly even register the feeling." She rolled up her sleeve and continued walking up the winding, hidden path with the Senju heir.

"So... Do they _only_ come out of your arms? Or are you just a walking beehive?"

Dai pouted, "beetles, Hibiki. Bee users are an entirely different, and rival, clan. And no, there are pores all over my body." She grinned viciously, "why are you curious?" She asked, peering down at her captive prey as she tightened her grip on his arm. "Are you asking to see?"

Hibiki chuckled, "no, thank you." He said, "it's just an honest curiosity."

Dai shrugged, before pointing to their left. "They found a massive expanse of concrete just over there. There are many of those vehicles crushed underneath the dirt... But over here, the path keeps going." She said, "they found a large, curved archway. Several feet past it, they were unearthed. The air inside is stagnant."

Hibiki and Dai came to a halt as Hibiki confirmed, "but they _did_ find an entrance... Right?" He felt his heart rate quicken as a smiling Dai nodded. "Alrighty, then! This is the easy part." He said, as he spawned multiple dozen shadow clones.

What followed was a digging frenzy, as the clones covered their hands in bony protrusions and began savagely clawing at the dirt. It took them several hours, even with assistance from more of Dai's beetles, until they hit concrete, a massive pile of freshly dug earth lining the rim of the bowl-like hole they had dug in the earth. The clones, on Dai's instruction, turned forward and began unearthing the entrance to the mountain, a deafening chorus of cheers filling the air as they found and unearthed the man-made, cave-like entrance. It took less than twenty minutes to clear out the dirt from the inside, a rush of air howling out as the previously still air began circulating once again. The sun had dipped behind the western side of the mountain, shrouding Hibiki and Dai in deepening shadows as Hibiki's clones celebrated and popped themselves.

The two shinobi slid down the several meter deep excavated hole in the mountain, causing dirt and debris to slide along with them as they came to a halt. Hibiki couldn't help a large smile come to his face as they entered the enormous cave-like entrance and strode inside. Along the rim of the entrance to the mountain, though having been sheered off due to the rock-slide, were the outlines of the words 'Cheyenne Mountain Complex', which Hibiki did not fail to point out to Dai as they entered the long tunnel and descended deep into the mountain.

It took them thirty minutes to reach their first obstacle: The blast door. The enormous, heavy hunk of steel loomed over Hibiki and Dai, the latter of whom had to remove her sunglasses and stimulate her eyes with chakra to improve her night vision.

"Is... This it?" Dai asked.

"Sort of. This is a blast door - and we're not blowing it up. It's designed to withstand a bijuudama explosion, at a distance of a few miles." Hibiki explained.

"Then how do we get through?" Dai asked, "I would assume, in a place as secure as this, there is no secret entrance."

"You're right, there." Said Hibiki, "but... See... This thing isn't designed to tank a nuke _point blank..._ And I've got something that might be able to make us an entrance." He said, as he rolled his shoulders and his curse mark stretched across his seal. "I don't have anywhere near enough chakra in me to do it myself... But with this mark drawing in the natural chakra, I don't even need mine." He bade Dai back up, as placed both legs shoulder-width apart, and braced them against the ground. "Don't tell anyone." He said, with a wink and a grin.

Dai watched as Hibiki threw both arms out in front of him, his deep purple chakra radiating off of his body like fire. Hibiki cupped both hands and slowly brought them down to his side, as all of the chakra that had been radiating off of his body now began flowing towards his cupped hands, coalescing within them, his fingers acting like a cage as the chakra tried to escape but found itself unable, and it simply collapsed in upon itself, building its energy and feeding off of its own reactions. Hibiki grimaced as he focused even more chakra into the space between his hands, and it continued building, a bright white light spilling out and lighting up the entire cave, revealing to Dai the smooth blue floor, the dark gray cave walls, and the deep gray blast door.

However, just as the ground began to shake and dust began to levitate around Hibiki, something on the edge of his small circle of light caught his eye. It was welded into the wall next to the blast door, and looked as if it were an unintended, fast addition, with little care for aesthetic design or appeal put into it, almost appearing as if the wall had literally had a small section cut out of it so it could accommodate this new addition. Squinting his blood red eyes to filter out the light generated by the orb of hyper-compressed chakra in his cupped hands, Hibiki gasped when he saw what it was:

A computer monitor, with a small, red, blinking light bulb.

Hibiki's eyes widened and he stopped channeling chakra, letting the hyper-compressed mass in his hands fade away as he straightened his stance and his jaw slowly fell slack. When the chakra vanished, a thoroughly confused Dai went to Hibiki's side, but hadn't even gotten a word in edgewise as the Senju heir, thoroughly ignoring the thin film of sweat that covered his body, let the Cursed Seal of Earth recede across his body and rushed over to the terminal. The screen was caked with dirt and dust, but when he inspected it closely, he saw that it, like the small light bulb, had power, and was lit up.

His throat bone dry, Hibiki balled up his sleeve and vigorously rubbed at the computer screen, managing to clean enough of it that he could see it. Hibiki looked down and saw a crease in the metal underneath the computer screen, and when he pulled at it, out slid a keyboard and a mouse, both covered in a thick layer of dust.

"What is it?" Dai asked, as Hibiki's shaking hand covered his mouth.

"It's... A computer." Said Hibiki, who felt his heart beating a mile a minute, and not because he'd just tried building up his only close-range bunker buster. "And it has _power!" _Hibiki called out, a smile stretching across his face as he wiped the keyboard clean and hit a few buttons.

The screen immediately lit up, and after several minutes of booting up, it simply displayed one phrase, and a blank, blinking line.

_This mountain opens to magic formula._

"Oh god fucking..." Hibiki groaned, "a _riddle..._ This time. How in the hell am I supposed to solve _this_ one?"

"What does it say?" Dai asked.

"This mountain opens to magic formula." Hibiki frowned at the screen for several seconds. "I'm starting to think my option is the easier one." He leaned forward and typed 'Open Sesame' onto the computer, before hitting enter.

Both Hibiki and Dai jumped into the air, the former with a cry of fear, when the massive blast door to their left began groaning, and the sound of metal grinding against metal filled the air, reverberating off of the cave-walls and back into their ears, nearly deafening the two as the ancient door opened. Hibiki watched the door open, his blood red eyes wide and his mouth open in abject shock as, to his side, she watched with awe, having never seen something like this. The door took thirty seconds to swing open, revealing a dark corridor to the two shinobi. The air inside the tunnel rushed outside with a low howling noise, as it recirculated.

Hibiki blinked once, twice, his jaw still hanging open.

Dai stared, uncomprehending. "What just -"

_"WHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAT?!" _Hibiki screamed out so loud that his voice echoed out to the distant mouth of the cave. "Oh... _Hell,_ the _fuck,_ _NO, that did not work!"_ He screamed, "I do not believe it." He turned to Dai, "punch me in the face as hard as you can, I have to be dreaming."

"Hibiki... It worked."

_"HOW?! _Do you _know_ how cliche that is?! I was fucking _kidding!"_ He turned to the computer, which had shut off. "Oh, now _you_ go and die on me. Fuck this, let's go." He turned on his heel and stalked into the revealed corridor.

"But what happened?" Dai called out, before she jogged forward to catch up with Hibiki.

The both of them jumped _again,_ when, as they walked through the tunnel, lights all came on, one by one, until they revealed a second blast door, and a second terminal. Hibiki's eyes were firmly glued to the glass bulbs above them, another disbelieving look stretching across his face as he took in the green floor and the sterile white walls. His heart was beating almost unhealthily fast now, as he and Dai reached the end of the corridor, and he cleaned off and booted up the next computer, his hands visibly shaking.

_Tranquility Base here, the Eagle has landed._

Hibiki stared at the machine in shock, while Dai tilted her head. "How does it show those things? What does it say?"

"Er... Very... Very small light bulbs. And it's a quote from the moon landing." Hibiki actually knew this one, but what was the answer? Was it really as simple as he thought it was?

He reached up and typed on the keyboard, narrating as he wrote. _"That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind."_

Dai hummed, "what does that mean, Hibiki? What is going on?"

Dully, as he hit the enter button, Hibiki explained. "When... Neil Armstrong first stepped foot on the moon, he said that to the entire world." It was almost completely impossible for this world to so closely mirror his own. The next blast door grinded open, the air circulating again as it another lit tunnel, and a third blast door and computer. Limply, Hibiki walked down this next tunnel, followed closely by Dai. He activated the next computer and read the next phrase, quickly growing numb.

_Now I am become Death._

Hibiki knew what to write, and he narrated it to Dai. "Now I am become Death... _The destroyer of worlds."_ He hit the enter key, and the next door opened, revealing another tunnel, but this one winded onwards with no blast door. Hibiki swallowed thickly, "they hoped... They hoped whoever found this place would... Know." His voice was almost dead, as he realized he hadn't even considered the fact that, back in the library, he'd found books that, mathematically were all but impossible to exist anywhere but his own world. "Would have searched like we did... Found libraries and read about their history... They would have... _Known."_

"Known what?" Dai asked, as she watched Hibiki turn to the inner tunnels, and followed him as he began walking inside.

"The answers. Their history. The first question... I think it was a reference to Arabian Nights. Open Sesame. The next one was the Moon Landing, and the last one... The atom bomb." They descended the tunnels and came upon a opening into a large cavern, and in front of them, flanked on all sides by the mountain's inner rocks, was a massive, three-story building.

"What are you thinking, Hibiki?"

"The lights are on... This place has power, but it's been so long. I don't actually know much about the place, but I do know that no fuel source, save nuclear, or geothermal, could last this long." He slowly traced the building's looming white wall, and found the small double-door. Covering the stone floor that lay at the foot of the building were sandbags and machine gun emplacements, the latter of which was in almost pristine condition, but no bodies. "But it... I..."

"Hibiki?"

"I think I know what's happening." Hibiki gulped, "I pray I'm wrong." He strode across the foot of the building, to the entrance door. He grasped the door handle firmly and pulled, it opened with a light swish, not even squeaking. The lights inside were on, brightly and dutifully lighting up the carpeted corridor. Hibiki looked to the wall in front of him, which was clearly labeled, showing him that the command center was to his right. "This way..." He mumbled, his blood red eyes still open wide as he followed the sign.

The two quietly walked through the dead silent building, making no noise beside that of their feet hitting the carpet. They climbed two flights of stairs and walked deeper into the building, until they reached a large, central room that reminded Hibiki of the Mission Control pictures he'd always seen associated with NASA. This room, unlike every other one, was completely dark, nothing lighting up the rows and rows of computers and chairs, save for one, lone monitor, its pale white light casting an unearthly glow upon its immediate surroundings. The two shinobi silently approached the terminal, Hibiki rolled out the chair in front of it and sat down, squishing down the faux-leather seat. He stared at the screen, which was jet black save for three white words, glowing from its center.

_Are you Human?_

Dai was about to ask Hibiki what this and this room were, but the words died on her tongue as Hibiki reached forward and hit one key on the keyboard in front of him. The computer was still for a moment, before the multiple massive screens that lined the wall in front of them all turned on in turn, each one displaying a different image, some displaying silent video clips. The Senju heir leaned back in his chair, his hand slowly going up to cover his mouth as he took all of it in, and Dai simply watched it all, her eyes as wide as dinner plates and her jaw slack as magic happened right in front of her eyes. One screen flitted between images of various families, all smiling and happy, another screen displayed small video clips of men in odd white uniforms swinging wooden sticks at leather balls, knocking them out of large, dirt-filled, chair-lined stadiums. Another screen showed images of men and women in various colorful uniforms, their hands held like knives in front of their foreheads.

After a few minutes of nonsensical displays, the monitors all faded to one uniform image, of a pale blue flag. In the center of this flag was a circle, with concentric circles all shrinking down towards the center, and multiple odd shapes filling in the circle. Lining the circle were two olive branches. The image stayed for thirty seconds, before the center, largest screen, faded to black, and after a moment, in came a video, of a man seated behind an ancient, wooden desk. Behind him were massive windows, displaying a green, grassy field, trees, bushes, flowers, a small pool of water, and a clear blue sky.

The tan-skinned man folded his hands on the desk in front of him, sorrow etched firmly upon his heavily wrinkled face.

_"Hello."_ The man said in a language Dai had never heard, she turned to Hibiki, intent upon asking him to translate, but she froze when she noticed a single tear fall down the Senju heir's face. _"If you're here... Then the worst has happened. My name is Richard_ _Ellis." _The man spoke with a kind, elderly, weathered tone, that almost made Dai trust and believe him right off the bat, despite the fact that she knew not a single word he was speaking._ "I_ _am..." _The man paused, smiled, and brushed a hand through his black and gray hair._ "Well, was, what my people called the President. I was a leader... Like an elected king."_ He explained, _"and... I am your ancestor."_ A small line of text appeared underneath the man's chest, in bold white letters.

_Days since last contact: 999999+_

_"A very long time ago, my people, your ancestors, fought a war. It began thirty years ago... A ship capsized in the Pacific Ocean."_ A map appeared, and it indicated the area the man spoke of. _"A woman washed up on the shore of an uncharted island, many hundred miles off of the coast of Japan." _ Another set of highlights indicated the places the man referred to, painstakingly trying to make it so that, no matter the time, this man's information could be conveyed. _"This woman's survival was not known to us at the time, though we were made aware of it when, one year after her shipwreck, a meteorite made landfall on this island. Satellite images, or images taken from machines in outer space, showed us this, not two hours after the dust settled from impact."_

An image appeared of an island, taken from what looked like a great elevation. This island was filled with a forest of large trees topped by canopies of thick, green leaves. Encircling this island was a several meter thick sandbar that led out into the ocean, with the sandbar to the right most edge covered in rocks that made an 'SOS' pattern. Off to the left of the center of an island was a large, dark gray crater, at least one kilometer around. This crater was cleared of all trees, yet dead center there was one, far bigger than the rest, that towered so high that it cast a shadow upon the other trees on the island. On the right edge of the crater stood a lone, human figure in tattered rags, this figure was so small due to the elevation of the camera, that it may very well have been invisible compared to everything else.

_"The woman, at the right edge of this crater."_ Said the voice from before, as the image zoomed in on the figure lining the crater, its features growing blurrier with every zoom. _"She was the lone survivor of the wreck of the Adriana."_ A new image appeared, above the head of the blurry figure. This new picture, framed such that her robed torso and head were visible, was of a much clearer quality, and displayed a pale, almost paper-white skinned woman. This woman's head was lined with thick, silver-white hair that fell so far it left the frame of the image. The pale-skinned woman's face was round and youthful, and above her eyebrows were two bony protrusions, giving the appearance of horns, but what caught Hibiki and Dai's eyes were _her_ eyes, of which she had three, two where they were supposed to be, and one in the center of her forehead. Two of these eyes were pale white orbs similar to that of a Hyuga at a resting state, and the third one was completely, bloody red, with concentric black circles lining the entire orb, and small black tomoe lining the innermost circles. On the edge of her two 'normal' eyes were thick, bulging veins, and her entire face was pressed into a deep, angry frown. _"Her name, we would later learn, was Kaguya Ōtsutsuki._

_"This woman, __Ōtsutsuki, was there for the impact of what we called Object E. Object E was a meteorite that entered our Solar System - that is, the stellar neighborhood in which this planet and its star reside - thirty two years ago, on a direct collision course with Earth. The scientists at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration deemed it to be non-threatening to life on Earth, and we charted its impact and simply waited for further activity. What we did not know at the time was that this meteorite was carrying upon it a disease of extraterrestrial origin. Upon impact with the earth, it copulated and reproduced at an explosive rate, turning into the tree you see before you in less than two hours, and sprouting the fruit on the edge of the tree."_ As he spoke, the previous image zoomed out, and then zoomed back in on the towering tree, now showing that, on the right edge of said tree, was one lone, large, thick fruit, dripping with a glowing liquid. _"This disease, we have concluded, was unable to spread naturally unless it was ingested by whatever it chose to infect... And __Ōtsutsuki, desperate as she was to survive after multiple months of isolation, saw the fruit and ingested it without a second's hesitation. What happened next, we are not entirely sure, but we sent several ships to this island, upon discovery of the impact and the tree that sprouted up from it, to retrieve any samples and __Ōtsutsuki herself... Unfortunately for us, this sounded the clarion of our demise._

_"You see, while we know desperate little about how this disease spreads, how it works, or how it does what it does. All we know is that it generates a heretofore unknown kind of radiation that, when exposed to human beings, affords them the ability to bend, break, and even ignore entirely, the laws of physics, on a terrifying scale. Upon ingesting the fruit of Object E, __Ōtsutsuki was blessed with god-like power. She was capable of destroying the aircraft carrier we sent, in less than six minutes." _A new image, of a massive metal boat floating on the water, to give scale to the words the man spoke. _"In even less time she ripped apart the other vessels, shot down the few fighter jets that managed to take off, and literally tore apart the scientists and marines that managed to abandon the ship fast enough to survive her initial assault. Had she ceased there, perhaps none of the following thirty years would have occurred... But, as they say, power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely."_ The man explained, _"two days after her discovery of her power, and the subsequent destruction of the carrier group, she crossed the sea into Japan. Less then eight hours after her arrival in Japanese territory, a distress call went out to any of their allies for immediate assistance in a land-based invasion from an unknown enemy. In the twenty eight hours it took us to assemble a fleet and send it to help, Japan had gone silent. No radio traffic in, or out. It was as if an entire nation had died overnight._

_"Upon arrival in this country, our Marines were attacked by enemies we would later learn were called Zetsu." _An image appeared of a new person, his skin just as paper-white as the previous woman's, but his spikey, unkempt hair was leaf green, and his eyes were a pale, almost tree-sap yellow. _"These creatures had the same abilities as __Ōtsutsuki. Enhanced superhuman strength, incredible durability... Some could even fly, and walk on water, with others able to fire rocks, lightning, compressed air, nearly anything imaginable."_ Small video clips of these white creatures in combat now appeared, as they tanked walls of gunfire and lost entire sections of their bodies to massive explosions, before enormous tree-roots burst out of their limbs and wiped away anyone they fought. _"In the early days we were unable to kill these creatures. Our weapons, while effective, just didn't hit hard enough... But as time went on, we were able to create bigger, stronger weapons, which managed to kill them at a frequent enough rate that we were able to fight back... Upon studying their bodies, we learned what they were... Sentient trees. We do not know how it is possible, but these Zetsu do not even have any blood cells in their bodies. They subsist on plant cells, and plant cells alone, which would normally be impossible, but given the physics-bending abilities of E-Radiation, we assume the impossible to be the opposite. ____We barely were able to recover the Zetsu corpses to study them and their E-Radiation, as her army constantly recovered their dead and stole them from our labs. __ But regardless, our findings will be stored in the computers here at NORAD.__"_ The images and videos vanished, wiped away, to be replaced by the man in the formal suit.

_"After that first attempt, we were never able to get back into Japan. One year after her invasion of Japan, she had ravaged and destroyed the lands, leveling the cities. She turned the country from this..."_ An image appeared of the country in question. _"To this..."_ A new image appeared, taken from a much greater elevation than the one of the island. Beside Hibiki, Dai gasped as she recognized the same general shape of the geography of the elemental nations. She turned her head to Hibiki, but the Senju heir was still deadly silent, his eyes wide and his hand hovering in front of his mouth. _"And she did not stop. The time she spent destroying Japan was time the world spent arming itself for World War Three... But all that preparation was for nought when she and her army made landfall in China. It took her less than four years to burn the country to the ground, and it was there we realized that her goal was not domination, but extinction. With every prisoner she took, her army grew, and by invading the other Asian countries, she had an army of gods numbering in the billions. We made the decision... We turned the key."_ New videos, of rockets launching and massive, fiery clouds in the shapes of mushrooms. _"And when staring death and nuclear annihilation in the face, she didn't even blink. She managed to take the blasts and absorb them, with no fallout, whatsoever. Our best, most destructive weapons had failed to even stall her. It took her five years to burn the planet to the ground, any survivors were found and exterminated. Any fighters were faced and killed. Our deadliest weapons, our strongest armor, nothing worked against this woman and her innumerable army."_ The man reappeared on the screen, _"when she destroyed Europe after the tenth consecutive year of non-stop war, the entire world's military flocked to North America to make its last stand... But not in the interests of winning... In the interests of preserving. We learned that wherever this woman went, her entire army followed. The lands she destroyed were left barren and lifeless, abandoned the very second she knew there was no more human life... So we sent our best operatives to every country and every museum in the world, to scavenge our history. Bibles, books, paintings... We took it all and hid them here." _The man lifted his hands and indicated the area around him. _"NORAD... Our last bastion. Our only viable vault. We threw every single thing we had at delaying them for as long as possible... So we could store our entire history in this place. If Humanity would go extinct, then we would at least preserve our legacy. God damned us, but technology would preserve us."_ He paused, _"or... So we thought."_

Dai noticed Hibiki lean forward in his chair, his eyes widening and his hands going to his lap, a brief, small, but bright glimmer of hope in his blood red eyes.

_"Fifteen years after the beginning of the war, we discovered that_ _Ōtsutsuki had bared two children. Their names were Hagoromo and Hamura, ___Ōtsutsuki."__ Two new images appeared, in order of the names said. The first image was of a gray, leathery skinned man garbed in thick, flowing robes, with two large horns growing out of his forehead. The second man looked much more similar to his mother, with pale white skin, but with horns growing out of his scalp as opposed to his forehead. "_These two came to us, after __Kaguya's army had ravaged the west coast, and just as they touched down on and began burning east coast. These two carried the same power as their mother's army, but used it in a more refined, methodical way similar to their mother. They destroyed this army and joined with us, bringing the fight to their mother, who had, in their words, 'merged' with the alien tree that had sired their powers. This 'merging' gave birth to what they called the 'Jubi', a ten-tailed beast that, somehow, had exponentially more power than their mother had alone. It took the combined might of Hagoromo, Hamura, and the entire world's militaries, to defeat Kaguya __Ōtsutsuki, her army, and seal her away inside a statue, which Hagoromo and Hamura transported to the moon."_ The man explained, before the images and videos wiped away to reveal him and his brightly lit room once again. _"Hamura explained to us that he would leave the earth and travel to the moon to defend his mother's corpse and ensure it never caused harm again, ensuring us that he could survive in such an environment. We were able to assist him in this by sending him to the moon in one of our rockets, and afterwards, we never heard from him again."  
_

The man sighed, and broke eye contact with the camera for a few moments, before he spoke softly. _"I wish it had ended there... But not even a month after his brother left our Earth, Hagoromo turned on us. He took the remnants of his mother's army and used them, not to make us go extinct, but to forcibly infect us with the virus that plagued him, his brother, and his mother. He created nine terrible beasts of E-Radiation, the weakest of which held the power of ten nuclear weapons. He infected anyone he could, and killed anyone he couldn't... The precious remaining millions of Human beings left... All became tainted by this virus, turned into monsters, which he whisked away to some unknown part of the world."_ As he spoke, the ground beneath him shook, and the lights flickered. _"As I speak, the very last remnants of our armies fight a battle, just outside."_ Blasting past his window was a rocket, and a bright, brief flash of light accompanied another shake of the ground. _"We buried Cheyenne Mountain to hide it from him... Our legacy, hidden... For our descendants to find... For _you_ to find."_ There were some raised voices in the background, and loud, repetitive pops and bangs, followed by loud cries and horrified screams. _"I do not know who you are... But I know you are our descendants. The children of humanity. I do not know who you worship... Be it the Rabbit Goddess, or the Sage of Six Paths... But know that the gods your ancestors worshiped, damned them, and the gods you worshiped, are but devils in disguise. But for all of Hagoromo's power, we know he cannot be immortal, for his mother was more powerful, and she was killed. So I know that they no longer live, in your world... I pray to you, explorer, descendant. I pray you, with your power, find these messages and discover your lineage, your true history."_ The ground shook again, and the lights cut out, as the bangs and pops grew louder. In the background, a massive, red beast with nine tails crashed onto the ground and made a large, wide swipe with one of its front paws, sending dozens of men flying into the air. _"So... For your sake and ours: Learn. Rebuild. Discover your legacy... But above all... Stay cautious. _We_ do not know what fuels your abilities, and if you do not either, you cannot trust it. This energy, this radiation... The ___Ōtsutsuki_'s legacy. It is alien... I beg of you, above all: Learn what they did, read what little we discovered and pick up where we left off... And if there is a way to cure it, please... Your ancestors _beg_ of you... Do so. It is a disease, and all diseases invariably end with death. It will kill you, shorten your lifespans from ninety, even one hundred years, to less than fifty, if that."_ The bangs grew closer, and another beast joined the battle in the background, a beige beast with one tail, and thick black lines covering its flesh. It and the nine tailed beast gathered black and white energy in front of their mouths and blasted the ground below them with massive, blinding explosions. _"Everything we ever had... Everything we ever were, is stored in the computers in this base. If we ever did one thing, we learned... So please, join us on the quest for knowledge. _Learn... _What we learned. And learn more... Arm yourselves, so should our worst fears be realized, and Hagoromo, Hamura, Kaguya, or _any_ of their descendants ever come back to haunt you... You can fight them. God may have damned us... And technology may preserve us... But you, our descendants, stolen by Hagoromo... Will save us."_ And the video ended.

After several seconds of silence, the computer screen in front of them lit up a bright white, as its operating system booted up and revealed itself. Hibiki slowly turned his head to the computer screen, and Dai turned to Hibiki.

"What... _Was_ that?" Dai asked, barely able to comprehend the fifteen minutes of gibberish that had been spoon-fed to her by some kind of magic.

Hibiki, however, didn't even answer, as he scooted forward and grabbed ahold of the mouse to the right of the keyboard, amazing himself at how easily he fell back into hold habits, able to take to the keyboard and mouse again, as if he'd never stopped using them. He slowly, numbly navigated the cursor to the bottom left edge of the screen and clicked on the icon, bringing up the file explorer. Blinking his blood red eyes, Hibiki typed in a few words as they reached his mind. It took several minutes for the computer to load, but Hibiki found the sound file he was searching for.

"Hibiki?" Dai asked, as the file loaded.

Hibiki remained silent, leaning both elbows against the table and clenching his head with both hands, digging his shaking fingers into his hair. The sound file finished loading a half second later, and a voice filled the air, followed soon after by uproarious cheers and applause, and the sounds of guitar strums and a light-hearted drumbeat. _"Hello... I'm Johnny Cash."_

Dai turned from Hibiki, to the main screen, which showed one image, of a man with thick hair, dressed in a black suit, playing on a stage in front of dozens of men in thin uniforms seated in chairs, both the men and the chairs chained to the ground.

_"I hear the train a comin', It's rolling round the bend, And I ain't seen the sunshine since, I don't know when, I'm stuck in Folsom prison, and time keeps draggin' on. But that train keeps a rollin' on down to San Antone.. When I was just a baby, my mama told me, 'Son, Always be a good boy, don't ever play with guns...' But I shot a man in Reno, just to watch him die. When I hear that whistle blowing, I hang my head and cry.."_ Dai's brow furrowed, and though she found the music transfixing and beautiful, as she had never heard anything quite like it before, she turned to Hibiki, intent upon figuring out what all of this meant. What she found, however, was Hibiki, wreathed in the bright, pale white light of both the monitor in front of him and the monitor looming above the both of them, resting his head on the desk in front of him. His elbows still rested upon that desk, pressed against the side of his head, his hands were clenched above his head, his fingers interlocked. The boy's back was quivering spastically, and before Dai could draw a conclusion, he was wracked by a single loud, rasping sob, and Dai's eyes widened.

_"I bet there's rich folks eating in a fancy dining car. They're probably drinkin' coffee and smoking big cigars. Well I know I had it coming, I know I can't be free. But those people keep a movin' And that's what tortures me." _Dai knelt down next to Hibiki, as the guitars kept playing. She rested her hand on Hibiki's shoulder, concern written across her face. He turned his head over to face her, his onyx eyes bloodshot and filled with silent tears, his jaw clenched and his lips quivering, Dai could clearly see the weight of whatever he had just learned crashing down upon him, devastating him as tears continued to pour out of his eyes, and the music continued blaring in their ears. At a loss for what to do, Dai simply leaned back onto her haunches and silently spread her arms out. Hibiki broke eye contact with her for a moment, hesitating, before he blinked once and slid out of the chair and onto the floor, embracing Dai, and burying his head in the crook of her neck, as another sob rattled his lungs.

_"It's gone."_ Hibiki whispered in his native tongue, so lowly that he almost couldn't be heard by Dai, over the music. _"They're all gone."_

Dai hadn't understood a word Hibiki had said, but she knew what he was saying regardless. She held Hibiki tight and rubbed at his back, silently letting him let it all out.

_"Well if they freed me from this prison, If that railroad train was mine, I bet I'd move it on a little farther down the line. Far from Folsom prison, that's where I want to stay. And I'd let that lonesome whistle, blow my blues away."_ The song ended with one final, musical flourish, and the sounds of the audience cheering, before it faded away, and left the two in near complete silence.


	46. History: The Servant -IV-

Chapter 45

* * *

The two sat there so long that they each lost track of time. Deep in the belly of a mountain, surrounded by the ruins of an ancient, long-dead civilization, the both of them tightly embraced, the displaced man silently sobbing as reality came crashing down upon him. This wasn't just his world, it was his _future._ He hadn't died and been reborn in another universe, he'd died, slept for a few thousand years, and been reborn through Kenichi's experiments. He hadn't just left his world, he'd left it _behind._ He had died, and then the world went on to fight a war for its very existence. He wasn't sleeping, he was wide awake. He hadn't slipped into a coma, he'd straight up _died._ To induce a lucid dream, one merely had to check various detail-sensitive clues, and Hibiki's biggest check had been Folsom Prison Blues - his mother's, and soon thereafter his own, _favorite_ song. Even if he could excuse it and say he remembered everything, from the tone of the cheering prisoners to the infrequent flat notes in the musician's legendary performance, there was the problem of mathematics. It was almost completely impossible for two universes to have a mirror-image history, down to their entertainment and geography. There was only one answer, now:

_This was his world._

"And it's gone." Hibiki sighed, deeply.

Dai continued comforting the formerly displaced man. "Is there no chance that you are wrong?" She asked, softly, barely even whispering, as if she feared breaking the silence that enveloped the two of them.

"None." Said the dead-voiced Senju heir, as he slacked his grip around Dai, prompting her to begrudgingly let go of him. He leaned back, one arm wrapped around her, one waving at the area around her. "Earlier, when you saw the Elemental Nations on the screen. That used to be a country, that existed Back Home. But this woman ravaged it, destroyed it, turned it into something else." He slid his arm from around Dai's back, and pressed a hand against the desk, using it to help him get to his feet. He wiped his face with the back of his sleeve, and turned to Dai, holding out his hand, which she accepted, and pulled herself to her feet. "This place... This world. It's _mine._ It's the ruined, ravaged, rasping body, barely holding on to life by its fingernails." He leaned forward, resting his hands on the desk in front of him, and letting his head hang, his face setting into a deep frown, that showed so much age and experience that Dai momentarily forgot that, to the rest of the world, this was a ten year old boy. "All of my life savings says that, if we follow the maps, we'll find the elemental nations without being reverse summoned by the Eagles." He added numbly.

Dai frowned, her heart going out to the Senju heir before her. She approached him and placed her hand atop his, leaning down to eye level. "Hibiki... Talk to me."

The Senju heir sighed, "when I woke up in... This body. This thing that was given to me by the grave-robber. When I regained my faculties, I found myself wondering if I'd just left my world. If it was still functioning without me. I decided that I'd been reincarnated in another universe, and that my world had, and was, continuing on without me. I took comfort in that." He said, before reaching forward to the keyboard and typing in a few keys, before finding and accessing an image file. Up on the big screen, a picture of a large blue sphere covered in green shapes and masses appeared. "I took comfort in that... My pale blue dot kept floating through the cosmos, without me. Now I've learned that it most _certainly did..._ But instead of leaving it, I left it _behind._ It kept on, while I slept in the nothingness of the aftermath. When I woke up, I didn't wake up in another universe, I woke up over one thousand years after I went to sleep. The apocalypse had came and went, and I'd missed it. The war to end _all wars_ had been fought and lost... And I'd been unable to answer the call. There is nothing left. _I've got nothing left."_ He said, his voice shaking with equal parts rage and sorrow.

Dai shook her head, curling her fingers around Hibiki's hand. "You've got Konoha, Hibiki. You have Suboro, and Noboru. You have Minato, and the clan heirs from the academy. You've got Lords Jiraiya and Orochimaru, you have Lady Tsunade and Miss Shizune. You've got _me,_ Hibiki."

Hibiki clenched his eyes and frowned, "Dai, where I came from, people lived a _very long time. _The President, Ellis, made mention of it." He said, waving to the screen looming above them both. "Despite the world being arguably more dangerous than it is now, we lived an average of eighty to ninety years, and people were regularly hitting a century. _One hundred years,_ of life. It got to the point that people weren't considered adults until they'd been alive for almost two _decades." _Hibiki looked up and stared at the picture of his world. "Here, because the life expectancy for civilians is less than fifty years, and the life expectancy for shinobi is even less than _that,_ you start courting and you start courting _early. _But where I lived, we waited. We waited quite a while, before we were in any position to court, to try and find husbands and wives to settle down and start families with. We waited a _lot longer_ than ten, fifteen years. It was rare to find anything serious, and long term, in anyone under the age of eighteen. Well, not rare, but uncommon, but that's getting into semantics." He said, continuing to stare at the planet on the screen. "But there was this certain stigma against older men courting younger women. Once you got beyond a difference of ten years, it started to become less accepted. You, you're fourteen, and as far as everyone else is concerned, I'm ten. This age difference might be acceptable, and this early beginning might be okay here, but back then, where I lived, it was just... Weird. No one would take it seriously. But then consider it another way. Mentally... I'm approaching my forties. I've had nearly thirty years in that world -" He pointed at the image on the screen, "and ten years here." He let his hand rest on the table again, and dropped his head again. "All of this... I've had ten years to come to terms with it, I've made a lot of compromises during my second life. I've killed, I've fought, I've gained power... And I've accepted those things. But there are some things that are just ingrained, Dai. I... I know you're attracted to me. I can tell, about as clearly as anyone else can." Dai felt her heart slow down as Hibiki played his hand, but she remained silent and let the weary, formerly displaced man finish his piece. "But I don't know if that's something I can do. I can compromise on killing, I can compromise on fighting, I can compromise on just about everything, but..." He sighed, "remember the wooden carving of that man, in the church? His book is... Very quotable. You can find something in it that applies to almost any situation, universally. Raise up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old he will not depart from it." He finished.

Dai could hear the struggle in his voice, it seemed to her that he was on that thin line of indecision. She could sense that one half of him wanted the crutch, the confidant, the person he could always turn to when the going got tough, and the weight of his entire world fell upon his shoulders. The other half, however, seemed unwilling to break away from his home, to sever another connection, no matter how small and how asinine. Dai let loose a small sigh, breaking eye contact with Hibiki to turn to look at the image on the screen. She had never seen anything like it before, and it was, in her own opinion, beautiful. The crushing blackness, covered in white pinpricks that presented the backdrop, the enormous blue orb, upon which lay massive green and brown shapes, interspersed with oily white masses. If this was Hibiki's home, and, if he were correct, _her_ home, then she understood why Hibiki didn't want to let go of any possible connection to it. Dai wouldn't even claim to know what Hibiki was going through, or to comprehend the sheer size of what Hibiki, by the mere convenience of existing, was involved with. Dai could, however, understand that clinging to things past was, in a word, unhealthy. Were Hibiki to stay so desperate to remain connected to his past, he could ruin his future. If he tried so hard to remain true to the old world, he would find himself out of touch with the new world. If he tried to learn the secrets of the past, he would be unable to discover those of the present. Hibiki needed time to mourn, yes, but more than that, he needed to move on.

And Dai knew that she was the only person in any position to help him do so, and so too did she know that Hibiki knew this. Dai turned her eyes from the Earth in front of her, to the hand she held under her own. "Hibiki... I understand what you say, but I ask of you... Do you _not_ have your teammates? Do you _not_ have your friends and family? Do you _not_ have me?" She asked, "do you not _want_ us all?" She intertwined her own fingers with Hibiki's, and squeezed his hand, as she saw Hibiki's head dip down even lower.

"That's... Not it, Dai." Said the defeated Senju in a dead tone.

"Hibiki... You _need_ someone to turn to." She implored, taking a step closer to the onyx-eyed Senju and leaning against him. "You cannot bear this burden all on your own, it will break you." She said, resting her head on Hibiki's shoulder. "I know..." Her breath caught in her throat, but she swallowed and kept going. "I know you do not want to hear this... But your world is gone. All that remains is ours." She whispered, as the light from the screen above and the screen below both lit up their flesh. "_Ours..._ Hibiki. Yours and mine. I am here, as are you. This is now where you and I live..." She said, hesitating a moment before she reached over and tenderly grabbed Hibiki's jaw; the Aburame turned his head to face hers, and looked into the shattered, blood-shot onyx eyes of a broken man. "You need to make the best of it, Hibiki... You need to move on."

The onyx eyes, that always seemed to absorb all light going into them and reflect none of it, flitted back and forth for a second, before Hibiki, the boy who had fought gods amongst men, the shinobi that had orchestrated and carried out a lightning war against a rival nation, the legend who was listed in the bingo book amongst kage-level threats at the age of _ten,_ spoke in the smallest, quietest, weakest voice imaginable. "Will you help me?"

Dai kept eye contact with Hibiki, her deep, amber eyes locked onto Hibiki's onyx orbs. She adjusted the position of her free hand and locked it onto the back of Hibiki's head, pulling him closer to her. Hibiki only resisted for a moment, before he acquiesced, and the two kissed, deep in the dark recesses of the grave of a multiple thousand year old civilization. The two remained locked to eachother for so long that their lungs began to burn, eventually having no option but to separate. Dai, however, didn't let Hibiki move, instead planting her forehead against his as the two caught their breath.

"You need only ask." Said Dai, with a genuine smile playing her features, as a small beetle crawled up her neck and across her cheek. She kept her head pressed against Hibiki's for several long, silent minutes, simply listening to him breathe, before she reached back with her foot and caught the column of a chair, rolling it over to her as she slowly let go of the Senju heir, noting with an indescribable warmth in her chest that, for a brief moment, he leaned forward with her, not wanting to lose contact with her. Dai sat down upon the chair, and rolled it up to the desk, next to Hibiki. "So tell me... What did that... Moving picture... Say?" She asked, resting her head on a hand.

Hibiki smiled lightly, and sat down at his chair, giving Dai the rundown of the story, and fiddling with the computer as he did so, pulling up images and videos to assist in his recounting of the tale. Dai nodded, but cut Hibiki off when he reached the part surrounding Hagoromo and his brother.

"Hibiki... That is the Sage of Six Paths." She said, "he is a legend, a god, even. He possessed the Rinnegan."

Hibiki nodded, "I've read about him." He said, "but according to this, according to my people, after he killed his mother and convinced his brother to go watch over her... On the moon, apparently... He immediately turned around and finished the job." Said Hibiki, as he leaned back in his chair and waved his hand at the big screen, upon which was a picture of the eponymous Sage at the end of the Kaguya half of the war, standing next to his brother and the then leader of what remained of humanity. "He infected the rest of mankind with the chakra that spread from that tree, and killed whoever resisted." He said, "if you believe them... He separated the ten-tailed beast from his mother, and became its jinchuriki... And later, at the twilight of humanity's existence, and the end of World War Three, he split that beast into nine different ones, creating the nine tailed beasts we've come to know and hoard." He explained.

Dai shook her head, "but... He preached peace, and forgiveness." She said, earnestly.

"Apparently not." Said Hibiki, as he leaned forward and searched for the files regarding chakra, and the Terrans' findings on it. "They kept calling chakra a 'disease', I want to know what they meant." He said, as he pulled up several files and began reading them off of the big screen, his red Sharingan eyes slowly fading into existence as he took in the information at lightning speed. "Interesting..." He said.

"What?"

"I was right, in that Chakra didn't exist in my world. But it's just that - _in _my world. It came in on a meteor, and when Kaguya ate the fruit, it saturated the atmosphere with its radiation... Apparently it was able to infect any living creature without higher brain functions... Animals, basically. But their findings suggest it couldn't infect humans without some kind of catalyst, and Hagoromo was this catalyst." He explained, "I wonder if this sage grew a god complex during his time fighting his mother... And sought to create a master race of chakra-catalyzed humans." He said.

"So... Chakra did not come from the earth?" Dai asked.

"Nope." Said Hibiki, "and each and every Terran on earth feared it... But I can't find why, beyond the obvious albino tree-people army, the ten-tailed demon, and its 'Rabbit Goddess' leash-holder." He ran his hand through his hair and thought for a moment, before he leaned forward and started searching for the side effects of this 'E-Radiation'. "They thought it was some kind of radiation... A by product of..." He paused, "actually, that will be incredibly difficult to explain... So just think of it like an invisible poison that never goes away." He said, to which, Dai nodded. "So they thought it was some kind of poison, that couldn't be created on Earth..." He squinted his eyes, before one word began appearing in more and more reports. "Oh... That... Might explain things." He leaned back, bringing his hand up to his chin as he considered the implications of what he was reading.

"What?" Dai asked.

"So, about ten years after hostilities with Kaguya began, they were able to re-arm all of their soldiers with weapons that could more effectively kill the Zetsu. This allowed them to bring in more corpses, and conduct more studies, whereupon they were able to try and separate everything in these creatures that they could identify, until they were left with what they didn't even comprehend. They came up with hundreds of possible theories, but they had not the time, the equipment, or the technology to try and narrow these theories down." Hibiki explained, "it looks like one of the more popular theories came around, after an artifact run in Europe, when they stopped by the Large Hadron Collider and got the data they needed to try and conduct a different kind of test. This theory suggests that Chakra is what happens when dark matter interacts with regular matter." He said, "and for simplicity's sake, think of a rock. Every rock you can see is regular matter, but every rock you can't see, is dark matter. Back then, they had big telescopes looking into the sky, but they couldn't see every rock out there, so they theorized that there existed rocks that specifically could not be seen, matter that does not generate or interact with light." He explained. "They barely got that far into the testing phase before they had to bury NORAD and hide it from the Zetsu, but their theory was that the meteorite was one of these rocks they couldn't see, and that upon interacting with the world, it created dark energy, in the form of chakra. The reason chakra can seemingly break the laws of physics? Those laws don't even apply to it, they are laws unto themselves." Said Hibiki, "when Kaguya ate that fruit, and her son catalyzed the human race, we all were turned into _living_ dark energy generators... And the candle that burns twice as bright only lasts half as long." He said.

Dai stared at Hibiki blankly, "so... Chakra... I didn't understand a single word you just said." She finally admitted, with an apologetic shake of her head.

"Well... We're sifting through thirty years of research in just a few minutes. I'm certain there are entire libraries of notes, findings, and conclusions from their studies into chakra, and that what I just said was but one theory." He shook his head, "the problem is, I am in no state to actually try and sift through this information. Ignoring the fact that I'm still reeling from the fact that my entire civilization is long gone and even longer dead, this is all _way_ above my education, and it's almost entirely guess work, on their end." He sighed, leaning back into his chair as he thought.

"I don't understand..."

"You asked me, earlier, what I thought about the 'why' of Chakra, and I gave you my theory. I'm willing to bet, if you gave a thousand scientists a source of chakra to study, you'd get a thousand different ideas." He explained, "you've got my 'middle ground' theory, you've got this dark matter theory, I'm willing to bet someone else came up with a theory regarding the multiverse... Hell, maybe there's a theory about it being present throughout the entire universe, we just drew the short end of the stick and it never saturated planet earth." He said, pointing at the screen, where a picture of several men in hazardous materials suits cut apart, poked, and prodded a paper-white corpse with leaf green hair. "Point is... I'll need to leave some clones here, long term... But given that those clones could pop whenever _I_ take too much damage in a fight, I'll also need a way to get back here that doesn't entail burning all of my chakra on a ten hour flight." He said, scratching his chin in thought.

"Perhaps there is a way to transport yourself, like you can summon the eagles, and they, you?" Dai asked.

"Probably." Said Hibiki, with a nod. "I read once that Tobirama created a space-time technique that allowed him to teleport anywhere, at will, so long as he marked the location. I'll look into it when we get home." Said Hibiki, as he slid back from the desk, and spawned a shadow clone, which took his seat when Hibiki stood up from it. Hibiki took a few steps away and stretched his back, as his clone started fiddling with the computer.

"So... what is the plan, now?" Dai asked.

"Go home." He said, with a deep and exhausted sigh. "How long has it been? Three days? Four?" He asked, "I lost track of time. Everybody's probably at the other village's throats... Come on." He nodded his head towards the door, and the two began the long trek back out of the underground installation.

"So... What do you think?" Dai asked, as the two of them began descending stairs and lightly strolling through the brightly lit hallways and corridors.

"I think the first thing I want that clone to figure out is how this place has power after a thousand years." Hibiki chuckled, "but that's not what you're asking." He said, a grin resting on half of his face.

"No, it is not." Said Dai, as the sounds of her and his feet hitting the ground echoed throughout the tunnels through which they walked. "Did you learn what you hoped you would?" She asked, turning to gaze at Hibiki, as the two continued walking.

"Yes and no." Hibiki finally sighed, "I learned what happened, but it wasn't what I wanted to. I think it will take me _years_ to go through and sort out all of the information in this complex, and that's with a few hundred clones all focused on information gathering. All I know right now is that... Chakra isn't of this earth. It is very likely alive, but nonsentient, essentially categorizing it as a disease, but a symbiotic one, as it gives the sufferer abilities no human has any right to. A woman was exposed to this disease, and used it to destroy six sevenths of the world, and her kid used it to destroy the final portion. Modern humans exist through that kid's efforts to create some kind of master race. My world, and this world, are one in the same." He explained, "but what I _don't_ know... Is why Kaguya Ōtsutsuki decided to destroy humanity in the first place, why her sons turned on her, why one left and one stayed behind, and why the one that stayed behind immediately turned around and decided to finish the job... _Kind of._ Because he killed soldiers, but spared non-combatants, and then made them conduits for chakra - to keep up with the previous analogy, he infected some, but killed the rest... And I don't know _why." _He said, as they made it to the blast doors and began exiting the base.

_**"I believe... I could answer that."**_ Came an inhumanly deep voice, from the shadows beyond the blast doors.

Hibiki grabbed Dai's arm and halted the both of them, his Sharingan flaring to life in an instant, cutting through the darkness of the entrance tunnel, but he was unable to locate the speaker. Hibiki pulled Dai close, his eyes wide and flitting back and forth, as the two of them went back to back.

_"Roll up your sleeve..."_ Hibiki whispered, squeezing Dai's arm.

_**"Hm..."**_ The voice came again, _**"your hesitance is telling."**_ Came the voice, which seemed to radiate from all directions, above, below, to the right and left, in front of them and behind them. _**"Are you perhaps... Plotting?"**_ He asked, as Dai surreptitiously raised the sleeve on her left arm, revealing the seal Hibiki had placed days ago. _**"You humans... Even after so long, you have never shaken your predatory instincts... Springing to defense at a moment's notice, ready to attack without hesitation."**_ The voice asked, as Hibiki channeled a minute amount of his chakra into the seal on Dai's arm, causing it to crumble to pieces and fade away, restoring all of her senses.

_"What do you see?"_ Hibiki whispered almost inaudibly, as he and Dai pressed their backs to eachother, leaving no weaknesses and no blindspots.

_"Nothing."_ Dai responded, her voice shaking. _"I see... I smell... Nothing."_

The voice hummed, now, as it lowered in pitch, almost becoming threatening. _**"Ah... An Aburame. I bet you're trying to learn why your Kikaichu can neither sense nor smell me... Perhaps it would be easier if I revealed myself?"**_ It said, as if asking a question. _**"I'll tell you what... Step outside, come to the surface and exit the still breathing corpse of your ancestor's civilization, and we shall talk."**_

Hibiki grinned, "I think I'd much prefer to stay inside the nuclear bunker, thank you... You asking us to exit, it was a valuable clue. You can't get in here. I wonder why? There can't be a chakra barrier, keeping you out, otherwise we would still be trying to blast our way in... I wonder, are you a Zetsu? Perhaps because this is all concrete, granite, and metal, you just plain can't get in. I saw the videos... You can melt into the ground, and you used that technique to make sure there was never a defensive line you couldn't breach, during the early days. But if you got caught up in America, it had to be something to do with man-made, abiotic materials. Dirt is fine, but stone and metal, you can't pass, and they used this." He said, his throat going drier and drier as he threatened what he assumed to be a part of a world-conquering siege engine. "No... She and I will stay _right here,_ thank you very much. _You_ come to _us."_ He said, letting go of Dai's arm and spawning a shadow clone, before it popped, sending orders to the one deeper in the base.

The speaker, however, merely chuckled. _**"You are wise to send orders to the clone in the facility, Hibiki Senju... But I wonder what you've told it? To gather weapons? To make an army? To stage a defense? If I am as you say, you would know those weapons to be useless."**_

"And if you want to talk to us, then you won't attack us." Hibiki narrowed his eyes, as he saw chakra leaking into the air from the tunnel outside. He grabbed Dai's arm again, _"genjutsu."_ He whispered, before he raised his voice. "If you want to talk to us so bad, then we'll compromise." As he spoke, the blast doors behind them, and in front of them, began grinding to a close. "It's really easy to look up in the archives, how to close the doors. So you can keep talking, and we'll just listen."

_**"Or maybe, boy, you and I shall do so much more than talking."**_ Barely a second after the voice finished speaking, a large, thick tendril of darkness shot forward from the tunnel, weaving in between the blast doors and wrapping around Hibiki before he could blink. The tendril ripped Hibiki off of his feet and pulled him out from the bunker, just in time for the blast doors to finish closing.

"Fuck!" Hibiki popped his claws and slammed his fist into the tendril, as it squeezed his chest and pulled him through the tunnel, trying to haul him to the surface. The figure in control of the tendril screamed in pain, and the tendril writhed, releasing its grip and vanishing back up the tunnel, towards the dark night sky outside.

Still airborne, Hibiki threw his arms forward and blasted his chakra, taking less than two seconds to build more airtime and hurtle out of the tunnel to NORAD. He soared through the air and up and around the winding tunnels, weaving in and out of more tendrils as they burst from the ground, the ceiling, and the walls, and tried to impale him. The number of tendrils continued to multiply exponentially, until the walls and floors were covered in the writhing black mass. Hibiki bellowed out, yelling as he built up more speed and hurtled towards the excavated entrance, finding it more and more difficult to dodge the tendrils, and noticing with a brief pang of despair that the tendrils were trying to create a net around the entrance they had excavated. His yells increasing in pitch and volume, Hibiki poured more chakra into his thrusters and tried to beat the tendrils before they could seal the entrance.

The roaring Senju heir crashed into the wall of tendrils, stretching it outwards as he pushed against it. They tried to contain him, to push him back underground, but Hibiki slammed his fist, and the three bloody bone claws that still poked out of it, into the center of the mass, again and again, until he managed to cut through it, and burst through the writhing wall of tendrils, soaring high into the cold, dark night sky. After he climbed several dozen meters into the air, he whipped around and slowed himself to a hover, his bright red eyes scanning the ground for movement. After a few seconds, he saw something emerge from the ground, a dark, oily black mass that slowly formed itself into a vaguely humanoid shape. It had two bright yellow eyes, and a Cheshire grin filled with rows of sharp, jagged white teeth, and it was looking straight at the airborne Senju.

_**"I saw your battle with the four-tails Jinchuriki, 'Lord' Senju, that was what brought you to the attention of myself and my**** master."**_ He called out, his loud, inhumanly deep voice cutting through the night air like a cannon. _**"But it was your duel against Katsuo the Monster, that truly piqued our interest! And lo and behold, you hold information no living man should even comprehend, let alone possess! And then you, in four days, did what I could not do in one thousand years! Hibiki Senju, I only want to talk, to give you the answers you so desperately crave! To fill in the gaps those fools could not!"**_ The black Zetsu roared out, waving its sharp-clawed arm outwards, indicating the bunker below him.

Hibiki's eyes narrowed, "And who would your master be, I wonder?!" He called out, "Kaguya, Hamura, and Hagoromo are _dead._ _No one_ can live that long, not even with chakra!"

Zetsu, however, laughed mockingly. _**"You pride yourself on what you know, you spoke with such pride about how much your ancestors learned every day... But you know so little, boy! You have learned **_**nothing_!"_** It pointed a sharp, pointed finger to Hibiki, _**"you think you know power, don't you? You think that taking to the skies, and augmenting your body with diluted natural energy, makes you powerful! You are **_**nothing_ compared to my master, and even _less_ compared to my mother!"_**

Hibiki narrowed his eyes again. _Another clue..._ He thought, sighing, and allowing the creature to think he would play his game. The Senju heir slowly killed the flow of chakra to his hands and feet, and lowered himself to the ground, landing several feet from the black Zetsu. "I would assume your mother to be Kaguya Ōtsutsuki." He finally said, silently praying this thing wasn't trying to break into the bunker and get to Dai, and wondering where the hell the update from his clone was.

The Zetsu's cheshire grin only stretched even further across its round head. _**"So astute, young Senju... Even I will admit, few people were as wise or intelligent as you and your ancestors."**_

_Keep it talking, Hibiki._ Thought the Senju heir. "Why do you continue? The Sage of Six Paths finished the job, destroyed the ancient world and paved the way for this one."

_**"Oh... Your 'Sage' was a naiive buffoon, believing his 'Ninshu' to be the key to worldwide peace... It was absurd then, and only continued to become moreso now."**_ It explained, _**"no... I continue for my own reasons. You need not know them."**_ It said, as it leaned its head upwards to stare at the moon, its eyes closing as it basked in its pale white light. _**"I doubt you will live long enough to see my efforts bear fruit to begin with... But you may, such that I shall not spoil the surprise**_ **now."**

Hibiki kept his face straight as the creature spoke. "Then who is your master?"

_**"All these questions about the present, none about the past. What happened to the 'why'?"**_ The creature asked, lolling its head back to a forward facing position, and opening its bright yellow eyes.

"I _found _my answers, they're right down there, written by _human_ hands." Said Hibiki, pointing down to the depths of the mountain.

_**"And therein lies the problem... Written by human hands, from a human perspective. You will never see our side of things... Never know the thoughts that ran through my mother's head as she tasted the fruit of the God Tree."**_ It said.

Hibiki could almost feel its deep, rumbling voice in his chest, despite the few meter distance between the two, and all of the trees, dirt, and grass around to absorb the sound. "Power corrupts, and absolute power corrupts absolutely." Said Hibiki, "a _human,_ like one of the ones your mother tried to have killed, said that. I wonder... How long was Miss Ōtsutsuki cast adrift, for?" He silenced the creature with those words, caused it to grow stiff and straight. "How long was she on that island? It is not... At _all..._ Difficult to think that she started losing hope, and gaining hatred for mankind as time went on and no one came to rescue her. So, all of a sudden, she gains god-like, nearly omnipotent power, and a bunch of navy ships show up to whisk her away, likely to some lab to be poked and prodded."

_**"You shut your mouth."**_

"So, in fear, she destroys these ships, and kills those men, before dedicating to make the entire _race_ go extinct, creating things like _you_ to help expedite the process." Hibiki continued, his frown deepening into a full-blown scowl. "I know what I need to know about the past, Zetsu. I don't _need_ to know just what caused your 'mother' to hate and despise humanity. I don't _need_ to know what caused her son to kill her, seal her away, split her power into nine separate pieces, and then turn around and finish the job, creating some kind of master race in the process. The only things I need to know are what _happened, how, _and _when._ Only after, when I understand it all, will I even consider focusing on the why - and you, you poor, misguided, pitiful creature... You've told me that there exists not one, but two people in this world that can tell me why, when I'm good and ready." He said, "your ploy, to tempt me with information in an attempt to make me work for you and your master, to whatever goal you have set... It won't work. Because you have nothing to go on."

**_"But if I destroyed this base, and wiped out every last shred of information from the ancient world -"_**

"You would have done so, a very long time ago. With over a thousand years to do it, you've had plenty of time, and with chakra, you've had plenty of strength." Hibiki challenged, as he got an update from his clone, all it needed was a signal, and the fireworks would start. "And even if you couldn't then, and can now..." Hibiki lowered his voice and locked his blood red eyes with the Zetsu's bright yellow orbs. "I can assure you, this bunker... and all of the remnants of the old world, from the smallest shack to the biggest city ruins. From Europe to America, from sea to shining sea... As the sole living being who even remembers their glory, I claim them. They are _mine... _And I will defend them to my last dying breath." Hibiki clenched his fist, and a small, minute amount of chakra began leaking through his pores, lighting them both aglow with bright blue fire. "Now I know what you're thinking... 'Is he really that strong, or is it just a bluff?'... Well to be honest, with all this excitement, I can't even tell, myself... But I guess you've just got to ask yourself one question... 'Do I feel lucky?'..." His scowl grew ever deeper, a burning, livid rage lighting up his face. "Well... _Do you?"_ He growled, his blood red eyes spinning ferociously. _"Punk?!"_

The Zetsu was still and silent, peering at Hibiki with rage clouding its oily features. _**"You would do well not to make me your enemy, boy. My influence has decided the fate of the entire shinobi world, from the beginning of its inception to its eventual, inevitable, dying breaths."**_ It growled, as Hibiki felt a bug crawl up the back of his neck.

"I guess you feel lucky." Said Hibiki. "Unfortunately for you, one thousand years is more than enough time for someone's luck to run out. Now make your move, or go away. This is _my_ home... _My_ territory... And If I so much as _think_ you've come here unlawfully... I will not stop until I do to you... What you've done to me. I will kill you... I will kill your master... I will dismantle your homes... I will erase your history... And obliterate any trace of your existence, until the world at large doesn't even remember you." A spark of lightning danced across the chakra radiating off of his body. _"Now make your move."_

The two ancient beings stood there, mere meters separating them. The black, oily mass had its sharp, clawed hands hovering above its hips, the tan, Senju heir had his own hands stuffed into the pockets of his coat, as his chakra set him aglow, lighting him and the area around him as if it were broad daylight. The Zetsu's fingers twitched, and the Senju's blood red eyes narrowed.

_**"You have clones... An army of them, equipped with the weapons hidden in this base, spreading through the forests and taking up positions."**_

"You have your tendrils, spreading throughout the ground, in an attempt to surround them, likely to impale them the moment we start."

_**"Your ally is spending her chakra to reproduce her beetles at an explosive rate. The forest is quickly becoming a haven for her strongest insects."**_

"But I've seen six try and crawl onto you. You have complete and total control over your body, you've killed every one before they even got to your knees."

_**"She's trying to breed a species capable of draining me dry, but you have her hidden in the base, behind dozens of clones with heavy weapons."**_

"Do I see the ground shifting beneath your feet? You were able to create a _shitload_ of tendrils during my flight, but how many can you create, really? You want to crush this mountain, or expose the bunker, but can you create enough tendrils to take out my clones, crush this mountain, _and_ fight me on equal grounds, at the same time?"

_**"Your chakra levels are sub-nominal due to your flights and clone usage on this and previous days. You won't be able to hold up your cursed seal for quite as long as you would normally."**_

"Your chakra is an interesting color... Green. I've never seen it anywhere before... Save, my uncle during the village invasion, Katsuo the Monster, and the eagles, every day. I wonder if, by using my seal, I could leech your chakra, just by being _near_ you?"

_**"You never had a chance to create a clone to replace yourself with, as such you will not risk unleashing the eight gates, as your clone did to replenish its reserves."**_

"Your sensory abilities are better than most Hyuga I've met, but how far out do they stretch? Could they make it to Denver, perhaps?"

_**"A clone, and subsequent army, that is a quarter of an hour away at best, and not equipped with ancient weaponry."**_

"Even back before the mass rearmament, they killed at least a _few_ of you through sheer numbers... But it is clear you are not like your paler cousins. Skin differences aside, you have no ability to increase your numbers, else you would have done so _long_ ago... And had you brought some of the white Zetsu along, you would have played that hand."

Zetsu stared at Hibiki, his eyes narrowing dangerously and his smile inverting into a deep, furious frown.

"Can you destroy me, who has the knowledge of the old world, and the power of the new?" Hibiki asked.

The Black Zetsu roared a loud, bestial roar, filling the air and sending powerful shockwaves out from the sheer strength of its lungs. Hibiki threw his hand forward and with a brief handsign from his free one, zapped Zetsu with a lightning bolt, the thunderclap echoing out for miles, and signalling the hundreds of clones Hibiki had setting up positions in the woods on the mountain. Hibiki launched into the air just as the Zetsu whipped its elastic arm around and clenched its fist, which molded into a seamless orb and grew hundreds of large, sharp spikes. The Zetsu threw his self-made mace forward, stretching his arm to cross the distance between it and Hibiki just as the forest lit up, and thousands upon thousands of massive slugs exploded forward, the rat-a-tat sound of thunder echoing across this mountain for the first time in centuries.

Hibiki dodged the mace, weaving in and out of its flailing path of destruction, as birds of all shapes and sizes took off in a mass panic. The Zetsu shielded itself from danger by forming a seamless spherical barrier out of its black tendrils, and with but a thought, hundreds of tendrils burst forth from the ground, managing to wrap around several dozen Hibiki clones before the rest leapt into the air, continuing to fire upon the black creature. Zetsu roared out again and crushed the Hibikis in its grip, causing them and their weapons to vanish in a spray of blood, as the surviving clones took off into the air and blasted at him, and the Alpha Hibiki raised one hand and gathered in it an orb of explosive chakra. All of the chakra, concentrating and gathering in one place immediately attracted the full, undivided attention of the black beast on the ground, but before he could try and attack the airborne chunin again, it was accosted by more gunfire, as dozens of the surviving clones flew by and raked it with gunfire, its fully dextrous, elastic body jumping up and forming small shields and barriers wherever bullets hit.

The creature snarled, and leapt into the air after Hibiki, its fist reared and growing in size. Hibiki threw his hands and feet to the side and blasted out of the way, and as Zetsu passed him, he hooked his arm in the crook of Zetsu's and whirled it around, hurtling it towards the ground, away from the mountain range, where it impacted with a large explosion of dirt and debris. The black Zetsu skidded to a halt, but just as it clawed its way back to its feet, it heard the clicking sounds of dozens of safeties being removed. It took it only a moment to take a look around at its surroundings, where it noticed several hundred Hibiki clones, each shouldering a rocket launcher as big as they were. The black Zetsu barely retreated a quarter of the way into the ground before the Hibiki clones pulled their triggers and launched their projectiles, and hundreds of rockets flew to one central location, blasting it into smithereens, each explosion whipping Zetsu around like a ping-pong ball and tearing large chunks off of its oily, elastic body.

After several seconds of sustained rocketfire, the dust and smoke began to settle and clear, leaving a large, empty crater. The airborne Alpha Hibiki narrowed his eyes as the other gunners slowed to a halt in mid-air, searching for any sign of the ancient monster, each of them knowing that it couldn't have been so easy to kill it. Their fears were proven correct when Hibiki felt a sudden, stabbing, burning pain in his arm. Before he could blink, the black, oily mass enveloped him like a cloak and, out from his back stretched the elastic, formless figure of Zetsu, its mouth, filled with rows of razor sharp teeth, open wide and its eyes open and rabid. After its body finished to stretching across Hibiki's core, it pressed tight against his chest and just a second later, dozens of jagged spikes penetrated him and sprayed blood in all directions. Hibiki, barely able to even wheeze as he felt his lungs get shredded, did the first thing he could think of and threw both hands and feet upwards, angling all of his thrust downwards to the ground. He soared down and in less than three seconds and slammed into the ground. Hibiki wheezed out what little air he had, and the black Zetsu covering him bellowed out in pain, but merely squeezed tighter, trying to kill the shinobi before the shinobi could force it off of him.

Hibiki, increasingly desperate, did the same thing to Zetsu, that Zetsu did to him, and utilized his Wolverine release to grow twelve pairs of jagged spikes from his rib cage, shredding both his body and Zetsu's, and causing Zetsu's compressed grip to slacken just enough for Hibiki to grab a handful of the creature's gelatinous, rubber skin, and rip the creature off of him, his jagged ribs shredding the creature even more as it was separated from his core. With darkness encroaching upon his vision, Hibiki channeled explosive chakra into the fistful of Zetsu he had ahold of, not caring for the range of the attack. The detonation sent Zetsu flying, the creature writhing and screaming in pain as it melted into the ground to beat a hasty retreat. Hibiki fell forward and onto his arms, his improvised rib-cage weapons crumbling into dust as his healing factor worked to repair the damage done to him, starting with his lungs and his heart, and working its way out.

His chest and back felt as if they were on fire, but Hibiki wasn't out of his senses enough to not feel the ground shifting and shaking beneath his hands. With a croak, the Senju heir pushed back with both hands and managed to curve his head out of the way of a rapid uppercut, but unfortunately for the Senju, the black Zetsu only sought to further display its almost completely rubber dexterity as it curved its arm around and wrapped it around his throat. The Zetsu attempted to drag Hibiki into the ground with it, but several Hibiki clones arrived to grab Hibiki by his severely bleeding chest and keep him above ground, as several others cut and sliced at the black tendril trying to drag him below ground. Finally, the Zetsu could take the pain no longer and released the Alpha, allowing him to fall back and catch his breath, coughing, gasping and wheezing as air filled his still healing lungs.

Breathing heavily, with his shredded, blood-stained clothes hanging from his body, the Alpha Hibiki shook his head, stretching his jaw as he considered new plans. This creature didn't have any enhanced Katsuo or Ay-like durability, but it seemed to heal just as quickly as it was injured, it didn't matter how much of it Hibiki destroyed. Beating it senseless likely wouldn't work, if its entire body was rubber and elastic, but blowing it to smithereens wasn't working either. Hibiki didn't know any genjutsu, so he couldn't try and put it under, and he didn't have any seals that could seal the creature up, immobilize it, or cripple its chakra network, if it even had one remotely similar to humans. Its natural energy meant that Dai couldn't use her beetles to try and absorb its chakra and kill it.

Hibiki narrowed his eyes, and clenched his fist, his cursed seal stretching across his body. If this thing drew in natural energy, and the Zetsu was powered by it, there was a chance he could hurt it through physical contact, absorbing its energy. With his deep, purple chakra radiating off of his body, Hibiki whipped his head up and saw the ground bursting up in a shower of dirt and debris, Zetsu standing several meters away, swinging up the arm that was buried under the dirt. Hibiki's eyes widened and he launched himself into the air, dodging its arm, but he noticed that the arm never even swung towards him, it instead wrapped around one of the gun-wielding Hibiki clones, and in an instant, it compressed around the clone's body, but instead of impaling it, it wrapped around the clone and flattened itself to him. The clone struggled, trying to rip the black, oily mass off of it, but after a few moments, its wild flailing, desperate ripping, and pained yells, yielded to stillness, and deep laughter.

_**"Oh... Hibiki."**_ Came the deep voice of Zetsu, as it wrapped around the clone's body. _**"You... You have power that even you do not know of."**_ The clone turned its gaze up to the airborne Alpha, the black mass' mouth stretched up in a wide glasgow smile, and the clone smiling as wide a toothy grin as it could. The creature's yellow eyes vanished, replaced by Hibiki's three-tomoed Sharingan, and barely a second after that, the mind-controlled clone itself vanished, followed in the blink of an eye by all of the clones that surrounded it. Hibiki had barely been able to keep up with it with his Sharingan, but he had recognized what the thing had done, he had seen it before, back in Kiri: The speed technique that Aojiroi had used, this thing had just used the exact same thing.

The Alpha Hibiki turned to a clone that was hovering next to him, as the Zetsu-controlled clone skidded to a halt, laughing maniacally. The hovering clone turned to look at the Alpha, knowing what he would say. "Get to Dai. Make sure she's safe and sound, inside the bunker."

"She'll be pissed."

"You're thinking what I'm thinking." Said the Alpha, as he tried to release the shadow clone technique on the zetsu-controlled clone, but it refused to obey. "So just tell her, and she'll be _less_ pissed." The rest of the clones vanished on word of their Alpha, and the clone he spoke to nodded, and blasted off back towards the mountain, leaving the Alpha Hibiki to turn back to the black Zetsu, which had quieted down and was now merely sneering at the airborne Senju heir.

_Only way I can beat it, is to kill the clone it's taking control of._ Thought Hibiki, _it... It used a lot of chakra to wrest control from me, and it seems to be amplifying the clone's chakra, and subsisting on it... If I can kill the clone and separate it, it'll be in a very bad position... But it seems to be able to access and use all of my bloodlines, including the ones I don't know about, if that Flash thing is any indicator..._ He narrowed his eyes, and lowered his position, landing on the ground several meters from Zetsu. _So... I need to get it to first use the Flash thing again, so I can try and copy it and have another weapon to use... And if it uses any other bloodlines, I need to see if I can't use those too._ He reached up and tore the shredded coat from his body, tossing it to the side, leaving it to crumple up in a bloody heap on the cold dirt.

The Senju heir stretched his slick, blood-covered arms, which seemed to radiate a red-white glow as it reflected the moonlight, and hopped in place a few times. "Ready for round two?" He asked, as he settled into an offensive stance, his fists clenched so tight that the drying blood seeped out from in between his digits.

The black Zetsu grinned widely, its oily black skin settling into a jagged, teeth-like pattern. The ground around it shifted, and dark brown wood grew from beneath its feet, forming several more Hibiki-Zetsu crossbreed clones.

The Senju heir scowled, and let loose a deep, almost threatening sigh. "I guess you are." Without further delay, Hibiki pushed his feet down, crushing the ground beneath it, before he leapt forward, creating a large, deep crater where his feet had been, and crossing the distance between him and his possessed clone in less than a second.


	47. History: Things to Come -V-

Chapter 46

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Hibiki launched himself forward, through the cold, dark night air, a deep crater left in the ground behind him due to the strength of his leap. He crossed the distance between him and his possessed clone in an instant, and threw his reared fist forward with a savage battle-cry. His fist slammed into the crossed arms of the possessed clone, impacting with a thunderclap and a massive shockwave, the force of impact causing the clone to skid backwards several feet. Before Zetsu could react, two of his wood-clones grabbed Hibiki by the sides and yanked him backwards, slamming him into the ground, their arms losing their texture and color and turning into sharp, pointed wooden spears, which they stabbed downward with, sending blood and gore flying into the air with each jab. Hibiki reacted quickly and slammed both palms into their chests, feeling how hollow and thin their chests felt before he detonated his curse-mark chakra, shredding the both of them in a shower of splinters.

Before Hibiki could get to his feet, the third wood clone appeared behind him with a noise similar to that of a zipper being undone. The wood clone had one foot on the ground and one raised behind its back, which it sent flying into Hibiki's scalp, launching him forward and into the Alpha Zetsu, who had its arm held out to clothes-line Hibiki, flipping him around and sending him back to the ground. Hibiki, however, reacted as fast as he could and spun on his hand, knocking Zetsu off of its feet. Hibiki pushed off of the ground and flipped to an upright position, before he threw both hands in front of him and pulsed his chakra, sending Zetsu flying with a powerful gust of wind. Before Hibiki could execute the next part of his plan and gain some altitude, the wood clone appeared behind him with another zipping noise, and roundhoused him into the forest, the force of impact multiplied exponentially by the wood clone's speed.

Hibiki soared through the night air, crashing through three trees before he could slow himself down and lock his feet to the ground. Hibiki's Sharingan eyes were as wide as he could make them, searching desperately for that _one_ sign, that one flicker of movement that told him Zetsu was using its Flash technique. Hibiki stood there, his feet locked to the ground and his hands held up in a defensive stance, searching for any sign of movement, when finally, after several seconds, he saw it - Zetsu sprinting through the forest so fast that it appeared as if he were moving at normal speeds to Hibiki's Sharingan. The way its chakra was flowing, it looked as if it were building up underneath its skin similarly to how Hibiki took off and flew, but instead of building up the pressure and clenching it to release enough to get thrust, the pressure seemed to build for a moment, before it spiked exponentially and then was lit aflame like a pool of gasoline, leading to a brief but noticeable, were one in possession of a Sharingan, contrail of chakra behind the runner. This contrail dissipated about as fast as it formed, but it told Hibiki enough about the technique to let him try and replicate it himself.

Unfortunately, he couldn't replicate it at this moment, because with the speed at which Zetsu was running, it appeared behind Hibiki in less than the time it took to blink, and it spun on its heel and slammed its foot into the small of Hibiki's back. Hibiki was sent flying several dozen meters, but barely a second later, the wood clone appeared in front of him and slammed its fist into Hibiki's gut, its speed and strength overtaking Hibiki's great momentum and curving him into the ground, where he impacted with a loud crater and a brief shake of the ground.

Hibiki felt hostile chakra enter his system, and his eyes were filled with a blinding white light. The Senju heir cursed, and acted on the first thoughts that ran through his mind: He channeled as much lightning chakra through his system as he could, again brute-forcing his way to Ay's lighting cloak, and increasing his durability by several dozen exponents. The lightning that surrounded his body was affected by the nature chakra filtered through his curse seal, turning a deep onyx-gray shade, but it did the job and allowed him to survive the point-blank explosion. The ground beneath Hibiki was blasted apart, forming a multiple meter wide crater that he fell to the bottom of, but just as his back hit the ground and his lightning cloak vanished, he threw both hands forward and locked his fingers in a diamond pattern.

_"Ki-ko-HO!"_ The Senju heir bellowed, sending a wave of explosive chakra outwards, obliterating the wood clone. Hibiki slumped backwards and let his arms fall to the ground for a moment, before he felt the ground shake and quake beneath him.

Before Hibiki could even curse, a pair of arms, covered in a black, oily mass, exploded out from beneath the ground and wrapped around Hibiki's throat. Hibiki croaked and struggled against Zetsu's iron grip, as the possessed clone pulled downwards and pressed Hibiki against the ground. His grunts were caught in his flattened throat, Hibiki slammed his elbow into the ground, splintering it further and partially exposing the Zetsu-possessed Shadow Clone. Hibiki lifted his elbow again and brought it swinging down a second time, smashing it into Zetsu's face once, twice, and then a third time with assistance from his chakra thrusters, stunning it to the point that it slacked its grip and gave Hibiki the chance to blast off.

Hibiki arced through the cold night air, the wind howling at his ears and whipping at his tattered clothes. The curse-marked Senju heir remained airborne for a few seconds before he hit the ground and rolled to a halt. Hibiki clenched his eyes tight, and his fist tighter, as he recalled everything he'd seen in both Aojiroi and Zetsu using the Flash techniques. The way the chakra flowed, the way it seemed to bubble just under the surface of their skin, the way it hyper-compressed for just a brief instant, before it exploded outward and increased the user's speed. Hibiki pushed all of the curse mark chakra from his core, to his skin, and compressed it as far as he could without letting an ounce of it leak out. The reaction was immediate, he felt the entire world slow down even moreso than it did when he'd used the lightning cloak. His eyes whipped open and he saw the entire world, the dirt he'd kicked up on impact freezing in the air, the scuff-marks on the ground ceasing their ripple-like spread, and the leaves barely budging an inch as even the wind halted, his speed and reflexes increased so far that it wasn't him reacting to the world, it was the world reacting to him.

He whipped his head up and bolted forward, crossing dozens of meters with every passing microsecond. Even with his speed and increased reflexes, he barely had a _nanosecond_ to revel in the speed at which he was running and perceiving, because he was slammed into by Zetsu, running just as fast as him. Hibiki was sent crashing through several trees and skipping across the ground like a stone across water. The dirt and debris, even the wood splinters and the hulking masses of wood all seemed as if they were frozen in the air, due to how fast the two opponents were moving. Hibiki clawed at the ground and ground to a halt, digging several deep grooves with his fingers and the balls of his feet, before he bolted forward again and whipped to the side to dodge a straight right from Zetsu. Hibiki threw his fist in a wide arc, but Zetsu batted it away with its left before throwing his right in for a savage, blisteringly fast uppercut. This too was caught and redirected by the Senju heir, who realized in a thousandth of a second that, though Zetsu, through possessing his clone, seemed to have a handle over his bloodlines, his curse mark and his techniques were beyond it, which meant that Hibiki had a clear advantage in strength, so long as he still had chakra to fuel the curse mark.

This knowledge in mind, Hibiki back-handed Zetsu's right hand away and threw a flurry of six punches, trailing upwards from Zetsu's stomach, and ending with a right cross on Zetsu's face. Hibiki followed up with his momentum, kicking Zetsu in the face with the back of his heel before he hopped into the air and grabbed at Zetsu's head, wrenching it downwards, towards his knee. Zetsu, however, used its own enhanced speed to throw its hands up and catch Hibiki's knee and halt it just an inch before its nose. It grasped Hibiki's knee with both hands and whirled around, slamming Hibiki into the ground and mounting him, before sending several haymaker punches at lightning speeds at Hibiki's face, whipping it from side to side with every blow. Hibiki covered his face with both arms, shielding himself from the blow before he experimented with this Flash technique, using it in conjunction with his Sharingan to increase his perception and his reflexes _even farther,_ to the point where his reaction time was no longer seeing things in milli and microseconds, the boy was seeing the world crawl by in _picoseconds, __trillionths_ of a second. Even Zetsu, moving so fast that the world bent to its will, slowed to a crawl to Hibiki, who, thanks to his Flash chakra, was actually able to react as fast as his Sharingan allowed him to perceive. He clenched his fist and slammed it into Zetsu's chin, sending the possessed clone flying into the air.

Hibiki hopped to his feet, and whipped his head up, locking onto Zetsu before it even got a meter off of the ground. The Senju heir reached forward and locked his hand around the leg covered in the black, oily mass. He ripped Zetsu out of the air and hopped up, slamming his foot into Zetsu's chest and sending it flying as the world finally sped back up. The wind began howling and raging, the dirt and debris flew in all directions, and the leaves rustled in real time. Hibiki, breathing heavily, tried formulating a plan - Zetsu was using one of _his_ clones, which meant that the only way to beat Zetsu would be to beat the clone, but the only way to beat the clone would be to kill it, and Hibiki more than anyone, _knew how hard it was_ to kill him. It was like a brick wall slamming into another brick wall, while the Flash technique was good and helpful, he needed something much, much more different to work it, so his goal was less to brutalize his clone and break its defenses, and more to wait for the signal from the clone under the mountain.

The world slowed down again as Zetsu sped towards Hibiki. Hibiki threw up both hands and intercepted three lightning fast punches, tossing them out of the way of their intended target. He blocked two wide crosses and deflected a blisteringly fast uppercut, before he countered by grabbing Zetsu by the long, unkempt hair on the possessed clone's head. Hibiki wrenched the clone's head back and threw his fist toward's Zetsu's face, but when he hit the possessed clone, he shrieked, his hand flaring in pain as the sound of flesh striking metal filled the air. The world sped back up as Hibiki stumbled backwards, flicking his hand back and forth as his healing factor undid the damage; he looked from his hand to Zetsu, and noticed how the light was reflecting off of the skin of the clone with an almost metallic sheen.

Hibiki's jaw slackened and he tilted his head to the side disbelievingly, as he noticed the skin change from metal, back to flesh, almost like an oil painting being washed away. "Oh... _Come on."_ Hibiki groaned, as Zetsu grinned. "What the fuck _else_ do I have? First Wolverine, then the Flash, now Colossus?" Hibiki didn't even know how he could replicate that, regardless of the fact that the clone had it, so he must have it too. "What the fuck's next, Magn -" He interrupted himself and hurled an explosive orb of chakra at the black Zetsu, who merely sped up and threw its hand forward.

Instead of turning its body into steel however, two large, diamond like markings appeared on its hand, with one overlapping the other. The upper marking glowed a bright red as the explosive orb slammed into his hand, and instead of exploding, it shrank down into nothingness. Hibiki's shoulders slumped as the upper marking ceased its glowing.

_**"You... Truly do not know the power you possess, Hibiki Senju!"**_ Zetsu bellowed, as its lower marking began glowing an even brighter shade of red. _**"There is so much to learn... I wonder if you will ever discover it all!"**_ Hibiki leapt to the side as Zetsu changed the very form of the chakra he had just absorbed, transforming it from an explosive orb, into an explosive _wave._ The wave leveled all it touched in a massive, conical pattern, catching Hibiki by the edge of his shoes.

Hibiki hit the ground, and began sprinting through the woods, weaving in and out of the trees and leaving a pale, purple contrail of chakra behind him. He tried to come up with a new strategy, because his evil clone - a phrase he never once thought he'd use seriously - was becoming more and more invulnerable and powerful with every passing second. He felt the hairs stand up on the back of his neck and he whipped his head around, time slowing down even further as he saw lightning arcing through the forest, splitting around trees and flowing forward almost like water. Hibiki cursed and planted his feet into the ground, slowing down just enough to change directions and sprint to the right. The lightning, however, curved around like a bend in a river and followed him, the bright white beams lighting up the brown trees, green grass, and dusty ground as it chased the sprinting Senju heir.

Knowing he had to solve this problem before he could tackle the next one, Hibiki leapt forward and slammed both feet into the ground, sending up multiple splinters in the ground, providing him cover from the trailing lightning. It slammed into the rubble with a loud, large explosion that sent Hibiki flying. Hibiki hit the ground as the flak, shrapnel, and debris froze in the air and he sprinted back through the forest, deciding that if Zetsu were going to try and increase his durability with metal, Hibiki would meet that metal with lightning. Moving so fast that he hardly even disturbed the ground that blurred beneath him, Hibiki slid under fallen trees, hopped over boulders, and weaved in and out of danger as he made his way back to Zetsu, both hands streaming copious amounts of onyx-tinted lightning chakra.

_"FALCON..."_ Hibiki clapped his right fist into his left hand and leached its chakra, as Zetsu came into view. The possessed clone, covered in the black, oily mass of an ancient monster, had both hands forward, with the lightning stream from before, just now beginning to vanish from the bright white orb in front of it. Hibiki increased his speed as far as he possibly could, to the point that Zetsu, even with his own enhanced speed, barely moved at a crawl. _"PUNCH!"_ Hibiki threw the fist forward, slamming it into Zetsu's face with a loud, bell-like toll.

The possessed clone had just barely managed to transform its skin to its metal, invulnerable state, but hadn't predicted Hibiki's usage of lightning chakra, and its now super-conductive body tanked the physical damage and the resultant explosion, but all of the electrical energy Hibiki poured into the punch was sent straight into Zetsu's core. Zetsu was sent flying several dozen meters, screaming and bellowing in pain as it convulsed, electricity arcing off of its body and into anything nearby. To its credit, Zetsu got to his feet as fast as it could, and even managed to replicate Hibiki's exponential growth, using its own Sharingan in conjunction with its Flash Techniques; Zetsu took just a moment to get caught up with Hibiki's speed, before engaging him in a melee as the lightning stream attack from before continued to dissipate, its light still casting the forest aglow. Hibiki launched a roundhouse which Zetsu caught, Zetsu elbowed Hibiki's knee with enough force to shatter a boulder. Hibiki barked out in pain, but threw his free leg up and around, slamming it into Zetsu's head and sending it cart-wheeling through the air. Hibiki flipped like a barrel twice before he landed on the ground and bolted after Zetsu, who had recovered and was now bouncing off the trees, keeping ahead of Hibiki as the Senju heir stooped down low and gathered explosive chakra in his right hand.

His eyes wide and his face set in a deep scowl, Hibiki added in his lightning chakra to the Flash technique, briefly igniting his lightning armor and catapulting him forward so fast that even with his mind-numbingly increased reflexes, he nearly lost control of himself as he dug both feet into the ground and skidded to a halt. Now several dozen meters in front of Zetsu, Hibiki sprinted forward again, throwing the hand with the explosive chakra forward, just in time to send it careening into Zetsu's face, detonating the orb of chakra in a massive, fiery explosion, and sending both Hibiki and Zetsu flying in different directions as the world caught up with them, the entire exchange, from Zetsu first revealing its metal skin, to Hibiki detonating the chakra in its face, having occurred in less than one and a half seconds.

Hibiki flew through the air, crashing through two trees and slamming into the ground, carving a deep trench and grinding to a halt with a groan. His entire body, in addition to smoldering due to his multiple usages of the imperfect lightning armor technique, was sore, feeling as if he'd just run a mile without stretching, very, _very_ clearly letting him know that it was not used to this particular kind of stress he was putting it through. He could feel his normal chakra reserves dipping below half due to this stress, but he hadn't received an update from his clone in the bunker, so he had to keep going, no matter the cost. Groaning, the dark-haired Senju heir got to his hands and feet and gasped for air, before he heard the zip-like noise and felt a metallic foot slam into his gut and send him flying again, resuming the battle.

Hibiki pulsed his chakra and zoomed higher into the air as he saw Zetsu leap from tree to tree, before it launched itself into the air, hurtling after Hibiki with its fist extended. Hibiki cut power to his hands and threw them forward, catching Zetsu's fist; the ancient monster's momentum caused them both to soar higher upwards before Hibiki wrenched both of his hands in opposite directions, sending Zetsu spinning like a top. Faster than Zetsu could react, Hibiki zoomed back and arced around, slamming his fist into Zetsu's back and sending it howling through the air, the Senju heir hot on its trail. Hibiki, the only one among them truly capable of flight, kept the fight in his domain as he hurtled after Zetsu, repeatedly smashing his fist into the creature's back, sending it flying, and hitting it again, each impact creating a loud, thunderous shockwave that froze in mid-air as the Senju and the black Zetsu continued moving at inhuman speeds.

After four punches to its back, Zetsu regained his faculties enough to throw both arms to the side and whip itself around to face Hibiki. Zetsu intercepted Hibiki's next right jab and deflected it with its forearm, before catching a retaliatory left hook with its right hand. Still arcing through the sky at impossible speeds under Hibiki's power, Zetsu slammed its fist into Hibiki's stomach with the sound of metal striking skin, before it reached up and grabbed Hibiki by the back of the head, wrenching it forward and slamming its steel-skinned head onto Hibiki's, crunching his nose and stunning Hibiki long enough for Zetsu to whirl the Senju heir to the side and throw him to the ground, as it followed its momentum through and arced into the ground several kilometers away, impacting with a loud, booming crash.

As Hibiki unearthed himself and shook his pounding head, the world caught up with him and he managed to hear, from a bystander's position, the distant thunderclaps and explosions, and feel the shockwaves pass over him. It felt surreal, fighting this fast, but Hibiki kept up with it, feeling the Flash chakra flare to life once again as he bolted forward. Hibiki and Zetsu met with a brutal clash, each slamming their fist into the other's face, their massive strength and speed overcoming their opponent's momentum to the point that they were each sent flying backwards, as the wind and jetstreams streamed forwards. Hibiki back-flipped into his momentum and dug his feet into the ground, his strength and speed-chakra quickly overcoming the momentum generated by the previous impact, as he bolted forward. Hibiki quickly met Zetsu, who had used its wood release to send multiple branches into the ground and halt itself wholesale, before it rebounded and launched itself back into the fray.

The two met in a furious flurry of fists and feet. Hibiki swung multiple blisteringly fast jabs and crosses at Zetsu's face, chest, and stomach, Zetsu caught these blows and used Hibiki's speed to throw him off balance, so it could smash its fist into Hibiki's face. Hibiki yanked his head to the right and dodged the blow, before he wrapped his arm around Zetsu's and coated his free hand in lightning chakra, and smashed it into Zetsu's iron stomach, electrocuting the both of them but damaging Zetsu far worse, the monster grunting and screaming in pain as it was blanketed in powerful electricity. Zetsu snarled, the mouth made of its black mass curving downward and its stolen eyes narrowing in rage. Zetsu caught Hibiki's fist and violently twisted it around, before dozens of sharp bone spikes burst out from the clone's arm and shredded Hibiki's, causing his grip to go limp. Zetsu retracted these spikes, but covered its steel fist in sharp, jagged bones and slammed it into Hibiki's face, tearing it apart and sending blood and gore spraying all over the forest, before it grabbed Hibiki's face with both hands and slammed it into its steel knee, strong enough to fracture Hibiki's superdense bones.

His head on fire and his body growing numb, Hibiki threw his good arm into Zetsu's stomach and detonated his chakra, sending Zetsu flying back and giving Hibiki a chance to heal. Hibiki's face was ragged, the electric, non-stop flare of pain lancing through it, as chunks of skin hung off of it, and blood poured out of the deep gashes and large bruises formed by the possessed clone. Hibiki spit out some blood as he felt his face stitch itself back together, and his bones knit. The Senju heir breathed heavily, clenching his shredded arm as he felt the muscles grow back into position and bulge against the skin sealing itself back up.

_Alright..._ Thought Hibiki, as the world sped back up and his shoulders slumped forward. _What have I seen from Katsuo and his guys? Can that help me?_ He asked himself, as he brought his increasingly stiff and sore arms up into a defensive stance, and braced both legs on the ground. _That viper lady was able to breathe acid... Aojiroi had that hulk thing... Katsuo could draw in natural energy... I don't think I have Katsuo's, and if the hulk thing works like I would assume it would, I don't have that either... Zetsu hasn't jumped back into the fray... Is he about to - _Hibiki was correct, he saw a thick steam fill the forest, sizzling and burning on contact with everything around it, managing to disintegrate the trees and boil the grass.

Hibiki felt his own body began to heat up and his skin begin to crackle like bacon, he launched himself into the air with a curse, and sent a massive orb of explosive chakra down to the ground below, the explosion clearing the air of its acidity, but before he could blink, Zetsu appeared behind him, slamming its fist into Hibiki's back and sending him flying to the ground. The impact sent tons of dirt and debris into the air, but just as Hibiki got to his feet, he was blasted with the same lightning techniques from before, only now there were dozens of lightning streams, and all of them were hitting him, tearing him apart, flattening the area around him, and causing him terrible pain.

_God... Damn it!_ Hibiki cursed, as he felt deep inside of him for a dam. Behind this dam was an ocean of chakra, pushing against it as heavily as it could, but unable to break through without some kind of outside influence. All it took was for Hibiki to push against this dam, and the chakra of the first of the eight gates poured into his body, increasing his physical strength to its absolute maximum and giving him the chance to leap into the air and out of the range of Zetsu's lightning stream.

A great deal of Hibiki's body had been burned down to the exposed bone, his muscles and tendons regenerating as he arced through the air and back towards Zetsu. The Senju heir roared out loudly as he threw his partially skeletonized fist at the possessed clone's face, impacting with a loud thunderclap and a massive shockwave. The both of them hurtled towards the ground, Zetsu much faster than Hibiki, who hit the ground with a pained grunt as his skin and his muscles regrew, his healing factor supercharged by the first gate, but his chakra levels unchanged. The heavily breathing Senju slumped forward, purple chakra radiating off of his body as his skin regrew, and the ink of the cursed seal darkened, appearing as if they had never even been burned off in the first place.

Hibiki stretched his jaw and gasped for breath, his sharingan eyes wide as he searched for Zetsu. What was its plan now? What _other_ abilities did Hibiki have, that he had no idea about? How damn powerful _was_ he? Hibiki shook his head, deciding that these were questions for later. The world slowed down as he noticed Zetsu hurtling in for another confrontation. Hibiki batted away Zetsu's fist and hopped back, before lunging forward, leaning down low and sending in several lightning-fast jabs to Zetsu's stomach, noticing that the creature wasn't using its iron skin technique as his fists hit flesh. Zetsu brought its knee up to slam into the side of Hibiki's head, sending the Senju heir stumbling to the side, and giving Zetsu enough time to grab Hibiki with both hands. As fast as its augmented speed would allow, the temperature in the air tanked, the water vapors freezing almost instantaneously and falling to the ground as Hibiki was coated in a thick, superdense layer of ice. Zetsu tossed him into the air and drop-kicked him aside, laughing as it did so.

_**"So confident, young Senju!"**_ The creature taunted, _**"you expect to defeat me, to defend your ancient, decrepit lands against my master, when you quite literally cannot even defeat yourself!"**_ It yelled out, as Hibiki slammed into a tree and the ice covering his body shattered. Hibiki hit the ground and crumpled up into a heap, gasping and wheezing as his numb body tried to heat itself up. Zetsu appeared in front of him a second later and kicked him in the chest, blasting him through the tree and arcing through the air in a shower of wooden splinters. Hibiki hit the ground with a loud, pained grunt. _**"You are **_nothing_**, Hibiki Senju! Absolutely nothing to me, absolutely nothing to my master, and absolutely nothing to my mother! But we can help you..."**_ The monster said, idly, calmly, arrogantly strolling through the woods and towards Hibiki. _**"We can give you power... We can train you! All we ask for is your service! All we need is your name, your connections, your resources! We can accomplish so much together - this world will be ours! The answers you've sought... They will be yours! Stop fighting... Come with me."**_ Said the black Zetsu, as it used Hibiki's clone to get closer, its stolen Sharingan eyes opening madly and spinning rapidly. _**"What do you say?"**_ It lifted its hand invitingly, the limb covered in the flattened, oily, black mass.

Hibiki, blood streaming from his mouth, slowly raised himself to his hands and knees, and then to his feet. His stance was improper and wobbly, his breaths were uneven and ragged. Hibiki clenched his jaw and scowled, taking up a sideways stance and bracing his legs against the ground as he cupped both of his hands and brought them down to his side. _"Ka..."_ Growled the Senju heir, as his chakra began circulating around his body and gathering in the space between his hands.

_**"I am a sensor... Hibiki."**_ Zetsu turned his head in the direction of the sound made by the Senju heir. _**"More than that... I saw your confrontation against Katsuo."**_

_"Me..."_ The chakra collecting between both of his hands began to glow as a bright, blinding white orb formed, the chakra within compressing as far as it could go, resisting growth as Hibiki funneled more and more chakra into the attack.

_**"I know what you are doing, Hibiki. This didn't even work against the monster, do you expect it to work against** _**me?!" **The black Zetsu stalked forward, its skin slowly transforming into its metal form.

_"HA..." _The glow from Hibiki's hyper-compressed chakra orb grew even brighter, lighting up the forest with a bright, harsh white light.

_**"What do you expect -"**_ Zetsu's blood red eyes widened as it sensed two new presences approaching from its rear. It whipped its head around to try and locate the approaching targets visually, but had to whip back around when it realized taking its eyes off of the shinobi creating a poor replica of the bijuu-dama, was a bad idea.

_"ME..."_ Zetsu dashed forward as fast as it could, the world slowing down as its chakra-streaming fist hurtled forward towards Hibiki's face, but in the blink of an eye, Hibiki vanished, having used his own superior augmented speed against Zetsu.

Zetsu whirled around and saw, in slow motion, Hibiki skid to a halt several meters behind him, and then bolt forward too fast for it to react, allthewhile shoving his cupped hands forward and roaring out as loud as his youthful lungs could allow. _"HA!" _Hibiki thrust his cupped hands forward and broke the seal on the superdense orb of chakra.

The blast-wave of chakra exploded forward, creating a several meter wide conical beam of energy that slammed into the black Zetsu in an instant. The sound of steel grinding against steel filled the air and mixed with Hibiki's deep bellow, as the child let loose all of the collected energy. Zetsu tried to block, to cover any of its important bits, but for all of its stolen power and its augmented speed, hadn't been able to react fast enough to avoid the point-blank attack. Zetsu felt its steel skin heating up to begin glowing bright red, and quickly afterwards, bright white, before the steel that covered its body shattered into thousands of pieces, and the chakra anchoring it to the ground broke its connection. Zetsu was sent flying through the air, the rest of the chakra beam tearing at its body as Hibiki unleashed more of the energy.

Hibiki's head whipped around when he felt something tap on his shoulder, and he found his clone, and Dai, both standing behind him. The Alpha Senju nodded and cut the technique, letting the rest of the pent up chakra blast out in one final wave, before it dissipated, and the forest went back to the blackness of the night. Hibiki looked at the clone from over his shoulder, and nodded once, it quickly dug into its weapons pouch and pulled out a pistol, which was nearly as big as its forearm, clearly of a large caliber. What differentiated this gun from his revolver, which was still in Minato's possession, an issue Hibiki needed to deal with, was that it was semi-automatic, and of a much higher caliber, a true hand cannon. Hibiki took the pistol and sealed the magazines into his thigh, before sealing the pistol into the seal on his wrist, before nodding once to the clone, giving it leave to vanish. Hibiki then made eye contact with Dai, who lowered her hood and removed her glasses before she nodded as well, her skin seemed to be crawling and shifting in the fading light of the improvised bijuudama. Hibiki turned his gaze forward again and he and the Aburame both assumed defensive stances as, in the distance, they heard the sound of a body slamming into the ground. Dai surreptitiously placed her hand on Hibiki's blood-slick shoulder, several beetles traveling down her arm, onto his shoulder, up his neck, and into his thick, sweaty hair. When she confirmed her beetles were where they needed to be, Dai removed her hand from Hibiki's shoulder, not bothering to try and wipe the thick layer of blood off of it as, in the distance, trees began falling and a repetitive, thunderous drumbeat reached their ears.

"It's running low on chakra." Said a heavily breathing Hibiki.

"Will this work?" Dai inquired, her eyes narrowed.

"It's using its own chakra to refuel the clone's stores. All we've got to do is get a few of your beetles onto the clone, and they've got to leach the chakra away. Everything will fall into place, after that." He said, as the black Zetsu got close enough for his perfect, red eyes to catch sight of it. "Get ready... And be _careful._ It's faster than anything we've ever fought."

Dai grinned, "don't worry, Hibiki. I have my own plans."

Hibiki had a snide remark prepared, but Zetsu arrived too soon for him to say it. Hibiki threw his hand forward and caught Zetsu's fist, before he yanked the possessed clone backwards and off balance. The two sped up, Hibiki slammed his fist into Zetsu's throat and Zetsu spun around and backhanded Hibiki's face. Hibiki grabbed Zetsu by the throat and bodily hauled it over his head, slamming it into the ground with a loud crash and a cloud of dust and dirt. Hibiki smashed his fist into Zetsu's face twice, before Zetsu threw up both of its hands, one grabbing onto Hibiki's fist and halting it, the other latching onto Hibiki's face and squeezing, managing to tear off flesh and leave deep, bloody gouges in his face, before it wrenched its hand back and launched it forward. Its fist slammed into Hibiki's jaw and catapulted him upwards and off of its possessed body. The world sped up again as it hopped back to its feet, its injuries stitching back together.

The black Zetsu's head whipped to the side as it sensed the Aburame throw one hand forward and bring one hand to her chest. The latter made a quick, simple handsign and the former splayed open its fingers as a cloud of insects burst forth from her sleeve, but before they could even get an inch away from her, the world slowed down and Zetsu lunged forward. It threw its fist through the cloud of insects, destroying dozens of the infinitesimal things in a shower of paste-like blood, as its hand soared straight for the Aburame's face, the shinobi unable to react in time due to the sheer speed at which the possessed clone moved. Before it could strike the Aburame, however, the black Zetsu was kicked in the face by a flying Senju, who had both hands held high into the air, as if he were falling horizontally.

The two zipped through the air, Zetsu's head slamming into the ground and carving a deep fissure in the dirt as Hibiki slammed his other foot onto the possessed clone's chest with a loud crunching noise. As the dirt they were sending into the air froze, Zetsu angrily coated his skin in steel, but Hibiki punched downwards and managed to break skin just at the border of the forming steel, noting with glee that the broken skin wasn't resealed by the forming steel. Hibiki hopped up and slammed down with both feet, bouncing Zetsu off of the ground and giving Hibiki the opportunity to grab the sides of its chest and hurl it back in the direction they had came, where Dai still stood, for all intents and purposes frozen in comparison to the hyper-speed at which Hibiki and his clone fought. Hibiki dug both feet into the ground and bolted in the direction opposite of his momentum, building up his speed and catching up with Zetsu in a nanosecond, Hibiki dug both feet into the ground and skidded up next to Zetsu, before he chopped downwards and hit Zetsu on the chest, smashing it into the ground as the world sped up.

Dai blinked, Zetsu having vanished and a great, powerful gust of wind blowing in all directions, but she recovered quickly enough and sensed Hibiki and Zetsu to her rear. She shipped around and bade her beetles to swarm the darkness-coated Hibiki clone, as the true Hibiki mounted the possessed clone and kept it pinned to the ground by throwing his hand out. In a cloud of smoke, his new gun appeared in his hand and he swung it around, pressing it right against Zetsu's face. Zetsu knew the danger that Hibiki was presenting it, and just as Hibiki squeezed the trigger, its skin turned to black steel. Seven thunderous barks echoed throughout the thick forest, as Hibiki's gun bucked and barked and Zetsu's head bounced off of the ground with each gunshot. When Hibiki's gun clicked on empty, the black Zetsu saw out of the corner of its stolen Sharingan eyes, the beetles approaching and almost instantly recognized the Aburame's plan. As fast as it could, brought up both hands to lock onto Hibiki's face, Hibiki felt a horrible, empty feeling coincide with a sudden burning sensation as the markings on Zetsu's right hand glowed a bright red, and a second later Hibiki felt it stealing his chakra. Acting fast, Hibiki shoved both of his arms in between Zetsu's and threw them outwards, breaking its grip, but it had gotten what it needed, and it blasted Hibiki with several powerful streams of onyx lightning, sending him tumbling through the air and crashing onto the ground as Zetsu, out of stolen chakra, flipped to his front and clawed across the ground with enhanced speed, sprinting in a wide circular arc before skidding to a halt several meters behind Dai and rearing its fist.

Hibiki skidded to a halt just as he saw Zetsu spring forward and launch its fist through Dai's chest. Hibiki's eyes grew wide as he saw the ancient monster slam its fist into her back, and he could barely comprehend the imprint of its fist seemed to bulge out of her chest for a moment, before its hands burst through her chest in a massive spray of beetles. The world sped up as both Hibiki and his possessed clone took a moment to comprehend what they had just witnessed, before Dai turned her head a full one hundred and eighty degrees and smiled, before her body disintegrated into a massive, thick cloud of beetles and they surrounded and collapsed around Zetsu, who screamed and yelled, using all of its stolen power as tried to kill the beetles. Clumps of then were frozen solid, some disintegrated in a cloud of gas, some were boiled as the air around them increased in temperature, some fell dead as they were drained of chakra, some were destroyed in small micro explosions, and some were even crushed by bony weapons, but there were so many beetles that nothing the black Zetsu could do could stave them off for long. Even covering its skin in a layer of steel only delayed the inevitable as the beetles forcibly began absorbing its chakra through its pre-existing wounds, which were too numerous to even have a hope of being sealed up by its healing factor.

Zetsu roared out in defiance, as the bugs dug underneath its steel skin and began eating away at its insides. It took a step forward, but fell to its knee as its tendons and muscles were severed and chomped to bits by the kikaichu. It fell to its hands and knees a moment afterwards, and managed to give Hibiki one more loathful look before it severed its connection with the clone and ceased supplying it with chakra. Barely a half second later, the clone hit absolute zero, and vanished in a thick, loud plume of smoke. The cloud of beetles dispersed, and appeared next to the Senju heir, solidifying in the form of their Aburame master, and helping the blood-stained Hibiki to his feet.

Everyone present, save the beetle clone, which seemed much thinner and more hollow now that it had lost a great deal of its mass, was breathing heavily, Hibiki's lungs rattling, and the black mass of chakra that formed Zetsu managing to expand and deflate, absorbing the oxygen around it in a grotesque manner.

"You..." Gasped Hibiki, who swallowed through his very dry throat, and sealed the gun back in his wrist. "Wanna keep going?" He said, despite the fact that his cursed seal was slowly receding back to his neck. "I've... Still got a few tricks up my sleeve." And now, more than ever, he knew not to give the thing what it wanted, and feed it shadow clones.

The black Zetsu, with no clone to possess, simply remained a shapeless mass, its eyes narrowed in fury, and directed straight at Hibiki. _**"This changes... Nothing."**_ It growled.

Hibiki grunted, and assumed a light offensive stance, as if gloating to the shapeless mass of dark chakra. "I told you... This is _my_ land... _My _world... And if possessing a clone... And stealing its abilities... Is your claim to power... Then I only feel _more_ confident in my ability to defend it." Hibiki swallowed again, before he gasped for air, his lungs barely able to supply his rapidly beating heart with enough oxygen. "Who is your master?"

_**"I thought... You didn't want my answers."**_ Zetsu mocked, as it slowly began sinking into the ground.

Hibiki repressed a snarl, "I don't want... What you have to say about my world. You destroyed it, and as such I do _not_ have to hear what you said... I'm only asking who your master is... So you can send that bastard a message." Hibiki rasped, slowly dropping the stance and standing straight, before he clenched his bloody fist, and beat his blood and sweat-slick chest with it. "Past or present, doesn't matter. This is _my_ world... And I will defend it until I cannot physically continue... And then an hour longer." He proclaimed, clenching his fist so hard that his bloody knuckles turned white, and his whole forearm shook.

Zetsu was silent a moment, as he continued to slink into the ground. _**"I apologize, young Senju... But it seems you will not get **_**every_ answer you sought today."_** It said, as the last remaining portions of its oily black mass sank into the dirt. **_"We will meet again... But until then, remember what your ancestors once said..."_ **As it sank completely beneath the ground, its voice now filled the air, as if coming from all directions. _**"The enemy... Of **_**my_ enemy... Is my friend."_**

Hibiki stared at the ground under which Zetsu sank, for several moments, before his shoulders slumped forward and he let out a loud, long gasp, exhaustion leaking into his very essence. _"Fuck..."_ Groaned the Senju heir, a moment before he collapsed into an exhausted heap and slowly turned his head to the Dai clone. "So... Are you... Like... Controlled by Dai? Or the Kikaichu queens?" He asked it, from his prone position on the ground.

The clone silently turned its head to Hibiki, before extending its hand again. "We are controlled by the queens under the order of our host, Dai, who is on her way." It said, its voice taking on a much more vibratory, buzzing tone, as opposed to the soft, human tone it had used when masquerading as Dai.

With another tired groan, Hibiki reached up and grabbed the clone's hand. Upon locking his hand to its, however, it swung him around and slammed his back into a nearby tree, before lifting him several inches off of the ground and clenching his throat with an iron grip. Hibiki felt several sharp splinters dig into and carve up his back, causing more thick blood to droop down the wooden surface of the dark tree behind him.

The beetle clone leaned in close, its features cast in faint shadows by the pale white light of the moon. "You are out of chakra... So you will listen to our words." It said in that same vibratory tone, only now in a much lower voice, and a more threatening manner.

_"Lady... Bug... Thing..."_ Croaked the Senju heir, whose wide eyes still burned a bright red. _"I've still got enough chakra to kick your ass!"_ He said, before his cursed seal stretched back across his body and he slammed both hands into the beetle-clone's stomach. The beetle clone's stomach, however, simply dissipated into a cloud of insects, causing both of Hibiki's hands to go straight through it, before it solidified again and locked Hibiki's hands in position and, even worse for the Senju heir, began draining his chakra at an exorbitant rate.

His cursed seal crumbled apart as the little chakra he had to supply it was drained away from him, and the Dai clone merely tightened its grip on Hibiki's throat. Its buzzing voice grew in volume, filling the air with a loud chorus of vibrations that somehow managed to coalesce into sound recognizable to Hibiki's ears. _"Our host is not aware of this conversation... And it would behoove your continued health to make certain she is _never _made aware of it."_ It threatened, before it leaned in close and whispered directly into Hibiki's ear. __"Neither you nor her know what you are doing to the natural world... But given we value our own lives, we cannot do a thing to you directly."_ _As it spoke, it ceased draining the Senju heir's chakra, though with the way some insects continued to do so for a fraction of a second after the others ceased, Hibiki could tell it was a begrudging action. _"But that means not that we must spare your friends and your allies... Or any children you sire, either with her or with others." _It leaned its head back to look directly into Hibiki's spinning red eyes, the Senju heir still struggling against its grip. _"So heed our words... She thinks she understands what you are, even you claim to understand what you are... But neither she nor you know what we do, we, who are so closely connected to the end of the natural order. You are not just a crime against nature, you are a wound, festering upon reality itself. A lost soul inhabiting an impure body, supplying it with horrendous, dead chakra."_ It whispered, its entire body beginning to shift and to bubble as the insects repositioned themselves and ruined the illusion of humanity.

_"Still not hearing..."_ Croaked the Senju, as he prepared to break open the second gate to get the chakra he'd need to detonate these bugs. _"Your request."_

The beetle clone narrowed its big, amber eyes. _"It is not a request, so much as a demand."_ It buzzed, before it leaned in so close that its nose was nearly touching Hibiki's. _"Tread lightly. You may think yourself a living creature, but we know else. Should the wound you have created become infected, and we discover that you threaten, in any way, the lives of us or our host, we will not hesitate to mend the wound and send you back from whence you came."_

Hibiki croaked, _"I don't know... What you think I am..."_ He said, with barely enough air running through his flattened throat. _"But I'm not a threat... To her, or any of my friends."_

The clone narrowed its eyes lividly, before turning them to its left. _"Then you are even more naive than you realize... Death is final, you monster. One man's vanity and arrogance cannot change that. To attempt to do so will only have unforeseen consequences, the nature of which even we scavengers cannot possibly predict."_ It dropped Hibiki and backed up several steps, continuing to speak as the Senju coughed and wheezed, trying to catch his breath. _"It may not happen now, and it may not happen a year from now, but it will be inevitable... Even your Eagles will one day feel the change, as we scavengers do. The only reason you are alive... Is because we value ours."_ It said, before growing silent and still as the sound of grass, and the shrill cry of the only other human on the continent.

_"Hibiki!"_ Shrieked Dai, who fell to her knees and slid across the dirt ground to Hibiki, and grabbed ahold of his blood and sweat slick shoulders with one arm, using it to pull him close. "Are you okay? Is this all your blood? Where are you hurt?" She asked, as she turned Hibiki's head to face her, and her beetle clone dissipated and lazily began flying back to her.

Hibiki, breathing heavily, eyed the beetles warily, trying to decipher any of the cryptic nonsense her queens had just spouted, before he shook his head. "You... You stole my party trick." He breathed, as he nodded towards the cloud of beetles, and shifted his position and now was seated on his rump and leaned up against the tree behind him.

Dai smiled sheepishly, "it is a very good party trick, Hibiki." She said, looking his exposed body up and down. "But is this _all_ your blood?"

Hibiki turned his gaze downwards, now for the first time truly getting a look at how much blood he'd lost and replaced during the course of the fight. His entire chest and back, his face, and a great deal of his forearms and fists were smeared in a thin layer of the slimy, goopy substance. The Senju heir nodded, "yeah..." He said, turning his gaze first to Dai's stomach, where he had surmised her beetles lay, and then to her wide and concerned amber eyes. "I'll be fine, though... Just need a bath, some food, and a good night's sleep." He felt more and more of his previous injuries, and his incredibly sore and stiff body as his heart slowed down, the adrenaline flooded from his system, and he came down from his combat high. "Are _you_ okay?" He didn't know _what_ on earth would cause such a difference of opinion between Dai and her beetles, or if she were even aware of said difference in the first place, but whatever it was only gave him a hefty supply of questions to replace the ones he would answer during the course of his stint at NORAD.

Dai nodded, but her brow remained furrowed and her eyes remained locked to Hibiki's blood-slick core. "I am fine... Just a little tired. It took a great deal of chakra to breed so many beetles, so fast." She said, tilting her head as she spoke. "Hibiki, you're still bleeding."

The Senju heir blinked, and turned his head down, inspecting his body for injuries, when he found a nice, deep gash on the side of his stomach, and stretching across his chest. "Well that's..." Hibiki swallowed, suddenly realizing that, since the beetles had taken all of the chakra he had to support his curse mark, it stood to reason that they had taken enough to cause his healing factor to enter its 'organs or bust' mode. Clever bastards. "Interesting." He pressed his hand to his chest and smeared the blood off of the wound, causing Dai to gasp as the bloodflow wasn't even staunched and it continued oozing out.

One look to Dai made Hibiki realized that he was covered with so much of his own blood that she hadn't even _seen_ his chest wound, only the one on his stomach.

"Shit." Hibiki sighed, as more blood leaked out of his body, hastening the adrenaline dump and, subsequently, his feeling the pain of his injuries. Hibiki dipped forward, his eyes glazing over as the world began blurring together. As darkness encroached the edge of his vision, he vaguely felt a pair of hands press him back to the tree, and heard the rustling of a supply bag. Hibiki lost consciousness soon after.


	48. History: Just Need A Hero -VI-

Chapter 47

* * *

Stabilizing the Senju Heir had been one of the most stressful, terrifying moments in Dai Aburame's life. Already low on chakra herself, she'd had to field dress most of Hibiki's wounds just to get him in a condition where she could transport him back to NORAD. Even during the invasion of Konoha, she had never seen or been covered in so much blood. Hibiki was deathly pale by the time she had him wrapped up and somewhat stable, and it took her ten minutes to cross the hundred kilometers back to Cheyenne Mountain, had she not had the foresight to leave a beetle there to guide her back, it would have taken longer. The raven-haired Aburame counted herself very lucky that Hibiki's first instinct, when greeted by the black Zetsu, had been to undo the seal that had neutered her and her beetles' senses of smell. The boy had told her once that, in his last life, he had never once gotten into a fight, that he had focused more on saving lives than ending them, and as Dai hefted the blood-soaked Senju into her arms, bridal style, and sprinted through the nearly pitch-black landscape, she found herself noticing for the first time just how naturally Hibiki took to combat. He hadn't even hesitated when he thought they had company, he had set up multiple contingencies and backup-plans before they had even been attacked, the boy was _bread_ for battle, like no one Dai had ever seen.

Hibiki, in a state of unconsciousness, only sought to prove her point as she arrived at the excavated tunnel leading into NORAD. There was a shadow clone already at the first blast door, holding in its hands a thick bag of medical supplies. It waved her inside and hurriedly guided her through the complex, taking her into the medical wing, where she placed Hibiki down on a thin, blue bed covered in sterile white sheets. The clone dropped the medical bag on a table next to them and ripped it open, the first things it pulled out were a pair of scissors.

"Why aren't you healing him with chakra?!" Dai demanded.

"That would require me opening the eight gates to refill my own stores. Not an option at the moment." The clone responded, lighting-fast, as it cut open the bandages Dai had placed earlier. After doing so, it reached back into the bag and pulled out a small rag, which he then doused in some alcohol also retrieved from the bag. It cleaned the wound on Hibiki's stomach as best as it could, before it retrieved a needle and thread, idly noting but mostly ignoring Dai's shocked and outraged look.

"You're going to injure him_ more?!"_ Dai shrieked, having to force herself not to attack the clone because she knew it knew what it was doing, for all intents and purposes, it was Hibiki, and he wasn't unintelligent, but that didn't stop her from trying to understand what was going on, and why.

"You've only ever been exposed to modern, shinobi medicine, which involves healing the most grievous wounds with chakra first, and then bandaging everything else up to heal naturally." The clone spouted off, as it squeezed the wound on Hibiki's side together, and began stitching it up. "You need to visit the civilian hospital sometime soon. They deal with things in a much more straightforward way... And regardless, this is to keep him alive until he gets back enough chakra to heal on his own." It explained, its hands not even shaking as it stitched up the wounds with a practiced precision. Blood continued to seep through the stitches, but at a much slower rate. "And I can't open up the eight gates due to the effects it has on the surrounding environment. I could damage the complex - and that's if the _explosively sudden_ introduction of a massive amount of chakra doesn't send him into shock." It explained, as it dropped the needle and thread onto a metal tray on another table to his left, and then reached into the bag for some bandages. It wrapped up Hibiki's stomach, and then retrieved a new needle, before going to work on the Senju heir's chest. "This will leave scars." He muttered, as he cleaned and then stitched up Hibiki's chest.

"But will he survive?" Dai asked breathlessly.

"Technically speaking, he's dead, and look how that treated him." The clone responded cheekily. "I'd also like to note..." He continued, as he sopped up some blood and stitched more of the wound shut. "How interesting it is... That I'm critically wounded, and yet I'm also healing myself." He peered at Dai from under his eye ridges and said, from behind a grin, "and you're going nuts because the Hibiki's hurt... When it's him that's doing the stitching up." He chuckled, and looked back down at the wound.

A slackjawed Dai found herself in a strange position, wanting to strangle the clone for treating everything she said so haphazardly, but also wanting to not do that because, as it pointed out, it _was_ Hibiki. "You seem very calm." She settled for, after a few seconds' deliberation.

"Because it won't help anyone, least of all myself, if I start freaking out." Said the clone, after it wiped up the wound again, and began applying bandages, sighing with relief as it did so. "Alright... He's stable." The clone said, securing the bandages tight, and taking a few steps back. The clone ran its blood-covered hands through its hair with a deep sigh, before it spawned a clone, which began shedding its shirt and coat. "So he's got new clothes when he wakes up." The clone answered, before the raven-haired Aburame could even ask. "Amazed his pants survived." It collapsed into a chair to the right of Hibiki's bed, sighing deeply and taking a look around the large, sterile white medical ward. "Got bad news for you." He said, as the other clone finished stripping and vanished in a plume of smoke.

Dai turned to the clone, "what?"

"Out of chakra." A second later, the clone vanished, leaving Dai alone in the large, sterile room.

Dai stared at the chair the clone had inhabited, blinking, as she tried to process the last half hour. Dai turned her gaze from the room that surrounded her, with its dozen beds only separated by thin blinds, its white tiled floors and its stone ceiling, to Hibiki. The boy's bandages were slowly turning red, but nowhere near as fast as he had been leaking blood earlier. Most of his upper body was still smeared and covered in his own blood, and Dai could see that his knuckles were a bright red, from having to both punch the living daylights out of a possessed clone, and his fists tearing open every few seconds to make way for his bone-claws. Dai sighed deeply, and pulled up a chair next to the right side of Hibikis' bed. She sat down and leaned her elbows on the end of the bed, slowly allowing her thoughts to settle down so she could collect them.

_That thing... It was different from the ones we saw earlier._ She thought, harkening back to the videos she had seen with Hibiki, of the white Zetsu army leading its relentless charge across the old world, Hibiki's old world. _And it was able to possess Hibiki's clone, from the looks of it, going so far as to steal control of it from Hibiki..._ She turned her head towards the unconscious Senju, whose face was serene and peaceful, almost as if he were unaware that he'd been knocking on Death's door just a few moments ago. _Hibiki... He is so caught up in his own history..._ She turned her gaze now to the room around her, though her eyes didn't focus on anything in the room, instead appearing to stare off into the distance, as if instead searching the base. _Is there nothing here that I can use to help him? Perhaps a scroll, or a dictionary, that I can learn from?_ She leaned back and pulled out the sheet of paper Hibiki had given to her, days ago. Upon its wrinkled and crumpled surface were all of the characters Hibiki had explained to her made up the entirety of his language.

Dai sighed. _It is better than nothing..._ She pointed at the first symbol on the paper._ "A... Ay... Ah."_

* * *

Hibiki awoke slowly, groggily, to the sight of bright white lights and a sterile environment. He clenched his throbbing head and felt the tight embrace of cloth around his chest and stomach. The Senju heir peered down, the pillows beneath his head rustling as he did so, and he saw that his core had been covered tightly with bandages, that, during their time fastened to him, were bloodstained and still sticky. Groaning, Hibiki placed his sore arms on either side of him and pushed down, hauling himself up into a seated position. A part of him still felt utterly exhausted, but the exhaustion felt familiar, like the pull he felt whenever he was low on chakra, and he didn't need to spend too long wondering why, given that his body was still covered in injuries that hadn't yet healed. It was likely his healing factor had gone back to equilibrium mode, and was still fixing some of the damage to his innards.

With a quiet yawn, Hibiki ran his dry, blood-stained hand through his hair and saw a second pair of feet a few inches away from his own. Trailing down the legs clothed in dark gray pants, Hibiki discovered Dai leaning back in a chair, her feet leaned up and resting on the bed, her head hanging over the back of her chair. She was deeply asleep, to the point that she, even with ninja reflexes, hadn't heard or sensed him waking up. How she could possibly be more tired than him, he had no idea, but Hibiki decided that it wasn't necessarily a question that needed answering, as he looked up and around. He was in a hospital room, but aside from him and Dai, all of the other beds, some two dozen lining the walls, were empty. The medical cabinets had been raided, and there was a thick med-bag on a cart a few feet to his right.

A few moments of concentration revealed memories from one of Hibiki's clones, telling him all he needed to know about what had happened after the Alpha Hibiki had finished fighting Zetsu, though thinking of Zetsu made Hibiki groan in pain, and lean back onto his pillows. He hadn't gotten any memories from the clone Zetsu had possessed, so he couldn't use the experience to try and hit the fast-track to the multitude of bloodlines the black creature had shown him to possess. More pressing upon Hibiki's mind, however, was the fact that the base was still standing, after what he could only assume to be a day or two since his fight. Did that mean Zetsu had ceded control of the Old World's Ruins to Hibiki? Or that it was just licking its wounds and crying to its master?

Hibiki sighed, brushing both hands through his hair and pulling it to the back of his scalp, slowly and quietly cursing as he tallied up all of the questions he still needed to answer. Going to Eglin, finding NORAD, a part of him had prayed they would tell him everything he needed, but in reality, every answer he got only led to ten more questions, and that wasn't considering the mountain of things he had to deal with now. He honestly couldn't tell what was more pressing, Katsuo and his now certifiably misguided attempts at finding a way to go home, or Zetsu and its continued attempts to conquer the world and destroy humanity in its mother's name?

Hibiki's onyx eyes slowly glazed over and lolled about, as he rested his head in one of his callused, blood-stained hands. The world had, in short order, gotten astronomically bigger, and exponentially more complicated. He had to start somewhere, and he needed a game-plan, he couldn't just fly by the seat of his pants anymore. The problem, however, went back to the fact that he was still, physically, _ten years old._ No matter how far and how much he could augment his power, be it through the curse mark, his Flash technique, the eight gates, or his as-of-yet unmastered Lightning Armor, it all came back to the fact that his body was reaching a threshold, and he feared he would eventually find himself at a point where he literally could not force it to produce any more power without killing him. The problem, however, was that he couldn't just _wait,_ in the short-term, Katsuo wanted war, and in the long term, Zetsu wanted extinction. Waiting around for his body to catch up to his mind would let both of them get ever closer to accomplishing their goals, which was unacceptable.

The Senju heir sighed, Katsuo was the biggest problem in the short term, so what could he do about that? The way he saw it, Katsuo could either be an ally to be befriended, or an enemy to be dealt with. Hibiki would need to bring him proof, of the undeniable variety, to convince him that his endeavors were for naught, but that could either work perfectly or backfire horrendously. If Katsuo couldn't be pacified, then war with him, and subsequently between the elemental nations, was inevitable, and Hibiki would have to deal with him first, before he even considered tracking down Zetsu.

A small sigh and some shifting movement attracted Hibiki's focus, his eyes settled upon the soundly sleeping form of Dai Aburame, and his mind went back to the command center. Every part of him argued that it had been a mistake to reciprocate like that, that his life, for the foreseeable future, would be one of ceaseless war with god-like entities. Entering a relationship with Dai would mean that she would become a target for any and all of his enemies, and that he would put her at risk every time he launched a campaign. The logical part of him didn't want to continue things with her for the danger he could pose to her, because while she was undeniably strong, he didn't think for a second that she could fight the people he did. She wasn't built for front-lines combat, people like Emi Miu, Katsuo, Aojiroi, Zetsu, they all could destroy her.

Then there was the personal side of him, the part of him that thought he couldn't be a good partner. He was a man who had died and come back to life, he had dragged her into a world that had died more than a thousand years ago, and he had the kind of baggage that would exhaust anyone and everyone who had to deal with it. He didn't want to weigh her down like that, he didn't want to hurt her, or run the risk of being a bad partner. The things he dealt with, he didn't want to pass them on, but he didn't want to keep it a secret either, and he didn't want to seem like he was simply using her to keep him sane. If she entered a relationship with him, he just didn't know what he could do to prove to her that he was worth it, he didn't know if he could be a good partner to her.

Despite all of that, however, there was also the third voice talking to him, that managed to overpower all of the reasons he had to head this off at the pass. Hibiki's selfish side, the side of him that felt a warmth in his chest now, as he watched Dai sleep in an awkward, likely uncomfortable position, it didn't give any reason or explanation, it merely said that Hibiki, despite all evidence to the contrary, _did_ want this. He wanted someone with whom he stood on equal grounds, he wanted someone to go home to, to talk to, he wanted _her,_ almost as badly, if not, moreso, as she wanted him.

The Senju heir shook his head and leaned forward, grabbing at the several comforters that covered him, likely having been placed there by Dai before she settled in for rest. He separated two of them from the rest, and with one swift motion, threw them off of him, angling them towards the Aburame genin. They flowed through the air slowly, before coming to rest around her shoulders and settling down with a silent sigh of air. Hibiki grinned, despite himself, and after a moment, he reached down towards his nether regions. With a small pulse of chakra, out from the storage seal spawned a blank notebook, and a pen. Hibiki took the notebook and the pen, and labeled the former:

_World War III. _

_20XX - Present._

_"I know not what weapons World War 3 will be fought with, but the fourth will be fought with sticks and stones."_

With a nod, he opened up the notebook and began writing down his experiences these past few weeks. He spent hours like this, chronicling everything he had seen, from his first visit to the Wraithlands, to his second visit and his discovery of Eglin, all the way to his battle with Zetsu, even making a few anecdotes about the Chakra Power Armor that Dai had mentioned. He wrote down notes and his theories based off of the facts he had learned, and jotted down potential conclusions based on everything he had, both past and present. Time began flowing quickly as he lost track of it, his nose buried deep in his notebook, and before he realized it, Dai was shifting again, but now not to merely adjust her position, but to wake up.

Hibiki peered over the rim of his notebook, an eighth of it now filled with text. He watched Dai's hood fall back over her shoulders, and her glasses become thrown askew as she rubbed the sleep out of her eyes. The Senju heir remained silent, merely watching as Dai noticed how she had been covered by two blankets, and how Hibiki had changed positions in his sleep. Her eyes trailed up Hibiki's covered form, before eventually making contact with Hibiki's onyx orbs, peering over his notebook, a small grin playing at his partially masked features.

"Anyone ever tell you..." Hibiki paused, trying to say something to throw the still groggy girl off. "You look nice when you sleep?"

"Yes." A lightly flushed Dai yawned, stretching her arms as she did so. "The whores from Tanzaku Quarters." She said, as the sleeves of her hoodie fell a few inches, partially revealing her porous limbs. "Though they are not so nice about it. They typically follow it up by mentioning their hourly rate." She finished, letting her arms fall back into her lap, as she removed her feet from Hibiki's hospital bed, and cast off the blankets. "How did you sleep?" She asked the grinning Senju.

Hibiki shrugged, "had a weird dream. Something about a million year old society of humans without chakra." He said, turning his eyes back to his notebook as he finished the paragraph he'd been working on. "Didn't like the bit where I got hit by a truck in a foreign country, but it was still pretty cool." He said, before he closed shut the notebook with a light swish.

Dai rolled her eyes and adjusted her sunglasses. "Odd, I had a dream where I mustered up the courage to finally kiss you." She said, shrugging. "What was the music you searched for?" She asked, "it was beautiful."

Hibiki grinned, "Johnny Cash." He said, "music here doesn't go too far past vocals, sitars, and drums, but back then..." He sighed in happy remembrance, "god... I don't even know where to begin." He shook his head and leaned back on his pillows, reveling in their softness. "Suffice to say, he was one of my favorites. A one of a kind."

The raven-haired Aburame nodded, "I've never heard anything like it." She admitted.

Hibiki chuckled, "I'll find a way to bring some back home with us... Later." He said, "how long was I out?"

"Two days. One of your shadow clones came by, he said he had come from Denver. He said the city was clean, but there weren't many buildings standing." She explained, "he performed a medical examination upon you, and said that your healing abilities have covered your internal damage, and now your body is just building up chakra to go for the flesh wounds. He then told me to tell you he was going to follow up on 'Japan'."

Hibiki nodded, "if that was two days ago, I'd venture he's there by now... Unless he made a pit stop in one of the other city ruins." He mused aloud, before he adjusted his seating position and grunted. "Are _you_ okay?" He asked, "last few weeks have been... Interesting, I'd say."

Dai nodded, "I agree... But I am not the one who spear-headed an invasion into a foreign country, and then turned right around to discover his own world had been destroyed long ago." She said, looking right into Hibiki's onyx eyes as she did so. "I will be fine... But I am more worried about you, Hibiki. I did not understand what Zetsu meant with his words, but I know enough to know that the implications were not good."

The Senju heir shook his head, "no. They're not. It's still hellbent on destroying the human race, and it's got someone helping it."

"Could it be Katsuo?"

"I doubt it. I've had enough encounters with Katsuo's group that they would have let something slip by now, even if it's just a small reference or a casual remark." Said Hibiki, with a shake of his head. "But... I say we shelve that for now. Priority number one needs to be finding the showers." He said, as a terrible, awful grin slowly inched its way across his face. "Tell me, Dai, Aburame can take showers, right? You said no to the hot-springs, but showers?"

Dai inclined her head and leaned back, a scandalous grin growing across her face. "How forward of you, Hibiki." She said, "why, yes, we can. We must be careful, but it is not impossible."

_Damn her..._ Her remark had managed to cause Hibiki's face to flush, and he coughed a few times as he tried to recover. "Well, smartass, that means you've been lasting your whole life on that freezing cold stuff." He said, removing his comforters and swinging his feet off of the bed. "I very... Very much doubt you've ever felt the sweet, sweet embrace of a hot shower." He smiled, as Dai got to her feet and walked to the other side of the bed, before helping Hibiki to his feet. "I'll tell you what... You'll never be able to go back."

* * *

It wasn't a pair of pants, but it was the next best thing: A hot shower. Truth be told, given that it was a military base, Hibiki had doubted they would even have hot showers in the first place, let alone the fuel remaining after a thousand years to actually warm the water, but lo and behold, NORAD, the increasingly magical place, had both. He'd had to spend a good twenty minutes explaining to Dai how the showers functioned, and how to operate them, before she felt confident enough and he'd left for the men's showers. It had been a pain, removing his sticky, blood-stained bandages, but the end result had been worth it, as Hibiki stepped into the steamy shower stall and felt the warm water cascade down his body. His wounds stung and throbbed as the scalding water hit and dripped over them, but he ignored the pain, focusing more on the bliss; the Senju heir leaned back and smiled a large, bright, and genuine smile as the water hit his face and streamed down his body.

Hot-springs be damned, _this_ was pure bliss. If he did nothing else with his life, he would introduce heated indoor plumbing to Konoha, so he could have his own, private, and personal, _hot shower._

Hibiki spent far more time in the blue tiled room than he should, standing under the thin metal pipes and scrubbing the blood off of his body, out of his hair, and out from in-between his fingernails; allthewhile he enjoyed the water and made small, incremental increases to the temperature as his body became used to it. Finally, after the most satisfying thirty minutes of his second life, the formerly displaced man shut the water off and simply stood there in the steaming washroom. It was a communal place, with no dividers or separators, clearly military in design, but given that he was the only man here, and Dai the only woman, they each had their own rooms to themselves, though Dai had teased him with an invitation to join her, citing that all he need do was ask. While the offer felt tempting, moving so fast, so soon, was less so.

Hibiki brushed his black, sopping wet hair back behind his head and grabbed a towel, noting with a sly grin that he still heard the water running, meaning that Dai had enjoyed the showers for just as long as he, and now was continuing to enjoy them. It made sense, he decided, as he finished drying off and put on the clothes his clones had left behind for him, Dai had self-admittedly only ever sponge-bathed or showered in her life, meaning that she'd never experienced the glorious bliss that was _hot water._ The Senju heir, after donning his clothes and securing his equipment, decided he'd spend his time trying to figure out how this place still had power, water, and fuel, after so long, and made his way back to the command center.

Upon arriving in the dark room, Hibiki sat at the computer he had occupied days ago, booted up the computer, and began searching. He spent an hour reading up, discovering that it was a combination of natural gas and geothermal energy that kept the power running, and that everything had been shut down to conserve fuel. Whenever NORAD's various sensory suites detected no life signs, it shut everything down, stretching a fuel source that could last for centuries, to one that could last millennia. What really attracted Hibiki's eye, however, was references to the 'storage room' where, according to the computers, all of the physical items the Terrans had managed to save, were kept.

It was as Hibiki strode back through the base and past the showers, that he heard the still running water finally come to a stop. With a victorious grin, Hibiki waited, and five minutes later, out came Dai, her previous outfit back where it should be, her skin bright red, and her hood and wet heir flowing down over her shoulders. Hibiki was slightly amazed at how much of a difference it made, when Dai let her hair down, it made her look much more feminine, it accentuated her round face and her thin frame; if asked, Hibiki would be willing to say it made Dai look all the more attractive.

Dai, however, upon seeing Hibiki's grin, frowned unconvincingly. "I hate you." She said, retrieving her sunglasses from one of the breast pockets on her hoodie. "I hate you and your magic ancestors _so much."_

"Oh, that's blasphemy and you know it." Hibiki said, pointing at her face. "It seems you enjoyed yourself in there, your skin is bright red."

"Shut up." Dai said quickly, as she turned her face to the side to try and hide her smile.

Hibiki chuckled, "come on. We've got one more stop to make before we call it quits and head home." He said, nodding to the side, down the long, yellow-white corridor.

Dai slowly shuffled after Hibiki, grabbing at his arm and wrapping her own around it. "What are we looking for?"

Hibiki stretched his jaw and yawned lightly, "back during the war, they scavenged the world for various pieces of artwork, books, and the works. While you took a two hour shower -" He grinned as he felt Dai elbow him in the ribcage, letting out a light hiss of pain to make her feel bad, which worked, as she clenched his arm more tightly and pressed herself against it, almost as if not wanting to voice her apology as that would be admitting defeat. "- I figured out where they stashed the treasure horde. So I want to see what all they've got, because I'm willing to bet a lot of money they didn't get it all, and that there's some stuff still out there." Hibiki had entertained a few day-dreams about donning a fedora and a whip and going out to find whatever pieces of art that the Terrans hadn't been able to secure and hide.

Dai nodded, and the two silently walked deeper into the brightly lit, ancient military base. After a few minutes, and having to exit one underground building and enter another, they found what they were looking for, resting behind the only locked door in the entire complex. Hibiki pressed his knuckles to the lock and jammed a bone-claw into it, shattering the lock and allowing the door to swing open freely. Hibiki and Dai's shoulders sagged, and the latter's mouth fell limp as they were greeted by an enormous room, filled to the brim with crates, and crates, and crates of priceless artifacts from human history. Even more than that, lining the walls were dozens of paintings, and seated on a few pedestals scattered about the claustrophobic room were ancient books. To an archaeologist, this would have been heaven, but to Hibiki, who needed something concrete to give to Katsuo during their meet, it was all that and a gold-mine.

"Oh..." Said Hibiki, as he took a few steps into the tightly packed room. "My..." He felt Dai let go of his arms, though she followed close behind him, sneaking in between stacks of crates and looking around with an awe-struck gaze. "God." He said, as he came across a large wooden panorama, in the center of which stood a stone extract, upon which was the Creation of Adam.

Dai came to a halt next to Hibiki, staring at the stone extract with unbelieving eyes. "It is beautiful." She said, her eyes absorbing every inch of detail from the ancient piece of painted masonry.

Hibiki nodded absently, looking at the wooden panorama behind it and finding a replica, drawn to scale, of the Sistine Chapel's ceiling. "I... Don't even care, how they managed to backpack that across an ocean." He shook his head, taking a few steps towards the stone extract. "Don't even care." He said, reaching forward and placing his hand upon the center of the painting, right where God and Adam's hands nearly touched. "This, specifically..." He tapped the stone reverently, "was a part of the ceiling of one of the most important buildings in the world. They called it the Vatican..." And it dawned on the Senju heir that, if they had cracked this off of the ceiling, that the Vatican itself likely hadn't survived the war. "Here, on the left, that's Adam. The bible dictates him to be one of the first human beings to ever exist... And here, this is God." He said, "who created Adam, and the whole world, at that."

"And what of their hands?" Dai asked, pointing at the center of the extract, upon which Hibiki had left a handprint in the dust. "What does that mean?"

Hibiki chuckled, "funny thing, that. It's all up to interpretation." He said, with a deep sigh and a light grin playing his features. "What do you think it means?" He turned to look at Dai, who simply shook her head.

"I do not know... But it is beautiful nonetheless." She said.

Hibiki nodded, "come on, let's look around... Maybe find a book or two." He said, walking up to one of the pedestals, upon which was a half-sphere, which covered an ancient looking book. Hibiki placed his hand on the glass and peered inside, squinting his eyes and flashing his Sharingan. "I... Can't... Read any of that." He said, shaking his head at the illegible text, and turning to one of the crates. He wrenched the top off and lifted it up, to reveal dozens of paintings. The dark-haired Senju heir shrugged, and closed up the box.

The two spent an hour searching around the room, with Dai pointing out the paintings she found the most appealing, and Hibiki pointing out the ones he recognized, giving brief histories on all of them, to the best of his knowledge. He had been pleasantly surprised when he'd found the Mona Lisa hung up on the wall next to a box filled with other, similarly rare paintings. Eventually, Dai found a box filled with books stacked on top of eachother, and called Hibiki over to inspect them with her. Some of them ranged from clearly contemporary stories, such as the Da Vinci Code, to as ancient as Beowulf, the Divine Comedy, and the Odyssey. What piqued Hibiki's interest, however, was a clearly old, yellowed book with a simple title written upon its leather-bound cover:

_Frankenstein; Or: A Modern Prometheus._

Hibiki laughed, and stepped off of the wooden crate he was leaning on. "I'll be damned..." He inspected the book, "it's old, too... Maybe a first-run." He thought aloud, attracting Dai's attention. Answering her unspoken question, Hibiki said, "it's called Frankenstein. Long story short, it's about a scientist who wants to make his mark on history, so he robs a local graveyard for body parts, stitches them together, and then animates the corpse." He explained, "and it goes from there... It's actually one of my only favorite classics. I was always a more contemporary guy, but Frankenstein held a place in my heart. I loved it." He said, rapping the ancient book with his knuckles. "They went the extra mile, they did. Grabbing the _old, _valuable copies." He looked up to Dai, "one of these would've run people a few hundred thousand ryo, back in my time. It was that old, and that valuable, of a story. Most people just went for the reprints." He looked at the story, and with a nod, he gently, respectfully, stowed it in one of his empty pouches, gladly noting that the advantage of being able to naturally make melee weapons was that his pouches got much more space.

From her position atop a stack of crates, Dai nodded, and grabbed something from within her own crate. "And what about this? It seems colorful." She leaned over the crate, and gave Hibiki a thin, large book.

Hibiki laughed, feeling waves of memories wash over him. "Oh _man!"_ He said, a wide, almost child-like smile stretching over his face as he saw the iconic image of Superman staring back at him. "Are there more?!" He asked, looking up at Dai, a shine in his eye.

With a flush, Dai nodded. "This crate is filled with them... What are they?" She asked, as Hibiki climbed up the crates to meet her at the top of the stack.

"Lady, these are my _childhood,_ right here!" Hibiki said, placing the comic book back on top of the stack, and flipping through the others. "_Comic books!_ They're like... Real books, but use pictures _and_ words to tell their story." He explained, as he looked at the colorful covers of hundreds of years of graphic novels. "Man, back when, when we didn't have chakra, we still had the concept of it. At least, of people who could do what shinobi did - we called them superheroes." He explained, "ha ha! And this guy was the greatest of them all." He said, as he found what he was looking for, mid-way through a stack in the middle.

Hibiki held in his hands a thick book, and on the cover was a muscular man with wild, gravity-defying black hair, wearing an orange and blue gi. The man was in an offensive stance, and had a confident grin firmly drawn upon his face, his eyes narrowed and focused on whomever he was about to fight.

Dai inclined her head, "he looks strong, but..." She pulled up the book she had given Hibiki earlier, "despite his odd attire, I would have assumed this man to be stronger..." She showed Hibiki the comic book, which depicted Superman, and hovering above his hands was the earth.

Hibiki held in his laughter, merely settling for a wide grin. "Oh, that's Superman. He's cool too - I wouldn't hesitate to say he's the best and strongest of the American comics... But there's a certain magic to this guy." Hibiki shook his own book, "this guy, his name's Son Goku, and he was my freakin' childhood _hero_. I grew up reading his stories." He said, lowering the book and opening it, slowly flipping through the pages and slipping into the memories, _just_ able to see and hear the sights and sounds of the anime playing on his television, so long ago. "This guy is the epitome of a self-made man. He went from barely being able to beat up a few thugs, to being able to take on and _beat... Gods._" He said, with a nostalgic sigh.

Dai then asked, "what about this one?" As Hibiki placed the Dragonball collection back where it had gone. "This... Superman? Were they allies?"

Hibiki chuckled, "depends on who you ask, but they were in different stories altogether, so they never met on any official capacity." He said, "but Superman, he was an icon just like Goku was." He leaned forward on his elbows, "an alien sent to earth from another world, with just one goal: Protect the Earth. See, Superman got his powers from the sun, the more sun he got, the stronger he'd get. There wasn't anyone he couldn't beat - no matter what, if the going got tough... Just look, up in the sky. It might be a bird, it might be a plane, or... It might be Superman. Truth, justice, and the American Way - he was the embodiment of righteousness." He said, slowly picking up the comic and stowing it in his pouch.

"You are taking him, and not Goku?" Dai inquired, as she saw Hibiki stow the comic.

Hibiki paused, staring at the pouch as he zipped it up. "You see... I was always a bigger fan of Goku. He was a guy who had to work for _everything_ in his life... All of his power, he fought, bled, sweat, and cried for. He was a better character... My _favorite_ character... But Superman..." Said Hibiki, reminiscently. "He was Superman. He was a symbol of all that was good in the world... It didn't matter what he was doing, nothing was too small or too big, he had an unending, uncompromising faith in humanity, in that justice would prevail. He fought for goodness, even if it meant he didn't have to actually punch something." He said, patting his pouch and turning to Dai, who was enraptured by his tale. "Make no mistake about it, I liked Goku's stories much more than I did Superman's... But sometimes, you just need a hero, and not a fighter. Sometimes you just need Superman." And, he didn't add, this was a symbol that would hit much closer to home when it came to Katsuo. Katsuo fashioned himself as Superman, so perhaps seeing the real deal, being reminded of what he clearly, desperately wanted to be, would be enough to ground him in reality, and allow Hibiki the chance to turn him on their common enemy.

Dai nodded, understanding Hibiki's words. "I see." She said, "but... Can I ask you something?"

Hibiki tilted his head and inclined an eyebrow. "Hm?"

"Why was he dressed like that?"

Hibiki burst into laughter.

* * *

The two shinobi spent several more hours in the storage room, going over various books and paintings, with Hibiki summarily boggling Dai's mind with the sheer scale of the Terran literary history. Hibiki ended up leaving with a storage scroll filled with, among other things, Frankenstein, All-Star Superman, Starship Troopers, and he even broke down and grabbed as many copies of Dragonball as he could. Before they left, Hibiki made sure to clone the pieces of text he took, and after a brief moment of consideration, put the original ones back in their place. He knew there was no true difference between something that had been Something From Nothing'ed, and the original article, but he still felt that it was the right thing to do, to leave the original volumes here, in their final resting place.

As they ate their last meal, Hibiki spawned two clones, one to stay at the complex and seal it back up in case Zetsu ever came back, and another to dispell and get an update from the clone flying to Konoha. Upon finishing eating, Hibiki got an update from the clone, which had confirmed, once and for all, that his world and the elemental nations were, indeed, on the same planet. With this information, the two geared up, and blasted off to the north-west. It took them a great many hours of flying, before they finally made landfall at the place marked by Hibiki's clone, which was waiting for them upon arrival. The meetup was brief, with the clone letting them both know that it was a straight-shot west to get back to Konoha, and after the two spent several hours recovering from the jet-lag, they took off again. Their second flight took only an hour, and they landed several kilometers outside of the main gates, originally intending to land inside the village itself, but that idea had been shot down when Hibiki and Dai noticed what looked like a small circus set up a few kilometers outside of the village, and off of the main road.

"Ha..." Sighed Hibiki, as he stretched his arms and legs, "smells like home." He said, taking in the thick forests and warm winds, the smell of grass and leaves flooding his nostrils.

"Quite." Said a content Dai, as she took a few steps around to stretch her legs. She had long since tied her hair back up and throw back on her hood, fading back into her regular self. "I cannot wait to sleep in my own bed, again."

"After we get questioned for ten hours about where the hell we were for a week." Hibiki mentioned snidely, as the two walked down the main road to Knonoha, the gates quickly coming in sight. "I wonder if the gate guards will even -" Before he could finish tempting fate, the both of them heard the sound of wind howling, and they looked up, to see a dark-clothed, unclean figure arcing through the air, right for them. "Spoke too soon." Said Hibiki, as he took a few steps to the side to avoid colliding with the Unclean Jonin himself, Dante Uchiha.

The Jonin in question landed roughly on the ground, digging up to deep grooves with his feet as he ground to a halt. The man was breathing heavily, as if he had just crossed a very far distance in a very short amount of time. The tall, dark-clothed Jonin straightened up and patted down his clothes, a cloud of dirt and the scent of mints filled the air around him. After straightening himself out, he whipped around and made to punch Hibiki, stopping just short of the chunin's nose when he saw the boy hadn't reacted in the slightest, though the opposite could be said for Dai, who jumped at the sudden movement.

"Hey, Sensei." Said the Senju heir, casually ignoring the fist hovering in front of his face.

"Hey kid." Said Dante, just as casually, not even lowering his fist. "Where the hell have you been?"

"Amerigo."

"For a week?"

"Yup."

"With Dai."

"Yeah."

"Why?"

"Washita had a chick a few weeks ago, it went missing. He was ready to exterminate the hawks, but I talked him out of it. Brought Dai along to look for it, found it the other day." Hibiki spouted off, as Dante finally lowered his fist and straightened up, towering over the Senju heir.

"Do you... Have... _Any_ idea what has happened in the last week?" Dante asked, brushing a hand through his thick, unkempt hair.

"Nothing good, I assume." Hibiki responded. "Glad to see you're out of the hospital, by the way." He added, looking up at his sensei.

"You're needed in the Hokage's office, Hibiki."

"I already gave him the debriefing about Kiri." Said Hibiki, with a frown.

"It's not about that; and astonishingly, it's not about the fact that you went AWOL with another leaf-village Shinobi in tow." Said Dante, as he hopped up and onto a branch on a tree to the right of the road. "It's been everything we can do to avoid them attacking the village; the Hokage himself has been vouching for you, saying you were on a training mission, preparing for any potential wars following the Blitzkrieg."

Hibiki tilted his head to the side, and exchanged glances with Dai, both of their brows furrowing. He turned back up to look at Dante, who was peering down at them from his position in the tree. "You still haven't told me what happened, Sensei. Who is 'them'? Katsuo? Kirigakure?"

Dante, however, shook his head. "Worse, in a way. You remember the day you awoke your Kaguya blood? What I told you about that clan?" He asked, to the nod of his student. "As it turns out, they were scouting Kirigakure, with the intent to attack the village, around the same time we were blowing it apart, and they saw you fighting Katsuo's envoy, and Ay. The day after you were declared missing, the Kaguya clan - _the whole damn thing -_ showed up on the village's doorstep, and have thus far refused to leave until they've seen you."


	49. Kaguya: Always Something -I-

Chapter 48

* * *

_It is always something._ Thought Hibiki Senju, as he hit the leapt over the wall to his village and arced over it. _Can't even get a few days to figure out what I'm going to say to Katsuo - nope! Gotta deal with some obscure-ass clan that decided to show up out of nowhere._ He hit one of the roofs inside the massive village and rolled to a halt, hearing his sensei and Dai both fall through the air and come to a landing next to him, as he hit the top of his roll and launched himself into the ninja expressway. _God help us if Hibiki wants a moment to collect his thoughts... Just gotta keep piling shit onto his plate!_ Thought the Senju heir, as he leapt across the beige rooftops, hurtling over the villagers below and soaring straight for the Hokage's building.

Two minutes passed before they landed at their destination, and Hibiki was ushered in, in short order. He barely even got a moment to take in the earthly smells of the building, its brightly lit interior, or the lines of shinobi turning in missions at the various desks, instead he got pushed by Dante to the stairs leading higher into the building, and then to the Hokage's office. Dante knocked thrice on the door before being bade to enter, and pushed the Senju heir inside, as if he feared Hibiki would cut and run if he weren't moved by an outside force. Hibiki's senses were immediately assaulted by the smell of incense, and he noticed how the windows seemed thicker than they had been on earlier Hokage was seated in front of these windows, the sun casting him into shadows, his Hokage hat was hanging off of a lamp on his desk, and his formal robes hung loosely off of his thin frame.

The heavily bandaged man didn't even look up from his stack of files and reports before he spoke. "Dante, to what do I owe the unexpected pleasure?"

"We have found Hibiki, Lord Hokage." Said Dante, as his minty smell clashed with that of burning incense, leading to a horrible burning smell that Hibiki feared he wouldn't escape for some time yet.

Danzo, for his part, actually looked up at this bit, instantly turning his one visible eye to the Senju heir. He stared at Hibiki for several moments, his stoic expression completely unreadable. "Leave us." He said, simply.

Dante seemed to hesitate for a moment, before he squeezed the Senju's shoulder, as if in warning, bowed, and left the room. Hibiki very quickly got the impression that he had lost control of the conversation, before it had even started. He swallowed thickly, "you summoned me, Lord Hokage?"

Danzo, however, shut Hibiki down. "Silence. You are in a _lot_ of trouble." He said, with a briefly quivering lip being the only indication of emotion in his otherwise stoic facade. "Eight days you have been missing. _Eight days._ And as you have clearly shown me, that is more than enough time to conquer an entire village." Said the Hokage, before he turned his thin gaze back to the filed on his desk, and shut these files after a moment's thought. "I will not ask if you've considered the repercussions of your actions, because I know you are not so naive as to not have done so. Nor will I ask what you expect to come from this conversation, because you already know." Said the man, who folded his hands on the desk and again made contact with the Senju heir. "And I would not be incorrect in assuming Dante told you of the events of this last week, so we shall get to that." He said, "but let me make one thing very... _Very_ clear. Were you not the son of Tsunade Senju, the apprentice of Orochimaru and Jiraiya, and the boy who spearheaded the Kiri invasion, your loyalty would be in question. Not even that, we would already be training hunter-nin to apprehend and kill you. Eight days is a very long time, Senju. Long enough for you to spill every secret you know to our enemies... But I do not think you are a traitor." He said, managing to undo the knot that was forming in Hibiki's chest. "For everything you are, a good liar is not one of them. Before you had even entered this room, your heart had begun beating at a faster rate and your stance had stiffened up, where the exact opposite would have occurred were you preparing a story to tell me to cover up illicit activities. This does not excuse your actions, but it does mean that we do not believe you to be a traitor, so we will move on to the pressing matters: The Kaguya clan." The fourth Hokage stood up from his chair, and bade Hibiki follow him as he approached the door leading to his balcony. Exiting onto the balcony and into the fresh air, the robed, bandaged Hokage held his good arm behind his back as he gazed over his village. "What do you know of the Kaguya?" The deeply voiced man asked, as his eyes turned towards the sight of campfire smoke to the southwest.

"Not much." Said Hibiki, "they're warlike nomads, and have a really, really powerful bloodline."

"Indeed." Hummed Danzo, "and they noticed your unique ability to replicate bloodlines." It dawned on Hibiki, as Danzo spoke, that he was going to need to come up with a story to explain why he had all of these powers, and preferably soon. "In the days following our routing of Kirigakure, they tracked down and located our village, and have made it clear they will not leave until they can see you." The Hokage explained, his stony face not betraying any emotions. "During your absence, I was able to appease them with tales of a training mission, such that I could learn what they truly wanted." He turned his heavily bandaged face to Hibiki, "do you know just how powerful the Kaguya are, by chance?"

_Well, given how fucking hard _I_ am to kill, I would assume pretty damn powerful._ "They were able to survive as nomads for about as long as the nations existed, so I would conclude _very_." He said, stepping up onto a stool and leaning onto the railing on the edge of the balcony.

Danzo nodded, "astute. They are powerful enough to be considered a potential threat by Kirigakure's intelligence corps., but what they have in power, they lack in skill. They are brutal and savage in nature, preferring to solve all problems through battle, and feats of strength. In their clan, power trumps all, and the most powerful family are those who lead the clan." He said, turning back to gaze out over the village, in the direction where the wolverine people stayed.

"I assume them being here isn't a good omen, then." Hibiki said, briefly exchanging an unreciprocated glance with the Hokage, before turning back to look out over the village.

"You would be incorrect, astonishingly enough." The Hokage himself let an ounce of surprise leak into his voice as he spoke. "Their clan patriarch was confronted after Kirigakure, another clansman cited you as an example that unity could bring with it an other form of power. The patriarch attempted to slay this usurper on the spot for going against their beliefs and traditions, but the usurper won, killing the patriarch, and as per their custom, he took control of the clan." Danzo explained, "they then tracked us down, located our village... And they want to pit one of their warriors against you."

Hibiki blinked, shaking his head back and forth in shock and confusion. "Why?"

"They know you are strong, and believe you to possess Kaguya blood. They wish for you to prove yourself to them, to prove you are worthy of their blood, and your village is worthy of their strength." Danzo responded.

"I must have missed a part..." Said Hibiki, leaning forward and resting his head in his hands. "What does our village have to do with it?" Though he felt he already knew.

"Should you defeat their chosen fighter, they have vowed to join our village, and assist us in the coming war." Hibiki felt a thin, frail hand grasp his shoulder with an iron grip, attracting his gaze. "Do not lose this fight." Danzo said, staring into Hibiki's eyes with a gaze that could melt steel.

Hibiki felt his gut clench under the strength of Danzo's gaze. This man wasn't giving him any options, and given his earlier diatribe about Hibiki's absence, it was clear that even if he had given Hibiki options, he wouldn't have had any, anyways. Repressing an exhausted sigh, Hibiki spoke up. "When is this going down?"

Danzo removed his hand from Hibiki's shoulder, "once I send word to the clan's patriarch, it will occur tomorrow morning in the Chunin exam arena. There, you will be given the rules of your bout and the conditions for victory." Danzo's gaze, if it were at all possible, became even more steely, his normally squinted eye opening wide and managing to capture both of Hibiki's eyes in its hard gaze. "I recommend you spend your time training. You have had a rather lengthy win-streak, since your bout with the jinchuriki, during the Chuunin exams... _You do not want that streak to end, tomorrow."_ He said, his tone unchanging, yet still managing to be more terrifying than it had been barely two minutes ago. "Now go, I am certain your mother will be less likely to tear down a building if you are the one to announce your presence." He said, bading Hibiki to take the express route out of his office.

With a nod, Hibiki swung his legs over the balcony and leapt away, thinking to himself, as he soared to his home. _It is always _something_._

* * *

Hibiki was nearly put through a wall when he arrived home. He didn't know if Tsunade had been expecting him, or it had been coincidence that her shift had been over at the hospital, but upon unlocking the door and entering the home, she took one look at him and was visibly struggling with the decision to either slap him as hard as she could, or bring him into a rub-crunching hug, so she eventually did both, slapping him so hard that he left an indentation on the wall, and then pulling him into a hug so tight that he was unable to breathe. It took the Senju heir over an hour to explain to her why he had left, and so abruptly too, sticking to the story that the eagles had lost a chick and he'd had to go help, as per his contract.

It turned out to be a story he would have to tell many multiple times throughout the course of the day, as his uncles, friends, and allies all individually came to check in on him. Apparently, the theory had sprung up, in the wake of Hibiki's silence and pensiveness after the Kiri invasion, that he was suffering from post traumatic stress, and had simply ran from it all. By the time he had brought everyone up to speed on his fabricated story, was when he got the news from the last week, confirming the Hokage's story about the Kaguya clan issuing an open challenge to him, but also adding in the parts that hadn't been discussed with him, mentioning how negotiations were ongoing with Kiri, about the ceasefire and occupation attempts. It seemed that Konoha would assist in Kiri rebuilding, but the village's shinobi training had to be overseen by Konoha shinobi, so as to avoid any potential revolts and rebellions. A sizeable contingent of Konoha shinobi were on deployment in Kiri to oversee these efforts, and aside from them, the scouting forces sent out weeks ago had returned scant days after Hibiki had left. Barely half of them had survived their confrontation with enemy forces, though they had managed to push them back before retreating, but the news that Hibiki latched onto was that which they had saved until last: Team Four's sensei, Eiji, had perished during the fighting.

It was late at night before Hibiki had managed to convince all of his allies that he was fine, and was able to leave Tsunade's house again. He sent two clones to the training grounds, to try and prepare as much as he could for the morning, while he himself headed for the Aburame compound. Even if it had been swept aside in all of the excitement, he did remember how sullen she had seemed when Eiji had been sent out for this scouting mission, and how afraid she had been when she realized her sensei may not have been able to return.

With the night sky slightly filtered out by the lights of the village, Hibiki silently walked the streets, heading east. The streets were much emptier than they were during the day, but still filled with the nigh-owls, who had late shifts or errands to run when the kids were asleep. Hibiki passed by a few Military Policemen, somewhat astounded when they nodded him by, as if they recognized him. Brushing those encounters off about as fast as they happened, Hibiki made it to the Aburame compound in a quarter of an hour. It being, he noticed, the first time he ever stopped by here, he took a moment to look around as he strode through the compound. The compound had the appearance of being built low to the ground, very few of their homes and buildings stretched up over two stories tall. All of the buildings were dark in color and uniform in structure, with harsh cubed walls and flat roofs. There were small stalls and shops built into some of the smaller, sturdier buildings, and each of these stores had multiple Aburame inside them. The Aburame were clearly a people who were more lively at night, as the entire compound was alight with activity, but unlike the general buzz of the Konoha bazaar, there was a general silence in the atmosphere. Everyone spoke with hushed tones, keeping to the stoic, calm air they gave off, even moreso than the noble Hyuga and the proud Uchiha. It also struck Hibiki how uniformally all of the Aburame dressed - they all wore thin coats, some with their collars popped, some with their hoods drawn, some even wore bandannas around their face. Hibiki actually found it somewhat difficult to tell everyone apart, and quickly became aware of the eyes, all of them hidden by dark sunglasses, and all gravitating towards him.

There was a central building, just over two stories tall, at the center of the Aburame compound. It was clearly some kind of communal building, with people streaming in and out at a frequent rate, giving Hibiki a good enough place to start his search for Dai. Before he even made it halfway to the building, however, he sensed a presence behind him, prompting him to turn around and face a six foot tall Aburame in a large, thin coat, his face covered by its collar, and the hood attached to his shoulders.

Hibiki and the man stared at eachother for a few moments, the man's eyes hidden by his deep dark sunglasses, and Hibiki's light-aborsing onyx orbs staring into the man's glasses, almost challengingly as the Senju heir raised an eyebrow. "Good evening." The Senju finally said, breaking the ice.

"You smell like my daughter's colony." The towering Aburame stated, his voice, while serious and approaching threatening, was much lighter than Hibiki would have predicted, given his size and the fact that the man's presence managed to take up the entire street they were standing in.

_I pray to god he's talking about bugs, because I'm not even old enough to get it up, yet._ "Er... Is that a good or a bad thing?" Hibiki asked, his neutral expression unchanging, save for his raised eyebrow.

"What are you doing here?" The man asked, bluntly. "Your chakra reeks of death."

_The hell does that mean?_ "I'm looking for Dai."

"She is not here."

"I figured that." Said Hibiki, as his eyebrow fell back into place, and he placed his hands in his coat, now turning to fully face the towering Aburame. "I just got some news, that I'm certain she's already gotten too. I wanted to check in on her."

The man huffed, "she is still not here." He said from behind his dark collar.

_I'm sensing some hostility, here._ Thought the Senju heir, as he peered up at the mostly covered Aburame. "Would you happen to know where I could find her?"

"Yes."

"You're not going to tell me."

"Correct."

_It is _always_ something._ Thought the Senju heir, who was quickly becoming fed up with all of the BS that was falling on his plate. "And why... Pray tell... Not?" He asked, resisting the almost instinctual urge to flip on his Sharingan.

"Your chakra reeks of death." The man repeated, "everyone in the compound smelled it the moment you stepped in here." Dai's father's coat seemed to shift and buzz as he spoke. "I do not approve."

Hibiki stared at the man dully. His first instinct was to exasperatedly just throw up his hands and walk away from all of this, but if this man was Dai's father, that didn't strike the Senju heir as the smartest idea. _It is always... Always... Always something._ The formerly displaced man thought, as he sighed. "How do I change that?" He asked, his voice cutting through the still night air like a knife.

"You cannot. Where there is the smell of death, death itself inevitable follows, if it is not there already." The Aburame man spoke, as Hibiki sensed more and more eyes becoming locked to their quiet conversation in the middle of the road.

"How does chakra smell like death?" Hibiki challenged, "what does that even _mean?"_

"It means that I will not allow you to pursue my daughter. I myself do not understand what about you sets the queens of every living Aburame within sight of you on edge, but I do not need to, to know that it is unnatural to make the scavengers so terrified." The man growled, his light, but rumbly voice filling the air between him and the young Senju.

_Holy shit._ It dawned on Hibiki just where this had come from: Dai's beetles were making good on their threat. They must have spread the word throughout the clan, and all of the other queens' unease were translating into their hosts, and, lucky him, Hibiki had attracted the ire of Dai's _father._ A part of him wondered if her mother was around, and if she would be more reasonable, but that same part of him said that her mother had the potential to be even worse, it all had to come from somewhere, after all, and Dai's father clearly took a no-nonsense approach to life, as opposed to Dai's constant deadpan sarcasm.

Hibiki cleared his throat, "listen, sir. I am no threat to you, your daughter, or anyone around me. I don't go looking for fights. I don't shy away from them, but every fight I've ever been in wasn't started or sought after by me. I won't pretend to understand what you mean by dead chakra, but I can assure you that if it becomes an issue, I will handle it." He said, as seriously as he could, given that he was being stared down by a man who controlled a horde of insects capable of literally draining the life out of people. It wasn't to say Hibiki was afraid of the man, he just really, _really_ wanted to avoid an unnecessary fight. "I'm just looking for a friend. She got some bad news and I want to make sure she's alright."

The man stared at him, the only exposed part of his body, that being his forehead, furrowed in anger, his eyebrows inching closer to each other as he digested Hibiki's words. "I will not allow it." He finally said, causing Hibiki to let loose a slow sigh, as the Senju heir came to the realization that there was no good ending to this. "And you will leave this place. You are not welcome here, Senju."

Hibiki's eye twitched, as they both slowly faded into their red forms. "Sir... I think you underestimate me. I came here because it would be easier for me to find her, but as you've told me multiple times, she isn't here. It wouldn't take me very long to find her, it may be a large village, but I can be fast if the situation permitted." It was nowhere near mastered, but his trial-by-fire gave him a solid enough grasp of his Flash technique, and he figured, using that and his Sharingan to push himself to ludicrous speed, he could find Dai in a few minutes.

Her father, however, took his challenge and refused to back down, as a few beetles crawled out of the sleeves of his coat and up his arms, threateningly. "Are you threatening me, Dead One?"

_I like that name._ Snidely thought the 'Dead One'. "No sir, merely stating a fact." Every fiber of his being wanted to lash out and goad this man, but his more rational side won out, though not without clenching his fist hard enough to stretch his skin and turn his knuckles white. When he saw the man's brows grow even closer, and his forehead wrinkle up in rage, the world slow down as the enhanced reflexes of his dojutsu eyes told him everything he needed. Though more of the man's finer, more minute motions escaped the Senju due to his baggy clothes, Hibiki still saw and perceived things at a much, much faster rate than everyone surrounding him, thanks to his dojutsu. He saw the man's chakra flare up, and his arm begin to rip itself out of his coat, so with a long, exasperated sigh, Hibiki called forth his Flash technique, and sped around the man in a nanosecond, pausing briefly to let the world catch up, so he could provide a parting remark.

"For what it's worth, sir, I understand why you don't approve." A part of him didn't, either, but that was besides the point. "But I didn't lie once while we spoke. I don't mean you, your daughter, or anyone around me harm." He said, as the man whipped around, insects filling the air. "But I think you're emotional, and I'm starting to get a little pissed myself, so I suggest we give eachother some time to calm down. I'll find Dai myself and check in on her." With those words, the world slowed down again and Hibiki was out of the Aburame compound before the man could even blink.

* * *

Using his Flash bloodline's superspeed techniques, in conjunction with his Sharingan, made it so Hibiki could feasibly move several feet in a nanosecond, and that was just jogging, like he was now. Experimentally, as he sped through the village, Hibiki slowed down to a walk, and still managed to cover ridiculous amounts of space in an astonishing amount of time, and all-out sprinting made things even more ridiculous. In this state, the entire world slowed almost to a complete halt, making Hibiki wonder if chakra was allowing him to approach lightspeed _on foot._ _God_ help his enemies if he figured out how to use Flash chakra while he was flying, he'd be unstoppable.

It took Hibiki thirteen seconds in real time, after leaving the Aburame compound, to find Dai. She hadn't been in the forest of death, or any of the training grounds, but on top of the Hokage monument, sitting on the head of the second Hokage, several feet from the metal structures that surrounded the third head, with clear evidence that efforts were being made to fix the horrible gash in the proud monument. This made Hibiki briefly wonder how Mt. Rushmore was holding up, as the world sped up and he slowed down, skidding a few feet to a halt and sending some dust into the air.

Dai didn't even need to turn her head, "I guess I know now how _you_ feel." She said, snidely.

Hibiki grinned, and approached her from behind. "You get used to it, having someone always knowing where the hell you are." He said, with a light chuckle.

"I see you have met my father." Dai said, as Hibiki reached her side. She was seated on the giant stone head, her legs held close to her chest, and her head resting upon her knees.

Hibiki blinked, "information travels that fast, or..." He said, as he sat down next to her. "You've got a couple informants crawling around on my head?" He said with a grin.

"A little bit of both, and your sleeve." Dai said, nodding to Hibiki's right arm, prompting Hibiki to look at it.

"Whoa!" Hibiki shook his head in astonishment, seeing that his sleeve, just below the elbow, looked like it had been completely disintegrated. "Uh... How?"

"Rinkaichu." Dai explained, "only very powerful Aburame can breed them. They are nano-sized beetles, capable of destroying their enemies on a cellular level."

_A trillion microscopic insects with monomolecular pincers, and I pissed the guy off._ Hibiki chuckled and shook his head. "Didn't know that bit... I probably would've chosen my words a bit more carefully if I had." He commented, inspecting his arm with a light whistle. "Must've shaken them off when I bolted." He said, lightly flicking his arm, as if to check for damages.

"You were very lucky they didn't get to your arm, Hibiki." Dai said, barely even moving from her foetal-positioned state. "I question even your healing abilities' capability to heal those kinds of injuries."

_Well, according to my fight with Zetsu, I've... Almost got that covered... Kind of._ Thought Hibiki, "ah, don't worry about it. I might've pissed him off, but I think I can smooth things over next time I see 'im."

Dai shook her head, and leaned over to the side, almost completely leaning against the Senju heir as she rested her head on his shoulder. "I doubt that, Hibiki. He is the reasonable one, of my parents."

The Senju heir chuckled, "the _reasonable_ one tried to cut me apart on a near molecular level, because I was trying to find his daughter." He nodded, a smile stretching across his face as he took on a tone of clear denial. "I see. Great. Sounds good." It seemed that Hibiki was kicking the proverbial hornet's nest, or beetle's nest, as the case was. "He didn't seem to like me, that much."

"It isn't personal." Said Dai, who released her legs with one arm, only to wrap it around one of the arms Hibiki was leaning back on, and then wrap it over her legs again. "Courting outside of the clan is generally stigmatized. Not necessarily forbidden, just uncommon enough that most simply do not out of tradition. Worse is that my father, given his mastery of the Rinkaichu, is held in high regard by the clan and our elders, which trickles down to me." She explained, "so me so blatantly disregarding tradition is a point of contention between me and him."

It wasn't necessarily what he came up here to talk about, but Hibiki could tell from the softness of Dai's voice that speaking of these things were keeping her mind off of Eiji, so he rolled with it. "Believe it or not, I actually do know the feeling. Mother was Tsunade Senju, uncles were Orochimaru and Jiraiya, grandfather was Hashirama, grand uncle... Or whatever the term is, was Tobirama. Mother's sensei was Sarutobi. People seem to expect great things out of me, so I can relate."

Dai giggled, "yes, but unlike me, you are very clearly proving that you live up to the standards you are held to, mister 'Thunder God'."

The Thunder God rolled his eyes, "shaddap." Hibiki responded, "and listen... What I'm trying to say is that I can relate. More than that, I'm not even mad." He said, "frustrated, maybe, but that's only because this is just adding a whole new layer of stuff onto an already over-filled plate... But not mad. I get it - guy's mired in tradition, and doesn't think anyone's good enough for his little girl. I never had kids in my last life, but I do understand the feeling, on some level..." He leaned his head close to Dai's and whispered conspiratorially, "and if you're his daughter, and _he's_ the reasonable one, something tells me I doubt anything he says or does will change your mind." He watched as a smile stretched across Dai's reddening face.

Dai sighed contentedly, "I would assume you aren't here to talk about my father." She finally said, after the two shared an extended silence with eachother.

Hibiki nodded, "I heard about Eiji."

Dai nodded on Hibiki's shoulder, "the funeral is next week." She said, sullenly.

Hibiki rested his head against hers, the slightly diluted smell of the rose-scented shampoo she had used in NORAD still lingering in her hair, and flooding Hibiki's nose. "I'll be there, if you want me to go." Depending on what day specifically, it could interfere with his meeting with Katsuo, but given everyone's reactions to his unexpected Houdini act, he was coming up with a plan to be in both places at once.

Dai hummed, sending faint vibrations down Hibiki's shoulder. "I would like that." She said, before the two settled into silence again, simply staring down at the warm, lamp-lit village below. After several minutes, Dai spoke up, "a part of me wishes I had been there, for him... But I know I would have only burdened him, made him worry about protecting me, in addition to fighting his attackers." She admitted, with a frown. "I only knew him for a few years, but he was like family... He was my sensei."

Hibiki let loose a low breath, and extricated his arm from Dai's grasp, before he wrapped it around her back and squeezed her close. He knew what she was about to ask.

"Do you... Remember anything?" She asked, her eyes lowering to the stone carving below them, as if she were too nervous to even look in Hibiki's general direction.

The honest answer was 'no', but that wasn't what Hibiki could tell her. "It was quicker than falling asleep." He said, "and it was peaceful. Like a good nap."

Dai nodded into Hibiki's shoulder, seemingly satisfied with that answer. "Aoi and Akane told me you had been summoned to fight the Kaguya clan heir, tomorrow."

_And the plot thickens._ "I didn't know I was fighting the heir, but yeah, it's looking like I'll be called up sometime in the morning."

"Should you not be worrying about getting rest, then?" Dai asked, her soft voice barely making it over the air.

_I've got it covered._ Was Hibiki's knee-jerk response, but he instead shrugged, and held Dai a bit tighter as he spoke. "Had more pressing issues to attend to." He relished the feeling of Dai smiling into his shoulder.

"What do you think?" She asked, "about the fight."

_Persistent one._ Thought the Senju, he shrugged again. "I'm thinking it'll be a pretty interesting fight. If this guy's awoken his bloodline, which is a safe bet, else they would have chosen someone else, then he's at least as tough to hurt as I am, and I don't need to go over the _list_ of shit I've gotten hit with." Hibiki explained, "but I also doubt they'll make it a 'no holds barred' kind of thing, given that my reputation is to replicate other bloodlines. I'm thinking they'll put a limiter on us, no ninjutsu, only a fight with Kaguya blood, in which case, things could last a long while. Unless the injury is a severe one, it doesn't take too terribly much chakra to heal up, so the fight would last as long as our endurance can hold out, and I'm pretty certain that the mystery man can last through a long fight." He explained.

Dai nodded, and Hibiki noticed her grip on her legs was slacking, and she was sliding them down to a more proper seated position. "Do you know how you will beat him, then?"

"Not a clue... But the Hokage made it pretty clear I can't lose, so I'm thinking this is the same deal as with the Chunin exams... Cheat, just don't get caught, and if that's the case, I've got a couple ideas on how to make things easier on me."

Dai hummed, "how so?"

Hibiki chuckled, and rubbed her arm. "I'll let you figure out. Let the suspense build up a bit." He had no idea.

Dai seemed to be intrinsically aware of the fact, too. "I have noticed something, about you." She said.

Hibiki raised an eyebrow, "oh?"

"You've been on one major winning streak. Since the chunin exams, I cannot think of a single fight you've lost." She said, pressing her head further into Hibiki's shoulder, with a light sigh.

"Probably why they call me the Thunder _God,_ and not the thunder _demi_-god. Gods don't bleed." Hibiki said, knowing it would be pointless to mention that he had one many _fights,_ but _all_ of his major opponents lived to fight another day.

Dai was silent a moment, before she slid one of her hands down Hibiki's lowered arm, and wrapped her thin fingers around his own callused, leathery digits. "But you do." She whispered, "I fear you may not be able to maintain that momentum for much longer. There are powerful people out there... And our trip to your homeland showed us that they are aware of you. Katsuo and his people may be the least of your concerns... That oily creature has its own masters... And there are kage, and jonin, and..." She paused, her voice quiet, almost as if she didn't have the strength to continue putting words to her thoughts. "I dread the day you enter into combat and do not come out on top." She finally admitted, keeping her eyes forward and her head rested upon Hibiki's shoulder.

Hibiki was silent for a long while, as he tried to find the right words to say. He rubbed his hand up and down her thin side, "yeah." He finally said, "it's been on my mind. I think I may have started this game too late. All of my enemies are at a level that I simply cannot reach without time... Time I usually don't have." He explained, "but... Necessity is the mother of invention. I died once, and you can see how long that held me." He felt his breath momentarily get caught in his throat, "I... Know I need to be careful. But sometimes the only way to learn not to play with fire is to get burned."

"That implies you must hurt to learn." She said, "I've been watching you ever since Emi Miu. Your victories are getting narrower and narrower. You almost _didn't_ defeat that oily creature."

"Shouldn't that instill you with confidence?" Hibiki cracked a smile, "I mean, that guy was possessing one of my shadow clones. So, technically speaking, that was more of a show of how god damn hard it is to kill me... And how strong I can be through blood _alone._ Not even counting my curse seal, the lightning cloak, or the eight gates."

"And have you mastered any of those things?"

"Not the point."

"But it is. The only reason you won that fight was because I was there and I drained your clone of its chakra. What would you have done if I hadn't been there?" Dai asked, shakily.

"I was actually thinking of drowning him... I'm confident that would have worked." Hibiki sighed, "waddaya want me to say, Dai? I'm in the bingo book now, and we started a freakin' _war_ a few weeks ago... Kind of."

Dai was silent, "I do not want to lose you." She said, strength returning to her voice as she made her quiet declaration with a firm conviction. "Especially not now that I have you."

"All ten years of me."

"Just please promise to come back to me... No matter what." Dai's voice lowered back to a whisper, and Hibiki felt her head slowly lower, her gaze shifting to their shadows, stretching across the head of the late hokage.

Hibiki sighed deeply, his true age, and the exhaustion and experience that came with it, coming through in that brief moment of exhaling. He held the lithe Aburame closer, and in return she tightened her grip on his hand. "What'd you say under the mountain?" He asked, and after a brief pause, he rested his head on Dai's and whispered, "you need only ask."

The rest of the night was spent with, at minimum, four Hibikis in the village. Two were in the training fields, trying like hell to invent a way to beat someone with Kaguya blood in less than twelve hours, one was in Hibiki's room, sleeping and building up as much chakra and energy as he could, and the Alpha was on top of the Hokage monument with Dai until she felt comfortable enough to leave for her home. The Alpha Hibiki spent another hour on top of the Hokage monument, staring up at the starry sky, before he too made for his home.

* * *

Hibiki and his clone awoke early the next morning, the clone soon dispelled to add its energy to his, and, now completely rested, Hibiki exited his room and made for the ground floor. Tsunade was gone, having had to make an early shift at the hospital, where she had told him she was pulling doubles ever since the rate of ninja injuries had skyrocketed. This left the Senju heir to his own devices for several hours, until he heard a knock on his door.

Opening the door greeted him with a strange sight: An albino boy, whose skin was nearly as pale as his white hair, staring at him with a wide, kind smile on his face, and two large red dots just above his eyebrows. The boy stood two feet taller than Hibiki, and wore combat robes similar to that of the Hyuga, though his top was unbuttoned, revealing his bare chest, and his pants were somehow baggier than Hibiki's cargos. "Hi!" The boy said jovially, as he looked down to make eye contact with the formerly displaced man.

Hibiki stared up at the teen for a moment, a part of him already aware of who this person may be, but another part of him wondering just what was going on, and so early in the morning. The sun had barely been up for an hour before this guy had shown up on his doorstep. "Hello." Said Hibiki, slowly.

The boy extended his hand, "I'm Arjuna, I'll be fighting you today." He said, with a smile that was entirely too happy for Hibiki's tastes.

The blinking Senju heir turned his gaze from Arjuna's dull green eyes, which he soon noticed seemed to be rimmed with red outlines, to his extended hand, and then back to his eyes. "Care to run that by me again?"

Without losing an ounce of joviality, Arjuna clarified, "Arjuna _Kaguya."_ He said, briefly inclining his head as he gave his family name, before his eyes widened and a nervous, apprehensive expression replaced the jovial one, as if the boy suddenly felt he had made a grievous error. "Is this not the home of Hibiki Senju?"

_Oh... I could _so_ fuck with him right now..._ Thought Hibiki, as he shook his head. "No, this is my home, I just wasn't expecting you to show up." To say nothing of the boy's unhealthily cheerful demeanor. Hibiki took Arjuna's hand and shook it, "Hibiki Senju." He said, as he shook his hand. "I'll admit, I was expecting someone... Older. And pissier." He said, "uh... Come in." Sure, inviting the guy he was about to fight into his house probably wasn't the smartest decision, and the thought that his jovial demeanor was merely a facade had crossed Hibiki's mind, but the way Hibiki saw it, they weren't going to kill eachother, and if Hibiki lost, the worst the Kaguya clan could do would be to leave. For all intents and purposes, this fight between him and Arjuna was just a prick-waving contest between the Kaguya clan and Danzo.

Arjuna's smile stretched even wider, his eyes curving up as he nodded, "thank you!" He said, entering Hibiki's home, with the Senju heir closing the door behind him.

Hibiki cleared his throat, "I'll be honest..." He said, as he walked deeper into the dimly lit house, "you caught me right after I woke up... And I seriously didn't expect someone so happy." To prove his words, he was still in his pajamas, as opposed to the Kaguya heir, who was in full regalia, his unfastened overcoat swishing and flowing with every movement.

"Oh, I understand." The soft-spoken teenaged Kaguya said, with a wave of his hand, as the Senju heir led the boy into the kitchen. "I think nothing of it, few clans are able to awaken as early as we." He said, masking the infrequent cracks of his pubescent voice by speaking in a soft, low tone.

Hibiki twitched an eyebrow as he offered a seat to the Kaguya heir. _So that's how it's going to be._ He hadn't missed the subtle jab at Konoha and its clans, but he was willing to write it off as a one-off. "I was about to eat." He said, as the Kaguya sat down, "care to join me?" He asked, his brash, child-like voice providing a stark contrast to Arjuna's soft tone.

The Kaguya heir shook his head, his pony-tail swishing from side to side as he did so. "No, thank you. I ate earlier this morning."

Hibiki felt as if this guy was playing a game with him, as the Senju heir grabbed a bowl, a box of cereal, and a carton of milk. He sat down on the other side of the table, in front of the patiently waiting Arjuna, who had his hands respectfully folded in his lap. After he finished assembling his dirty meal, Hibiki took one bite as he contemplated his next question. "So..." He said, channeling his inner Dante and speaking with his mouth full. "Why... Are you here?" He asked, before swallowing the food in his mouth.

Arjuna, a kind smile still plastered on his pale face, nodded once. "Oh, I wished to meet Konoha's Thunder God before he and I had our duel." He said, politely, his dull green eyes watching Hibiki's every movement.

_I swear, I will find the man who gave me that name and strangle him._ Thought the Senju heir, as he took another bite and swallowed. "At a pretty early hour." He said, yawning. "Excuse me." He said, covering his mouth. "So... You're the Kaguya clan's heir?" He said, giving the thin teen a once-over with his onyx eyes.

Arjuna nodded emphatically, "it is a recent development, but yes." He said, "so long as there remains no change, I am the heir to my clan, as I am led to understand you are, as well."

Hibiki nodded, but shrugged. "Not much of a clan left, though. Last few wars stacked the odds against us." And it didn't help that he didn't have a drop of Senju in him, according to Kenichi's notes, and though it did bade him to wonder where Zetsu had gotten his wood bloodline techniques from, those were questions for later.

"Well, it is still your clan, to which you are the heir, yes?" Arjuna asked, to Hibiki's nod. "Then you should feel proud, inheriting a clan as strong as the Senju, as am I, inheriting the power of the Kaguya."

_Second time._ Hibiki noted, idly crunching his food. _This guy's either putting on a facade, or he's naturally that blunt._ "So... You guys were here for my entire training trip, huh?" He said, "that takes dedication."

Arjuna nodded, bashfully. "Indeed, but my father is insistent. Were it up to him, we wouldn't go through the whole rigamarole of you and I fighting, but he risks the loyalty of the majority of the clan if he were to ignore such traditions, so he had to acquiesce." He explained, before he rested his forearms against the edge of the table and folded both hands atop eachother, before leaning forward conspiratorially. "Is it true that you defeated Katsuo the Monster?" He asked.

Hibiki gave a non-committal jerk of his head, "survived, and defeated, are two different things." He said, vaguely, to which, Arjuna nodded, and leaned back in his chair, returning his hands to his lap. "So, let me ask you something, what is this fight going to be?"

Arjuna brightened up, "oh, it will be a simple exhibition match. The only rules are that we can only use techniques related to the Shikotsumyaku, and we cannot kill eachother." He said, his smile unwavering.

"The... Shiko what now?"

"The Shikotsumyaku**.**" Arjuna repeated, "our mutual bloodline." He added with a kind nod, when all he received as a response was a blank stare.

Hibiki nodded, wondering which would be easier: To change it to its proper name, or continue calling it the 'Wolverine' release. "You know... You're not what I expected you to be." He said, as he finished off his breakfast.

Arjuna laughed lightly, "I was expecting this." He said, "I am what you would call a black sheep. Most of my clan is proud and arrogant, ready to fight on a moment's notice, but my mother claims that, as I was born under a full moon, I am different, which I only sought to prove when I awoke my bloodline." He explained.

_But I'm willing to bet money that you're a _beast_ in a fight._ Thought the Senju heir, as he nodded, and put away his dishes. "So how long until our fight?" He asked, as he circled back around to sit at the table.

"Two hours." Said Arjuna, "should I take this as my leave?" He asked, to which, Hibiki nodded. "I see... It was a pleasure getting to speak with you, Hibiki Senju." Said the Kaguya heir, as he stood up and bowed low. "I look forward to our fight." He added as he straightened up, and was led out of the house.

Hibiki shut the door behind the Kaguya, and simply stared at it, as if he were watching the teen leave. The formerly displaced man tiredly shook his head, and turned back to go deeper into the house, intent upon donning his clothes and making way for the arena.


	50. Kaguya: Wolverine vs Wolverine -II-

Chapter 49

* * *

The chunin exam arena in Konoha was designed to hold somewhere in the vicinity of sixty eight thousand people. It went mostly unused whenever the leaf wasn't hosting the chunin exams, as most honorable duels in the village typically occurred in training grounds, or personal dojos. In the case of Hibiki Senju vs Arjuna Kaguya, however, the cases were a lot different. Almost everyone in the leaf village, shinobi and civilian alike, knew that the Kaguya were here, and that they were here for the heir to their most powerful clan, and word had spread like fire on gasoline when it was revealed that the Thunder God would be fighting the Kaguya clan's heir, over the fate of the clan itself: Should he win, the clan would join Konoha, should he lose, the clan would continue to be nomads. This meant that the stadium that was normally empty and unused was now filled to capacity, with thousands of civilians and Kaguya clansman taking up the seats. The fight was so spread through word of mouth that there were even a few thousand off-duty shinobi present, seated on the edge of the stadium's open roof; most of these shinobi either still bandaged and recovering from their battles, or too low in rank to have participated in the Kiri campaign or border patrol. Even more out of place was the presence of the heads of the major clans, the Hokage, and the Kaguya clan partiarch, seated in the VIP section.

As the information from a disguised clone came funneling in, and Hibiki Senju considered the merits of flying over the arena and coming in with an ostentatious superhero landing, he simply watched from the outside, as more people streamed inside. The Senju heir had no idea where these people would sit, given that he'd heard the place had been filled up an hour ago, but he quickly concluded that it wasn't really his problem. His problem _was,_ however, finding a way to beat what basically equated to Wolverine, without any of his 'big' techniques. This was gearing up to be a fight completely out of the norm for him, there would be no Sharingan to help him steal techniques and improvise new ones, there would be no eleventh-hour superpower, and there would be no transformations to augment his power and let him equal his opponent, thus putting him in a position where he would inadvertently be proving everything he had been saying thus far: He was _very_ young, and while he certainly had power, his body wasn't capable of using it properly, requiring him to augment it. So, leaning against a small building and somewhat hiding in its shade as he stared at the arena looming over him, the Senju heir wondered just how he would win this one. The Hokage had made it very, very clear he couldn't lose, but the guy he was fighting was in his later teens, and likely had much more experience with his bloodline, where Hibiki had mostly been using it to imitate Wolverine.

_Do not lose this fight._ Hibiki thought back to the Hokage's words. Danzo had likely known the rules too, well before they had been brought up to Hibiki's attention, and the man had to know, just looking at the Senju heir, that while he was powerful, with all of the handicaps placed on him, this was an opponent who was out of his league. The question wasn't _could_ he beat him, it was how he could do so with one hand tied behind his back, and the other dislocated and flopping around uselessly.

The Senju heir sighed, as he rested his hands in his pockets, and, what with all of the thoughts around the Shikotsumyaku, a thought occurred to him. If he had a healing factor capable of replacing missing bones and healing a chest that had been blasted off of him, did that mean he could smoke without repercussion? Sure, he may be a kid, but by law of the land, he was an adult, and by his standards, he was approaching _forty,_ add that onto all of the shit being piled on his plate, he felt he'd earned a cigarette or two, and if it helped relieve some of this tension, he figured, why not? Hell, maybe he could upgrade, start chomping cigars like a badass. Did cigars even exist in the New Hotness? Besides, Back Home, one would have to worry about cancer and screwing up their lungs, but Hibiki had chakra, _and_ a healing factor working in his favor, so whatever tissue he damaged by setting it on fire by proxy would be healed up about as fast as he could inhale the smoke; though he did wonder for a moment, would his healing factor also work on a nicotine addiction?

_Questions for later._ Thought the Senju heir, as he repressed a yawn, and felt a few hairs on the back of his neck stand on end. "I'm not late." He said to the open air, as he raised his eyes and stared at the ANBU agent with a Wolf's mask.

"I am here to ensure that you do not become so." The baritone man intoned.

"I don't plan on skipping out, if that's what the Hokage's worrying about. Just collecting my thoughts." He looked up, "you wouldn't happen to know where I could buy a cigar, would you?"

It was now that Hibiki was treated to one of those very, very rare moments when he actually managed to stumble an ANBU agent. The crouching Wolf was silent for several consecutive seconds, the left half of his body bathed in sunlight, and the right half shrouded in shadow, as he stared down at Hibiki from behind his mask. "Why would you want to start smoking?"

_Because I think it's actually a safe bet that there are enough Shinobi out there who do, and as such one intrepid medic figured out how to get all of the benefits, and none of the drawbacks. If there's a goddamn pill out there that can halt the menstrual process for Kunoichi, there's got to be Shinobi-brand cigars._ Hibiku shrugged, "exploring avenues of stress relief that don't involve training ninety clones half to death, and beating the ever-living shit out of people." That, and it had been ten years since Hibiki had been able to answer a very different call of nature, and starting things up with Dai was starting to bring that closer and closer to the forefront of his mind, and remind him that it would be another three years, _bare minimum,_ before he could do anything about it. In short, he needed something, and though he may be weak willed enough to pick up a cigarette, he wasn't going to go to a bottle, he saw what it did to Tsunade, and even if he hadn't, _that_ wasn't a habit he wanted to get into.

The ANBU continued to stare at him for a few moments, before he said, "I'll tell you what, Senju. If you go right now, _I'll_ buy you a pack. If you win, I'll get you the good stuff."

Hibiki couldn't help a grin as he shoved off of the wall, "why, Wolf, it seems as if you're assisting a ten year old in the formation of a very bad habit."

"You're an adult." Said Wolf, as-a-matter-of-factly.

Hibiki rolled his eyes, "gonna watch the fight?" He asked, as he hopped up onto the roof, and casually began walking in the direction of the stadium.

"I have to." He said, succinctly. A few minutes passed, and before Hibiki hopped down to enter the arena, the masked man added, "I wouldn't recommend it."

Hibiki, with one foot hanging off of the edge of the flat roof, turned his head. "Hm?"

"Smoking. I wouldn't recommend it." Said Wolf, "though I know not how much of the habit you'll circumvent with your healing abilities, it is still a bad habit to start. The risks outweigh the rewards."

The Senju heir chuckled, having heard it _all_ before, in another life. "I know, I know. I'm only being half serious." He said, "but you've gotta seize the day, and all that." And as he was living proof, one don't just live once, so why not try things? As long as they were reasonable, he may find he enjoys them. He yawned, "wish me luck." and hopped off the roof.

* * *

Five minutes later, Hibiki was called out to enter the arena. Strolling out casually, his posture slackened and his hands in his pockets, his ears were immediately assaulted by tens of thousands of shouting voices, some cheering, some shouting just to join the crowd, some, specifically belonging to the foreign albino clansmen, booing. Hibiki gazed around the stadium, as he walked towards the center of the arena, recognizing none of the faces until he saw the shinobi seated atop the stadium's open roof. Lining the edge, he saw one group of five sedentary Genin, their legs swinging off of the edge of the open roof, and one tall, though unbathed Jonin, all waving their hands and cheering him on. Several feet to their side were the group of rookies and their token Genin friend, the Blonde Blur sitting in the center of the group and energetically calling down and waving to the Senju heir. Hibiki gave them all a grin and a nod, before his gaze lowered and he found the VIP section, filled with the Clan Heads, the Hokage, and the Kaguya Patriarch. The Senju heir immediately caught the stern, one-eyed glare of the Hokage, which only hammered home the man's words: _Don't lose._

Hibiki broke eye contact with them quickly as he arrived center-field, coming to a halt a meter from Arjuna, who had slipped his arms out of his robed top, letting it swing freely, fastened to his waist by a thin belt. The white-haired Kaguya smiled widely and gave the Senju a nod, as another Kaguya, dressed similarly to Arjuna, with the difference being his top was more like an overcoat than a simple jacket, arrived and placed his chakra-coated fingers against his throat.

_"Arjuna Kaguya."_ He said, pointing to the Kaguya heir, and silencing the stadium with his loud, booming voice, that managed to echo throughout the village for several kilometers. _"Hibiki Senju."_ He pointed to the dark-haired Senju, who was straightening his stance and squaring his shoulders, now that the fun was starting. _"I have been led to understand you two know the rules of this duel, but for the benefit of clarity I shall state them again. This is an exhibition match only, there shall be no loss of life in this arena."_ The way the tall, pale man spoke, it sounded as if he himself didn't quite like the bit about no killing, but he continued too fast for his distaste to be too visible. _"Once this match begins, the only techniques you two are allowed to use are those related to the __Shikotsumyaku. No other bloodlines, ninjutsu, or genjutsu are allowed in this fight. Victory will be awarded when your opponent loses consciousness, surrenders, or is rendered otherwise unable to continue fighting."_ He explained, _"am I understood?"_ The two fighters nodded, Hibiki removed his hands from his pockets. _"Are you ready to begin?"_ Another two nods, and as the man leapt away, he called out, _"then do so!"_

And, just as Hibiki predicted, as if a switch were flipped, Arjuna's round, kind eyes narrowed, and his kind smile turned into a ferocious frown. The Kaguya heir rocketed forward with a push of his legs, and stooped low to the ground as he threw out both hands and began spinning like a top. Bones began sprouting up like thorns from all over the upper half of his body, their sharp edges practically whistling in the air as he crossed the distance between him and Hibiki in a second. Hibiki hopped back and twisted and jerked his body in every direction, dodging the whirlwind of razor-sharp blades that Arjuna had become. The Kaguya heir spun with a fluid grace, throwing his arms out and stomping his legs as if he were conducting a lethal dance. Hibiki threw up his arm to block a spinning backhand, but immediately found his forearm locked to Arjuna as more bones burst out of his arm and into Hibiki's, penetrating the Senju heir and sending both of the combatants' blood flying.

Now locked to his opponent, Hibiki cursed as Arjuna sped up his dance, hopping into the air and launching two lightning fast kicks at Hibiki's chest, and then spinning around, using Hibiki's arm as a pendulum. Arjuna slammed the back of his free arm into Hibiki's back, but the Senju heir, thinking fast, stooped down low and threw his bound arm forward, managing to throw the Kaguya off balance and rip his arm free, sprinkling the ground in a shower of blood as Hibiki threw his foot backwards and caught Arjuna in the chest, sending him stumbling back several feet. Now on the offensive, Hibiki whipped around and popped his claws, before launching himself at the Kaguya heir like a predator, his arms splayed out to the side as he flew through the air. Arjuna, for his part, reacted quickly and ripped one of the bones out of his arms, revealing a sword which he used to block one of Hibiki's attacks. With his other hand, Arjuna sprouted dozens of curved, spiked bones and punched forward, just as Hibiki sank three of his claws into Arjuna's chest. Both attacks penetrated their opponent and burst out from their back, Arjuna's blood covering the ground behind him and Hibiki's soaking his windbreaker, turning it from a light gray into a deep red.

The two were locked to eachother for several seconds, Arjuna scowling, and Hibiki baring his teeth in a wide frown, before they broke apart with the sound of tearing flesh and grinding metal. Hibiki threw himself back into the offensive, launching all kinds of jabs, crosses and uppercuts, forcing Arjuna to defend them as both of their bodies sealed up their wounds. With a growl, Arjuna backhanded Hibiki with his bone-covered left arm, shredding the Senju's face and causing a great many in the crowd to wince, as the Kaguya heir fluidly followed it up with a one-legged spin, as he crouched low and reverse-slashed at Hibiki's stomach, chest, and then face. On the final upswing, Hibiki caught the skeletal weapon by its blade, drawing blood from his hand, but giving him just long enough to punch Arjuna thrice in his stomach, and on the fourth punch, he charged his arm with chakra and let it out with one large pulse, increasing the force of his blow and sending Arjuna flying backwards, blood leaking out of his heavily punctured stomach.

Now with space separating the two, Hibiki flicked his cut hand back and forth, splattering blood as the wound stitched itself back up. He was starting to understand why all of the Kaguya only wore a light coat, and let it hang off of their waists when they fought, though for the life of him, he couldn't understand why they chose white instead of red, as he watched Arjuna's coat become stained with his own blood. Hibiki felt the wounds all across his body seal themselves up, and after a moment, no longer felt air leaking out of the shredded half of his face, prompting him to stretch his jaw and make sure everything was in the right place. Arjuna, however, instead of ensuring his injuries had healed, had simply held up his hand, palm facing Hibiki.

Hibiki figured out what Arjuna was doing just an instant before he did it, and managed to dodge three of the seven senbon-like projectiles the Kaguya blasted out of his palm. Hibiki felt them dig into his legs, his chest, and felt one graze his throat. When he hit the ground again, Arjuna was there, and Hibiki had to act fast to dodge and parry the lightning fast flurry of fluid punches and kicks, almost feeling like he were in some kind of choreographed fight, with the way the Kaguya reacted so quickly and so fluidly, prompting the Senju heir to wonder if their martial arts revolved around this dance-like pattern. Fortunately for Hibiki, he was starting to find the method to the Kaguya's madness: He was moving in such fluid, fast ways, covering his body in sharp, bladed bones, with the sole intent to cause as many injuries as possible, so Hibiki would literally bleed his chakra to keep healing. With a growl, the Senju heir decided to change things up, parrying a blow from the Kaguya and, when the heir did as expected and instantly flowed into his next attack, instead of deflecting or dodging it and allowing this mad dance to continue, Hibiki met the attack head on, and slammed his clawed fist into that of the Kaguya. Hibiki felt his claws sink into the Kaguya's tightly clenched fist, and instantly knew his attack had had the desired effect when the Kaguya's momentum halted and he became stunned, both by the pain and the unexpected counter.

Now with a few seconds to press this advantage, Hibiki violently twisted his fist, breaking off all three claws inside the Kaguya's body and following it up with a savage punch to the stomach. The Kaguya's chest burst out in a macabre display, as his ribs became a forest of spiked bones and improvised armor, but the Senju kept up his attack, using the Kaguya heir's defense to his advantage, and gripping his weaponized ribcage as tightly as his blood-slicked hands could manage. Hibiki whirled around and lifted the Kaguya over his head, before slamming him headfirst into the ground. Knowing better than to leap on top of a man who could weaponize his skeleton, Hibiki instead ripped a sword out of his shoulderblades and held it in a reverse grip, before swinging downwards with a powerful stab. The Kaguya jerked his head to the left, and then rolled to the right, all of the bones protruding out of his bloody body crumbling into dust as he rolled away and hopped to his feet; but Hibiki knew that this was only to buy the Kaguya a precious second to try a new avenue of attack, and in response he hurled the skeletal sword as if it were a spear, managing to catch the Kaguya off guard and force him to dodge to the side, giving Hibiki the time to rush in.

Hibiki's rapid sprint forced Arjuna to fall back to his previous form, as he covered his body in the nigh impenetrable forest of thick, protruding bone blades. Hibiki, however, instead of trying to penetrate this defense or injure himself to get inside of it, threw his fist forward, and out from his forearm burst a massive spike. Arjuna realized what Hibiki was doing just as the spike got within inches of his chest, and the Kaguya heir threw up both hands to catch the spear just as it perforated his chest. He managed to slow it down such that it didn't go out his back, but Hibiki broke the spear off of his hand and grabbed it by its end. With a loud yell, Hibiki hauled Arjuna into the air, but instead of slamming him onto the ground, he tossed the spike a few inches upward, giving him the space to leap into the air and kick its end, the force of impact enough to jar it from Arjuna's hands and finally cause it to burst out his back. As the spear fell back down, Hibiki front-kicked it, sending Arjuna falling down in a wide arc. When he got within striking distance, Hibiki leapt up into the air and spun around, slamming his foot into Arjuna's face and casting him from the spear, and into the wall at the edge of the arena.

Hibiki hit the ground, his breathing and heart-rate increased as he heard the Konoha half of the crowd loudly grimacing, shuddering, and reacting to the bloody display below them. It occurred to Hibiki that these people were much more used to Shinobi battles, in which a good three quarters of the damage was physical, very few of them ever turned out to be as bloody as this one was becoming, and it managed to give Hibiki pause. For many of them, this was the first time that they'd seen _anything_ even remotely resembling a fight, but here he and Arjuna were, gutting eachother every chance they got. Worse was that Arjuna's combat style, covering himself in jagged, sharp spikes, would prove almost instantly lethal to any other shinobi that tried to engage him in Taijutsu, in a 'death of a thousand cuts' fashion, but given that Hibiki had similar regenerative abilities, it merely made the battle that much bloodier. He saw Arjuna wrench himself out of the wall and stand up straight, his bones crumbling to dust as he fell into his own thoughts, likely reaching the same conclusions Hibiki was, and trying to solve the same problems. Arjuna's red-rimmed eyes were narrowed, and his face was compressed into a tight frown as he stared Hibiki down.

_Alright... Think, Hibiki. You've essentially got all of Wolverine's powers... So how do you kill a guy that can heal from anything?_ He thought, as he briefly considered removing his blood-soaked windbreaker, but decided against it, as it was doing a halfway decent job at hiding _his_ injuries from the spectators, so if he could spare them that, he might as well. _I would either have to hit him so hard that he'd enter equilibrium mode, or cause so much damage that he just pisses chakra away, keeping up with it... But my biggest attacks aren't Wolverine related, and I'm nowhere near used to fighting with it enough such that I can try and speed up, I'll inevitably trip up and put myself in a world of hurt..._ He thought, calming his heart and slowing his breath. _So... Fight like Wolverine... This guy's probably upped the density on his skeleton, so I can't try and... _He narrowed his eyes, _wait..._ He grinned, remembering a one-off trick he'd improvised on the spot with Katsuo. _I've just got to use a little science._ He thought, as he reached behind hid back, and summoned himself a longsword, the T-shaped crossguard sprouting outwards after he pulled out the hilt. _His skeleton's durability won't mean jack if I can just cut right through it... And when I fought Katsuo, I demonstrated that I can control the sharpness of these blades._ He thought, as he carefully removed the shoulder blade from his back, trying not to show his hand to his opponent, who seemed to be meeting his challenge and pulling a blade out of his forearm. _So... As long as I make the cutting edge sharp enough, it will cut anything._ Something smaller than the size of a molecule would be preferable, but he didn't have the time nor the patience to trial-and-error that, so he simply settled to force it to be as sharp as he possibly could, and as he took an offensive stance, he briefly pressed his thumb against the blade, not even feeling it puncture his skin and slice his thumb open.

Hibiki grinned, _perfect._ A moment later, he and Arjuna blasted towards eachother.

They met at the center of the arena, Arjuna brought his blade up to defend against Hibiki's quick downward swing, but he immediately realized he had made a mistake, as Hibiki's sword cleaved through Arjuna's with barely any resistance. The Kaguya heir had to jerk his entire upper body to the side to avoid having his arm get sliced off, but was unable to dodge Hibiki's attack entirely and still got a large hunk of flesh cut off, unleashing a spray of blood that cascaded down his arm. Quick as a whip, the pale-skinned nomad threw both arms out to the side and pivoted on one leg, managing to catch Hibiki's chest with the still sharp edge of his sword, and then pierce it completely by slamming a blade from underneath his wrist into him. Hibiki, however, brought up his blade and in a quick, circular swing, cut into Arjuna's extended arm. There was a great disparity between the density of Arjuna's sword and his inner skeleton, such that Hibiki met much more resistance, but he still cut through it quickly, bisecting Arjuna's good arm, which hung off of Hibiki's chest by its wrist-blade.

His eyes wide, and his new stump pouring thick streams blood, Arjuna leapt backwards as Hibiki grabbed his detached arm by the wrist and pulled it out of his chest. His heart beating madly, Hibiki tossed the useless limb to the side, and rested the flat of his blade on his shoulder, being careful to make sure he didn't cut himself open in the process. Arjuna landed several meters away from Hibiki, the both of them having tuned out the pained shrieks and stunned cries of the crowd, though the latter noticed quickly the uproarious, viking-like laughter and loud cheers coming from the sitting-in Kaguya clansmen.

Up where the Konoha shinobi sat, Teams Four and Six were on the figurative and literal edges of their seats, as they watched Hibiki and Arjuna's fight with rapt attention. Noboru, his Byakugan bulging, spoke up. "I have never seen a blade as sharp as the one Hibiki created." He said, "its cutting edge is almost invisible."

"Screw that - Hibiki just cut off someone's _arm!"_ They heard Minato call out from the unofficially named 'Rookie section', "how isn't the ref calling the match? That guy can't fight anymore!" He asked, swinging his legs off of the edge of the roof.

Suboro, however, knew just as well as his teammate and Team Four why the match wasn't over. "You ever see the kind of hits Hibiki's taken?" Suboro called out to the blonde blur, who shook his head. The buzz-cut genin chuckled, "just watch."

"How did he make the blade so sharp, though?" The other resident Hyuga asked from in between her main-branch cousin and her Inuzuka teammate, her soft voice barely carrying over to the rookies. "Its cutting power is greater than that of a chakra blade."

From the furthest right of their group, Dai spoke up, as she adjusted the hood on her head, feeling the cool morning sun heat it up. "He had an encounter with a rinkaichu user yesterday, and I explained the theory behind them. I think that is where he got the idea... But to replicate it so fast..." She shook her head, "he has no end of surprises."

Standing behind them, and looming above them, the unclean Jonin piped in. "Now... How many rinkaichu users are even out there, miss Aburame? Why would he have an encounter in the first place?" He asked, leaning forward and humming thoughtfully, causing a few eyes to tear themselves away from Hibiki's fight and rest upon Dai, as the others slowly began connecting the dots.

Fortunately for them, Arjuna chose this moment to form the skeletal base for a new arm, causing an utterly floored Minato to call out in awe. _"Whoa!"_

Down in the arena, however, Hibiki launched himself forward, intent upon keeping the Kaguya heir on the back foot. Arjuna, however, simply thrust his new arm forward, and deftly caught the blade as the muscles began to grow in around his skeleton. The blade cleaved through bone and carved its way into the Kaguya heir's arm, but Hibiki figured out his goal the moment it ground to a halt, unable to cut any further. With a curse, Hibiki yanked backwards, managing to drag the blade out only a few inches before Arjuna smashed his fist into Hibiki's face and, in one fluid motion, grabbed the back of the Senju's head and wrenched it downward, slamming it onto his knee twice before Hibiki got the hint and let go of the sword long enough to grab at the Kaguya heir's knee and shove it to the side. The albino nomad wrenched his healing hand upwards, sliding the sword out of his healing, raw arm and grasping both hands together in a macabre display, before he slammed them both down onto Hibiki's back in a lightning-fast double axe-hand strike. Hibiki hit the ground, but spun around on his hand, forcing Arjuna to leap into the air to avoid having his legs get swept out from under him.

Hibiki took the offered opportunity and leapt back, flying over his sword and grabbing it by the hilt to avoid having Arjuna take it for his own. As he flew over the ground however, he heard the air whistling above him and then felt three large, dagger-shaped objects slam into his back with wet tearing noises. Hibiki's eyes widened as he felt the range of motion of his right arm lessen considerably, and when he landed on the ground, he looked over his shoulder, and found that the projectiles had been _his_ claws! The ballsy Kaguya had _left_ the detached blades in his wrist should he ever need them, and then shot them out like he'd done the bone-senbon, earlier.

_Clever dick..._ Thought Hibiki, as he saw a shadow fly over him.

Unable to do anything about the claws mostly immobilizing his right arm, Hibiki grabbed his sword with his left hand and threw it up in a defensive stance, deflecting three more senbon and catching Arjuna's falling, downward slice with the sharp of his blade. It was as Arjuna kept falling, thanks to gravity and his sword having been cleaved in two, that Hibiki noticed this sword was still connected to the Kaguya heir, and Hibiki realized what Arjuna was doing. Arjuna seemed to have predicted that his next sword would again be cut apart by Hibiki's hyper-sharp blade, and instead of taking that lying down, he instead kept the bone-blade connected to his arm, so when he fell to the ground and was firmly within Hibiki's defenses, he channeled more chakra into his sword, turned it from a sword to a spear, and ran Hibiki through with it. Hibiki felt one of his lungs get pierced by this attack, but Arjuna wasn't done yet, he cracked off the spear from his arm and threw it like Hibiki did, and Hibiki flew across the arena, getting pinned to the far wall and left hanging several feet off of the ground, dangling there like a pupped with its strings cut.

His vision going slightly blurry and his chest exploding in pain as all of his oxygen production now had to rely on one lung, Hibiki desperately clawed at the spear, taking the long way off of it as he dragged himself forward with one arm. As he looked up, he saw something that made his sweaty face pale: He had dropped his sword, and the fully healed, though very blood-stained Arjuna was picking it up. With a loud croak, Hibiki slammed his fist into Arjuna's spear, but it rebounded off of it with a dull thud, leaving him with the feeling that he'd just tried to punch a steel pipe. With an angry wheeze, Hibiki popped a trio of claws from his left hand and cut off the end of the spear, allowing him to fall off of it with only another moment's struggle. With that problem solved, Hibiki awkwardly reached behind his back with his left arm and clawed at the claws stuck in his back, clenching his muscles to try and push them out as much as he could, and barely finding enough purchase to pull them out. Hibiki barely got one of the claws out of his back before he saw Arjuna dash forward, and he had to settle with an arm with a third of its normal range of emotion, and a quickly sealing hole in his chest.

Arjuna took Hibiki's sword and initiated a new attack, actually calling out this one as he closed the distance between Hibiki and himself. _"Camellia Dance!"_ The Kaguya heir roared out, before he began thrusting wildly with Hibiki's longsowrd, moving so fast that it looked as if he had dozens of arms and each of them were stabbing independently of eachother. Hibiki was barely able to slap away, block, or deflect even a quarter of the attacks, the rest punctured his body with no resistance, turning him into a human pincushion as he was forced up against the wall and stabbed some more.

_Shit, shit, shit!_ Hibiki acted on instinct, knowing he needed to hit this guy with something big, and something _hard._ He threw his good arm out to the side and formed a large, cylindrical construct that quickly took on the form of a battering ram. The Senju heir clenched his fist and smashed the battering ram into Arjuna's side, sending him stumbling over a few steps. Hibiki, feeling the blood leaking out of the hundreds of shallow puncture wounds all over his body, took two powerful steps forward and followed up the first attack with a heavy straight jab, ramming the dense bone construct into Arjuna's chest with enough strength to send the heir flying back.

Now with room to breathe, Hibiki decided it was past time for caution to the wind and, after he dropped his battering ram, Hibiki balled up his good fist and slammed it into the right side of his chest, feeling the edges of his claws press against his pectoral and just manage to penetrate it. In a macabre, bloody display that even managed to give Arjuna a few seconds' pause, Hibiki dug his small fingers into these two wounds, tearing them and his shirt open and grabbing at the edges of the two remaining claws, before dragging them out in a stream of blood. Clenching both of the detached, curved claws in his bloody hand, Hibiki cast them aside, not even registering the cheers coming from his academy friends.

_"Did you see that?"_ Minato shoved Shikaku in the shoulder, "he just forced those knives through his chest and ripped 'em out!"

To his side, Fugaku, his red eyes narrow and his hands folded in his lap, spoke bluntly. "It just happened, Minato. We all saw it."

Shikaku, however, was holding his chin in thought. "Hibiki's going to need a new plan." He said, slowly. "He's got to be down to three quarters chakra, now, and though he's doing a good job imitating the Kaguya's ferocity, he can't beat the heir at his own game."

Minato waved his friend away, "ah, you're thinking about it too much. Hibiki's just feeling his opponent out, is all."

At that, however, Shikaku blinked, and turned to his blonde friend, as the latter adjusted the metal headband covering his forehead. "How do you figure?"

Minato folded his arms after he finished itching under the metal plate. "Hibiki doesn't use his bone techniques like the Kaguya do, he's only self trained." The blonde blur explained, "but in all of our sparring matches, he'd always spend the first few minutes feeling me out, watching how I fight, before he came up with a strategy to win." He nodded over to Fugaku, who scowled as he realized what the spikey-haired Genin was going to say. "It's how he's beat Fugaku for all this time, after all. I'll have to train a _lot_ harder if I ever want to keep being his rival..." But he waved off his tangent, "anyways... You know I'm right." He said, his blue eyes locked onto Hibiki and Arjuna. "He's just been watching his opponent fight, trying to get a feel for him, and figure out more efficient ways to use his bone-techniques. Any minute now, he'll get his win."

Fugaku, however, shook his head, and offered his opinion. "Given the handicaps with which they are fighting, there is no way for Hibiki to win. The Kaguya heir is exponentially more skilled with his bloodline, whereas Hibiki barely knows what he's doing." He said, as, down below, the Kaguya brandished Hibiki's sword, swinging it around in a circular fashion, and assuming an offensive stance.

As the myriad of injuries plaguing Hibiki's body stitched themselves up, a heavily breathing Hibiki wiped the blood-mixed sweat from his forehead, unintentionally smearing it all over his head and his forearm as he tried to come up with an answer, the Hokage's words again echoing through his mind. _Don't lose._ But, with that 'Camellia Dance', the Kaguya heir had shown his clear dominance over Hibiki, at least when it came to the Shikotsumyaku. If Hibiki had had access to any of his other abilities, he might be able to stand a bigger chance, but as it stood, he was in a bad spot. **  
**

_Come on..._ Thought Hibiki, as he formed a few kunai with his bones. _Think!_ He threw those kunai in rapid succession, forcing Arjuna on the defensive and keeping him at range while Hibiki tried to come up with a strategy. It was clear he couldn't beat the Kaguya at his own game, but that was the only game he could play, so he needed to master it fast, or else he'd be doomed. _Don't lose._ How? What weakness was he missing? He couldn't try and sneak any of his techniques, they'd all see through it instantly, they were all too flashy, and he couldn't try and surreptitiously activate his Sharingan, or use a bloodline, they were too noticeable, the referee would see straight - _That's it!_

The Kaguya heir dodged the final kunai and surged forward, swinging Hibiki's sword wildly as he approached the Senju heir. But, Hibiki simply grinned, and the world slowed down to a crawl. All of his bloodlines and techniques were very noticeable, but one: His Flash technique. As long as he played his cards right, no one would think they were anything but really good reflexes. Hibiki was now able to see and perceive Arjuna's attacks at a much faster rate, the previously blistering fast swings now crawling slower than a snail. Hibiki allowed the world to speed up a bit and he dodged the swings before he crouched down low and elbowed Arjuna in the stomach, following it up with a spiked bone bursting out from his elbow and impaling the Kaguya in the stomach. Quick as a flash, Hibiki then swung his bloody fist forward and smashed it into the Kaguya's face, and as the world sped up, the Kaguya flew backwards.

_Force... Is Mass multiplied by Acceleration, and I just accelerated enough to hit you like a truck. _Thought Hibiki, as he straightened up and, in order to cement his story, called out, "it's about time for the warmup to end, isn't it?" As he spoke, he forced his breath to look calm, and he crumbled the elbow-blade, a part of him cursing himself for not thinking to disarm the Kaguya.

There was a full second in which Hibiki thought his ruse had failed, that the referee had seen through his trick, but when that second passed and nothing happened but Arjuna ripping himself out of the wall, he realized he'd found his golden ticket. The Kaguya stretched his back and cracked his neck, before he nodded. "I agree." He said, with a light, kind grin. "I am glad to see you too have been holding back."

In the back of Hibiki's mind, he swore he sensed someone was _smiling_ at him, but he threw the feeling aside as Arjuna picked his blade up off of the ground, and Hibiki popped his claws with a quick swing and a flex of both arms. He swallowed thickly, wondering if the Kaguya had just called his bluff, and had actually been holding back this entire time, because if that were true, superspeed might not be enough. With a deep exhale, the Senju and Kaguya heirs bolted forward, and met in the center of the arena. Hibiki sped up, and parried a painfully slow slice from the Kaguya, before he followed it up with several quick punches to the gut, each one penetrating it and slicing it open in a shower of blood, covering both Hibiki and Arjuna both in blood. As the world sped back up, Arjuna chopped downwards with the sword, cleaving off Hibiki's claws and cutting into his arm. Hibiki, however, sped back up long enough to rip his arm off of the blade, and backhand the flat side, forcing it to the side. Arjuna, however, acted quickly when the Senju allowed the world to speed back up, and he spun around in a circle. Hibiki, however, knew it was time for this weapon to die, so he channeled a great deal of chakra into both hands and caught Arjuna's, noticing how hard he was straining against the physical strength of the Kaguya heir.

"I'm taking this back." Hibiki said, before he slammed his unbroken claws into the Kaguya's arm, and wrenched the sword out of his grip with the hand that had had its claws cut.

"Then allow me to take something in kind." Arjuna said, before he slammed his free hand onto Hibiki's arm before the Senju could rip it free. Hibiki's eyes grew wide as he actually felt his superdense skeleton _break_ under the strength of the Kaguya's palm strike, and before he could react, Arjuna spawned a blade from under his right wrist and sliced upwards in a curved arc, bisecting Hibiki's arm as Hibiki had done earlier.

With a growl, Hibiki sped back up, slamming his sword into the ground, blade first, and then spinning around so his stump faced away from the Kaguya. With his circular momentum, Hibiki then slammed his fist into the Kaguya heir's chest and sent the teen sprawling backwards, while the world sped up, Hibiki yanked his blade out of the ground, and leapt back, channeling chakra into his new stump to accelerate the healing process.

_Clever dick..._ Thought Hibiki, as he bit through the pain of losing his arm. Upon inspecting his stump, Hibiki discovered that the guy hadn't actually broken the bone, but cut it: There were saw-bones sticking out of Arjuna's hand, and jagged hunks of flesh hanging off of Hibiki's stump. Arjuna had weakened his bones enough such that a heavy enough hit would break them.

Up on the roof, as Hibiki healed his arm and he and Arjuna came up with their next plans, Dante Uchiha was silently staring, wide-eyed, at the Senju, as he recognized the swift-natured chakra his student had just displayed. He doubted anyone else who could see chakra would even recognize it, the Hast clan had been dead for decades, with the last surviving members having fought and died in the previous war. _Somehow,_ the Graverobber had gotten ahold of their cells, and not only put it in that gray beast back in Kiri, but also in Hibiki. It was clever, how the boy was hiding it by only using it in short bursts, making it seem as if it weren't a non-Shikotsumyaku technique, but his reflexes, but it was also clear that he wasn't well versed in its use, he was burning through chakra much faster now.

The unclean Jonin lifted his gaze and stared across the roof, watching as the three assembled Sannin watched their collective child duel, wondering what was going through their minds as they watched the ten year old engage in his bloody duel. Given Tsunade's shaking fist and clenched jaw, he concluded with a suppressed grin that she wasn't too happy about all the blood being sprayed around. Dante was right, as the growling Senju head was forcibly restraining herself from leaping down and throttling the pale-headed clan heir, instead settling for growling to her teammates.

"It's a _kami-damned gore-fest_ down there." She said lowly, her teeth bared and her jaw clenched tight.

To her left, Jiraiya knew better than to try and calm her with a pat on the back, instead he spoke honestly. "He's starting to figure it out, cut him some slack." He said, lowering his naturally loud and boisterous voice such that only his fellow Sannin could hear him. "Look at how fast he's going." He said, pointing down to the Senju and Kaguya heirs, as the latter charged the former, and Hibiki yanked his sword out of the ground and swung it around with blinding speeds, barely managing to keep the Kaguya at bay as he whipped around his razor-sharp sword and healed his stumpy arm. "Eventually it'll click that all he's got to do is hit the guy hard enough to knock him out, and the match is his."

Orochimaru, however, shook his head. "That is not his intent. He is testing the Kaguya..." He said, his yellow, snake-slit eyes slowly drifting towards the bisected limbs and all of the puddles of blood that covered the arena. "He isn't fighting _this_ fight, he is preparing for future ones."

Tsunade turned her head towards Orochimaru, but kept her eyes locked onto her son. "What do you mean?" She asked, as Jiraiya leaned forward and peered at the snake sannin, an eyebrow raised.

"You both read the reports. He fought one of Kenichi's experiments in Kiri, and it had Kaguya blood, as well as the Envir clan's bloodline. He is fighting this Kaguya with the intent on learning exactly what it takes to kill someone who can heal from any injury." The white-skinned sage explained, "watch his movements. See how they match the Kaguya's in brutality, but exceed him in preciseness, and intent. See how he backs off after dealing large amounts of damage in a short amount of time." He explained, as they saw Hibiki zoom forward and make dozens of rapid slices to the Kaguya's chest and stomach, and then followed it up with a spinning back-kick, sending the Kaguya flying, as Hibiki shook his healing arm, the skin just now beginning to grow back over the fresh, exposed muscles. "He is creating strategies, learning the strengths and weaknesses... Even with these needless handicaps and exceptions they placed upon him, Jiraiya is right, he would need only to land one good, _strong_ hit on the Kaguya and knock him out, and the match would be his. No amount of healing abilities can protect against enough applied blunt force trauma to the back of the head. But his intent is to develop strategies, as it is very possible many of Katsuo's allies and Kenichi's later creations posses Kaguya blood, and therefor he must have an ironclad way of killing them."

Jiraiya nodded, "clever _gaki..."_ He said, straightening back up and briefly turning his gaze to his blonde student, who was throwing his hands into the air and cheering every time the Senju heir landed a hit. "But wouldn't it just be easiest to blow them all up? He can explode stuff with his _mind._ Easiest way to make sure someone doesn't heal from something is to make sure there's nothing left to heal."

"Indeed." Said Orochimaru, his pale yellow eyes watching the Senju heir with rapt interest. "But as Katsuo and the Envir fighter known as Aojiroi have both shown, the Grave Robber's experiments are more durable than Hibiki's ability to detonate his chakra. So he needs strategy, not brute force."

"But he specifically _can't_ kill Arjuna, he would lose, both the match and Konoha's chances at gaining the clan." Tsunade said, brushing her blonde locks back behind her ear, "and we all know old man Danzo would shit bricks if he did that, especially after this last week." She muttered, her eyes narrowing even further as she cast a quick glance to the VIP box.

Orochimaru shook his head, "as I said, he backs off whenever he deals great damage. The boy is smart, Tsunade, perhaps smarter than you give him credit for." He said, his low, snake-like voice laced with a taunting tone.

Tsunade bit back a scathing retort, and simply resigned to silently watch her son continue to beat the tar out of the pale-skinned nomad, who slammed his hand onto the ground. Barely a second later, the ground beneath Hibiki's feet burst up in a shower of dirt and debris. Hibiki yelped and leapt into the air as dozens of massive, jagged stalagmites exploded from the ground. Hibiki arced through the air, but when he hit the ground, he was forced to take to the sky again as more stalagmites burst forth, quickly letting Hibiki onto the fact that the Kaguya heir was doing as Hibiki had done during the Chunin exams, years ago. Acting fast, on his next landing, Hibiki leapt forwards, his sword raised high and reared, and his prepubescent lungs letting out the loudest bellow they could produce. The world slowed down as he reached the Kaguya, and he noticed that the ground beneath Arjuna had turned from densely packed dirt, to white bone, and that he had begun sinking into it almost like clay.

Thinking fast, Hibiki changed his intended target and stabbed at the crouching nomad's feet, penetrating both of them and the bone platform beneath him, pinning him to it and making him unable to sink any further. Hibiki silently cursed, as the world sped up again and he saw Arjuna's wounds heal as much as they could, around the blade. None of the wounds were sticking! He healed from _everything,_ _nothing_ worked! The Kaguya heir's eyes went wide as he found himself pinned to the ground, partially submerged. He sensed the Senju heir land behind him and sent more bone-forged stalagmites bursting up where he landed, but in the blink of an eye, Hibiki was in front of him, and he felt his clawed fists slam into his body dozens of times in a matter of seconds, before Hibiki launched himself away and landed on a distant wall, and before Arjuna could initiate the Larch Dance and defend himself.

With a pained grunt, Arjuna ripped the blade from his calf and his leg, slicing his hands open to the bone as he did so. The blood-soaked blade clattered away to his right, and Arjuna focused even more of his waning chakra into his Seedling Farm dance, causing more and more bones to burst up from the ground, each of them covered in hundreds of small, sharp, bladed ends, ensuring that if Hibiki entered his field, he would not get out unscathed. What he didn't expect, however, was the sound of stone crunching, and then sensing, seeing, and hearing all of the bones between him and Hibiki get obliterated as the Senju, his left arm held out in front of him and covered by a massive, circular shield, flew straight _through_ the field of bones, to the loud cheers of the native Konoha crowd.

Hibiki, his eyes wide and his teeth bared in a large snarling expression, landed on the small safe zone in the center of the field and swung around in a wide circular arc, dragging his claws through Arjuna's chest and carving three deep gouges through it, before Hibiki followed up his momentum and spun again, this time pummeling the Kaguya heir repeatedly with his massive aspis. All of the blunt-force trauma stunned the Kaguya, to the point that he barely even noticed the bloodied omega symbol adorning the shield's front. After the fifth strike, Arjuna threw forth both hands and halted the shield wholesale, with a loud, thick 'bang'. The struggle of strength grew in intensity as both the Senju and the Kaguya's legs slid further and further behind them, bracing them against the ground, neither moving an inch, though each tried to take a mile.

With a grin, the Kaguya finally dropped all of his resistance and sank into the ground, sending the Senju heir stumbling forward several steps. Arjuna then appeared behind Hibiki with a bone-sword in his hand, and he stabbed forward, impaling Hibiki's back before he dived back into the forest of bones. For his part, Hibiki removed the sword quickly and tried to hide behind his shield, but Arjuna responded by appearing _beneath_ Hibiki and sinking several bone-senbon into Hibiki's back, forcing the dark-haired shinobi to leap into the air and back to the safety of his wall.

Dropping his aspis, and pulling the senbon out of his bleeding back, Hibiki searched the forest of bones for any sign of his opponent. _This is new..._ He thought, wincing as the final senbon, which had hit a nerve, came free after a moment's struggle. He blinked, and brought the senbon in question around, staring at it for a moment. That was the second time one of these things had touched a nerve, or limited his movement in some fashion, though if it had been on purpose, he had no idea. It did _give_ him an idea, however, as he thought back to the anatomy books from Back Home and his mother's library.

Swallowing deeply, Hibiki nodded, letting a grin stretch across his face. _Alright... I've got an idea._ He turned his gaze back to the white forest. _I've just got to get him to come out..._ He looked down to his cast away shield, then back up to the forest, and his grin turned into a sneer.

Hibiki swept his sweaty, slightly blood-stained hair out of his eyes , and cut the chakra to his feet, falling quickly to the ground. He grabbed the shield and instead of smashing through the white forest again, he threw it into the air as high as he could. All of the audience, save the ones that had ever actually fought a day in their lives, tracked the shield for a second before their heads turned back down to Hibiki, who, as predicted, was immediately accosted by Arjuna. Hibiki sped up as fast as he could and lurched forward, grabbing at Arjuna's pale, blood and sweat-slick back. The Senju heir tore the Kaguya heir out of his technique and hauled him up high above his head, before dropping him down low and slamming his spine into Hibiki's knee, providing a shock great enough to stun Arjuna. Hibiki took this advantage and tossed Arjuna as hard as he could into the nearest stalagmites, slamming him through several and sending him back to the center of the arena, where Hibiki landed, hundreds of needle-thin bones growing and spilling out of his arms.

Though he felt he didn't need it, Hibiki did still speed up just enough to be noticeable, and he threw both of his hands into the air, sending all of the senbon he had created flying. He grabbed the senbon as they fell and slammed them into the joints in Arjuna's muscles, some pressing against his nerves, others against his pressure points, and others penetrating deep enough to slip between his bones. Hibiki's efforts started with his arms, and worked his way down to his hands, legs, and feet, immobilizing the Kaguya heir and stopping him from attempting a counter attack, as his shield reached the top of its arc and began falling. More razor-sharp needles sank into Arjuna's body, the man grunting and shouting with each pierce, but unable to move as all of his joints locked up and were blocked by the senbon. As Arjuna saw Hibiki's massive shield sail through the air, right towards them, his eyes widened, and he realized what was going to happen. Hibiki straightened up and casually caught the edge of the massive thing, quickly using its downward momentum to slide it onto his arm, before he lifted it high and smashed its edge onto Arjuna's face. Each lift and each impact was followed by a loud shout, both of effort from the Senju, and of pain from the Kaguya, as the former threw his entire body into every blow and the latter tried controlling his bone growth to force the senbon out of his body before he lost consciousness. Hibiki's long, black hair flew in all directions with every swing, and Arjuna's pony-tail came undone as his head repeatedly bounced off of the ground. His muscles bulging underneath the skin that wrapped around his small arms, Hibiki continued the brutal rampage, pounding the edge his shield onto Arjuna's face until finally, after the fifteenth impact of the fifty pound shield of dense bone, Hibiki noticed Arjuna had stopped struggling.

To ensure he wasn't trying to fake him out, the heavily breathing Hibiki paused a moment, and then hit the heir three more times, and when he didn't start fighting back again, the Senju heir finally straightened up, shook some of his sweaty hair from his face, and took a few steps back. Arjuna, while healing, was completely unconscious, his face and the edge of Hibiki's aspis covered in his bright red blood. His shoulders heaving up and down as he tried to supply his body with enough oxygen, Hibiki let the shield drop from his hands with a loud bang, and after a few seconds, the forest of bones began shaking, before it all crumbled to dust.

The crowd, both Konoha and Kaguya, was silent, as it dawned on them that the battle was over. This silence was broken by a certain blonde blur, who hopped up on his feet and yelled out, _"YEAH, HIBIKI!" _From above everyone, sounding the clarion for everyone else, even some of the more liberal Kaguya, to begin roaring out, yelling, screaming, cheering, just making noise for noise's sake.

With his hair plastered across his forehead, Hibiki turned his gaze up to the VIP box. He caught a fleeting glimpse of Danzo, who nodded so fast and so subtly that Hibiki barely even noticed, before the heavily bandaged former elder turned to the Kaguya clan patriarch. The two spoke for a moment, their words drained out by all of the cheering, but whatever they said, it ended with the Patriarch nodding once, firmly, a wide, proud smile stretching across his face as he reached over to Danzo, grasped his hand, and shook once.

Hibiki turned his gaze back to the unconscious, mostly healed Arjuna, idly noting the approach of two pairs of medics from the arena's side, and the rapid descent of his Sannin mother from the roof. Hibiki swallowed thickly through his dry throat, and nodded once. Now, he had a plan. If he ever had to fight Aojiroi, or, god forbid, Zetsu possessing another clone, or _anyone_ with a healing factor as powerful as his, he knew how to end the fight: Paralyze them. Another tool, another contingency, another tactic, Hibiki just prayed, as he exhaustedly brought himself to a less defensive stance and took a few steps towards his mother, that his encounter with Katsuo would prove fruitful, and he wouldn't even _need_ them.

When Tsunade caught her stumbling heir, she immediately started running her green-cloaked hands over his body, as the medics came near her and hauled him onto the stretcher. When they made it into the tunnel leading inside the stadium, Hibiki lifted his hand and waved at his mother, who was jogging alongside him and the medics. Her pace increased and she was by his side in an instant.

Exhausted, her heir, with an enormous grin on his face said, "I didn't even have to use my party trick." And a second later, he vanished in a plume of smoke, leaving the medics to stumble forward at the sudden loss of a lot of weight, and Tsunade to stare blankly at the stretcher, memories of her fight against Dante floating unbidden to her mind.

On top of the stadium, Noboru, his Byakugan still active, nodded his head once after seeing the display in the inner stadium, and removed a small, nondescript pebble from his scrolls pouch. Suboro took one look at the rock and fell over backwards as he started laughing, and it only took a glance from the Sharingan-using Dante to figure out what the fuss was about, while it took Dai and the rest of team six until the rock transformed into Hibiki to get the joke.

Behind him, as he let his Sharingan fade back into his onyx eyes, Dante cleared his throat, "you know, that could have gotten you disqualified." He said, as Hibiki, without a drop of blood on him, stretched his back and turned his gaze into the arena, where they had finished loading Arjuna onto a stretcher and were transporting him inside.

"No it wouldn't. His words were 'once the match _begins'..._ I did this well before the match even started." The Senju heir grinned, and turned to Dante, "guess where I got the idea from?" He chuckled, "though, turns out I didn't even need it." He said, as he high-fived Suboro, who couldn't stop laughing. As the Senju heir stood to his feet, the golden morning sun beating down on his flesh, he stretched his arms. "I believe everyone's words have been... It's a _very good... _Party trick."

"I hope you're prepared for the day that bites you in the ass." Dante intoned, though not necessarily in a disapproving way.

"I am." Hibiki said, before he cracked his neck, and let his arms swing down to his sides. "Alright, that was a fun little distraction. Let's get some food."

Behind him, in the 'rookie section', he heard a certain Akimichi heir pipe in, "did someone say food?!"


	51. Oh Crap!

_A/N:_

_50 chapters!  
_

* * *

Chapter 50

* * *

Three days to get back to Konoha after Kiri, one day to prepare for Amerigo, eight days for the Amerigo trip, and another day to prepare for and fight Arjuna. As Hibiki woke up the day following his fight, and did the math in his head, he suddenly realized just how close he had come to missing his meet-up with Katsuo. The Senju heir slowly lifted himself out of his bed, shaking his head and wiping the sleep out of his eyes. The Senju heir had woken up well before the sun today, to the point that it was still pitch black and lit only by the moon and the stars. The ten year old, formerly displaced man got a _wave_ of nostalgia as his eyes fought against his orders to open, and for five minutes, as he fought tooth and nail and struggled to get out of bed so early, he felt as if he were back in college, or, even better, in the fire station, at the ass-end of a twenty-four hour, the perfect time for someone to stub their toe and demand a trip to Regional.

Hibiki shook his head twice to clear the fog from it, and pushed himself to his feet, channeling a bit of chakra into his eyes, so as to switch on his Sharingan and jump-start his night vision. The three-tomoed spheres of red and black cut through the darkness like a knife, and he got slowly looked around his dark room, the walls laden with the drawings he'd made some four or five years ago. With another shake of his head, Hibiki pushed himself to the closet and wrenched it open. Inside he grabbed his clothes for the day, throwing on the plain black shirt over his bare chest, and switching out his pajama pants for the beige cargos. Unfortunately for him, when he looked up to his coat racks, he found that they were all empty, and tilted his head, raising his finger and counting each rack.

"Kiri kidnap... Eglin... Kiri round two... Zetsu... And Arjuna, I'll be damned." He muttered, ticking off a finger with each memory, and coming to the conclusion that he, indeed, had managed to destroy his last coat. The thin things barely even did anything, functionally, he had mostly bought them because they had reminded him of the 'lucky jacket' that had gotten him through highschool and into college. The lucky jacket never died, it just looked differently from time to time.

Shaking his head, Hibiki decided he'd fix this problem later, and closed his closet, before he reached to his left and unhooked his headband from the banister of his bed. It made it halfway to his head before he paused, and lowered it, flipping it around so he could give the polished metal plate a look. This headband had seen a lot, but as he geared up for this unsanctioned, international trip into a country that Konoha and the other elemental nations routinely tore the hell apart, he slowly came to the decision that it probably wasn't wise to wear it, so he left it hanging on his bed again. Next came his weapons and scrolls pouches, which he fastened tightly to his pants.

_Alright... Game plan._ Thought Hibiki, as he stretched, spawned a shadow clone, and took a few quick breaths. _Step one... Get out of the village._ He thought, before he channeled his Flash chakra and, in the blink of an eye, had opened his window, hopped outside, shut the window, and sprinted to the village wall.

With the world still moving at a crawl, Hibiki leaped over the wall with a mighty jump, clearing it in one single, wide arc before he landed outside of the wall. The Kaguya camp was to his right, and the main road to his left, but Hibiki beat feet for the west, towards rain country. After several minutes, in which he covered hundreds of miles and was well outside of any potential trackers' range, he slowed down and allowed the world to speed up. Barely even winded as he jogged to a halt, Hibiki looked up to the roof of the forest, seeing the tiny slivers of pale white light carving through the spaces in between the leaves.

_Step two..._ Thought Hibiki, as he patted down his scrolls pouch, and made double certain both books were still there. _Get to Rain Country._ But the question was, did he want to take the quick way and just run there, at the cost of more chakra? Or did he want to conserve chakra, fly there? Well, as he pulled out a map and gave it a look with his Sharingan eyes, Hibiki soon decided that the difference would be in a handful of minutes, so it really didn't matter.

Folding up the map and stowing it back in his pocket, Hibiki blasted off into the sky and started flying, staying close to the treeline so as to avoid visual detection. As he soared through the dark night sky, he started to once again consider just what would happen if Katsuo decided to go against the grain, to refuse his proof. While Hibiki had certainly added to his arsenal since their first fight, the only true thing he had, and he had mastered, was his flight technique. He was nowhere even close to mastering Ay's lightning armor, and he had barely even practiced with the Flash bloodline, which meant that both of those, while very powerful additions to his arsenal, weren't something he could rely on unless he had an excess of chakra to fuel them, and his healing factor, such that he could afford to potentially damage his body with whatever happened while using unmastered techniques. If Katsuo decided to pick a fight with him, Hibiki was, by and large, still where he was at back in Kiri.

Hibiki involuntarily shivered as the chilly morning air whipped at his bare arms, but he took the distraction where he could get it, and tore his thoughts away from what could go wrong, instead trying to focus on what could go right, and what he could do with it. Katsuo had, bare minimum, two super-powerful multi-bloodline shinobi on his side, and the implications were that he had enough to call a 'family'. If Hibiki could win Katsuo over with this stunt, that undead army would be his to use to track down and locate Zetsu and his enigmatic master, and would subsequently be his to use to fight the two of them. Given how hard to kill all of those he had encountered thus far had been, and how powerful Katsuo and Aojiroi had been in battle, there wasn't a chance in hell that Zetsu or his master could defeat them; and, god forbid, Zetsu possessed one of them, their combined might would be enough to incapacitate the possessed, and remove and kill the weakened Zetsu.

Hibiki knew he had crossed over into rain country when the air became more humid, and the endless ironwood forests yielded to a massive, barren wasteland. The ground was an endless expanse of muddy, scarred land, with a few patches of grass and small, unhealthily thin trees. Hibiki kept flying for several kilometers, before he slowed himself down by throwing both hands and feet in front of him. He lowered himself to the ground and landed with a light thud, his boots sinking an inch into the perpetually wet mud.

On habit, Hibiki tried to put his hands in the pockets of his coat, but given that he had none left, he instead shook his head, chuckled, and lowered them into his pants pockets. Now all he had to do was wait.

_Good thing I brought a book._ Thought Hibiki, as he found a nearby rock and used it as a chair to sit on. He pulled the ancient copy of Frankenstein out of his scrolls pocket, and opened it up.

The Senju heir spent several hours in the middle of a war-torn, humid, muddy wasteland, reading the classic by the moonlight. He had to adjust his position when he noticed he was casting a shadow over it, and as the moon started dipping down, he noticed that the ground was beginning to glow faintly with another light source. Instead of the sole, pale white of the moon and stars, there was green entering the mix.

_Honey, I'm home._ Thought Hibiki, as the glow grew brighter, to the point that he no longer even needed his Sharingan, or the moon, to read his book.

Two minutes later, and he heard the sound of rushing air, before it vanished with a small shockwave, and he heard a heavy 'thunk' hit the mud. Hibiki sighed once, and closed his book with a low slap, now having gone far beyond the point of no return. The Senju heir turned his head up to be greeted by the six foot tall Monster of Kirigakure. The man was garbed in a simple shirt and pants combo, his clothes loose-fitting, and colored a pure, almost holy shade of white, and his long, thick dark hair fell over his ears and his neck. The leathery, thickly scarred, and heavily muscled skin reflected the moonlight as the green fire died down, and the man's golden eyes made contact with Hibiki's red orbs. Hibiki stood to his feet, his dark clothing providing a contrast to Katsuo's bright garb. The two simply stared at each other, as the Senju heir stuffed his ancient book into his pouch.

_"John."_ The hoarse, deep voice of the Monster spoke, cutting through the silence like a cannonblast.

The corner of Hibiki's mouth twitched, but he didn't bother to correct the man. _"Katsuo."_ He said, _"I hope I can trust you enough to believe you came alone..."_

_"Yeah."_ Katsuo nodded, the muscles in his neck bulging with the movement. _"I hope I'm not speaking to a shadow clone."_ He added, with a pointed look.

Hibiki let this grin betray him, and shrugged. _"I know how important this is, so I didn't bother with the party trick, this time."_ He said, with a light sigh.

Katsuo nodded again, and placed his hands in his pockets. _"Aojiroi said you wanted to speak to me. Given how our last encounter ended, I was surprised. I didn't expect to ever meet you again unless it was on the battlefield."_

Hibiki nodded, and, his hand still in his pouch, slowly pulled out the comic book, deciding it to be the better 'weapon' to use against the formerly displaced monster. _"I didn't either... But then again, I never really expected to find out what happened."_ He said, _"I have proof. That you're running a fool's errand."_

Katsuo, however, vehemently shook his head. _"I _know_ what I'm doing will work, Johnny. You can't do it because you haven't had sage chakra for as long as I have, but I can _read_ chakra sources. I can understand their histories, see what they've seen, and experience what they have."_ He explained, _"nature-chakra changes forms and is too shifty to read with any accuracy beyond a few months - years if I'm lucky - but people are easier. If I get the tailed beasts, I'll be able to learn how to send us all home."_ He insisted.

The Senju heir sighed, _"this _is_ home, Katsuo."_ He said, _"there is no other world, there is just this one."  
_

Katsuo turned his head back to Hibiki, slowly crossing his arms as his golden eyes narrowed. _"What do you mean?"_

As a form of answer, Hibiki handed the paperback to Katsuo. _"I went back to the land of the eagles, after we smashed Kiri."_ He explained, as Katsuo's eyes widened, upon seeing the unforgettable superhero on the cover. _"Someone left a trail for me to follow. It was a soldier, who had died over a thousand years ago."_ Hibiki explained, as Katsuo, his hands shaking, took the book reverently, as if it were the most sacred thing in the world.

_"Superman..."_ Katsuo whispered almost inaudibly, his jaw falling limp as he opened the book.

_"His trail led me to a military bunker, designed to survive a nuclear war."_ Hibiki explained, _"this bunker was the only one of its kind, the only one left. In it... Was a message. It was left by the President of the United States."_ He said, the burly sage in front of him absorbing every word, as he fell onto his rump and flipped through the comic, his golden eyes as wide as dinner plates. _"This world... Katsuo, it isn't one separate from ours. We aren't in another universe. This is _our_ world... It's _our_ home."_ Hibiki said, a frown settling upon his face as he watched the monster before him flip through the book like an excited, but sorrowful child. _"It is mathematically impossible for someone to cross universes and somehow end up in a world exactly the same as their own. The man that made us... Kenichi... He pulled our souls from the afterlife, and interrupted our eternal sleep. We slept for over a thousand years... This isn't just our world, Katsuo, it's our future."_ Hibiki bit his lip, but knew he had to press the point home, the only way to bring Katsuo in would be to leave him in the same state Hibiki had been in under the mountain, because then, all it would take would be one push, and Katsuo would be much more receptive to joining him. _"It was a war, Katsuo. The mother of the Sage of Six Paths gained her power by ingesting the fruit of an... Alien... Tree."_ It sounded ridiculous to say it out loud, but he pushed on. _"Bad people tried to capture her, and experiment on her. She lashed out against these people, and decided to use her power to destroy the world on which she lived. Her first target, and the target of the worst of her wrath, was Japan. She destroyed the country in just one day, and turned it into the elemental nations we have today. After that she raised an army of chakra zombies."_ He explained, _"and used them to systematically wipe out each and every single country in the world... She killed everyone, until the world sent its entire military to the US as a part of a last stand._

_"It worked, but not how they expected. Her children, the Sage of Six Paths and his brother, rebelled against her and fought with the Terrans - the... Humans." _He explained, as he saw Katsuo lazily, miserably, flip through the book. _"She transformed into the ten tailed beast - the Jubi... The beast that spawned all of the other, nine, tailed beasts, that we have today."_ It all flowed through Hibiki's mouth almost naturally, as if he'd told the story a thousand times, though to him, it made sense: It was probably the most important story he'd ever heard. He swallowed thickly, and continued on. _"After they defeated the Jubi, split it into the nine tailed beasts, and sealed its body and their mother's on the moon, the Sage turned right around and continued her work."_

Katsuo's head whipped up, and Hibiki saw the tears forming in his golden eyes. _"But..."_ He stammered in their shared language, _"the stories say he was the good guy..."_

_"He wasn't, Katsuo. He was an evil man... Who exterminated the rest of humanity while they were on the backfoot, barely even able to fight back. He took the remnants of his mother's Zetsu army and tore apart the remaining humans, taking whoever survived and..."_ Though this part was guesswork, he couldn't let Katsuo know that. _"Turned them into what we have now. Shinobi."_ He said, _"our world... It was destroyed, it's long gone. You and I are all that's left that even remember it. We are its living legacy."_ He sighed, masking his wavering voice; saying it out loud, even a week after learning the fact, still stung like an open wound. _"There's nothing to go back to... It's _gone."

Katsuo's jaw was visibly shaking, and tears were forming up around the edges of his eyes as his hoarse, shaking voice cut through the air. _"No..."_ Hibiki heard the pain behind his voice, as he shook his head and flipped the page. _"You're wrong..."_

Hibiki pulled out Frankenstein, and set it on the ground in front of Katsuo. _"You're holding an American icon in your hands, and I just set a classic piece of literature at your feet. If this weren't our world, then it should be mathematically im_possible_ that these would exist."_

Katsuo kept shaking his head, flipping through the book so fast that he clearly wasn't even skimming through it anymore. _"No... You're lying, we can go back!"_ Katsuo blubbered, his tough, monstrous air shattered by his tears. _"I can see my momma again, I can get my pop to tell me about how he helped sailors kill the Japs... Rina can go back and hunt with her mate... Borsya can see his lord_ _again..." _Katsuo turned his head up to look at Hibiki, "_stop lying! Right now! __We can go back!"_

_"There's nothing to go back to... Billy."_ Hibiki crouched down and reached eye level with Katsuo. _"Chakra can do a lot of things... But it can't turn back time. We need to stop trying to return to the past, and instead focus on -"_ But as he placed his hand on Katsuo's shoulder, the world exploded in a deafening downpour of shrieks, cries, and howls.

Hibiki cried out and stumbled back, blood pouring out of his nose as he clenched his at his ears, while Katsuo screamed out in pain and tore at the sides of his head. They both screamed out in agony, as their ears were assaulted with the endless shrieks and cries of trillions of tortured souls. It almost felt as if they were trying to speak to them, but with the sheer volume and number of voices, it all bled together into a single unintelligible wail. The way the voices screamed, it felt to Hibiki as if they weren't trying to truly say anything specific, but just get his attention in the most gruesome, terrifying way possible. The pain built as did the despair and desperation of the tortured voices, as they tried in any way possible to get Hibiki to acknowledge them all, individually, personally. They were desperate, they would take anything, crying out for a casual mention, a sideward glance, a wave, a hand sign, a quick look, anything, _anything! This time they would be heard! __  
_

Hibiki became numb to everything else as he pressed his hands to his ears, but the sounds weren't coming from the world around them, it felt as if they were all individually coming from within him, and even as he tried to shout and scream himself, to drown them out, it only added to the volume and did nothing to stop the pain. More blood poured out from the Senju's nose as now even his chest began to burn with a fiery intensity. It felt as if Hibiki's ears and chest were being torn off of his body, stretched to their absolute limit and left to rest there, screaming and burning in pain. Hibiki tried to clench his eyes shut, but that made everything worse, as it truly shut himself out from the world around him, casting him into an eternal darkness, deep and crushing, endless and aimless. Hibiki, without warning, slid forward several feet as a blast of air came from behind him, and something began vibrating in his chest, almost like the bass at a concert. He was deaf to whatever it was, though, the only things he heard were the trillions of damned, tortured souls as brief, fluttering visions played at the back of his eyelids. Pale, wispy, formless balls of light dancing just at the edge of his vision, and every time he tried to focus on them, they vanished with a poof.

This unending, deafening, burning pain went on for an eternity, before it began dying down. The shrieking still clawing at his ears, Hibiki was now barely able to hear the world outside of him, to hear his and Katsuo's anguished yells. Hibiki opened his eyes and saw he was pressing his face against a small puddle of blood-mixed vomit that he hadn't even realized he'd expelled. The Senju heir tried to get to his feet, but he barely even got to his knees, his entire body feeling as if it were a billion times heavier. He laboriously turned his head to the side, his hands still clenching both sides of it an in effort to physically press the trillions of barely fading voices out of it. The Senju heir saw the Monster getting to his feet, swaying back and forth as he took one unbalanced step forward, lifting a fist and pointing it at Hibiki.

_"You... You lied to me!"_ Katsuo called out, barely audible over the tortured souls.

Hibiki barely shook his head, croaking out, "_no..."_

_"You said -"_ Katsuo interrupted himself, falling to his knees, clenching either side of his head and shaking it like a rabid animal. _"No... Attacks!"_

_Oh god!_ Hibiki tried to get to his feet, as he saw Katsuo push himself over to Hibiki and tackle the formerly displaced man to the ground.

_"You!"_ Katsuo punched, nowhere near his strongest due to his and Hibiki's anguished state, but still strong enough to shatter the stone under Hibiki's head, and split his skin. _"Lied!"_ Another punch, sending blood and spittle spraying everywhere as Hibiki's head whipped from side so side. _"You just..."_ Katsuo paused as the voices overwhelmed him again, but still managed to continue hitting the defenseless Senju heir. _"Wanted to kill me!"_ He hit Hibiki over and over, whipping the Senju's head from side to side. _"This is the... Same attack... As last time!"_

Desperately, Hibiki threw both of his hands forward, but his chakra was in flux because of all of the pain he was in, and he was barely even able to summon up the explosive force of a grenade, let alone the missile he needed to send Katsuo flying. Katsuo tanked the explosion with barely a scratch, and continued pounding on Hibiki, who lazily covered his face, though it did little.

_"You lied!"_ Punch, punch, punch. _"You lied!"_ Thunderclap, blood splatter, a pained croak, the sound of trillions upon trillions of anguished cries, realizing that the two were fighting eachother again, and not acknowledging them. _"You lied!"_ The anguished cries grew in intensity, stunning the monster and causing the boy to fall limp, his onyx eyes glazing over and his face swelling up. Katsuo roared out in pain, and forced out more rapid, thunderous blows. _"You lied!"_ More punches, _"you lied!"_ The screams grew in intensity, and while it weakened his blows, it also fueled Katsuo's rage. _"You lied!"_ Hibiki could barely even lift a hand he was in so much pain. _"YOU LIED!"_ Katsuo howled in equal parts anguish and anger, as he forced himself to his feet, and hauled Hibiki into the air. _"YOU LIED!"_ He slammed his meaty fist into Hibiki's stomach, then his chest, and then his face. _"YOU..."_ Katsuo threw Hibiki into the air, _"LIED!"_ And followed it up with a powerful uppercut, green flame bursting out in all directions as his power grew exponentially, and Hibiki was sent flying.

Katsuo intended to go after him, but the shrieks assaulted him again, causing his ears and eyes to bleed alongside his nose. He fell to his knees and clutched at his head, his eyes wide and crazy with rage and anguish.

* * *

Hundreds of kilometers away, Hibiki finally hit the top of his arc, and began curving downwards. The ground was blazing by beneath him so fast that it was a blur, and with the pain arcing through his body, he could barely even see it through the tears welling up in his eyes. Katsuo, even with his chakra in flux thanks to whatever the hell just happened, had managed to punch him hard enough to blast him through the air like a rocket, _and_ break and shatter his dense, steel-like ribcage. Hibiki barked out in pain when he slammed into the ground and bounced upwards, but before he even got a chance to catch his breath and realize that his already broken ribs had been further damaged, the Senju Heir bounced up and smacked into the side of a building, carving an impressive crater into the building as he rebounded off of it and fell back to the ground.

With a cough and a gasp that sprayed blood all over the ground, Hibiki laboriously raised his head, trying to figure out where he had landed, when his face paled for reasons that did not coincide with bloodloss. He began to feel the rain as it pelted his body, and he saw the giant, towering buildings that surrounded him and filled the village in which he had landed. Hibiki cursed silently, and groaned audibly, as he forced himself to get to his feet, his healing abilities seeming to be out of wack, due to nothing in his increasingly sore body healing up. Hibiki got to his feet but stumbled to the side, leaning against the side of the building for support, as his ribs flared into pain again from the small thud.

_"Fuck..."_ Groaned Hibiki, through his clenched jaw and tightened stomach. Gasping in pain, with both of his arms wrapped tightly around his chest, Hibiki stumbled forward several more steps and turned to the right, disappearing into an alley, praying the local shinobi wouldn't sense or find him, and that the heavy rain washed away his tracks. _"Damn it..."_ The Senju heir gasped, as he stumbled forward and slipped on a pile of trash, nearly slamming onto the ground and further injuring his ribs.

_Broke a few fucking ribs by getting punched..._ Thought Hibiki, as he continued forward, deeper into the alley, searching for a place to hide, or a pile of trash large enough to cover him so he could rest. _Then I hit the ground, broke some more, and then a building, some more, and just for good measure, the ground again, to break the ones that had already been broken._ He couldn't even call on his Sharingan, forcing him to squint his eyes to try and find something in the monsoon. _What the hell even happened?_ Thought Hibiki, as he looked up to the deep, dark gray sky. He gulped thickly and saw two shinobi leap across the rooftops, but unless they were piss-poor sensors, Hibiki's own chakra being in a state of flux must have hidden him from their sensors.

He shook his ringing, throbbing head, and turned down another corner, deeper into the thick alleys. _Gotta hide... Pray to god they don't find me._ He could barely even feel his chakra, let alone call on it to try and Flash his way deeper into the village and away from his landing point. _Alright... So, first time I heard the cries of the damned, it was when I was fighting him. Thought it was a technique he used, that backfired on him._ Thought the Senju heir as he found a large pile of trash next to the backdoor and the trash can of a building. _Then I heard them in Eglin, after I touched that white Zetsu... _Then _I felt it again when I touched Katsuo, but this time we weren't fighting. _He tossed aside several trash bags and cleared out a spot in the center of the pile. Its smell, fortunately, had largely been muted by the constant rain. _So... This thing, these cries... They're connected, somehow. Me and Katsuo... But I never felt it when fighting Black Zetsu... So what do me, a long-dead white Zetsu, and Katsuo have in common?_ He thought, as he reached forward and grabbed one of the trash bags he'd thrown and used it to cover him up. The Senju heir curled up in the fetal position and made himself as small as possible in the pile of trash in the middle of what was most assuredly the Village Hidden in the Rain. The white noise of rain droplets heavily beating the plastic bags did nothing to soothe Hibiki's mind.

_We're all dead... Or... Undead? But did that mean the white Zetsu was still alive? Or still had a soul in it when I... Turned it into a tree?_ Hibiki clenched his eyes shut, _shit.__.. Okay, so it's clear that this only happens when I touch something that isn't dead, but undead, else I'd always be getting assaulted when I kill something. So..._ He swallowed thickly, his sensitive hearing picking up on the sounds of leaping and shouting ninjas. _What are they?_ He asked himself, forcing himself to ignore the potential terror of being caught in a foreign village, as he felt constant dribbles of rainwater stream onto his body from between the cracks between the trash bags. _It sounded like screaming... It can't have been _souls,_ can it?_ He wondered, disbelievingly. _Dead people? Other dead people? Then what the fuck does _that_ mean? Katsuo, the other Kenichi experiments, and I are all... What, windows to the living world? Or is it only when we come into contact with eachother that we light up the darkness?_ He gulped, pressing his hand to the soul seal on his chest, above his heart. _Does this have something to do with what Dai's beetles said? God... Fuck._ He clenched his hand around his chest, his sopping wet shirt groaning under his grip. _If this shit hadn't happened, I could've _had_ Katsuo... I would have _had_ him! I could have pooled everything I know, with everything he knows. I could've gotten Kenichi's notes from Tsunade and shown them to him... We could've figured this shit out, maybe even found Zetsu and his master... But now I'm stuck here in a rainy-ass village with a likely, and somewhat justified grudge against Konoha._ He sighed deeply, feeling the sharp, biting pain in his head begin to flow away.

_"God... Damn it..."_ He groaned.

Time seemed to blend together and gloss over until, either ten minutes or several hours after he curled up underneath a pile of trash, he heard a trio of voices approaching his general area. Hibiki's entire body still felt like it has been thrown into a vice and pushed through a cheese grater and an oven, and in addition to his sense of time being shot, his chakra was still in some sort of unholy state of flux, meaning none of his injuries, be they made by Katsuo or the cries of the damned, were healing.

_"I see it, it is right over here."_ Came a teenaged voice, deep and loud enough to cut through Hibiki's throbbing, ringing ears, but light enough to seem timid, almost kind.

Hibiki groaned, and it took all of his concentration to pull the tiniest amount of chakra through his frayed coils, and with a light poof of smoke, the pistol he'd scavenged from NORAD appeared in his right hand. He gripped it tight, his hand shaking, but steady enough that he could aim and shoot, as the voices grew closer.

_"It is as I have never seen before."_ Hibiki heard, as he heard multiple pairs of feet pass by his trash pile, but he knew what they were doing - deliberately walking past him to get him to lower his guard. He clenched his jaw heavily and lightly shifted the grip on his pistol until his palm pressed into the grip and his fingers clenched the slide. _"Black chakra, it does not radiate, but merely rises and falls to the ground, as if it were a gas."_ Hibiki gripped the gun tightly, and managed to bring enough strength into it to rack the slide and chamber a round. He held the gun properly just as his pile of trash was blasted off of him.

Immediately Hibiki raised his gun, quickly obtaining his targets: A trio of rain shinobi, all garbed in thick robes, all staring at Hibiki. Silence ruled the alley, as the trio paused at the sight of the injured, ailing child, and the child threatened them with a weapon they did not recognize. The trio saw Hibiki, his face covered in rain-slicked blood and his entire body curled up in pain, his raven hair plastered against his head and his onyx eyes, behind the rage born of self preservation, glowed with pain and confusion. Hibiki, however, saw three threats, the tallest of the trio was a man with a gravity defying head of spiked orange hair, he had both of his hands up and pressed against his comrades in a halting manner, his dark brown eyes wide as they took in Hibiki's ailing form. To the man's right was the shortest of the trio, a woman with hair entirely too blue to be natural, and eyes so vibrantly orange that they momentarily distracted Hibiki from the origami flower tucked behind her ear, which seemed to be completely dry, despite the falling rain. To the orange haired man's left, however, was a man whose hair was as red as Kushina's, but it was his eyes that stole Hibiki's undivided attention. Even through the hair that covered half of his face, Hibiki could see both eyes, one uncovered and one from in between the sopping wet hair. They both were big and wide, a deep shade of purple, and filled with a rippling pattern, Hibiki recognized those eyes, and simply looking at them made his head throb and his ears ring enough for him to grimace, and nearly break eye contact with the trio. This man had the same eyes as Hagoromo Otsutsuki, he had a Rinnegan. This was Zetsu's master.

_Oh... Fuck. Zetsu's caught up with me._ Thought Hibiki, as he shifted the shaky aim of his gun to the Rinnegan wielder, who widened his eyes, and cast a brief glance Orange's way.

The center man shook his head, "he's hurt, Nagato." He said in a hushed tone, before turning his iron gaze to Hibiki. "Okay, kiddo... I need you to put that... Thing down. Please." He said, slowly bringing both hands in front of them, still held aloft in a non-threatening gesture. "We're... We're not going to hurt you." He shook his head firmly, after that brief moment of hesitation. Hibiki didn't buy that tripe, and he kept the gun on the one called Nagato, his face set in a firm frown. Orange seemed to notice the disdain in Hibiki's onyx orbs, and quickly looked back and forth between the two, before settling his eyes back on Hibiki. "I promise, we're not going to hurt you. We're not like the others..." He said calmly.

Hibiki swallowed thickly through his throat, his eyes wide and locked onto Nagato's, from behind the barrel of his gun. He couldn't pull the trigger - even if he managed to kill all three of them before they could attack and kill him, he couldn't just start firing off rounds in the middle of an enemy village, and expect to get away scot-free. The local shinobi would be on him like white on rice, and he wouldn't be able to hide this time, but nor could he allow these three to take him - Nagato had Hagaromo's eyes, and back in America, Zetsu mentioned he had a master. It would _not_ be unwise to conclude that it was one of Hagaromo's descendants, and if that descendant had a pair of Rinnegan, that would give him immediate dominion over the oily black monster.

_Now... If _I _had those..._ Hibiki groaned as his chest throbbed, and he forced himself to a sitting position, half of his face red from where it had been pressing into the ground. "I..." He grunted, his voice raspy and his throat dry. "Already told your beast _no."_ He said, leaning against the side of the alley, as, in the distant, lightning flashed, and thunder filled the air.

Nagato narrowed his visible eye confusedly and opened his mouth, but on the other side of Orange, Blue spoke first. "He is injured, Yahiko." She said, placing her hand on the man's shoulder. "He is hallucinating."

Orange, now properly identified as Yahiko, nodded his affirmation. "Listen, kiddo... I don't know what problem you have with Nagato, but if you're the guy that came flying in and smashing apart those apartment buildings, then a lot of bad people are looking for you, and if they find you, a they'll do a lot of bad things to you."

Hibiki pressed his free shoulder into the side of the alley, and slowly hauled himself to his feet, before he pulled back the hammer on his gun. He was bluffing, and everyone present knew it, but he _would_ pull that trigger if Nagato so much as blinked in his general direction. "And I don't like your buddy's eyes." He rasped after another distant bolt of lightning and clap of thunder, desperately trying to think of some way out of all of this that wouldn't kill him. "I'm not supposed to be here. I wasn't planning on being here. I'm not here with any ill intent. So here's what's going to happen. I'm going to leave. I'm going to walk away, right now -" He pointed the gun at Nagato, "I _know_ you know what this is. If you... Any of you... Take one step, I will not hesitate. I already told Zetsu no..." He clenched his jaw as he fought off another wave of pain, "I... Just need to leave." He didn't want to fight the Sage's grandkid, but he _would_ if he had to.

Yahiko kept his hands held aloft placatively, "listen, I -" But he made the mistake, and took a step forward.

Adrenaline flooded Hibiki's system as he swung his gun to bear, his gut clenched and his eyes grew wide as, in that split second, _everyone_ realized that the mistake had been made, that Hibiki wasn't bluffing. In slow motion, Yahiko halted himself and tried to step backwards, waving his hands in front of him as he tried to appease the Senju heir, but Hibiki wasn't listening - he couldn't take any chances. If this guy had really wanted to help, he wouldn't have taken the risk. As Hibiki squeezed the trigger, Nagato's hand slowly shot up as his eyes flashed a bright purple, just as Blue's narrowed and she tried to grab Yahiko. Unfortunately for all three of them, they may be fast, but the bullet fired from Hibiki's gun was much, _much_ faster. The hammer slammed home and the flash of fire and clap of thunder filled the rain filled air, joined almost instantly by a distant flash of lightning as the bullet soared through the air, carving a contrail through the rain-filled air. It tore through the air and slammed into Yahiko's chest in less than a second, the impact great enough to send the man stumbling backwards, blood flying out of his chest as his brown eyes grew wide.

Blue cried out as she caught their robed leader's body, and before Hibiki could blink, the world sped up again and he was ripped from his feet. His hands were thrown to the side by the sudden motion, inadvertently causing the gun to go off again as he was yanked towards Nagato. He heard the bullet ricochet through the air and bounce around as he was caught in Nagato's outstretched hand, but the sudden stop caused Hibiki's hands and feet to swung back to his front, putting his gun hand right back where it needed to be in order to cause damage. His windpipe constricted by Nagato's iron grip, Hibiki jammed the pistol into the teen's chest, and four bullets later, he was dropped as the red-haired teen stumbled backwards, his hands clutching his bleeding chest.

Hibiki scrambled back several steps, creating large splashes in the rain-filled alley. He whipped his gun back to Blue and Yahiko, but he was greeted by the sight of where the earlier ricocheting bullet had gone: In the neck of Blue. Her spinal chord had been severed before she could have even tried to help herself or her friend, and with her dead and Yahiko unconscious and bleeding out, Hibiki whipped the gun back to Nagato. The red-haired shinobi was still on his feet, but as he clenched at his chest, his bright purple eyes passed over the corpses of his friends. The entire world - from the distant lightning, to the rain falling through the air, to the ringing in Hibiki's ears - seemed to freeze as Zetsu's master locked eyes onto the two bodies. His eyes shook, his jaw fell slack, and the rippling pupils dilated as it all dawned on him.

_"No..."_ He breathed, despite the holes in his lungs.

Hibiki wasn't a sensor, but he could _feel_ the waves of chakra now pouring off of Nagato.

"Oh shit." He said, as he shook his head and scrambled to his feet, the pain of his injuries and the fog in his head slowly clearing with the adrenaline, but still slowing his movements.

_"No!..."_ The Rinnegan wielder cried, as he fell to his feet, his bloody hands reaching forward to his friends. Hibiki backpedaled, popping a magazine out of the seal on his thigh, but before he could even dump the remainder of the bullets in the loaded magazine into the Rinnegan wielder, he was deafened by his next cry.

_**"NOOOOOOO!" **_He roared out, arcing his back and clenching his head with both hands, his voice quickly dropping multiple octaves until it became demonically deep. His eyes seemed to bulge out of his skull as his chakra cast the alley aglow, and his chest clenched tightly underneath his bloody robes, forcing all of the air out of them to continue his anguished cry. Barely a second later, before Hibiki could bring his gun back to bear and try to end this before the power of the Sage of Six Paths could be brought to bear on him, the ground shook, stumbling him enough to give Nagato the second he needed to slam both hands onto the ground. The ground shook even more violently before something exploded out from beneath it, filling the air with smoke, dust, and debris.

Hibiki coughed and waved his hand in front of his face as the smoke cleared, but before it even did, the air itself shook from the sound of a monstrous, demonic bellow. His lungs rattled in his chest from the sheer volume of the demonic roar, and when it calmed down, Hibiki noticed three things. The first, that it had become a lot darker all of a sudden, the second, the rain had stopped, and the third, the pain in his head had dulled to a painful throb. With a gulp, Hibiki raised his gaze and saw, seated on the destroyed ruins of the buildings in front of him, an enormous, decayed, emaciated-looking being, with brown leathery skin, black markings not unlike his cursed seal coiling all around its body, its skeletal head covered by a sight-restricting sash. Both of its hands were braced on the ground, holding it up. Even with its emaciated, almost rotten appearance, it dwarfed everything around it in sheer size, but Hibiki felt his heart stop and his body grow cold. He _recognized_ this creature.

It was the Jubi.

It was the Jubi's dead, decayed, emaciated, statue-like body.

Nagato had just summoned the body of the strongest of the tailed beasts.


	52. Did You Just Punch Out Cthulhu?

Chapter 51

* * *

It loomed above the entire village, casting a shadow over everything in its vicinity. Rainwater streamed off of its leathery, emaciated body. The mere presence of the ancient demonic creature, even if this were just its husk, just its dead body, brought with it a sense of eldritch doom. The entire world seemed to pause a moment and regard it. With a horrendous cracking noise, like the sound of thousands of bones creaking and breaking at the same time, the demonic statue's head slowly tilted downwards, and made direct eye contact with the Senju heir, the head bouncing a bit, almost like a machine coming to a sudden, lurching halt. Hibiki fell to his rear and stared up at it, not having expected it to suddenly become animate. Just as suddenly as it had made eye contact with Hibiki, it shifted its ancient, obscured gaze to the rasping, bleeding Nagato, prompting Hibiki to do the same.

Without warning, a jet black rod burst forth from the demonic statue's chest and stretched through the air, multiple dozen rods and antennae extending out of it before it finally slammed, full force, into Nagato's back, impaling the Otsutsuki heir. The sound of flesh tearing briefly filled the air, before all of the antennae similarly sprouted their own black rods, and they all penetrated Nagato's back. Chakra, whether it be from Nagato or the statue he was connecting to, burst from the rods and surrounded Nagato's back, and before Hibiki's very eyes, he saw Nagato's body grow thinner and thinner, almost as if the titan was absorbing his life force. Nagato's head snapped up, his wide Rinnegan eyes locked onto Hibiki's onyx orbs. In hideous sync with the Rinnegan wielder, the demonic statue mimicked his movements, and too locked its covered eyes onto Hibiki. Its jaw creaked open, and as Hibiki saw a thick, translucent orb of purple chakra gather in front of its mouth, he knew that whatever it was doing wasn't good, and that his gun would _not _be good enough against _that._ His only chance to win would be to hope and pray that killing Nagato would re-kill the Jubi, but even if he had chakra, a shadow clone or two, _and_ the eight gates, he was all but certain that Nagato was leaps and bounds above even Katsuo, in strength. His _only_ chance - the only possible one he had - was his gun, the one and only thing in the world he knew could kill a Kage just as easily as it could kill a Genin. Unfortunately, right now he couldn't even try to attack Nagato - his gun was out of bullets, and even that small time it took for him to swap magazines and chamber a round could be too much time to survive whatever the Jubi had in store for him.

So, lacking any better option, Hibiki scrambled to his feet and sprinted away. Without his chakra, Hibiki barely covered a few meters in as many seconds, but at the very least he had been able to put a building between him and the emaciated tailed beast. He only had a moment to swap magazines in his pistol, and unfortunately for him, it took the monstrosity no more than that handful of seconds to send its fist smashing through the building, causing a shower of stone and rubble to join the ever-present rainfall. Hibiki was sent flying several feet by the force of the impact, and more than one sizable stone smashed into him as he tried to escape the chaotic maelstrom. Now with even more injuries to add to the tally, Hibiki did the only thing he could, and as he ran, he turned his gaze, raised his pistol, and fired.

The problem was, the Terrans from Back Home had tanks, rocket launchers, jets, warships, and cruise missiles, and the thing still won that battle, so his gun had about as much of an effect as he had expected; the comparatively minuscule bullets carved wet contrails through the rain-choked air and slammed into the leathery creature's face and neck. If they didn't bounce off of its thick hide completely, they simply dug in and tore small hunks of flesh off, it was no more damaging than accidentally scraping an elbow up against a wall. Hibiki was David, but his slingshot did little else but confuse Goliath, and since he was barely even able to summon up the chakra he needed to pull out a new magazine for his gun, this was all Hibiki had to work with.

_Damn it!_ Panicked the Senju heir, as he sprinted across the rain-slicked, quaking streets, his thudding feet creating small splashes. _I can't fight this thing!_ He had to put everything he had into just running, making sharp, random twists and turns to try dodge the Jubi's skyscraper-sized fist, and even then, he couldn't. Despite the titan's enormous size and mass, it moved as fast as a fighter jet, Hibiki had gotten lucky to dodge that first punch, but when the Jubi switched tactics and tried to chop downwards, Hibiki's left leg was crushed by the impact and buried under the rubble.

Hibiki screamed loudly, his leg flaring up in pain as the skin and muscles were torn apart and crushed, but that couldn't prepare him for what happened next, as the Jubi swept his hand across the ground and managed to snatch the Senju heir and haul him into the air, squeezing him from the waist down. Hibiki's lungs were straining to keep up with his cries, as his entire lower body flared up in agony. The creature's hand alone was bigger than most houses, and its skin was course and leathery, but also soft and sunken, as if rotten. Hibiki was hauled through the air, coming to a halt before Nagato; Hibiki's head snapped forward and back by the sudden stop, and when he raised his head, he was greeted by the livid glare of an enraged Otsutsuki heir.

For his part, Hibiki managed to return the glare, and act just a moment before Nagato did. He gripped his gun tightly and whipped it up, before blasting Nagato in the chest a further three times with the magnum rounds, but Nagato just shrugged the rounds off, as if numb to the damage, or as if his physical connection to the Jubi was acting as a sort of life support, keeping him alive despite the intense amounts of external and internal damage Hibiki was dealing him. Or, maybe having a Rinnegan really did make someone God, and Hibiki had just tried and failed to make him bleed - he didn't know, and the pain in his lower body was mounting with every passing moment.

Desperately, Hibiki tried to shift his aim upwards, to try and hit Nagato's head, but Nagato responded by making the Jubi throw Hibiki high into the air. A part of Hibiki, as his bottom half fluttered about uselessly and his entire body flipped end over end, uncontrollably, wondered why Nagato didn't just _kill_ him, he certainly had the power. But, with the wind roaring in Hibiki's ears and the cold rain pelting at his skin, Hibiki decided that he wouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth; and with his body pretty much shredded, it probably wouldn't hurt anymore to tear it up a bit more. So, with a deep grimace and a set jaw, as he reached the apex of his flight Hibiki switched his gun to his left hand, and with his right hand, reached up to his left shoulder blade. With what little chakra he could force out of his throbbing, ailing system, he managed to tear out a small tanto out of his back. His entire body now felt like it was on fire, and the sound of wet skin stretching and tearing filled his ears for a brief moment as he began falling back down to earth.

When he began obeying gravity again, Hibiki saw an enormous, translucent dragon made out of the pale purple chakra the Jubi had been collecting in its mouth, soaring straight for him, and trailing behind it was another fist. Lacking any real option, Hibiki threw both hands and jerked his upper body to the side, managing to create just enough thrust to start spinning in the direction opposite of the dragon, which blasted straight past him. Hibiki then heard the sound of wind ripping and roaring, and on instinct he threw out his sword arm. He buried his blade into the side of the Jubi's rotten arm, and his weight combined with his downward velocity sent him sliding downwards, trailing down the arm and literally cutting a wide swathe in his wake. The creature didn't even bleed, Hibiki wasn't even sure if he was actually cutting through the outer layer of its skin, or if he was just dragging a toothpick across the outermost layer. As friction began to slow him down before he even reached the titan's elbow, Hibiki roared through the blinding, deafening pain in his entire body and swung his legs in a wide circular arc. The Senju heir ripped the sword out of the Jubi's skin and came to land on the back of its forearm, still sliding down its slick, leathery surface, as the arm slowed to a halt, having missed its target.

His head fuzzy from the bloodloss and pain, Hibiki shook it heavily and somersaulted forward, before springing to his feet, now sprinting down the arm, his two mangled legs barely able to perform their function. He savagely sliced and chopped at it with his tanto as he streamed towards the Jubi's shoulder. Hibiki was high above the village now, getting closer to the ground with every passing second, and he saw it was a buzz with activity, with shinobi bouncing over the rooftops, the first indication being that they were focusing primarily on evacuating the civilian populace. Hibiki turned his head down and tried firing on the distant Nagato, who looked smaller than a pebble from this height, but after one bark his gun clicked on empty, and Hibiki saw out of the corner of his eye, the dragon, having made a sharp turn through the air and now coming at him from the side. Before could even react to it, the world around Hibiki slowed down to a crawl and he was catapulted forward several dozen meters, a pale white contrail of chakra trailing behind him as he was unintentionally sent arcing through the air and flying off of the Jubi's fist.

_Well, on the plus side..._ Thought Hibiki, his face etched in terror and his arms and legs flailing about. _My chakra found the most dramatic moment to return!_ He narrowed his eyes and his Sharingan flared into existence, in a split second, he had his gun and the spare magazine sealed back where they had to be, his sword tossed to the wayside, and both of his hands thrust in front of him.

With a powerful jet of chakra, Hibiki blasted higher into the air, and not a second too soon, as just beneath where he had been, the pale purple dragon flew through the air. Hibiki poured all of his energy into his chakra thrusters, and continued climbing into the air, briefly casting a look over his shoulder and back down to ground level. He saw the local shinobi not tasked with evacuation beginning to respond to the scene of the destruction, prioritizing the emaciated demon over the flying Senju, but as they approached it, they were attacked by the dragon spewing forth from its mouth. It didn't bite or blast them, but instead simply passed straight through them, and with his Sharingan, weakened though it may have been, Hibiki saw the pale blue auras surrounding the shinobi vanish on the spot, and the fiery aura surrounding the dragon grow in intensity. The Jubi was eating their chakra, killing them, and growing in power. When it reacquired Hibiki, the dragon immediately curved upwards and began soaring higher into the air, quickly gaining on the Senju and letting out a massive, earth-shaking roar.

Hibiki cut the thrust to his hands and feet and continued sailing higher into the air under his own momentum. Barely even realizing that his healing factor was dutifully drinking chakra to undo as much of the damage that had been done, as fast as it could, Hibiki threw both arms to his side and swung them around, whirling around to face the chakra dragon. With narrowed eyes, Hibiki thrust one of his hands forward and sent three small bolts of explosive chakra flying through the air, but they simply passed straight through the pale purple dragon and exploded on the ground, sending a shower of debris spraying outwards. Fortunately for Hibiki, his destruction was either ignored by the local shinobi, or overshadowed by the Jubi, who was using its arms in place of the dragon as a means of crowd control and defense.

_Damn it!_ Cursed the Senju, as he flipped head over heels and blasted back towards the ground, baiting the dragon into playing a game of chicken. As the two hurtled towards eachother, the wind howling around them and the rain splattering them both, Hibiki waited until the last possible second - until there wasn't but a meter separating them - to summon up his Flash chakra, and thrust his hands and feet in front of him, horizontally.

The sudden horizontal thrust, combined with the exponential speed boost, shot him away from the dragon faster than a lightning bolt. A thin contrail of pale white chakra and rain-cleared air trailed behind Hibiki, who briefly lost control and was sent careening through the air. He slammed into the roof of a building and skidded across it, before bouncing off of the edge and flipping through the air, his arms splayed out, almost appearing as if he were a spinning top. He barely managed to regain control before he hit and was buried in between the floors of another, taller building. When his head snapped up, he saw an enormous, emaciated brown fist hurtling straight towards him, splattering rain everywhere and causing the wind to roar as if a tornado were raging. Hibiki yelped in fear and blasted off, feeling the back of the Jubi's fist scrap the bottom of his boots as he did, but he was forced to dart to the side to dodge the chakra-draining dragon, which managed to kill dozens more Ame shinobi, and finish off whoever hadn't been smashed to death by the fist colliding with the building.

Now dodging falling, tumbling debris in addition to everything else, Hibiki desperately tried to come up with some kind of game plan. Even without its full power, the titanic corpse was still _far_ out of his league, and it was being controlled by one of Otsutsuki's descendants, and a master of the Rinnegan to _boot!_ Hibiki had long since lost his chance, this wasn't a fight he could win. Worse, was that this wasn't a fight he could _fight,_ either - he was in the bingo book, so even if the likely event happened and the whole thing was blamed on the titanic tailed beast's appearance, if he started throwing around any more explosive chakra or tried shooting it more than he had, _someone_ would live to tell about it, and that would implicate, if not Konoha, at least him. His only shot was to either try and keep dodging it and wait for Nagato to run out of chakra, or to try and finish off the Otsutsuki heir before Zetsu caught wind of what was going on, healed him, and joined the fight, making it _completely_ impossible to scrape some kind of victory out of it.

Hibiki weaved in between the buildings, slowly curving through the village and soaring back towards the beast as the Ame shinobi caught on that the dragon was bad, and would focus on them if they got too close. The air filled with explosions, water bullets, and various ninjutsu as the Ame forces tried to combat the creature and evacuate the village at the same time. Hibiki dodged the dragon again by arcing upwards, feeling the cold rain slap and bite at his face as he climbed higher and higher, the dragon trailing behind him again. Now below him, Hibiki saw as the Creature split its attention between trailing Hibiki with the dragon, and smashing and tearing apart the Ame shinobi attacking it. The bony, spiked protrusions jutting out of its back worked as an improvised shield, breaking up many of the water techniques sent from its rear, while its immense size and shocking speed helped to protect its front, as it picked apart the local fighters, and inadvertently tore apart the village, at least _half_ of it had been flattened in the last few minutes alone.

_Damn it!_ Hibiki shot back downwards with a thunderclap, and flipped head over heels, feet stretched towards the ground.

He hit the ground with a loud crash, sending a great deal of standing water flying into the air. Before it could fall back to the earth, however, the water splashing up from the impact, and that cascading down from the sky, as well as the enormous emaciated fist, and the chakra dragon above him, all slowed to a crawl, the latter two less than a meter away from hitting him. Hibiki's head whipped up, his wide, blood red Sharingan glowing brightly. He burst forward with the sound of thunder, sprinting through the village with his Flash bloodline, crossing the hundreds of meters between him and the titanic tailed beast corpse in microseconds. He shuffled around fleeing civilians, and dodged flying, injured shinobi, and quickly found himself back in the alley. Nagato was hunched over, his arms at his sides and his hands held up, streaming chakra. A manic, crazed expression was on his gaunt face, and his bright purple eyes were open wider than Hibiki thought possible.

Hibiki closed the distance between the two, but before he could try anything, the pain from before, the ringing in his ears and the throbbing in his head, made itself known once again, reminding him that he wasn't out of the doghouse yet, on _any_ front. Hibiki was suddenly snapped back to normal speed, and he was sent skidding across the partially flooded grounds on the heels of his boots. He used his momentum to his advantage and leapt off of the ground, throwing his fist forward with a loud yell. Nagato's head snapped to Hibiki, and his hand thrust into the air, and before Hibiki could even blink, a jet black rod burst forth from the sleeve of Nagato's robes, and pierced his right shoulder, killing his attack as his speed and momentum caused him to impale himself on the man's black blade.

Hibiki felt his chakra begin to seize and lock up, almost as if its flow was interrupted by the black blade. The feeling surged through his body like an electric current, forcing him to act on the first thought to enter his mind. The Senju planted his boots on Nagato's chest and kicked outwards, just barely managing to dislodge himself from the blade and stumble Nagato back a few inches. Hibiki stole a quick glance to his injury, and saw that it was sealing itself up, but slow, as his chakra pathways tried to recover from the continuous, vicious assault they had survived this day. Hibiki saw the ground become enveloped in shadow, and knew what that meant without even having to look. He launched himself towards Nagato and out of the way of the enormous fist.

Nagato caught Hibiki's left fist just as the Jubi's building-sized fist crashed into the ground, demolishing it and sending debris flying into the air. Nagato's eyes flashed and Hibiki now felt his chakra being drained entirely, actively being drawn out of his body and absorbed into Nagato's.

The crazed Rinnegan user locked his rippling purple eyes with Hibiki's spinning red ones, as the ten year old struggled in his iron grip. _"I will make you feel -"_ Before he could finish his declaration, the both of them were blasted by an enormous ball of fire.

The explosion stunned Nagato long enough for Hibiki to grab a kunai from his weapon's pouch and stab it into the red-haired shinobi's wrist. Blood instantly began draining from the wound, and the hand went limp, dropping Hibiki, who leapt backwards to create some distance, just as a new player entered the field, an enormous, deadly sharp scythe reared up and behind him, as he hurtled towards Nagato. The Rinnegan wielder sensed the new player and whipped around, thrusting his hand forward and blasting the shinobi away with a powerful shockwave. The heavily armored shinobi, however, swung his scythe to the side, revealing it to be linked to a lengthy chain, and when it buried itself in the ground, he was halted wholesale. He swung around on the chain, and slammed both of his feet into Nagato's side, the impact sending a small shockwave through the air. The shinobi kicked off of Nagato and flipped backwards through the air, spraying a deep, sickly green mist into the air as he did so.

Nagato, however, was undeterred, and with a deep bellow, blasted the green mist away from him, just as the Jubi's fist came sweeping across the ground, as if it were a table and he were clearing it of dishes. With a pulse of Chakra, Hibiki soared into the air and the scythe-wielding shinobi leapt over the sweeping arm. When he landed, he pressed the gas mask tighter on his face, and tossed the scythe lightly into the air, before swinging it around in the air on its chain; his eyes locked onto the multitude of black rods extending from the Rinnegan user's back. The gas mask shinobi's eyes narrowed and with one more swing, he let the scythe go screaming through the air, arcing towards the rods. Nagato's eyes snapped up to the scythe, and just like with the gas a moment ago, it rebounded away, as if sent flying by an invisible force.

The shinobi cursed, his deep voice filtered through his gas mask, but just as he yanked his scythe back, the ground around him grew darker and the wind began howling. His head snapped up and he saw the demonic statue's head, its mouth agape in a silent roar, hurtling down towards him, almost as if it intended to eat him. It was moving so fast that the man barely had any time to react, but fortunately for him, someone had his back, and as his leg muscles tensed, the world slowed to a halt. Zooming in from the side, and skidding to a halt in front of the shinobi, Hibiki appeared, and crossed his arms, his gaze shifting from the shinobi, to the demonic creature above him, and then back to the shinobi. With the time to take him in, Hibiki now was able to recognize him from the stories his adoptive mother and uncles had told him, this was Ame's village head, Hanzo. He nodded once and inclined an eyebrow, he may be able to use this, but if he revealed himself to this man, there was no doubt that he would recognize him as his mother's son. By starting this fight, he was already risking escalating the war Konoha had jumpstarted by invading Kiri, but if he helped Hanzo, it wouldn't be a risk, it would be an inevitability.

_But without this guy..._ Thought Hibiki, as he looked over his shoulder and saw Nagato, who almost looked as if he were being kept alive through his connection to the Jubi's body. _How the hell will I get close to him without getting blasted away?_ He sighed, _god damn it._

Hibiki turned back to Hanzo and leapt into his midsection, tackling him out of the way of the Jubi's head at super speeds. The world sped up and the two rocketed away, as the Jubi's head buried itself into the ground with a loud explosion and the sound of concrete and stone rending. The two bounced once off of the ground before they came to a halt; Hibiki was bodily thrown off of Hanzo, but before he even hit the apex of his arc, Hanzo's scythe wrapped around him and he was yanked back to The Salamander. Hanzo gripped Hibiki's throat as the blade of the scythe dug into the Senju heir's arms, and if looks could kill, the livid look in his eyes would have sent Hibiki back to the hereafter.

"In my defense... I didn't come here intentionally." Hibiki squeaked, trying to make light of the situation, as he faced down the man who had fought his adoptive mother and uncles in their prime, and come out on top.

Hanzo's eyes narrowed dangerously, and Hibiki heard his muffled voice filter out from behind his gas mask. _"You _will_ assist me in killing that... Thing."_ He growled.

Hibiki heard the man's unspoken threat, and in the back of his mind, he wondered how he'd get out of _this_ one. "I've got an idea..." He said, as Hanzo roughly threw him to the ground. "I'm fast enough to get in his defenses, but that shockwave thing is keeping me from getting too close." First he had to kill the Sage of Six Path's descendent, and then he had to find a way to unscrew the situation with Hanzo, and his chakra may have returned, it wasn't fully back, and he wasn't nearly strong enough to pull a Katsuo and start burning through an entire village's stock of badasses.

Hanzo leered down at the Senju, as Hibiki got to his feet. _"He grows immobile after using that ability. An average of five seconds."_ He said, and when Hibiki stood up straight, the boy suddenly found the outer curve of the scythe pressed against his throat. _"If you so much as twitch in the direction of the wall, nothing on this earth will protect you from what I do." _He threatened, his deep voice cutting through the downpour.

Hibiki swallowed thickly, but pushed aside the scythe with a forced air of calm. "Message received. Is the village being evacuated?" He asked, as he looked over his shoulder, towards Nagato and the towering titan, the latter of which seemed to be stuck in the ground, immobilizing the both of them, though from the look on the titan's face, their calm wouldn't last much longer.

_"We drill every day."_ Was all that Hanzo responded with.

"Good. I have one idea, but if it doesn't work, I'll need to resort to a backup." How pissed would Hanzo be if Hibiki nuked Ame? Because if Hibiki couldn't get within Nagato's defenses and shoot him, his next best idea was the Big Bang Attack.

Hanzo growled, _"if I can cause him to repel me... Can you kill him?"_

"I only need one second." Hibiki responded, as he turned his gaze back to the Salamander, his thoughts hidden behind his spinning red eyes. _God... If you're there, I _need_ this to work. _

Hanzo nodded once, and launched himself back into the fray. The Jubi snapped into action and threw a massive, rotten fist towards the Salamander, but Hanzo instead under-handed his scythe, latching it onto the titan's palm and using it as a pendulum. He swung over the creature's enormous fist and tore the curved blade out as his momentum carried him straight towards Nagato. The Salamander bellowed out loudly, his deep voice echoing out for miles as Nagato threw up his hand; Hanzo was frozen in midair, and a split second later, was launched into the waiting fist of the demonic statue. It was all Hibiki needed, as his enhanced eyes saw Nagato's body seize up. The world slowed to a crawl, and, gun in hand, Hibiki blasted forward, leaving a small shockwave frozen in his wake as he curved around towards Nagato.

Hibiki weaved in and out of buildings, slid under the Jubi's meaty fist, and hopped over debris, crossing the few dozen meters between him and Nagato in microseconds. As fast as Hibiki moved, the world frozen around him, he swore he saw Nagato's wide, enraged eyes snap down to meet his as the Senju heir came within inches of the Otsutsuki survivor. It was in that nanosecond, that Hibiki realized the chance he had - not just to kill Nagato, not just to strike at Hagoromo from literally beyond the grave, but to steal the power of the Sage of Six Paths. His mind flashed back to a single, almost forgotten conversation after his fight with Emi Miu, when Dante had let slip that dojutsu were transferable, and with the Desert Eagle in his hands, and Nagato's life in his grip, he knew what he had to do. The world still crawling around him, Hibiki shifted his aim, no longer intending to bury the gun under the Rinnegan wielder's chin, but instead shoving it into his throat, pressing hard enough until he felt Nagato's spine dig up against the barrel of the gun, the skin rippling outwards from the force of impact, a byproduct of Hibiki's extreme speed.

Hibiki pulled the trigger, and the world sped back up. The bullet roared out of the gun and into Nagato's throat with a loud clap of thunder, tearing it apart and blasting his spinal cord into pieces. Hibiki sped back up, grabbing Nagato by his sopping wet red hair and planting his foot on the dying shinobi's chest. With a bellow as loud and as deep as his ten year old lungs could produce, Hibiki kicked forward and yanked backwards. Held onto his body only by muscle and skin, Nagato's head tore off in a spray of blood and gore, which froze in the air in a macabre display. Hibiki, however, knew what few in this world did - that the brain had several minutes of activity left until it shut down - and with that knowledge, he let the world speed back up. The jubi vanished in a giant plume of smoke, and Hibiki lifted Nagato's head, making eye contact with the twitching, wide eyes. Hibiki saw many things in those eyes, fear, confusion, anger, hatred, sadness, but what Hibiki saw primarily were the rippling, purple eyes of the sage of six paths, the bloodline that had destroyed his world and left little more than a handful of humans left to run it. Nagato, his vision unable to fade due to the Rinnegan's power, would see nothing but Hibiki's blood red, vengeful Sharingan eyes, before his brain finally began to shut down from the lack of oxygen, and the sheer pain running through what was left of its system.

Just as Hibiki lowered the severed head, he heard the air ring and the sound of rain splattering against steel, before he felt that steel be pressed against his throat, the sight of Hanzo's scythe quickly slicing into view.

_"Now... Boy... You will come -"_ But Hanzo's last syllable dragged out into obscurity, as the world slowed down again, and Hibiki channeled more Flash chakra.

Using his Sharingan's enhanced perception to give him as much time as possible in this hyper-speed, Hibiki lightly tossed Nagato's head into the air, where it froze almost instantly after leaving Hibiki's hand. The Senju heir turned to Hanzo, and tilted his head.

_"Now what do I do with you?"_ Hibiki spoke, reverting back to his native tongue.

_Way I understand it..._ Hibiki poured through his memories, before he nodded once. _No... Way it is: Four people saw me in this village. Three of them are dead. You are **not** the type to forgive and forget..._ He looked around him, gazing at the village in which he found himself dead center. Looking past the frozen rain-droplets, at least half of the place had been flattened, with another quarter being trashed by the chakra dragon and Hibiki and Hanzo's brief duel with Nagato and the Jubi's corpse. There was no way in hell that Hanzo would just let him leave - if anything, Hanzo would declare war right then and there, and if Katsuo were anything resembling smart, he'd capitalize on that, get the ally he had been denied in Kiri, and use that to spearhead another world war. _Not allowable. _Hibiki narrowed his eyes, he couldn't see any shinobi in his vicinity, and the air, while thick with Nagato's dissipating chakra, didn't have any other sources he could see.

_So if I kill you..._ Hibiki turned his gaze back to the Salamander, who hadn't even twitched in this time Hibiki had spent deliberating. _No one will know that I was here. Blame will be placed on the Jubi._ He lifted his gun and pointed it at Hanzo, his red eyes flashing back to Nagato's head, still dutifully where Hibiki had left it. _Better yet..._ Thought Hibiki, his eyes resting on Nagato's hitai-ate. _On the Otsutsuki. So I kill you, and no one will know. I can leave, get the eff out of dodge._ He turned his gaze back to Hanzo, staring directly into his eyes, from behind the barrel of his gun. He swallowed thickly through his throat. He hadn't intended for any of this to happen, he hadn't wanted to rack up a body count, but Nagato's cronies had forced his hand. He'd _warned them!_ And now he was about to dethrone a kage.

Hibiki paused, his eyes widening as a microsecond passed by in utter silence. He was about to dethrone a kage - he was about to kill Hanzo the Salamander, the man who had named the Sannin.

But was there another option?

* * *

With the sound of a zipper being undone, and a pale white contrail trailing behind him, Hibiki slid to a halt in the center of one of the training grounds in the Senju compound. His heart was beating like mad, and despite how exhausted he felt, he didn't feel tired at all. The boy's red eyes were wide, and with a quick jerk of the head, he checked his surroundings, making doubly - _triply - _sure he was alone, before he cut the Flash chakra and the world sped up around him. The sound of a thick liquid streaming out and hitting the ground hit his ears, and his head instantly snapped to his right hand, his spinning red eyes being greeted by the still freshly bleeding severed head.

_No no no, wait wait wait._ Hibiki sped right back up, the stream of blood freezing again as he fell to his knees and dug into his scrolls pouch.

As he retrieved the materials he'd need, it only now occurred to Hibiki that relativity was a bitch. Though it had been minutes, even hours to him, that was because his mind and body operated so fast, compared to everyone else - it hadn't even been forty five seconds since he'd torn the head off of Nagato Otsutsuki, that poor bastard still had six and a half minutes of brain activity left.

_And if this works like I think it will..._ Thought the Senju heir, as he spread out a large, blank scroll and snatched up his chakra-laced writing utensils in a picosecond, _Poor fuck, technically speaking, _won't_ die!_ He mused, as he quickly saturated a brush with ink, and began writing his seal. To an outsider's perspective, it would have happened in a flash - not even a millisecond would have passed before the blank scroll would have been filled with ink, but to Hibiki, at his speed, it felt like it was taking hours, as he forced his twitching hand to calm, so he wouldn't botch this already rushed seal.

_Holy shit!_ Hibiki's head snapped up, _how the hell long has it been? It's still morning! My goddamn clone probably hasn't even left the training grounds yet! I just smashed a fucking village and it isn't even lunch time yet!_ He shook his head, and went back to frantically covering the half blank scroll with sealing scripture.

In half of a millisecond, the entire scroll was covered in what Hibiki needed to create a space/time seal. It was a rushed copy of the ones he'd seen in the hospital, for storing dead bodies in such a way that they wouldn't rot, though Hibiki had to change some aspects of the seal on the fly. The official ones were only good for a few months, he needed this one to be good indefinitely, he needed the head to be as fresh as it was now, even if he didn't touch it for thirty years. More than once, given his frantic, almost terrified nature, Hibiki nearly twitched his hand the wrong way and ruined the entire thing, but his super speed was good for more than just stretching time - whenever he messed up, he was able to 'catch' the ink before it was absorbed into the paper, essentially allowing him to scoop it up like snow, or sop it up like water spilled on a hard-wood floor. When the seal was completed, Hibiki tossed his brush aside and leaned to the side, ripping Nagato's frozen head out of the air and placing it on the center of the scroll, where all of the scripture converged.

With a pulse of chakra, the head vanished, but Hibiki didn't let the world speed back up.

_"Okay... Okay... Uh..."_ Hibiki leaned back and swiped his sopping wet hand through his hair. _"Okay..."_ He breathed, before he leaned forward and wrapped up the scroll, before delicately placing it in his pouch. _"Now... Once Zetsu figures out what I've done... He'll have to come to me to get it."_ He knew he'd have to do another, entirely different scroll later - likely similar to that which he used to store his guns, and probably in a similar place somewhere on his body - because otherwise, he would have to set a clone to take watch over the scroll whenever he slept, just on the off chance that Zetsu melted through the floor and tried to lift it. _"Um... What's next?"_ He fell to his rear, and leaned back on his hands, his lungs rapidly expanding and deflating, his heart thundering in his chest. _"That..."_ He swallowed, and switched from his native tongue to the common one. "That can't be it... Is it?" He looked back up to the skull, his right eye twitching.

The Senju heir rubbed at the twitching onyx orb, a brief pulse of memories coming in from distant shadow clones. _"Argh!"_ He pressed the palm of his hand into his forehead, the memories he was getting were _not_ ones he wanted to see, not today, not without some time to prepare for them.

Hibiki couldn't belief what he had done, he had to forcibly stop thinking about _anything_ just to clear his head. He focused on the feeling of his lungs rapidly taking in and expelling air, the feeling of the rainwater warming up on his skin. His head and ears were still throbbing from the cries of the damned, and his chest still prickled as if it had been burned. Everything had just happened so fast, it was hard to comprehend fully. It was hard to even come to terms with, let alone consider the short and long term repurcussions of everything he had just done.

_In less than six hours, I made a lifelong enemy... Killed two people, pissed off Hagoromo Otsutsuki's heir... Flattened three quarters of a village, _killed_ the Otsutsuki, ripped his fucking head off... Stole his eyes, and..._ He shook his head, forcing himself to stop there, at the bleeding edge of his ability to comprehend.

"Hibiki?"

The Senju heir's head whipped to the right, sending some rainwater splattering around in a circular arc. Standing at the edge of the clearing in the middle of the training grounds was the blond blur, Minato Namikaze, his thumb absently itching underneath the hitai-ate proudly fastened to his forehead. The blue-eyed Namikaze stared at the Senju heir, his eyes wide as he took in Hibiki's sorry, battle-weary appearance. How Minato even knew, or why he even assumed, that this Hibiki was the Alpha, was anyone's guess, but Hibiki wasn't going to even _try_ to question it.

"Uh..." Hibiki cleared his throat, "hey." _Oh dear god, did you see me just seal some dead guy's head into a scroll?_ Hibiki blinked, _no... You're fast, dude, but I was moving... Fuck, I don't even know how fast that is, but it's got to be fast enough to be approaching relativistic. Time practically _stops_ when I channel that chakra._

"Why are you wet?" Minato asked, timidly strolling over to the Senju heir.

Hibiki chuckled, and shook his head. "It's been a _loooooong_ day, _dude."_ He sighed, "what's up?" He looked up and saw Minato had his hand extended, the Senju heir accepted it and hauled himself to his feet.

Minato gave Hibiki a curious look, as he wiped his now wet hand on the side of his pantleg. "Not much... Jiraiya-sensei's taking me out on some D-ranks today, but he wanted to stop in and check in on Tsunade-sama before we headed out."

_Right... Lady's been working herself to death trying to get the hospital-hating shinobi in for their checkups._ If her stories were anything to believe, the second Shinobi War had been over for _two years,_ and she had still had to track down front-lines shinobi and undo their lasting injuries, _just because_ they hated the hospital. "Makes sense." Fortunately, while he may act a fool, Hibiki trusted Jiraiya enough not to try to bring Tsunade a bottle to de-stress. "He get put through a wall, yet?"

Minato grinned, "what do you think my first D-rank was? Fixing the _last_ hole!" He said, proudly puffing out his chest as he delivered the punchline.

The sopping wet Senju heir, his arms hanging and his hair plastered all over his face, stared at the beaming Namikaze for a few moments, before he burst out laughing.


	53. Abduction: Runner -I-

Chapter 52

* * *

Hibiki spent a week recovering from Ame. He refused all missions, slept in to eight in the morning, sometimes eight _thirty,_ and even against his better judgement dispelled all but a few clones. The sheer _enormity_ of the things he had done, from losing Katsuo, to killing and then stealing the head of an Otsutsuki heir, to even _what happened after,_ all piled on top of the still fresh revelations about his home, the action in Kiri, and then his role as an unwitting pawn in Konoha and the Kaguya clan's union, it all just piled up in his head. Hibiki needed a _break._ He went so far as to not even going back to America, to ensure he had time to let the stress flow out of his head, like an engine venting to let off excess heat. Truly, except for necessities, he hardly even left his home. The only thing he _wanted_ to do was, ironically, the only thing he had left after the disaster with Katsuo. He'd done it thousands of times, Back Home - or perhaps the new, more proper term, was 'Back Then' - and despite the sheer amount of accumulated time he had spent doing it, had never regretted it. It usually took a while to get it going, especially when he had been younger and less receptive to the finer points, but once the fun started happening, it was typically impossible to stop. The scary part was that it had been so long since he'd done it, he didn't even know if he still _could - _age notwithstanding. This new life of his had been a decade of non-stop adjustment, combat, research, and development. Ame had just killed his momentum, and if he didn't stop, he'd burn out. He had to do _something,_ and this one thing felt more appropriate than _anything_ for his required, tried, and true method of stress relief.

Hibiki picked up a book.

Not just any book, though. No, Hibiki wanted something that wouldn't require him to think, something he could just read and enjoy blindly, mindlessly. To that effect, Hibiki picked up the one book he had left from his initial trip to and from NORAD. Though calling it a book was perhaps the wrong term, it wasn't completely incorrect. Technically speaking, if it was printed on paper and had words that conveyed some kind of meaning, it was a book. So, by technicality, the collected editions of Dragonball Z _were_ books. And besides, Dragonball was part of the reason he was still alive and able to fight the opponents he could - so damn it, he had the chance to respect it, so he _would!_

The formerly displaced man took his time with this sabbatical. Whenever his friends, mother, uncles or sensei would come to check on him, they would find him calmly reading his books. Tsunade and Dante had been the first to notice that a period of more than six hours had gone by without a report of a dozen explosions in a Senju or public training ground, and when they cornered him about it, he simply told them he was doing this for his health, both physical and mental. They dropped it pretty quickly, Tsunade even made some suggestions on making it better, but sitting on his bed, leaning against the wall, reading a book in a dimly lit, chilly room, it reminded Hibiki of better times, so he took the suggestions, but heeded none. Suboro and Noboru had actually taken after him when they'd learned what he was doing, though not with such finality as Hibiki had. Minato hadn't had the time to check in more than once or twice after fixing the hole in the wall, his free time being taken up by Jiraiya and his training. Dai had been worried, though given her lack of knowledge over what had happened and, technically, still was happening in Ame, she assumed it had something to do with what Hibiki had learned in NORAD. She spent six hours simply sitting with the formerly displaced man, watching intently as he read his thousands year old story, before she had been forced away from him to undertake a C-rank; though she hadn't done so without making contact with Kushina, who came around to see how Hibiki was doing, both with his fuinjutsu and in general, even going so far as to lend him a few custom-made privacy seals, should he feel the need to use them. He hadn't the heart to tell the Uzumaki heiress that he'd worked out the formula for a privacy seal from his experiences in the ANBU teahouse. Hell, he even heard once or twice from his rookie friends, _Fugaku,_ of all people, included, though he, unlike Shikaku, Chouza, and their new third musketeer, Inoichi, he had done so mostly to ensure that his 'blood rival' hadn't gone and broken himself.

Seeing the support and concern from his new friends helped Hibiki to feel more at home in what he now knew truly to be his home, than he had ever been before. Reading Dragonball, and feeling the nostalgic warm fuzzies flutter back up from experiencing a story he had done nothing but think of fondly for ten years helped let out the steam in his head. It took him the entire week to read over the entire series - from the original, to Z, to Super, to GT and beyond. Apparently at some point after he had died they had even 'novelized', so to speak, the movies, probably because the publishers needed money, but Hibiki didn't complain. It took him a week of leisurely reading to take in _all_ of it.

_God,_ it felt good to not have to think for so long.

Unfortunately, as with all things, this one too, had to come to an end, because he still had a _major_ problem he was facing down. Ignoring Ame, and what that all meant, as that would, in a way, sort itself out given enough time, he had Katsuo and Zetsu, both of whom now firmly had him in their sights, and both of whom were leaps and bounds above Hibiki, in terms of sheer power. Even if Hibiki found a way to master the _eighth_ gate, and unlock that lauded hundred times power increase, _and_ combine it with the spike he got from the curse mark, he knew he wasn't strong enough to fight and kill them. Zetsu had survived the Sage of Six Paths, who killed Kaguya Otsutsuki, and Katsuo had survived Hibiki, with a curse-seal enhanced seven gates, putting every erg of energy he had into a kamehameha; and that was ignoring the fact that he had no fewer than two allies who had just as many bloodlines as the Senju heir, one of whom could defy human biology and take a bullet to the central nervous system, and get right back up and fight a few seconds later, and the other, who could turn into the Hulk.

In summation, time to age or no, Hibiki needed to train. He needed to add to his arsenal, and to do that, he had to do what he did best: Dissect, study, and logically expand. His shadow clones were a good start, but he needed to not be so reliant on his curse mark and the eight gates - or, to put it in other words, he couldn't ever reach the point where he couldn't fight without going Super Saiyan. _God_ he'd missed Dragonball, almost as much as he missed jeans.

He would literally kill for a pair of pants. The fourth Hokage? He just needed a bullet. Dead. Katsuo? He'd find a way - likely involving NORAD and a century's worth of nuclear physics. Whatever was left of Ame? Simple: a Big Bang Attack. _Gone._ Can he have his pants, now?

Regardless of his dreams for ancient legwear, Hibiki thought back to the last few months. His fight with Ay in Kiri, and Zetsu in Colorado, had both given him a whole host of ideas of ways to expand his arsenal, but the problem lay in the latter: He hadn't gotten _any_ memories from the possessed clone, and he only had combat-hazed memories to operate off of, to try and access those bloodlines Zetsu had shown him, the only one he had focused on was the super speed, which he'd needed by necessity. Fortunately for him, he didn't have to settle on studying any one thing at a time - shadow clones, and now _seven continents _of space to stretch his legs in - allowed him the space, time, and numbers he needed to effectively study everything at once, _and_ keep up with the duties and obligations expected of him in his new life.

As always, he wrote down everything - and now he even had a place to securely store all of those notes! Better yet - it wasn't a storage seal on his groin. _**God,**_ he'd missed computers. Not as much as pants, but damn he was glad to have access to a computer bank again.

_Five years_ passed him by, as he studied, recorded, and expanded upon everything he knew, and took in more of what he didn't. With his sabbatical complete, Hibiki took back to his training with a ferocious intensity.

His highest priority had been that of Ay's lightning armor. Using that technique, the prospective Cloud Raikage had, at first glance, seemingly one-upped Katsuo on the durability department. Then take into consideration that, with the lightning cloak, Ay had seemed to be as strong as Hibiki was when he rocked the curse mark, and nearly fast as he was when channeling the Flash chakra. If Hibiki could master this, he would essentially have all of the power of his cursed seal, only lacking the chakra boost, which would help shelve it, the first step on the road to weaning him off of needing to pop the curse mark and a handful of the eight gates for every fight. Appropriately, figuring out how to healthily supercharge his nervous system with lightning chakra took the most time, even taking into account the combined _relative _time experienced by the clones, to master.

This was actually one of the few instances when being the heir to the Senju clan had nothing but beneficial. Even ignoring other potential and viable information sources, which he still intended to use, since Tsunade's clan had been around since long before the days of Hashirama Senju and Madara Uchiha, and had only become depopulated mid-way through the second Shinobi World War, it had accrued a _vast_ wealth of knowledge. Everything from Senju history, to the techniques seen on the battlefield, it was all there. The only catch, Tsunade had explained upon him asking, was that he couldn't get into the 'good stuff', the secrets that could spark wars, until he took over for her as clan head. Despite there being only two of them, she wasn't _that_ opposed to tradition. Fortunately, Hibiki didn't need the ancient and war-worthy secrets, he needed their findings on enemy shinobi techniques; most of them were beyond him at the moment, and the ones that were within his skillset were useless, already known, or not what he felt he could use, at least at the moment. Eventually, though, he found what he had been looking for: The Lightning Release chakra mode.

_Un_fortunately, however, was why the Lightning Cloak was so rare, and why it was a requirement for Raikage. As he'd assumed through his own experience with it, the Lightning Cloak worked by supercharging the body, but the sheer extensiveness had evaded Hibiki until now. According to the scrolls, first, it supersaturated the body - from the skin, to the musculature, to the bones and ligaments - with lightning chakra. This had the effect of exponentially increasing strength, speed, stamina, and durability, to the point where one of the earlier Raikage had been reported to have actually fought, hand to hand, with a rampaging Hachibi, and held it off long enough for a sealing team to get it into its next jinchuriki. The catch to this kind of power, however, was that one needed an extensive, almost _complete_ knowledge of human physiology, in order to apply the chakra in that absolutely perfect way, such that they don't fry their bodies from the inside out and cripple, or even kill themselves.

But then there came another problem - using the lightning cloak gave speed just under that of a Swift Release user, and without reflexes to match, the user would lose control of themselves, literally before they could even blink. To counteract this, users also had to saturate their _brains_ with lightning chakra, and doing this courted instant death, if done wrong. The very neurons in the brain all, individually, had to be coated and saturated - like turning a dry sponge wet - with lightning chakra, to the point that the user would eventually be able to process information fast enough to be able to think as fast as their body moved. Without mastering both halves of the lightning cloak, it was useless - master the muscular half, but not the neuronic one, and you have something that was awesome, but impractical, completely uncontrollable; but master the neuronic half, and not the muscular one, and you'd be thinking and perceiving so fast that the world would be moving at a crawl, and it would take so much relative time to do even one thing that it would again be impractical to even try. Relativity was a bitch.

After taking all of that information in, Hibiki realized that the only reason he had been able to 'brute force' it the way he had been doing, was because he had had Kaguya blood, and the shikotsumyaku had been undoing the damage he'd been dealing to himself about as fast as he'd been doling it out, resulting in a sub-par, 'bargain bin' lightning cloak, as opposed to the real deal, 'name brand' used by Ay. Without his healing factor, Hibiki's clone wouldn't have been able to replicate the technique in Kiri. It was a humbling thought, but one that Hibiki pushed out of his mind as he considered how to go about this. Fortunately for him, he didn't need Tsunade's archives, other Shinobi information sources, or anyone, really, to help him with this. For one of the few times in his second life, his education from Back Home began again paying for itself - he already had EMT training from Back Home, and while that, even compounded with what he'd gotten from Tsunade's books, wasn't much, if he added on to it by pillaging NORAD's archives for medical training, _and_ took in Tsunade's more advanced medical textbooks, he could seriously cut down on the time he'd need to learn this technique. Though, even with the knowledge of the old world, and the power of the new, it still took him a eighteen months, a year and a half, just to get to the point where he wasn't frying himself from the inside out, anymore, and another six months after that to get the practice down alongside the theory. _All_ while dealing with training and missions with his team, the frequent training sessions with the Sannin, keeping up appearances for his family and friends in Konoha, _and_ all of the things happening outside of Konoha's walls, like his new 'history class' studies in NORAD's archives.

Every night after that first fateful morning in Ame, the Senju heir collapsed into bed, as if he hadn't slept in weeks; and given the relative time he was experiencing through all of his shadow clones, that wasn't necessarily an incorrect statement. Fortunately for him, while his friends and allies picked up on how tired and haggard he looked and acted during his off hours, they chalked it up to him over-training himself, like he had done during his Genin years. Minato, ever the one to help, had inadvertently added on to the lethargy by dragging the Alpha Hibiki around, at least once a week, to do 'non-ninja' things with their friends from the academy, whenever their schedules lined up. Once Dai had realized that Kushina, and through her, Minato, were individually as good as, or approaching Hibiki's skill in fuinjutsu, respectively, and together were arguably better than him, she had paid them both a not insignificant sum to come up with, and instruct her in the usage of, a touch-applicable seal that would seal off Hibiki's chakra, such that she could force the Senju heir to take a day off whenever the bags under his eyes became too pronounced. More than once she actually tried to make good on her threat to drain all of his clones dry of their chakra, to force him to not train, and it was after that, that Hibiki had begun more heavily considering moving his training grounds to a place she couldn't find. After all, no one besides him, her, and Zetsu even knew that the world beyond the Elemental Nations even existed, it wouldn't be too difficult to just send his clones to Europe, or North America, to claim little pieces of land in various environments to train in. But, after seeing the concerned expression leaking out behind her usually stoic Aburame mask, Hibiki found himself unable to deny her that basic instinct, to try and help the people she loved.

During his training with the Lightning Cloak, Hibiki also took time to look more closely into that superspeed gift he'd gotten from his fight from Zetsu. It had taken a significant amount of effort to track down the origins of this bloodline, though he eventually narrowed it down to a now extinct clan from Amegakure, known as the Hast. Swift Chakra was much simpler than the lightning release, as his blood did all of the work for him. He just had to access the chakra, and boom: Barry Allen. From his experiments, the Swift Release was not dissimilar to the Body Flicker, as a matter of fact, they were one in the same, the difference was in the execution. The body flicker was a burst, whereas Swift Release was more sustained, and this was because of the differences between the Hast clan and regular shinobi. Hast blood granted its bearer the ability to channel swift chakra for more than that brief instant, allowed their body to be able to bear that stress for more than a millisecond, whereas someone without Hast blood couldn't bear the high-speed movement for more than the current record of a half of a second.

Using this bloodline, Hibiki was able to replicate the speed and reflex enhancements of the lightning cloak, but to a _much_ greater degree. If the lightning cloak was a five, then the Swift Release was a very solid seven, and even better was that it seemed to automatically adjust to the user. This meant that, if Hibiki did something to enhance his reflexes - say, by activating his Sharingan in conjunction with the Swift Release - it would adjust his speed accordingly. Since his reflexes were greater, he could handle a much higher velocity, so it loosened up the restrictions. A Swift Release, with the Sharingan, was a _ten._ So, it stood to reason that if he further augmented his Hast blood with the lignting cloak and the curse mark, he could go _even faster._

After mastering the lightning release, and learning the admittedly few ins and outs of his Swift Chakra, on a whim Hibiki had decided to do just that, and combine his Swift Release, his Lightning Cloak, his Curse Mark, _and_ his Sharingan, to have a little race around the world. He knew that, traveling at light speed, one could circumnavigate the globe seven and a half times in just one second, so he used that as his benchmark. After be bought a stopwatch, he spawned a shadow clone, making sure he fulfilled the same power requisites as the clone, to ensure he could reliably count how many times the speedy little thing ran past him in that single second. The results were conclusive, ten times in one second, though he had actually gone blind for a moment when he'd switched off the Sharingan at full speed, revealing he couldn't go FTL without it. As evidenced by his battle with Zetsu, with the curse mark and the swift release, he could get _close,_ but not _to,_ light speed, but with his lightning cloak mixing things up, he could go _faster than light, _and that was just on the ground. To up the ante, the next day he'd used his flight technique and performed the same test - and he'd gone _even faster._ No one had missed the giddy grin he'd had plastered on his face for the few days that followed that fun little experiment, it didn't even matter that using all of those things together burned his then eleven year old chakra at a frightening rate. He had gone from completely full to halfway empty in that one second, though given relativity, to him it seemed like much longer, but that was a different argument.

Idly, he wondered if he couldn't be able to salvage, or, failing that, construct on his own, some spacesuits, and fly his ass to Mars, or the Moon. Going FTL, it was more than possible to do so in the time constraints of the oxygen source in a spacesuit, but those kinds of hypotheticals were for a time when he didn't have a war to worry about. But as with all things, the fun eventually had to end, and he had to address the elephant in the room. Before he more thoroughly perused the various libraries and archives he had access to, picked the brains of the myriad of S-rank shinobi he had willing to train him, and before he tried to write down and replicate the myriad of bloodlines he'd seen during his fight with Zetsu, Hibiki had something pretty major he had to dedicate a great deal of time to studying. He specifically waited until he'd added the lightning cloak and the swift release to his arsenal before he, at twelve years old, decided to dive headfirst into a God's territory.

The Rinnegan.

First and foremost, before he'd even _begun_ training, he'd created another seal on his body, similar to the ones that held his pistol, rifle, ammunition, and notes from Back Then, to hold the scroll holding Nagato's head. This way, even if Zetsu snuck up on him in the dead of night, the only way anyone was getting access to it was if they forced him to crack open the seal, and he _would not_ be doing that. The seal was designed such that only Hibiki's chakra could open it, and - given that he remembered a chakra absorbing bloodline being displayed during their battle - even went so far as to painstakingly writing out what basically equated to fuinjutsu programming for a passcode. If he didn't inject his chakra into the seal in a certain way, at certain, timed intervals, after three failed attempts the seal would collapse on itself and crumble into dust. _No one_ would be getting his Rinnegan unless he allowed it. After he'd taken care of that security issue, he'd sent a shadow clone to NORAD as an added safety measure, in case Zetsu was watching and waiting for his chance to snatch it when it was out in the open. Though, before he'd sent the clone off, however, he performed a small test to see how far his Something From Nothing technique stretched, and it did, indeed, cover organic material as much as it did inorganic, meaning, so long as Hibiki had the 'master copy', and he torched or destroyed the SFN copies, he would never have to worry about losing Nagato's head, be it to accident or to stupid decisions.

An infinite number of heads that, given the space/time nature of the seal, were technically speaking still alive. Hibiki wasn't psychopathic at all, he was a scientist!

Though he did find himself wondering again whether or not clones had souls, apparently also making him a philosopher.

After arriving at Norad, the clone got to work. Through Dante's slip-up after the Chunin exam, Hibiki knew that dojutsu could be implanted in others, and with his extensive research for the lightning cloak already granting him knowledge over the human body, all Hibiki needed was surgical training to complete the package. With shadow clones speeding up the process, he got what he needed in two months, and after a third, with some help from medical chakra, he was able to successfully remove and replace his own Sharingan eyes. He _hated_ getting those memories from his clones, more than once he'd been woken up in the middle of the night, ready to swear on a bible that his eyes were bleeding. It was after the Alpha Hibiki temporarily went blind mid-way through a B-Ranked mission did the NORAD clones finally forgo attempting chakra anesthetics, and instead start SFN'ing a stockpile of Terran, surgical anesthetics. The folks from Back Then had really gone all out in storing as much as they could from their society, though without Hibiki being able to SFN the supplies, at the rate he was using them just for studying purposes, he would have run out in a year. Regardless, after graduating from training wheels, came the big test: Implanting a set of Rinnegan into a shadow clone.

The clone had lasted fifteen seconds with one eye, before vanishing in a plume of smoke, its chakra coils drained to absolute zero. The second clone waited until its chakra stores were full, before attempting the surgery again. It made it ten minutes, midway through implanting the second eye, before it vanished too, leaving the second eye to fall on the table with a squish. The third try was done at super speed, with both eyes being implanted in a half of a millisecond. The clone didn't last two minutes after it opened its eyes and exposed himself to the strain of both Rinnegan, barely enough time to even really register how it _felt._ The fourth try, all the stops were removed - the surgery was done at super speed, multiple other clones dispersed to give the implantee a surplus of chakra, and the implantee opened three of the eight gates while on the operating table. Implantee number four lasted fifteen minutes. Hibiki finally quit trying after implantee five opened seven gates - his upper limit as of his fight with Katsuo - and lasted an hour. He didn't get a lot of data, but the little he did get made him realize that the Rinnegan would be a _long_ game, potentially longer than some of the other ones he was playing.

Firstly, the Rinnegan burned a _lot_ of chakra, it took more than he could make, and even with seven of the eight gates opened and raging, the greedy little things just gobbled up as much as they could, as fast as they could do it. His body was barely - _barely - _able to combat the effects and start generating chakra again if Hibiki shut his eyes and cut off the flow, but it still absorbed so much that it was like generating one gallon of gas per hour, to generating a hundredth of one; and that was with _one_ eye! Both eyes made him generate even _less_ when the flow was cut off. Hibiki had noticed a _slight_ decrease in chakra expenditure with the fifth clone, implying to him that, like the Sharingan, the chakra usage could decrease with time, but as he was right now, he couldn't physically support them for more than a few minutes, base form. Like many of his problems, he would have to wait until his chakra stores and his chakra generation started growing alongside his body, when he hit puberty. Secondly, the Rinnegan was _powerful._ Hibiki felt like he'd had nuclear bombs in his eyes, when he'd implanted them. The Senju heir remembered the power that coursed through his body during his beam struggle with Katsuo, that power _paled_ in comparison to the Rinnegan, even at rest. He'd only been able to perform _one_ actual comparison between a ninjutsu cast with his Sharingan and a ninjutsu cast with the implanted Rinnegan, and the difference was staggering. To put it to a number, he'd launched an explosive bolt with his Sharingan, that was a one, but with the Rinnegan, it had jumped to a ten. The power of these eyes was so great, and so intense, that he had barely even been able to handle it those few times he'd gotten off of the operating table - more than once he'd had to shut one or both of his eyes just to seal it away and bring it down to something he could handle. Going from the Sharingan to the Rinnegan was like upgrading from a flintlock to a machine gun, or a hand grenade to a hydrogen bomb. This was the power of the Sage of Six Paths, the power of a man who fashioned himself a god, and Hibiki hadn't even had the time or energy to even properly test out its abilities or its limits beyond that one rushed attempt.

After trying off and on for another few months implant and test the Rinnegan, Hibiki finally deigned to trying it out once per week. Once every week, he would spawn clones in NORAD, they would implant the Rinnegan, and would perform the equivalent of endurance training. Eventually, his chakra stores would either increase from the strain, as they had done since he was six, or his body would, slowly but surely, get used to the strain and be able to handle the Rinnegan. In a perfect world, both would happen, but Hibiki was working by himself, with no reference point, so he doubted this world's perfection. For now, the Rinnegan had defeated him, but he still held an advantage over Zetsu - he had a weapon it never expected him to have. While it was entirely possible that there were more Otsutsuki descendants, there couldn't be that many - even low balling it and saying it had only been a thousand years since the war, a thousand years is more than enough time for a bloodline to dilute. Nagato had to be one of the luckiest descendants to actually awaken the Rinnegan, and even if there were more, it wasn't likely that they _all_ had Rinnegan. If _anything,_ Hibiki had a bargaining chip, so if there was some kind of last ditch effort, hell was freezing over, everybody he knew and loved was about to die, kind of an emergency, he could barter those eyes, give them back for a hefty price.

Maybe that would be how he finally got his pair of jeans.

Trade the eyes of God for a pair of pants?

It would be absolutely worth it.

No questions asked.

_Totally worth it._

After he shelved the Rinnegan, he decided to get a few 'backup' pairs of his own eyes, too. Just in case. Even without Dante's enigmatic 'Mangekyo', his eyes were powerful, useful organs, and if Katsuo and his allies also had Uzumaki blood, it meant that they would be good fuinjutsu practitioners as well. It wouldn't be too difficult for them to finagle some way to rip out Hibiki's eyes and hinder his healing abilities' capacity for organ regeneration. Before he knew it, three years had passed since he had flattened Ame. With every day spent training in some form or another, he had learned a lot, but nothing beat experience. The problem was, in those three years, and for another two years following them, Katsuo - and Zetsu too - had been damningly silent. Outside of the occasional missing nin during their C and B ranked missions, and the _one_ A-rank they had done, Hibiki's only way to truly test his new abilities was to fight his own shadow clones or spar with his squadmates and various sensei. Fortunately for him, as time went on, his pool of sparring partners grew greatly - first he only had his own squad, the occasional cross training exercise with Dai's, and Minato, though in the beginning the lattermost was still mostly rookie in combat skill, but he was still more than useful for practicing combat without chakra. But after his twelfth birthday came and went, he gained many more partners, in the form of the graduating rookie class. Fugaku actively sought out Hibiki whenever the former had free time and the latter could spare a clone, and through him and Dante Hibiki was actually able to stretch his Sharingan abilities greatly. Shikaku and his squad, Inoichi and Chouza, proved to be adept enough in being a jack of all trades kind of squad that Hibiki was able to use them as a way to practice strategy and combat against superior odds.

After his first little 'war game' with the newly minted genin Shikaku, Hibiki vowed to teach him chess. The Naara heir would _love it. _

But through all of the training, through all of the practicing and skills sharpening, all of the missions and tentative peace, Hibiki couldn't help but feel that this was just the calm before the storm. Konoha had, in a way, averted war by sacking and occupying Kiri, but Hibiki botching Katsuo and the aftermath of flattening Ame only meant that war was still inevitable, they had only delayed it. Hibiki _hated_ the silence on his enemies' front, a silence he had no idea would be broken, just as soon as he began to consider getting used to this lax environment.

It was one night, five years after Ame, that Hibiki found himself sitting atop the Hokage monument. The Third's head had long since been patched up, and the Fourth's had been finished the year previous. Hibiki leaned back on his hands, staring up at the starry sky, his breaths forming small puffs in the frigid, mid-February air. His blood red eyes cut through the dark night air, and his ears picked up on a faint sound of air whistling, as, simultaneously, a gentle breeze picked up, bringing the earthy smells of the forests to his nose. He hardly even felt the draw of chakra from his dojutsu, these days, especially after his training with them under Dante, and alongside Fugaku. Sometime soon he'd have to see what would happen if he'd try to go to sleep with them active, if that wasn't the 'next step' to building up their endurance.

_Hell... Apparently there's a Sharingan technique that can rewrite reality. I've got an infinite supply of eyes, maybe I can just con Dante into teaching it to me, and then I can fix the whole Rinnegan problem in a heartbeat._ He chuckled, shaking his head. _Or, hell, even better. Kill off Zetsu, eliminate the Jubi entirely, and bring Katsuo around to my way of thinking. What'd he call it? Did he even call it something? I'll call it Deus Ex Machina until I know otherwise._ Thought the grinning Senju heir, as he locked eyes on the moon.

_I wonder how difficult it would be to get some NASA resources back up and running. I wouldn't even need much, really. Just have to figure out how to make and supply a few space suits. Then I could FTL to the moon. Maybe visit the Apollo eleven site... Did the Jubi go back up there, after Ame?_ He wondered, tilting his head onto his shoulder. _And what about Hamura? What the _hell_ happened there? Can't still be alive, Hagoromo died of old age. So... What? Did he just watch it for a few decades and then just look at Earth and go all, 'Your problem now, guys!', and walk out into space without a helmet?_

A moment passed, and he heard the sound of feet gingerly landing on the hard, cold stone.

Hibiki turned his head, his unkempt raven hair falling over his shoulders as he turned to greet his guest. She stood half of a foot taller than him, and her growth had stalled these past few months. These last few years she had ditched the thicker, hooded jacket of her youth for a thin, dark hoodie, not dissimilar to the windbreaker he had used to wear, the difference being the hood drawn tightly over her head, which cast her face in deep shadows. Hibiki found his eyes drifting down from her face, to her chest, and then to her legs, before it dawned on him what was missing from the picture.

"Finally ditched the flak jacket." He said, pointing to the figure's small chest. "Told you you would." He turned back and his gaze eventually fell upon the moon.

"I can never sneak up on you, anymore." Huffed the Aburame, as she came down to sit next to Hibiki. "I finally decided I preferred the maneuverability over the protection. Though I still keep it handy, we're not all as durable as you. Besides, I knew you'd appreciate the new look." She said, with a thin, mischievous smile, as she rested her head on Hibiki's shoulder.

Hibiki didn't respond to the last bit, his poker face was growing stronger and stronger as time went on, meaning he was able to simply let the conversation drift to silence with only a cracked grin. He just gazed up into the sky, his Sharingan eyes always landing on the moon.

Dai didn't let it escape her notice. "You haven't been sleeping lately." She said, as Hibiki felt her grip around his core tighten ever so slightly, pressing him against her side, as if to remind him she was there.

Hibiki nodded, slowly. Among so many other things, Katsuo was on his mind. Zetsu being quiet and playing a long game, Hibiki could understand, which meant he had to consider Katsuo the primary threat. But the man had been _silent_ for the entire five years spanning their last meeting and right now - not a peep, from any of Hibiki's unwitting sources; and that was just _one_ issue. The Kaguya clan was another one, somehow even more clear and present than Katsuo.

After Hibiki had paved the way for the Kaguya clan's entry into Konoha, a great deal of debate had sprung up over where exactly they would be housed. Arguments were made left and right for expanding Konoha's walls to encompass their hastily made camp, or to clear out some space somewhere and let them build their own homes. Problem was, even under new leadership the Kaguya were too proud to ask for help, and they only ended up making even more ridiculous suggestions, one of which included settling _on top of the Hokage mountain._ Six months had passed before Hibiki had had his eureka moment about the whole ordeal, and brought the idea to his mother.

The Senju compound.

The place was empty and vacant, save for Hibiki and Tsunade. None of the homes were in use, and it wouldn't even take a year, with all of the hands available, to get them fixed back up and livable, and given the Senju's once prosperous numbers, there was a _lot_ of space available. Tsunade had protested initially, she hadn't wanted to give up her family's legacy, but Hibiki had played to her medical mindset and given her a brief recap of biology 101, and told her that, since he didn't really had a drop of Senju in him, _she_ was the only possible way that the Senju could repopulate, and as she got closer to her forties, that was becoming less and less possible. Even if she went hog-wild and created a thousand shadow clones to act as surrogate mothers, and all of those clones had twins, inbreeding from her half of the bloodline would still be a problem, and outbreeding would dilute the Senju bloodline, to the point that within two generations her attempts to keep the clan going would be for naught. Much as it hurt to admit, the Senju clan wasn't just endangered, it was dying out - once Tsunade bit the dust, it would be gone, so why not put the empty compound to use? After all, she and Hibiki lived on its edge anyways, so it wouldn't be like they would be surrounded by the creepy pale bone-wielders.

He'd done this all before remembering that, back when he was making his guns, he'd gutted half of the Senju homes for their metal, copper and brass. Oops.

Eventually, Tsunade had capitulated, but when she made the suggestion to the Hokage, she had made certain to drop his name. That, combined with his role in bringing them together, essentially made him the de-facto go-between, between Danzo, Arjuna's father, and the rest of the clan. Any of the growing pains of going from a nomadic lifestyle to a hierarchy like Konoha were partially bared by him, and even worse, because of his kaguya blood - though the 'official' story was that of a latent Senju bloodline, that allowed him to replicate other bloodlines he came into contact with, which itself had been a headache and a half to water-proof - he was also seen as an ally and a _friend_ to the Kaguya clan. This meant that he was always being approached for sparring matches, and they even began asking him to teach them how he used their bloodline, in exchange for 'formal' training in their own ways.

As it turned out, the traditional way of using the shikotsumyaku was to create blades from the skeleton and employ them in fluid katas, resulting in their dance-like styles. Hibiki's approach, however, had been using this sword he had been given to attack _and_ defend - him creating the shield during his fight with Arjuna had been unprecedented in Kaguya history. No one had ever thought to do it. His Wolverine Claws, battering ram, and the supersharp sword had only seen fit to cement him as a black sheep in their eyes, but instead of ostracizing him, the warrior people all but begged him to show them his ways.

Of course, Danzo found out, and that was how Hibiki had been ordered by his Hokage to use his status among the Kaguya to do what the Hokage had yet been unable to, and convince them that their academy age children had to attend the shinobi academy, similar to how other, more entrenched clan children would. Another headache and a half, but he had Arjuna on his side for that one. So, in exchange for him instructing the of-proper-age Kaguya clansmen in the 'Hibiki Method', their younger children would go get formal educations, and their genin-aged ones would take the tests and start working their way through the shinobi hierarchy. From what Hibiki had been hearing, where the Uchiha were the military police, it was looking like non-shinobi Kaguya were going to be slated to fulfill a similar role, but what, Hibiki had no idea. Five years was a long time, but not long enough to figure out things like _that,_ and with a war growing closer and closer ever since Kiri, the best solution was rapidly looking to be the easiest one: Keeping them without a role for the time being, so as many of them as possible could be dedicated to the front lines.

This all brought him to the here and now. Right now he was trying to explain to the older, more experienced bone-wielders, and of course Arjuna, the theory behind monomolecular blades, whilst simultaneously trying to master the Kaguya's more advanced dances. For the former, it was like trying to show a caveman how a phone worked, then having to immediately turn around and perform the latter, which was like being shown he had another limb he had never even known existed. Fifteen years was a lot longer than five, and even with his Sharingan speeding things up, he was struggling with what would be comparable to genin-level skills to the Kaguya. Direct bone manipulation, ala his wolverine claws or their Larch Dance, that was the easy stuff - but creating that forest of bones that Kaguya had pulled, back during their fight? He had had it explained and demonstrated to him a dozen times now, and it still felt like Greek to him, he was having to start out with the simple out-of-body bone manipulation exercises, meant for children, before he could even hope to move onto the big stuff. And the former nomads were too proud to teach more than one Hibiki, which meant no shadow clones. It was a _slow_ process, and that wasn't even all he had on his mind - Ame, and what had happened after, was still there, floating around every time a clone burst and their thoughts and reflections jarred the memories loose. He still woke up some nights - when he was able to fall asleep in the first place - in a cold sweat about his involvement in that, more than once he had vomited.

Shadow clones: The best and worst thing to ever happen to him.

"Just thinking too much." He sighed, leaning his head onto hers as she brought her knees up to her chest, and wrapped her free arm around them, now leaning entirely upon the Senju heir, as if he were a wall.

Dai was silent for a moment, before she spoke up. He knew she was checking their surroundings, using her beetles to relay to her whether or not there were any unwarranted visitors. "More issues with the Kaguya?"

Hibiki leaned into her, sighing as he did so, feeling a lot of the stress that had built up in his back wash away. "Most of the folks over our age are bull headed, and I'm trying to dumb down molecular science for them in a way that isn't - Just make them _really really sharp!."_ He said, with a light sigh. "It's a slow process. It's funny - the simple stuff, like making shields or battering rams, they get easily enough. But getting more creative leaves them in the dust... While the exact opposite is true, for me. They show me their simple ideas, and I struggle with it, but when they show me the cool things, I catch up real fast."

Hibiki felt the Aburame nod lightly, "I've always got the impression that you understood simile better than metaphor. It makes sense." She said.

Hibiki grunted, she was right - to get the concrete stuff down, he had to sit down and force it into his head. But when he worked with comparisons, the process went by much quicker. The Kaguya, meanwhile, had none of Hibiki's world as a context to compare to, nor did they have anything from Konoha to use, so they were using their own terms to explain things. Given that education in the Kaguya clan mostly stopped after the general things needed for survival, and sometimes trade, that made things _very hard, _and that was before their martial, somewhat savage mindset played into things. Those people _lived_ for blood, practically rivaling the Spartans in the way they brought themselves up. Nothing mattered more to a Kaguya than an honorable death by combat.

Dai was silent for a few minutes, "did you see the Sand shinobi here, this morning?"

"I was wondering about that." Said Hibiki, "I think I recognized one of them, the big thick dude, as the guy who gave us the desert test, during the Chunin exams." He paused, before he cracked a smug grin. "Well, _my_ Chunin exams. Your _first_ ones."

He felt a beetle crawl into his hair, "I don't think I heard you." She said, as it grew closer to his ear; she let it drop as Hibiki chuckled, a small smile growing her own face as well, which Hibiki felt on his shoulder, through the fabric of her hood and his shirt. "My father brought you up when I returned home from the Waves assignment, yesterday."

"That damn Hibiki and his damn superspeed." Hibiki said, putting on his best impression of Dai's father. "Date in the clan, shake him, ugh ugh ugh."

Dai giggled softly, a sound Hibiki was growing to like more and more, as time grew on. "He's resigned himself to it. I don't know how you did it, but you beat him at his own game."

"I literally died, Dai. My patience should be considered legendary. Five years or fifty, I wouldn't have gone back to speak to him until he came to speak to me." Probably one of the dumbest ideas he'd ever had, but in his defense, he'd also had a lot more pressing matters on his mind than impressing Dai's father. "So I assume he made your mother say something?"

"She just wanted to know when we were moving in together." Dai deadpanned.

"I've got a few apartments I'm looking at." One advantage of being fifteen? He was three years past being legally bound to his adoptive mother, he could move out when he wanted. "Tsunade and the Kaguya are trying to keep me in the compound, but I want to move closer to the bazaar." True to point, his mother and the Kaguya were the primary reasons he hadn't bolted to his own Bachelor Pad Two: Electric Boogaloo (he had already had the name picked out years ago) the moment he'd turned twelve.

He felt Dai grin, "white noise, right?"

Hibiki grunted in the affirmative again, "but I know a certain Aburame that has more sensitive hearing than most shinobi, and wouldn't like it as much as me. So I've been coordinating with Kushina, who's also in the market. Been looking longer than me, so she knows where the quieter places are, that aren't shinobi apartment complexes."

He could almost _hear_ Dai blush. "You don't -"

"Non-negotiable."

There was another few minutes of contented silence, "I am surprised you're not cold." Dai finally said.

"I always liked the chillier nights. Back Home, whenever we'd go to the beach, my parents and friends would think I was nuts, only heading out at night when it was chilly." Hibiki turned his gaze back down to the village, where he had his bird's eye view of all of the rooftops and winding roads. "Though I have been considering getting a new windbreaker. Absence has made the heart grow fonder." The problem was, he hadn't been able to find one _quite_ like the one he'd had during his pre-teen years; call it idiocy, call it what you will, but he liked that coat, and if he couldn't have the same one again, he'd wait until he found a new one he liked, and just buy one in every size up, so he could always clown a new one.

Had he also mentioned he wanted a pair of pants? He would literally give up any and all lucky jackets for _one_ pair of pants. Lucky pants. Absence made the heart grow fonder, and all of his time in NORAD just made him want to break down and dedicate time and resources to repairing textile mills and doing whatever it took to create _just one pair._ That _one_ pair would be all he would ever need - he could literally just clone more.

Dai finally broke the silence, "I fear that the Kaguya isn't the only thing keeping you awake, this night." She said lowly, her voice barely picking up over the night air. Hibiki nodded once, prompting her to ask, "what else is on your mind?"

"Five years." He said, "I'm fifteen." He picked up his hand, now putting his entire weight upon the one Dai was leaning on, "starting to grow, now. A lot -"

"I don't think things _down there_ have changed as drastically as you think, from one life to another." Dai said, with a smug grin, as she grabbed at the lifted hand.

Hibiki frowned at that, though mostly to keep from smiling. "Christ, lady. One track mind. Hookers in Tanzaku, dreams of Vegas... I'm not going to ask what's next." As he relinquished his hand, and Dai curled hers around it, he counted himself lucky she wasn't aware that Jiraiya was taking to writing. He didn't need her giving the super pervert ideas. "No, what's on my mind is Katsuo. The other experiments. I haven't heard from them in _five years._ That worries me. Even more than that, I haven't seen hide nor tail from Zetsu, either. Not here, or in NORAD. You'd think the latter would at least come looking for a retaliatory strike, after I kicked his ass. But it's been nothing... For five years."

Dai squeezed Hibiki's callused hand. "You fear that they are making great strides, while you do not."

"I've added to my arsenal, but not as much as I'd liked._"_ Hibiki responded, "and aside from random chance, the only way I can find out about my other bloodlines is to see them in action, and try for myself." His mind went to the little to no progress in reconstructing the bloodlines from his memories of the Zetsu fight. "I think Katsuo _knows_ that... So he's waiting. Training. Mastering what he has and I don't. Waiting for when he's ready to make his moves." He looked down from the moon; the village was wreathed in an equally orange and white glow, from the candles and street lights, and the moon and stars above, respectively. No matter how many times Hibiki came up here, he always found his breath taken away by the view, always found himself comparing it to having lived in, or near, a city for all his life. Though, he noted interestedly, sometimes during celebrations, that there was enough light pollution to block out some of the stars and nebulae.

_My stars, and nebulae._ He thought, his eyes flicking upwards, and then back down. "So, I'm trying to figure out if there isn't something I should be doing. If I shouldn't try to get some kind of infrastructure running over -" He blinked, having sworn he saw a streak of pale white light zoom through the village, almost like an aurora.

Hibiki leaned forward, turning his full attention to the village below, his brows furrowing and a frown playing on his features, which Dai didn't fail to notice, as she stiffened up too, and began looking back and forth, from the Senju heir to the village. "What is it?"

"I thought I saw something..." The tomoe in his red eyes began spinning as he focused hard, but he couldn't see anything out of the ordinary. It was just as he was about to write it off as an eye floater, that he saw it again, and now fully concentrating on his Sharingan, he saw it happened at a perceivable, understandable speed.

A pale white contrail, lagging behind a lanky looking individual with a large mass cradled in both arms. Even with his eyes translating and slowing everything down so Hibiki could see it clearly, the runner was moving _fast._ One look at the contrail showed the chuunin the path the runner was taking, from the inside of the village, near an apartment complex to the east of one of the smaller bazaars, trailing outwards. With a blink, Hibiki realized that the contrail was almost exactly the same of what followed him when he was doing his Flash impersonation - and since the Hast clan was reportedly dead for going on two decades now, that meant there was only kind of people who had access to their powers. Even more concerning, however, was that Hibiki also recognized the apartment complex the contrail was peeling away from, having walked to it almost daily up until the invasion, and still visiting it frequently with a certain blond friend of his.

_Speak of the devil, and he shall appear._ Katsuo was making his move, and he was going big, straight out of the gate, going for Kushina - going for the Kyuubi. The odd thing was, Hibiki hadn't even realized she had gotten home, the last he heard she was doing cartwheels about her first B-ranked assignment in two months, happy as hell she'd be getting out of the village for a while.

But it didn't matter, "wake up Dante." He said, before the world slowed to a crawl, and he launched himself off of the Hokage monument.

Thanks to Runner's Swift Release chakra, the guy was _fast._ Hibiki knew from training experience and mock battles that, with the Swift chakra, he was faster than Dante rocking his Sharingan, and this guy likely had a _lot_ more experience than Hibiki did, which meant he'd likely be just an edge faster. But Hibiki knew that flying was invariably faster than running, and flying with Swift chakra, was like upgrading from a jet to a rocket. Runner had had a head start on the Senju heir, but Hibiki caught up to him in milliseconds, already hundreds of kilometers outside of the village. Hibiki flipped forwards, throwing his legs over his back and landing on the ground with a loud crash and the sound of dirt and wood splitting and flying into the air. He thrust both hands forward and, with a powerful pulse of chakra, slowed himself to a halt, and barely a microsecond later Runner caught up with him.

With his Sharingan speeding up his perception beyond even what the Swift chakra could do on its own, Hibiki broke down time so far that even Runner seemed to be moving at a crawl. Hibiki's eyes snapped down to the huddled mass in the man's arms, and confirmed that it was, indeed, Kushina, her red hair making her identity unmistakable, and the small, bleeding lump on the back of her scalp making him angry. With a frown, Hibiki hopped into the air, flying towards Runner; the Senju heir threw his left hand forward, his fingers splayed outwards, while his right hand curved down. Runner's face slammed into Hibiki's outstretched hand before he could properly react, and as his legs flew out from underneath him, Kushina's unconscious body was jarred from his hands, flying the short distance between him and Hibiki in an instant, and quickly settling into Hibiki's outstretched arm.

The world sped back up as Hibiki vaulted over Runner, and Runner slid across the ground on his back, slamming rear-first into a tree, jarring loose a small storm of leaves. With Kushina in his arms, Hibiki straightened up and looked at Runner from over his shoulder; as Runner slowly, painfully got back to his feet, Hibiki laid Kushina on the ground and pressed his fingers to her warm, tan neck. He felt a strong pulse, and with a nod, he spawned a shadow clone, which took Kushina in its own arms and vanished with a zipping noise. A millisecond later, Hibiki felt something hard slam into the small of his back, and as he was punted through the thick woods, the fight was on.


	54. Abduction: Burly Brawl -II-

Chapter 53

* * *

His back flared in pain, and in less than time than it took for him to blink, Runner overtook him in a wide arc, and threw his fist forward, multiple jagged bony protrusions sticking out of his arm and covered in his blood. Hibiki narrowed his eyes and the world slowed down, bringing him to Runner's speed; he knew from experience what kind of defensive strategy Runner was employing, the Kaguya called it the Larch dance. Fortunately for Hibiki, he didn't even need to injure himself to counter it, and with but a thought, he capped off the Swift chakra and started channeling his lightning cloak. As he'd predicted, the world sped up by a small order, as the speed boost wasn't nearly as fast as the Swift Release, but it more than made up for it in the durability and strength enhancements. He was able to fully grab ahold of Runner's arm, and Runner's razor-sharp bones didn't even scratch his lightning cloaked skin. With an iron grip on Runner's arm, Hibiki yanked backwards and threw his hand forward. He lunged inside Runner's defenses, and his fist slammed into Runner's chest, but what happened next, Hibiki hadn't been able to predict. Runner vanished with a loud pop and a plume of smoke.

As Hibiki landed with both feet dug into the dirt, and skidded forward several feet, he snapped to a defensive stance, his red eyes glowing and the thick field of electricity lighting up the dark forest around him like a signal flare. _Shadow clone..._ Thought Hibiki, with narrowed eyes, as he slowly scanned his surroundings. _The devil's hands have been busy._ Barely a second later, another Runner appeared, leaping in between the trees with both hands held high, almost like a mantis.

Hibiki snapped to the runner and narrowed his eyes, and when the Runner came in range, he threw his fist forward again in a straight jab, dispelling this clone in a similar fashion, before all of his senses warned him of something streaming in from his right. His head whipped to the right and he saw another two Runners, they both slammed their fists into his chest, the force of the double impact sending him flying through the air. He crashed through two trees, sending them both toppling to the ground as another trio of runners predicted where he would land and overtook him. Just as he spun around to meet them, he saw all three of them with their hands extended, and in that instant, the air detonated in a massive explosion, sending Hibiki flying back again, the way he came. This time, the two Runners that had sent him airborne in the first place were there, both in the air, and both of their feet slammed into his back, sending him careening downwards into the ground.

Hibiki crashed into the ground with a grunt, and before he could blink, all five of the Runner clones were on top of him, each on a different limb and one on his chest. At hyper seed, he felt fists and feet slam into his chest, joints, and face, but with his lightning cloak, they all just bounced off with a crunch of bone. Hibiki grinned and, after a brief red flash from his Sharingan, he whipped both of his arms around and locked his hands onto the Runner clones' feet. His grip tightened to the point where their legs were crushed, and that proved to be damage enough to pop the clones, and the lack of weight gave Hibiki leverage enough to throw both hands forward and detonate his chakra, killing the clones on his legs as his head came up to slam into the head of the Runner on his chest. This Runner, however, caught Hibiki's head with both hands, squeezing it like a vice, and barely a second later Hibiki felt a burning sensation, quickly proceeded by what he could only describe as if he were a cup being drained from the inside out.

Hibiki grunted loudly, and grabbed both of Runner's hands. He wrenched them to the side and, lightning fast, the Senju clone swapped a look with each of them. On Runner's left hand, Hibiki saw what he was looking for - the same overlapping diamonds he had seen on the clone Zetsu had possessed, years ago. Runner had just tried absorbing his chakra, and just as Hibiki's head whirled around to eye the Runner clone lividly, a new one appeared, promptly kicking Hibiki in the side of the head. Hibiki was sent flying, but what was more shocking to him was that he had _felt_ that impact, Runner having absorbed his chakra managed to disrupt his flow just long enough to create a 'chink' in his lightning armor.

_Not good..._ Thought Hibiki, as he dug his feet into the ground and was quickly put on the defensive.

Five Runners were on him now, with more appearing with every second from every crook and crevice in the thick forest. Assaulted from all sides, Hibiki parried and blocked every blow coming his way, noting how Runner seemed to prefer using his feet over his hands. He slapped aside a kick meant for his head and broke an arm that nearly made it past his defenses and close enough to absorb his chakra. Hibiki dodged two savage roundhouses and caught a side-kick, using this Runner clone almost like a flail, swinging it around in a wide circle before he slammed it into the ground and dispelled it. He barely had a second to be glad that, while Runner may know the shadow clone technique, he didn't know the _solid_ shadow clone technique.

_Speaking of..._ Thought Hibiki, who threw both hands out to the side and let out a prolonged pulse of chakra, clearing his flanks of clones, before he cut off the chakra and clenched his hands in a tiger seal. He belched out a massive stream of flame, bursting the dozens of clones in front of him, before he whipped his body around and about faced, almost like a snake, and cleared out the ones behind him. _Where the hell is the clone with Kushina?_ He thought, as he straightened up.

From seemingly nowhere, dozens, hundreds of Runners were appearing, surrounding the electrified Senju in the forest, all keeping just to the edge of the electric blue lightshow his armor created. Hibiki slowly turned his head, making eye contact with all of them, from the ones that stood calmly on the ground, to the ones who leaned against the trees, even to the ones clinging to the trees with their legs and one of their arms, like monkeys. More were showing up every second, and they all had the chakra absorbing diamond seals on their left hands.

Hibiki's eyes squinted, while the drain wasn't anywhere approaching worrisome, his lightning cloak still drank a decent amount of chakra, and his stores, while much higher than average for shinobi his age, still hadn't reached the 'exponential growth' he'd been told to expect as he went through puberty. He was nearing three quarters of a 'tank' left. What _did_ worry him, however, was the sheer number of clones showing up, surrounding him, as if waiting for his signal to start the fight again. If the chakra drain for the lightning cloak was a five, then the Swift Release was a solid four. Not bad, but not good either, and it was also the reason why Hibiki couldn't yet use the lightning cloak _and_ swift chakra concurrently in battle, the collective drain just drank his chakra like a thirsty man drank water. These guys were using their bloodlines as if it was their only weapon, which meant the clones needed a significant amount of chakra with which to fight. The Alpha Runner had to have a _lot_ of chakra to burn, and worse, he was using their chakra absorption bloodline to steal _Hibiki's,_ to feed it back to him, which in turn meant more bad guys.

_Not good._ Thought Hibiki, as he slowly raised both hands in a defensive manner, one held aloft in front of his chest, one packed tight against his side. _Where's my clone? Where's Dante? Or Noboru, Minato... Hell, I'd even take Suboro._ He grinned, as he twisted around his hovering hand. _Maybe he'd actually join in on this fight._ He waved his hand in a 'come here' fashion, and as if the floodgates had been opened, the Runners all blasted towards him.

Even with the enhanced speed and reflexes granted to him by his Sharingan and the lightning cloak, the Runner clones were still fast. They closed the distance between them and Hibiki in an instant, and he was surrounded. Hibiki quickly ducked down and avoided a flying spin-kick, and in a flash of movement, he swung his fist upwards, cracking the Runner clone in the chest and bursting it. The next attack came from four clones at once, two of them grabbed at Hibiki's arms and used their enhanced speed to briefly overpower his strength and buy time for the third to appear behind his back and bear-hug him, and for the fourth to fly through the air, foot extended. Hibiki felt his chakra being drained from his chest, and with a grunt, he threw his head back, bursting the clone stealing his chakra with a crunch. He was kicked in the chest and sent reeling backwards, into the waiting hands of several other Runner clones; these clones, however, got a nasty shock when Hibiki's ribs burst out of his back and impaled all of their hands in a shower of blood and gore. All of the clones vanished in a thick plume of smoke, giving Hibiki just a few feet to work with as the weaponized bones crumbled to dust.

Hibiki sensed another Runner coming in from his left, so with a grunt he hopped into the air and kicked it, full force, in the chest. He destroyed its superdense ribcage, and was sent hurtling towards his right. He shoulder-tackled through the next waiting crowd of clones, bursting a few as he landed on the ground, shoulder first. In an instant he was surrounded again, but he slammed his palm onto the ground. As it turned out, besting the Kaguya clan's heir in public came with a few benefits - and trainers almost literally breaking down his door to ask if he wanted their instruction on the finer points of their bloodline was one of them; and one of the techniques he felt was _really_ applicable in this situation, was the Dance of the Seedling Farm.

It took a lot of chakra, but in as little as two seconds, and nearly two thousand kicks and punches, the entire ground for more than a dozen meters around him suddenly exploded in a shower of blood and dirt, revealing a forest of white in the forest of green. Thousands of razor-sharp bones, all with hundreds of thousands of minuscule, needle-like protrusions slicing apart everyone they touched, all filled the area around Hibiki, inadvertently choking the air and filling it with the sounds of scores of clones popping under the strain. Any ordinary shinobi would find themselves stuck, if only for a few minutes, as they tried to find a way in, or out, of this forest of weaponized skeletal mass. Unfortunately for Hibiki, Runner was anything but an ordinary shinobi, he was undead, just like him: The swift release was far from his only bloodline.

Hibiki heard the air go still, and he recognized the sight of it becoming suddenly saturated with a wave of thick chakra. With a curse, Hibiki launched himself into the air with a powerful pulse of chakra, cutting his lightning cloak and instead going full Barry Allen as he zoomed into the air, just barely outrunning the explosive chakra. Before he could catch his breath, a dozen Runners leapt into the air, trailing white contrails as they soared straight towards him.

With narrow, livid red eyes, Hibiki attacked each of the clones. He punched one in the chest, bursting it and using his forward momentum to spin into a front-flip, kicking downwards and bursting another. He dashed to the side to dodge the third clone, destroying it with a bolt of explosive chakra. The air was quickly becoming thick with Runners, as they all launched off of the ground and hurtled towards him. He kneed a clone that got too close, and caved in the face of another that grabbed at his feet. Another clone managed to latch itself onto his back, but a swiftly applied elbow to the nose ended that problem, but soon the numbers became too much, and before he even realized it had happened, two clones had latched onto his feet. Four clones then locked onto those two, and then the numbers kept growing until there was a mountain of Runners, locking Hibiki to the ground by sheer weight of numbers. Hibiki found himself being dragged back down below the roof of the forest, so instead of fighting it, he embraced it, thrusting both of his hands upwards and then pulsing his chakra as powerfully as he could.

The mountain of bodies imploded as he was now sent rocketing downwards, and out from his body burst another dozen pairs of razor sharp bones, bursting clones left and right as he wrenched his chest left and right, causing a circular spinning motion as he sank to the ground. A second later, Hibiki impacted the ground with a loud thud, and to ensure he got rid of the mountain, he thrust both hands to the side, and detonated his chakra in a massive explosive wave. Bodies were sent flying, clones dispelled, smoke choked the air for a brief second, and Hibiki was at ground zero, dead center in a clearing where there had used to be a great collection of Hashirama's ironwood trees.

His knees still bent, and his hands still outstretched, Hibiki heard just one word, from a deep voice, uttered in an animalistic, primal fashion. _"More!"_

And to answer the call, hundreds more Runner clones appeared, locking Hibiki inside his clearing, as he whipped his head up, his hair flipping upwards in a viking fashion, and his lightning cloak enveloping him again. He kicked forward and slammed a fist through two clones, before landing on his front foot and crouching down low, kicking the backfoot out and popping another clone. Hibiki thrust his right hand onto the ground and then kicked upwards with his front foot; a second later, two, foot long blades burst out from his boots, and he started swinging his legs around in a wide, circular motion. With his hand keeping him locked to the ground, Hibiki used it like the point of a top and was soon whirling around in a blur, the blades in his feet bursting clones left and right as they tried to overwhelm him with sheer numbers. Hibiki kept it up, spinning more and more, faster and faster, electricity streaming off of his body and filling the air, briefly making him look like an electrified tornado as he spun in place.

If anyone would ask, he would forever claim that he won the battle by break-dancing, but the reality was much more different. The Runner clones quickly realized that Hibiki's electrified bladestorm was a death sentence, and instead of rushing him, they bided their time. Well aware of their superior speed compared to his lightning cloak, they waited for the opportune moment and then charged in, four clones flanking him and grabbing his legs. The hands locked to his feet began draining chakra, while their free arms elbowed downwards, stunning him in that brief moment his armor was weak. Before he could counter, however, two more clones zoomed in and kicked at his back, spinning him upwards, where another clone came diving downwards. The Runner slammed his fists into Hibiki's stomach and buried him into the ground, but Hibiki reacted quickly enough, kicking both legs upwards and locking his feet around the clone's neck. He swung his legs, arcing the clone through the air and slamming its head into the ground, bursting it with a crunch. Hibiki then kicked outwards, sliding across the ground as a quad of Runners soared through the air, their fists burying into the ground where Hibiki's groin had been.

Hibiki flipped onto his feet and was quickly elbowed in the face by an opportunistic Runner clone. Hibiki's head whipped to the side, and then he snapped it back, headbutting the clone and causing it to burst in a plume of smoke. Through the smoke dashed two more clones, their left hands raised and their right fists reared. They only touched Hibiki's chest for a millisecond, but it was all the time they needed to weaken his cloak and punch him with the equivalent force of a speeding car. Hibiki was sent flying back again, and not even a microsecond after he dug his feet into the ground, he was surrounded on all sides by Runners.

Hibiki's hands quickly flew up, he parried a lightning fast roundhouse and redirected it into another clone, bursting it as he briefly widened his eyes, and ducked down to dodge a front-kick. Hibiki grabbed at the leg hovering just above where his head had been, and thrust forward, again using the clone as an improvised weapon and sending the dozens of clones to Hibiki's front falling to the ground. Hibiki didn't even have the time to capitalize on that space to his front, as he felt one foot slam into the back of his knee and another bounce off of the small of his back. From his right came a punch, going so fast that the air around it was visibly bending. Hibiki caught the punch with his right hand and created a light detonation with his chakra, bursting the clone. He didn't fight the recoil of this detonation, instead utilizing it to his advantage and slamming his elbow into a clone directly to his rear, as he thrust his left fist to his side, bursting another clone. Hibiki was able to hop to his feet, but his freedom ended the moment he got into his defensive stance; the tip of a foot slammed into the bridge of Hibiki's nose, doing no damage but recoiling his head into the waiting arms of a clone.

The Runner put Hibiki into a headlock and used all of its enhanced speed to suplex the Senju heir, sending them both crashing to the ground. Not even a nanosecond passed before dozens, hundreds of Runner clones began leaping on top of the Senju, piling on top of him and placing their palms on any available space. Hibiki felt his chakra being drained at a commensurate rate with every added hand, and soon it was as if he were trying to sustain the lightning cloak, blast out a kamehameha, and spawn a hundred combat-ready shadow clones at once.

_"You... Have not... Won!"_ Growled the Runner who was constricting Hibiki's airflow.

In response, Hibiki dropped the lightning cloak and, in the same manner as he would pulse chakra out of his hands and feet to take off, he forced chakra out of _all_ of the tenketsu on his back and arms. This brief jet of gale-force winds caused the pile of Runners to balloon outwards, giving Hibiki all the space he needed to lift up his arms just a fraction of an inch, and then slam his palm into the ground; the ground glowed a bright, blinding white and then detonated in an enormous explosion. The Runners were sent flying in all directions, and through the smoke and rain of bodies, revealed Hibiki, the lightning cloak quickly flaring back into existence. A livid look glowed in his blood red eyes, as he lifted his right hand, which was missing all of its skin and muscle, leaving only the bones and some stringy tendons. He dragged the back of the pearly white appendage's wrist across his jaw, wiping away the blood that had leaked out of his mouth, as the muscles and skin started growing out of the still fleshy lower-arm. Hibiki wiped the pearly white, bloodied appendage on partially shredded remains of his shirt, the holes and tears revealing a web of self-made seals on the small exposed portions of his chest.

_"Alright..._" Hibiki breathed in his native tongue, as he stretched his quickly healing wrist. He felt his chakra levels had tanked, but he still had an sixteenth of his reserves left, more than enough. The lightning surrounding him slowly began to darken, from a bright, pale blue, to a deep, onyx black. _"Let's get dangerous."_ He didn't need the strength, or even the speed boost that came from the chakra-laced ink slowly crawling across his skin, he just needed the forcibly balanced senjutsu chakra it gave him. Now, Runner _couldn't_ take his chakra, for fear of turning himself into stone when his body failed to adapt and adjust the senjutsu energy it was taking in.

The woods around them were aglow in an almost blacklight effect, with Hibiki being the bright and shining beacon at the center of the light. With the way he had been training with, and mastering, the Cursed Seal of Earth, and his current chakra stores, he figured he could make use of it for twenty seconds before he'd run out of his own chakra and be unable to sustain it any more. Fortunately, with the curse mark constantly pulling in and balancing natural energy, that functioned as a hardline to a much, _much_ larger store of energy. Planet-sized, in fact. So with this energy surplus, Hibiki could stretch even just _one _second of that twenty into something much, much longer.

After all, even if Runner could approach lightspeed, he very much doubted the man understood relativity. As Hibiki approached lightspeed, time slowed down for everyone not going that speed. With the curse mark and the lightning cloak, Hibiki could reach _just_ under the speed of light, but Hibiki didn't _just _have the mark and the cloak, he had swift chakra, to take lightspeed and go beyond.

_Light speed is too_ slow... Hibiki bent down low, one hand hovering just above the ground, and the other reared high above his head; the Runner Legion took up defensive stances._ We're going to have to go right to... Ludicrous speed!_ The world, already slown down so much that the leaves and dirt flying through the air were practically frozen, but by adding his Swift chakra into the mix, Hibiki broke the barrier that no man had before, took the one universal speed limit, and _went faster._

The clocks themselves froze, and now, the only thing in the universe that could even move at anything approaching 'normal' speed, relatively speaking, was the Senju heir. Even the Runners, whom Hibiki judged to be going three quarters the speed of light, were moving at a snail's pace compared to him. Hibiki's sheer speed was so great that the friction generated from his skin dragging against the oxygen and water molecules in the atmosphere instantly boiled them, flashing the atmosphere straight to plasma. To a civilian, twenty seconds was a short time, if they didn't pay attention it would go by before they even realized. To a soldier, used to fighting, twenty seconds was enough to turn the tide of a battle. To a shinobi, who lived just to fight on the level of deities, twenty seconds was the difference between the lives and deaths of entire armies. To someone moving _faster than light,_ just _one_ second was an eternity.

A grin stretched its way across the Senju's face - and even the seemingly minuscule force of that one small movement alone was enough to create a small shockwave in the air, which instantly froze as it was physically incapable of keeping up with Hibiki's speed. The Senju heir bolted forward, and thrust both arms out to his sides. The force of that movement alone would create fist-sized shockwaves that would topple a dozen trees, once Hibiki allowed the world to catch up, but what it did to the Runner clones was nothing short of spectacular. Hibiki crashed through more than a hundred of them in the yoctosecond between him leaving the ground and reaching the end of his ten meter dash. Hibiki dug his foot into the ground and hopped to the side, spinning like a top and whirling through another section of the crowd, bursting through hundreds of them with every twitch of his body.

Unfortunately for him, there were some catches to moving this fast. While all of his abilities were able to augment his body and reflexes to handle this kind of speed, that by no stretch of the imagination meant he was able to handle it himself. He had only ever done this _once_ before, and that had been on a whim, meaning he only had one experience with this kind of speed, and in his FTL jaunt around the planet, he had lost his balance seventeen times and had almost created a tidal wave the size of a skyscraper when he'd tripped over his own foot and smacked his face into the ocean. His body and his mind were certainly capable of withstanding the physics-breaking force of going faster than light, but that did _not_ mean he was capable of handling that for more than a few relative seconds at a time, with no experience, and that was just _him_ handling it.

The universe handling this kind of speed was a whole different problem.

As he began to learn, the Swift Release did _much_ more work than he'd initially realized, under its own power it was somehow able to negate all of the physical effects of the velocities it was able to obtain. So, for example, if Hibiki reached light speed using only the Swift Release, the air around him wouldn't be boiled to plasma through friction, he wouldn't be causing earthquakes by smacking his feet onto the ground, and he wouldn't accidentally punch people with a few megatons of force. Somehow, some way, the Swift Release bloodline was capable of bleeding away all of the nastier aspects of relativistic speed, and yet still keep in the good parts, including relativity as it applied to objects, experiencing time as they moved near the speed of light. But Hibiki's little jaunt around the world at _post_ light speed, taught him a terrifying lesson: Those inborn defenses did _not_ apply when Hibiki forcibly augmented his speed with outside help. So, when Hibiki brought the curse mark and the lightning cloak into the equation, all of a sudden the air around him would flash into plasma, enormous shockwaves would spread about from even the smallest of movements, just to list a few.

It took an unbelievable amount of focus just to ensure he didn't create magnitude ten earthquakes just by _walking_ at this speed, to say nothing of the concentration and chakra control it took to ensure he didn't break apart countries by punching things. If the average shinobi of comparable age and gender was _just_ fifty six kilograms, and they moved _just_ above the speed of light in a vacuum, and wasn't using chakra to augment the force of their blows, that meant they would punch with the force of six hundred and two megatons of the equivalent explosive yield in TNT. For comparison's sake, that was more than twelve times the strength of the strongest nuclear weapon made by man, at just fifty megatons, which itself was already more than _three thousand_ times the strength of what they used in World War 2. World War Three didn't really factor in due to the fact that Kaguya, according to the reports and footage, _ate_ the nukes and seemingly absorbed their power with no damage or fallout. Though, the best, and simultaneously worst, part, was that the FTL Senju heir was all but certain that he could go _faster._ Hibiki was purposefully limiting himself, even now as his body went through puberty and grew exponentially in the power it could handle. The only reason he wasn't trying, or never tried in the first place, to push it to the absolute limit was when he had done the math after that first test.

He had nearly shit his pants when he'd realized just what kind of a catastrophe his lack of foresight could have caused, and that he had accidentally avoided. If he wanted to practice with this, to get to the point where he could reliably keep his balance and his power in check at post-light speeds, he'd practically need a planet of his own to ruin. Until then, it took an unimaginable amount of control, both of the chakra and of the physical variety, to do what boiled down to _crawling_ faster than light, without shattering, if not the planet, then at least the country.

As an aside, he didn't know _how_ all of these effects were mitigated when he was using _just_ the Swift Release, though he chalked it up to the bloodline doing all the work for him, and being unable to cope when he added on the lightning cloak and the curse mark. After all, technically speaking, his brain should shut down from information overload every time he activated the Sharingan.

So, to the world around him, it was almost literally instantaneous, and, through relativity, to him it had been a few seconds, but after he had taken down nearly three hundred clones, he lost his balance and had to throw both arms in front of him. With a pulse of chakra, Hibiki snapped back to sub-light speeds, and crashed onto the ground, skipping across the dirt and grass like a stone. He felt severe whiplash and swore his spinal cord had cracked from the sudden snap back to speeds that didn't wreck the universe and break the planet, and those injuries were only exacerbated when he slammed into, and through, multiple trees and was halted by final one. If he planned on trying this FTL stunt in future battles, Hibiki may as well find the guy that coined 'Thunder God' and get him to change it to 'Ragdoll', though even _that_ would be better than _Thunder God._

As the air cleared itself of the smoke generated by the Runner clones dispelling, Hibiki's lightning cloak vanished, and he vomited his stomach empty. The adrenaline rush was almost biblical, but that conversely meant the adrenaline _dump_ was satanic, and Hibiki felt like he had the super-flu, as he was sick on the forest floor. He was slammed into the tree again when the shockwaves caught up with him, and inadvertently killed more Runners, but unlike him, they were still going at near relativistic speeds - so in the few seconds he was spending recovering, they had all the time they needed to react, adapt, spawn more clones, and find him.

A super-speed foot was slammed into Hibiki's gut, he bounced off of the tree and up into the air, where another collided with his face, sending him spinning lengthwise into a front-flipping heel kick. Pain flared up in his back and then in his chest as he was slammed onto the ground, but the Senju heir gritted his teeth and clenched his fists in the dirt. His curse mark stretched back across his body and he was wreathed in onyx lightning once again, and the world froze just a millisecond before another foot would have hit him in the temple. It was so close that Hibiki could smell the shoe polish. Hibiki barely even had to tap the clones surrounding him to dispel them - truly, anything more and he risked nuking the Fire Country on accident - and when the world snapped back to real speed, another crowd had been cleared, and several more powerful shockwaves rocked the forest and sent the surviving clones stumbling backwards. But just as Hibiki dragged himself to his feet, one hand clenched at his side and his other arm hanging limply from his socket, the battlefield changed, literally.

Everyone, with a hive mind, froze. Hibiki's clone in Konoha burst, and so too did the Runner clone that had gone in for an update, and everyone had suddenly been graced with the same realization: It was all a ruse. Hibiki had been had. In the time it had taken Hibiki to catch up with Runner, before the fight had even started, Runner had managed to pull a switcheroo, swapping out Kushina for another Runner clone, while a second clone grabbed the actual Kushina and made off with her at a slower speed, so as to not trip up Hibiki before he started fighting the false Runner; and how had Hibiki figured this out?

The Kushina in Konoha had burst into smoke, right in the middle of the hospital, right before his own clone burst to send the news, updating Hibiki _and_ Runner almost instantaneously.

Not even a microsecond passed, before the battlefield, once filled to the brim with thousands of Runners, was emptied in one massive pop and a thick cloud of smoke, leaving a wide-eyed, bruised and bloody Hibiki alone, to suffer his defeat. This hadn't been him fighting a thousand Agent Smiths, this had been Runner buying time, until he was far enough that he could book it without any hope of being tracked down. This hadn't been Hibiki holding the line until he could break away and try to find the Alpha Runner, this had been Hibiki being _distracted,_ drained of Chakra so he couldn't have a hope of tracing them!

He'd been _had!_ And, as he paled, he realized that Katsuo had Kushina Uzumaki. He had the Kyuubi.

He'd _won!_

_"FUCK!"_ Hibiki reached into his supplies pouch and pulled out a small, glass, cylindrical container, in which were three spherical pills. Due to his frequent usage of shadow clones and their chakra-transferrance, as well as other methods he'd begun developing, he didn't keep many of these on him, but it was for planned situations like this that he did, _especially_ after that fiasco in Ame. With a loud crunch, Hibiki bit into and swallowed the soldier pill, the closest thing this world could get to a functional Senzu Bean. Like a shot of adrenaline-laced espresso straight to the circulatory system, and the feeling of compressed, freeze-dried nutrients instantly filling his stomach, Hibiki's energy was replenished and he was back in top form, his wounds already healing themselves. According to Tsunade and the usage instructions, in three days he would crash, and he would crash _hard,_ but right now that wasn't what mattered, as the Senju heir launched himself into the air. With his swift chakra speeding up the process, he flew towards Konoha, it didn't even take him a picosecond to make it there.

He landed in front of the Academy with a loud crash, and tore up the stone and concrete ground as he ground to a halt. He turned his land into a run, and then again into a leap, and in a few seconds, nearly all of his momentum had been bled off, and he had landed on the Hokage office's terrace. Hibiki knew where Kushina was being taken, he just needed the clearance to go there. But when he looked inside, the office was empty.

_Oh you've got to be shitting me._ Hibiki had failed to take into account general relativity where it actually _mattered_. Even ignoring those few brief bouts of FTL, he and Runner had been fighting at fractions of lightspeed, and he'd already demonstrated multiple times how slow everything else was to someone burning Swift chakra. What had felt like a fight that had taken a quarter of an hour, likely hadn't even taken two minutes, if _that_. Dante had probably _just_ been appraised of the -

_"Hibiki!"_

There was a voice he hadn't expected to hear.

Hibiki whipped around and raised his head, seeing Minato Namikaze arcing through the air, his spiky hair waving in the wind, and one of his arms still struggling to fit through the sleeve of his flak jacket. Minato landing was what proved to be a strong enough jar for his arm to pop through, and after he adjusted the fit, he grabbed Hibiki by the shoulders, the smell of sweat filled Hibiki's nostrils.

The blond blur grabbed Hibiki by the arms, "_they've taken her!"_ Minato cried, just a moment before his hitai-ate slipped down and covered his eyes.

Minato let go of Hibiki to adjust the headband, and Hibiki had a split second to give the Namikaze orphan a once over, before he decided to ignore the teen's disheveled appearance. _Jokes for later._ Though he couldn't resist one crack, "I don't want to know how you already know that, but I'm aware. The abductor just got away, he had a high-speed technique, faster than the body flicker." Hibiki said, as Minato tightened his headband. "But before anything -" He grabbed Minato by the throat and pinned him to the balcony, pushing his upper body just over the edge and holding him there, as he raised his right fist and three bloody claws popped out from in between his knuckles. _"Show me your arm!"_ He growled.

Minato blinked, but the quickly shifting look in his eye told Hibiki that he felt he should have seen this coming. It had been a protocol Hibiki had created in the wake of Ame, to deter intruders. The short version was that it was a seal, specifically created by Hibiki, with some input here and there from Konoha's other fuinjutsu practitioners, that reacted in different and unique ways to different peoples' chakra. For Minato, if it was really him, it would coil around his arm and change from the kanji of his name to his name spelled in English. The catch was, if it _wasn't_ him, or if any _other_ chakra tried to trip the seal, the _same thing_ would happen, the difference lay in the color the seal would glow. Bright blue, like his eyes, if it wasn't him, and dark purple, like a blacklight, if it wasn't; this was to trip up anyone who would dissect the seal if they captured Minato and think blue was good, and purple was bad. No two seals had the same effect or the same tells, so anyone trying to replicate its effects from one person, to try and apply it to another and impersonate that other, would immediately be caught by Hibiki. This was the best deterrent Hibiki could think of in a world where any one person could immediately change their physiology to appear as another, as using the high tech solution and going for a blood test with Terran tech was just too slow.

Still pinned to the balcony, Minato gulped thickly through his slightly crushed throat, nodded once, and reached over to his right arm with his left. He pulled up the sleeve and revealed the kanji for Namikaze, surrounded by shrunken english text created by Hibiki. A second later, the kanji started coiling and stretching outwards, shifting from its symbol to english characters, revealing the final contingency Hibiki had, _just in case_ someone tried to just copy down the seal. It had been dreadfully difficult to write out and 'program', so to speak, but Hibiki had managed to make the final English text also reactive to his Sharingan, because he knew that Kenichi prized the Uchiha bloodline, and the other Undead likely possessed the copy wheel eyes as well. When the English word _Namikaze_ stretched itself width-wise across the orphan's dense bicep, Hibiki flashed his Sharingan and gave it a quick glance. Almost like invisible ink being revealed under a blacklight, another line of text appeared above the orphan's family name, revealing his given name, also glowing a dark purple.

_Good..._ He may very well have been with her when they had taken Kushina, but they hadn't tried switching him out, or killing and replacing him, Terminator style. He was still Minato. Hibiki let go of the Namikaze and pointed his reared fist to the sky, as the claws retracted back into his skin. Another lesson learned by the Kaguya - he could get the chakra he'd spent, back, if he pulled in any weaponized bones still connected to his body, and absorbed them back into his skeleton.

"Sorry." He said, "I fought the Runner, and thought I'd gotten her back." He explained, his pubescent voice rumbling through the air, "but like I said, he had a superspeed bloodline. He switched her out for a shadow clone before I caught up with him, and then he had an army of those things keeping me busy while the real guy, or maybe another clone, I don't know, made off with her."

Minato looked at Hibiki's partially shredded clothes, "is that why -"

"Yes." Hibiki had hoped that the lightning cloak, what through seemingly strengthening his covalent bonds, would have extended to his clothes too, but it was either no such luck, or he wasn't that good. Though on that note, Hibiki spawned a shadow clone, which zipped away a second later. "I just got back, but the Runner had an assload of chakra and he used shadow clones like nobody's business. He kept me distracted long enough to get away." His own idiocy may have played a part in that, he _should_ have noticed something was wrong when he found himself trapped in an easy fight against someone with as many bloodline limits as _him,_ but he couldn't beat himself up for it now, that came later.

"Are we going to go look for her? Do we know where she went?" Minato demanded, as he turned around and leaned heavily on the iron fence that lined the terrace, his gaze firmly locked on the distant horizon.

Hibiki's clone came back with a new shirt and a pair of boots, which Hibiki switched into as he spoke. "Yes, and I have an idea." With what he knew, there weren't many places they _could_ have gone, so he at least had a place where he could start the search.

"Then let's go!" Minato whirled around, his blue eyes alight with fire. "We need to go now!"

_Hokage's not awake, Dante's probably just getting there now, Dai's probably getting Noboru and Suboro... But if we wait for more numbers, we'll lose valuable time. Minato and I can move fast, and with just us two we won't be slowed down by the slower of our teammates. Fuck it, even accounting for how he'll probably be moving slower so as to not give her whiplash or boil her blood from the G-force speeds, he's still going to be moving much, much faster than any of them can get going. Minato might not have the swift release, but he's still one of the fastest we've got, after me. Judgement call._ Hibiki turned to the shadow clone, "stay here. Tell 'em what we're doing." He turned to Minato, "landspeed record, go."

"Fifty meters per second, without chakra."

"Know the body flicker then, I hope?" Hibiki said, as he climbed onto the railing, crouched low, with his arms hanging, as opposed to Minato, who stood tall as he climbed up.

"Of course!" Minato grinned, "I've been working a lot since I made chuunin."

"Alright, then here's the game plan. Kushina's most likely in the land of earth, so we're going to start the search in the Daimyo's city. That's about forty thousand kilometers from here. Considering Kiri is upwards of seventy, and you crossed that in eight hours when you were ten... We better be there before the sun's up." He peered up at Minato, "I've got two more soldier pills in case you need them for emergencies, and Beta over there will be on standby if I need eight gates chakra. Ready?" The blond blur nodded once, confidently. "Go!" And the two vanished, one in a plume of smoke, one with a small shockwave and a white contrail briefly tailing behind him.


	55. Abduction: Michael McDoesntExist -III-

Chapter 54

* * *

_"So where are we going, exactly?"_ Lightly called out Minato Namikaze, as he and the lone Senju heir hurtled through the land of fire.

Hibiki briefly glanced above him, watching as the Namikaze heir used the trees, hopping from branch to branch, covering vast distances during those scant bouts of time he was under the influence of the Body Flicker. Hibiki had opted for the ground, which fitted his swift release better; the only reason he wasn't flying was because he would have blown past Minato ten times over, using it and his swift chakra.

"Earth country." Hibiki responded, turning his blood red eyes to the ground before him, as he crossed over it at blistering speeds, taking turns and maneuvering inbetween trees with little pause. "There's a lot I can't say, but the short version is that Katsuo has direct ties to the weapons used to kill the third Hokage and invade Konoha, those years back. We tied those weapons to Iwa, and through our invasion in Kiri we figured out the Monster is closer to the Earth Daimyo than he is the Tsuchikage."

Minato picked up on it quickly, and after a brief grunt and a light pop as he dropped out of one body flicker and jumped into the next, he finished Hibiki's thought. "So we're heading to Earth Country's capitol?"

Hibiki nodded affirmative, as the two crossed the border between Konoha and Grass Country, swapping the fields of trees for endless grassy plains and rolling hills. Minato landed on the ground with a flip, and took off with a burst of speed, quickly catching up to Hibiki. "The way I see it, Runner took her back to Katsuo. Katsuo is either with the Daimyo and surrounded by his army, or with the Tsuchikage and using his influence over their lord to ensure Onoki keeps him well guarded. We start in the capitol, and if she's not there -" He paused as the two crested a large hill and leapt over a sprawling farm, not even disturbing the grass as they left the ground and coasted through the air. "- then we -" He grunted upon landing, more than a dozen kilometers from where they'd started. "- hunt down their messenger division, figure out where their shinobi contracts go, and sack Iwa."

"I hope she's in the Daimyo's capitol." Minato said, to which Hibiki agreed. Minato was strong - one of the strongest Chunin out there, excluding those with as many bloodlines as they had years under their belt - but unless he had one hell of a trick of his sleeve, he wouldn't be able to get into Iwagakure, fight through their first responders, get Kushina, and get out, quick enough to avoid their shinobi army proper. _Hibiki_ wasn't even sure if he could fight through every shinobi Iwa had to offer, given that Katsuo, with all of his strength, had summarily gone up against all but a few of Konoha's best and had only barely survived; and that was all not taking into consideration the very likely presence of _other _undead, like Aojiroi the Hulk, the Alpha Runner, the Viper, and Katsuo himself.

They both would be much, much better off fighting an army of the Daimyo's samurai. Even with numbers on the Daimyo's side, Hibiki and Minato were more than skilled enough to blast their way through civilians.

* * *

The sun was just cresting over the horizon as Minato and Hibiki capped their chakra and slowed down to conventional speeds. The roads were growing wider and more well-worn, indicative of high traffic, be it from horses, carriages, or wandering civilians. This meant that they were getting closer to the capitol, and if the Daimyo had any sensor-nin under contract - or even worse, Katsuo was there and already working - that meant they had to keep their chakra under wraps so as to avoid tripping those sensors. Fortunately, unlike Grass Country, Earth Country had much more cover from which they could move. Being a much more arid, rocky land, filled with enormous, cresting hills, even larger, misty-mountains, and deep crevices and ravines, the Land of Earth certainly earned its name. It took them another quarter of an hour, following the roads from hidden positions, moving from cover to cover and as quietly as possible, before they made it to the Daimyo's city.

Hibiki picked out a mountain, about a kilometer out from the city, that wasn't so tall that distant watchmen would be searching them first, but wasn't so small that they couldn't get a bird's eye view of the city. They climbed to an area just under the peak, where there were a few thin trees and several patches of grass and brown bushes. Hibiki tossed Minato a chakra earpiece before the two separated to make it more difficult for any scouts to find them. Fortunately for the Senju heir, these headsets functioned magnificently like radios from Back Home, but they had a much smaller range, the best part however was that they drew energy from the air surrounding them to get their power, meaning no sensors could find them even with these.

As Hibiki settled in behind his bush, and pulled out a pair of binoculars from one of the pouches on his cargo pants, he made a mental note to bring _actual_ radios into the world. It would make things much easier.

_"Sense anything?"_ Hibiki asked, after he tapped the microphone twice, and peered through the binoculars.

The city looked like it had been ripped straight out of feudal-era Japan. Towering, stone buildings with thatched roofs, large bazaars with people running back and forth, trading whatever they had for whatever they could get. Hibiki could _just_ hear the white noise of the city, from this distance away. What he focused on, however, was the enormous stone wall surrounding the entire city. There were a few portions of it that had large pillars and support structures jutting out, indicating planned extensions, and then there were a few towers lining the entire defensive structure, indicating archer positions and where their scouts would be.

_"Nothing."_ Breathed Minato, _"but that doesn't mean anything. Neither of us were good sensors."_ He added, quietly.

Hibiki squinted his eyes and leaned forward just a fraction of an inch, frowning as he slowly twisted the dial on the binoculars, zooming in on the wall. He saw a duo of soldiers, about halfway between one tower and another. From this distance a lot of their details were blurry, but Hibiki could see that they were adorned in thick armor, with large katanas hanging from their hips, and tantos fastened to their backs. What caught Hibiki's attention, however, were the weapons hanging from their necks. Boxy, metal things with thin metal shafts on one end and wooden blocks on another. It was official: Katsuo _definitely_ had pull with the Daimyo. How, one may ask? He gave the man the ability to make any ordinary civilain, or any of his chosen elite samurai, capable of killing even the mightiest of Kage.

The Earth Daimyo's samurai had _guns._

This complicated things, and Hibiki said as much. Minato quietly came back with, _"so what do we do?"_

Hibiki was silent for a moment, he scanned one of the towers. On the top, where the archers should have been, were instead snipers, similarly equipped to the riflemen below - guns and swords - but instead of small rifles, they had full-blown sniper rifles, with scopes to match, and they all seemed to be on edge. Every one of the towers had at least three pairs on their roofs, with a gun sticking out of every window as the tower descended to the wall's walkway. All of them were scanning the mountains that surrounded the city, while, at the main gate, there were men with even larger, boxier guns, trained on the main road coming in. The gate guards were checking every civilian, every caravan, to the point where they were even crawling under the carriages and checking their bottoms. There was a small line leading in, they were taking no chances.

But what Hibiki noticed above all, was how well these samurai handled their guns. Unlike the militia that stormed Konoha, who wielded then with an almost terrified edge, as if they were as scared of them as they were the people they were fighting, these people held the weapons with confidence. The Militia also moved awkwardly, as if they didn't know how to properly handle the weapons, or had no experience, whereas these samurai had relaxed postures, and didn't seem to be fighting the weapons on any front, meaning they had training and experience using them. Clearly, they had had a long time - six years at least, given how long it had been since the invasion - to train with and get used to these weapons. They likely had no true life-or-death experience with them, but they would at least be more effective at killing than the militia had been.

"Look at the towers." Hibiki rumbled, lowly. "Notice how edgy they are? They've got a lot of archers up there." Hibiki couldn't use the word 'sniper', because not only did that word not exist in the Common Tongue, but Minato wouldn't even know what he was talking about. "And they've all got bigger firearms than the other guys."

_"It looks like they've got telescopes on their guns."_ Minato pointed out, _"does that mean they can see us?"_

"If we're stupid, yes. And since they're using guns, that means they can kill from much farther than they could with an arrow." Hibiki responded, as he shifted his gaze from the gate, to the city.

It didn't take him long to find what he assumed to be the Daimyo's home - it was a lavish, three story building in the center of the city, and Hibiki could see multiple samurai walking the upper balconies. Though it didn't indicate anything, Hibiki didn't see any Iwa shinobi patrolling the rooftops.

_"They're still civilians."_ Minato pointed out, _"and even without chakra, we're fast. It won't take too long to find a gap in their patrols, hop the wall, and sneak through the village."_

"Yeah." Said Hibiki, as he continued surveying the Daimyo's home. On the third floor, in a room behind open sliding paper doors, Hibiki could see that the guy had machine gun emplacements pointed at both the paper doors leading to the balcony, and the doors leading to the rest of the house. He clearly didn't know how those worked, but it also led Hibiki to wonder if Katsuo knew how shotguns worked, and if he'd introduced them to this world. If so, those would have been as effective, if not moreso, than a few enormous cannons, but perhaps the Daimyo and his samurai figured quantity would be better than quantity, especially if dealing with invading ninja. If Katsuo didn't have shotguns, it still made as much, or as little, sense.

_"But where should we go to start looking for Kushina?"_ Minato asked, Hibiki heard a twig snap over the headset, _"what do civilian prisons look like? Wait... No, they'd want her somewhere more secure. Maybe their samurai headquarters?"_

"Uh huh." And then there were medieval-looking cannons, one on top of the Daimyo's home and, upon second glance, some on the towers and the walkways on the outer wall. This made Hibiki wonder exactly how well versed in fire arms Katsuo was, if he could reasonably recreate world war two era submachine guns and sniper rifles, but couldn't figure out how to work mortar cannons beyond the era of the sail. Iwa must have some _serious_ industrial capabilities if they were able to create and load all of these weapons.

_"Or... Hibiki are you even listening? What are you looking at?"_

"Sounds good." It again made Hibiki question Katsuo's age, Back Then. He couldn't have been more than thirteen, at the absolute oldest. It was very likely the monster had been closer to being a child, especially given the way he acted on his emotions, his vocabulary, and -

A pebble smacked in the side of Hibiki's head. With a flurry of motion and a smoke-less poof, Hibiki had his gun out and pointed in the direction of the stone, but he just saw a spiked head of blonde hair a few meters away from him. Minato had an eye raised, _"you made a new one?"_

"Something like that." Hibiki said, spinning the pistol on his finger, and sealing it back into his wrist.

_"You know, you never took back the one you gave me."_ Said Minato, as the Senju heir looked back to the city and raised his binoculars.

Hibiki blinked, and lowered them again, looking back to Minato. "Yeah I did. After Mito died, I took it back."

_"No, I'm talking about after Kiri. You gave me that silver gray one, but then you vanished for a month, sacked Kiri, and then vanished again for a week. You never took it back."_

Hibiki blinked again, his eyes widening as he realized - Holy shit he was right! He gulped, "you didn't use it, did you?"

_"Thought about it, but I figured it wouldn't be a good idea. I just never got around to telling you about it, again."_

"Do you have it _on you?"_ This might have been a blessing in disguise.

_"For emergencies, like if I found shinobi too strong for me, like the ones that took Kushina during the invasion."_ He heard the sound of a hand patting against metal, over the mic.

The gears in Hibiki's head started turning, as he looked back to the Earth Daimyo's city. After a moment's hesitation, he decided it was worth the risk to, for just a second, scan over the place with his Sharingan. Even if he wasn't a sensor, he could recognize a person's chakra based on the way it flowed into the air, and since there shouldn't be any shinobi here, it wouldn't be difficult to find one. He uncapped his chakra and quickly flipped on his Sharingan, bathing the world in rich, sharp details.

Instantly, his eyes locked onto a _beacon_ of red and blue chakra, flowing out from the Daimyo's home. It was almost exactly like a fire, only in reverse - a red outer flame, and a blue inner one. The red chakra flowed and snapped back and forth like a wild animal, whereas the blue chakra flowed outwards like a wave, and had a slight spin to it, almost like a whirlpool.

Hibiki cursed under his breath, Kushina was here, and they were already working on her. He didn't see any green chakra, so Katsuo wasn't, but it was just as likely they had someone with more experience with seals - likely someone who had more Uzumaki blood than anything else - trying to crack open and weaken Kushina's, in preparation for Katsuo's arrival.

Hibiki cut off the Sharingan and recapped his chakra. _"She's here. Gotta be."_ He breathed.

_"What?! How?!"_ Minato snapped, over a rustle of twigs, no doubt him switching his gaze back and forth, and then quickly raising his binoculars, to try and see what it was that Hibiki saw.

"Central building. I saw red chakra coming out of it. There is only one kind of chakra in the world that's red."

_"Tailed beast chakra."_ Had Minato not been present for the whole ordeal, he wouldn't have known what Hibiki was going on about.

"Exactly." Hibiki broke contact with the Daimyo's home, and instead started scanning over the layered, thatched rooftops that filled the city. "Alright, here's what I'm thinking -"

_"I've got an idea."_ Minato interrupted.

Hibiki blinked, "Uh, what?"

_"I'm going to save Kushina. I know how. I have to."_ He said.

Hibiki cracked a smile, "maybe now's not the best time, but does this have anything to do with why you were all sweaty and out of breath last night?"

_"I can promise you it wasn't what you think. And spend less time around Dai, she's a bad influence."_ Minato retorted, quickly. _"But no. During training, Jiraiya noticed that I've been trying to use the body-flicker a lot, kind of like how you use your speed boost."_ He explained, _"but it takes too long for me to make the handsign and gather the chakra, so we came up with something else."_

There was a pause, during which Hibiki realized he was being prompted to ask, "what else?"

_"Your great uncle made it. The Hiraishin -"_

Hibiki recognized the name, "wait, you can kami-damned teleport, and you made the two of us _run_ here?" If this blond bastard could teleport, Hibiki could have _halved_ their travel time, by making Minato wait in the village while Hibiki used his swift chakra to get to the city in just a few hours. Hell, he could have made a shadow clone, transformed into a rock, and had it burn all of its chakra to go FTL and they could have been there in _seconds! _"What the hell, Minato?"

Minato responded with an edge to his voice, _"I was just about to say I haven't mastered it, yet. It doesn't take a lot of chakra to use by itself, but it does take a_ lot_ of __chakra to put down a touch seal."_ He explained.

Hibiki sighed, _right._ From what he'd read in the Senju library, Tobirama's technique revolved around a fancy bit of fuinjutsu. In order to properly use it, one had to place down a seal, marking the location for the Hiraishin jump. Similar to summoning technique, Tobirama used touch-applied fuinjutsu and his own natural speed to plant a lot of hiraishin marks in a small area, so he could practically be everywhere at once. The problem was, it took a _lot_ of chakra to apply seals through touch, and was one of the reasons why most people couldn't form summoning contracts - they needed to apply the seal, and then have enough chakra left over to be able to summon something bigger than a baby animal. If Hibiki understood him correctly, that was the part Minato was stuck on - building his chakra stores so he could place more than a handful of those seals, be able to use the technique, and still be able to fight, all at the same time, and still have enough chakra left over for whatever fights could potentially come afterwards.

Hibiki's first instinct was to make a snide remark about Minato using an unmastered technique in a hostile situation, but then he realized he was _not_ one to talk. "So what's your idea, then?"

_"I put a Hiraishin marker here for a quick escape. That'll take a lot of chakra, but not nearly enough to put me down. You go down into the city and create a distraction, bring in as many of the guards as you can, and attract the attention of the guy that took Kushina, and any of the other shinobi in the village."_ Minato explained, _"if you use your shadow clone trick, there's no way you can lose."_

_Again with people catching onto my party trick!_ Hibiki grinned. "Alright." _It's not going to be a trick for much longer, god damn it!_

_"Then..."_ Minato continued, as Hibiki heard him putting away his binoculars. _"Once you've got enough heat on you, I'll go into the Daimyo's house and search for Kushina. Once I find her, I grab her and use the Hiraishin to bring her here. Then you cover us as we make a break for Konoha."_

"Wait... I didn't really look into this technique too much, why not just teleport to Konoha?" Hibiki asked, as he put away his sights as well. "You've probably got whatever training grounds you've been using marked out the _ass,_ right?"

_"It takes more chakra the farther out you are, Hibiki. And I haven't mastered it nearly enough to lessen the cost to that kind of an extreme. With the body flickers I've been using to get here, and the chakra I'll need to set up the marker here, I won't have nearly enough to make that kind of a jump. Especially not if I'm taking Kushina with me - that kind of stress doubles the amount of chakra I need." _Hibiki could almost _hear_ Minato grin, _"we don't all have Senju levels of chakra stores."_

"Yeah yeah." Said Hibiki, waving off the sole Namikaze's comment. "So. You want me to ransack the city, piss off an army of people with _guns,_ and attract the attention of shinobi with bloodline-copying abilities like mine... So you can rush in and save the woman you _definitely_ weren't sleeping with."

_"I'm telling you, you'll be disappointed when you learn what we were doing last night."_ Minato said, though Hibiki could feel the heat of the teen's blushing face from where he was.

"Mhm." Grunted the Senju heir, "on your mark." He said, rubbing his arms against the chill of the early morning air.

* * *

One would think that being the gate guard for one of the most powerful hidden villages in the elemental nations would be an exciting, bordering on _dream_ job. The duo at the desk were the first line of defense against infiltrators to the village - being assigned here was like being acknowledged by the _Hokage himself_ that you were powerful! One would think that would make one feel appreciated, special even.

But no.

Ever since Danzo Shimura took office directly preceding the invasion so many years ago, the gate guard job became something of the dreaded amongst the Uchiha and the Hyuga. Danzo took great agents from the Military Police, and up and comers in the Hyuga clan, preferably chunin or those with a history of guarding the main branch, and stuck them together for twenty four hour shifts. Whenever someone came in requesting entry to the village, first came the paperwork check. If that went through, then came the chakra check - first the Hyuga activated his byakugan and checked the person's effects, to ensure none of them had any chakra signatures that would suggest shinobi tampering, or transformed infiltrators. Then the Uchiha would ask them a series of questions, with both his Sharingan and the Hyuga's Byakugan trained on them to detect any lies. Then they would place a chakra-reactive seal on the entrant, and if it indicated anything higher than a civilian level of chakra, they would be detained and sent into the military police for further questioning. Usually it was genin teams and their jonin sensei, but if there was a shortage, a chunin or two would show up; and in case it was an infiltrator, which happened about as often as one would expect, there was always a Naara ready to immobilize them, and an Anbu agent ready to lop their heads off before they could do any real damage.

The result was a twenty four hour _drag,_ that was made no better by the company. They averaged two shinobi infiltrators per week, and a dozen higher-than-average civilians every four days, and those encounters never lasted longer than a few seconds. The former would try to attack, the latter, while not enthused, would obey instructions - ready and willing to trade their time for safety, and it usually only took an hour or two before things got cleared up.

Worse was, when days like today happened, security was tightened up even more, and shifts were extended. The current gate guards were on the far end of a twenty eight hour shift, were tired, and were ready for the afternoon to come around. An average of _three_ civilians per hour showed up between the hours of four and eight AM, leaving their environment dead silent, and still. Were it not for the clan rivalry all but forcing them to not succumb to weakness in the presence of the other, they both would have nodded off at some point or another, in that characteristic half-asleep shinobi style. The Uchiha actually remembered Hibiki Senju passing by once, and calling it a 'power nap'. It sounded right.

Of course, the Senju heir was the focus of the tightened security this morning. That damn gaki had a nasty habit of leaving the village whenever he felt like it, and it angered the Hyuga, his constantly ignoring protocol in favor of rapid action. He was at least somewhat glad that his Hyuga teammate hadn't taken after him through their years of exposure to eachother, the clan did _not_ need that kind of a black sheep. The Uchiha, on the other hand, was more wary of what it meant - usually, when the Thunder God stormed out of the village, for whatever reason, trouble followed, and given that the report they had gotten was that it was his fellow fuinjutsu practitioner, heir to the Uzumaki clan, and his friend _to boot,_ that had caused him to leave so quickly, the Uchiha could all but tell that his job would be getting longer and harder, soon.

They both found themselves jarred from their thoughts this early, chilly morning, by the distant sound of a loud, brash woman shouting incessantly to whichever unfortunate soul had earned her ire.

_"I did _not_ blow that bastard up, and you know it, you know?!"_ The shrill woman shrieked, loud enough that even the distance between her and the gate guards was no object in conveying her anger and frustration. _"I'm still working on my touch application! I just gunked something up, you know!"_

The Uchiha turned his gaze to the main road, just on the horizon he could see leaves shaking from trees, a tell-tale sign of approaching shinobi. The voice sounded familiar, but it was when his Hyuga partner stiffened up in alarm that he knew his day may be getting more interesting. At least for a few minutes. Nobody ever stuck around the gate long, even in emergencies.

The Hyuga suddenly began tapping at the table, stealing the Uchiha's attention from the distant, angry female. It was fast and slightly frantic, but the Uchiha recognized the code and understood the message soon enough. The Hyuga had his Byakugan active, and was telling him that they needed to keep these people at the gates as long as they could.

_"Ryota-san!"_ He heard a loud voice call out, causing the Uchiha to turn his gaze back to the trees, where a several foot tall woman, with a thick chunin vest and a bright red head of hair dropped down to the ground. It took all of his self control to not blink, though he did slowly shift his eyes to their dojutsu state, because _something_ was off about this.

Kushina Uzumaki had been abducted from the village, and yet here she was, approaching the gate. Either the Thunder God worked fast, or something else was going on.

Ryota cleared his throat, as Kushina's squad dropped out of the trees behind her. One, a Yamanaka, was rubbing his ear, and their Jonin, a wrinkled woman with a weathered smile on her face, quickly stiffened up when she noticed the air of the environment around them. None of her chunin noticed it, but the Jonin raised an eyebrow, as she approached the gate. The Uchiha held out his hand to Kushina, "papers." He said, stiffly, as, just at the edge of his senses, he felt their Anbu agent book it for the Hokage's tower.

Kushina blinked, before frantically digging in one of the pouches strapped to her legs. _"Crap!_ Where'd I put those?!" She shouted, enough to make Ryota's ears ring. As she dug, she briefly glanced up, "I heard some explosions a few hours ago. Saw a bit of the forest to the southeast had been dropped. Hibiki-san playing with his squad again?" As she waited for her answer, she physically tore the pack from her thigh and held it up in front of her face, cradling it with one arm while digging through it with another, the sounds of scrolls and writing equipment shifting around filled the tense air. "It's a bit early..." She added, off-handedly.

It was moments like this that Ryota was glad that gate guards weren't obligated to speak with those who they were checking. The loud Uzumaki shouted victoriously when she found what she was looking for, and pulled out a large scroll from the pack, and handed it to the Uchiha, who quickly snatched it out of her hands.

"What mission were you out on?" The Hyuga's monotone voice came in, breaking the brief silence, as Ryota opened the scroll and started checking over its every detail with his red eyes.

"We were out in River country." Said Kushina, with a bright smile, before she blew her bangs out from in front of her face. "Some farmers were getting cranky about these bandits coming in, breaking things. They thought there was a missing nin -"

"So Kushina-_hime -"_ The yamanaka teammate emphasized the suffix, in such a way that the Uchiha would have believed they had that kind of friendship, had he not been suspicious of the whole damn ordeal. "- tagged one of them with a seal that made it so their hearts couldn't beat fast enough to lie. But the thing burst into flames."

_"HEY!"_ Kushina whirled on the Yanamaka, pointing right at his face, her hair almost standing on end. "I told you, I didn't blow him up! The seal just malfunctioned!"

"Still made him defecate -" Those would be the last calm words spoken for the next few minutes, as an instant later, with the sound of a zipper being drawn and a few body-flicker pops, three new players entered the field.

The first was a bald, lean chunin wearing loose clothes and a flak jacket that was almost as thick as he was. When he arrived in a brief plume of smoke, he already had one hand clenched in a generic seal and pressed to his buzz-cut temple, and the other held aloft and pointed at the three returning shinobi. Ryota instantly saw the air fill with his chakra, and the Hyuga quickly noticed Kushina's squadmates' chakra begin destabilizing, as if they were caught in a genjutsu. Their Jonin, however, was able to react fast enough to protect herself from the initial burst of chakra, but that was when the second player revealed himself, and in a flurry of activity another chunin, wearing the thick Hyuga combat robes and with a flak jacket nestled underneath his outer coat, slid into place just in front of the Jonin. To him, she was just a _moment_ too slow to react, and he was able to tap her on the forehead, a quick jyuken strike, not good enough to incapacitate her, but more than good enough to destabilize her chakra pathways and break her defenses. She was quickly caught in the bald Chunin's genjutsu too, and her head snapped to the ground as she saw whatever the genjutsu specialist intended for her to see. Finally, the third player arrived just a moment after the first two, just as Ryota's head finished snapping up and he got to his feet, a kunai in hand. He wore thin cargo pants and a loose black T-shirt, he only had a few shinobi pouches, and his left and right arms both had a number of fuinjutsu tattooed onto them; it was him that caused Ryota to quickly recognize Team Dante.

The Senju heir's shadow clone grabbed Kushina just as she let out a confused, "what?", and in a flurry of motion, he had her pinned by the throat to a tree. His right hand erupted in a plume of smoke, when it cleared it revealed a large, dark gray, angular metal object clenched tightly and pointed right in between Kushina's eyes.

Hibiki's eyes were bright red and locked onto Kushina's bright blue ones. There was no joviality or peace in the Senju's blood red orbs, only anger and a clear shine of no-bullshit, and as he used his thumb to draw back a lever on the back of his weapon, he shouted out in his deepening, teenaged voice, _"SHOW ME YOUR COLLAR!"_

The Jonin leading the team heard Hibiki through the genjutsu, and her head snapped over to his direction. She tried to open her mouth, but the bottom of her throat suddenly appeared as if it were being constricted by a wire-thin cord, and the foot that moved from one position to another quickly began oozing blood from its top and sides, sliced open by some unseen force.

Suboro spoke, something in his voice carried through the genjutsu caused the two chunin and even the Jonin to flinch. _"Don't you move!"_ He shouted, "_or I_ _swear you'll never walk again!"_ As he spoke, all three of them shifted the position of their backs just an inch to the front, as if a sword were being pressed against their spines.

Hibiki kept his attention focused on Kushina, who had a terrified glint in her wide eyes. "Hibiki, I - what -"

The Senju heir, however, was having none of it. He slammed the grip of his weapon onto the bridge of Kushina's nose in a swift chopping motion, and then raised its barrel just above her head, before unleashing its power in a deafening thunderclap. A projectile launched from the barrel in a bright flash of yellow-white fire, and buried itself into the tree just above the Uzumaki heiress' head, tearing a large chunk of bark from its surface, and causing her to shriek in pain and fear.

_"SHOW ME YOUR GODDAMNED COLLARBONE!"_ He thundered, now pressing the barrel into the woman's forehead, and those that could still hear clearly heard a faint sizzling, almost like skin being burned by metal.

There was, admittedly, a spark in Kushina's eye, one that almost communicated a desire to fight, as if she thought this were some sort of test - perhaps even a jonin exam, as she _had_ heard the Hokage was considering promotions - but the rage in the Thunder God's blood red eyes quickly put a rest to any of those thoughts. She frantically grabbed at the neck of her shirt with her left hand, before finally latching onto its edge and pulling it downwards. Hibiki's bright, glowing red ocular appendages snapped down to the small black seal painted on the Uzumaki heiress' collarbone, which quickly came to life, transforming from the kanji of her clan name to the clan's symbol. It glowed a bright red, and to only his eyes he saw her own name spelled out in a dead language, spiralling inwards from the edge of the Uzumaki whirlpool to its center.

His breathing still heavy, the Senju heir stared, wide-eyed, at the seal for another solid second, before snapping his eyes back up to the Uzumaki heiress, three words echoing through his head.

_What the fuck?_

* * *

So, how does a guy who can blow stuff up with his mind get the attention of an entire city?

He walks right up to the front gate, past all of the carriages and people waiting in line, his Konoha headband and Sharingan eyes on full display, and smiles at the heavily armed gate guards.

"So, fellas." Said Hibiki, a wide smile on his face, and his hands in his pockets. "How's your health plan?"

The Samurai looked at Hibiki, to eachother, to Hibiki, back to eachother, and then back to Hibiki as they raised their rifles. The people behind him briefly attracted Hibiki's attention, as they recognized what was about to happen and scattered, screaming. Hibiki didn't get the chance to turn his head back before the air was filled with the rat-a-tat thunderclaps of two M1 Thompson submachine guns blasting away. Hibiki felt dozens of bullets slam into and blast through his chest, his shoulders snapping back and forth as he was pushed back by the force of multiple impacts. He took one step back and dug his foot into the ground, his hands still in his pants pockets. The rapid thunderclaps finally ceased after a few seconds of sustained fire, and when the guns clicked on empty, the Senju heir was still standing, his head hanging low, his hair covering his face, and his chest _riddled_ with bullets. Before their very eyes, Hibiki's shredded chest began sealing itself back together, and a wide, toothy, smug grin began playing at his face.

Hibiki's head snapped up, "apparently it's _GREAT!" _He barked, before he ripped his hands out of his pockets and thrust them upwards, fingers splayed outwards.

In an instant, the air in front of his hands detonated in two massive, fiery explosions. The enormous gates leading in to the city rattled and shook with the sound of thick, heavy wood creaking and groaning. As the dust settled and the black smoke cleared, Hibiki heard the loud, clanking sounds of rounds being chambered in heavy machine guns. Hibiki's head snapped up to one of the machine gunners, the wide look in his eyes and the grin still plastered on his face actually making the guard recoil in fear. In an instant, with the sound of a zipper being drawn, Hibiki was up on the wall and standing right next to the guard.

"Browning, huh?" He said, causing the guard to jump in fright and fall backwards as he tried to escape the Senju heir. "That fits." With a loud yell and the sound of flesh tearing, a katana suddenly burst out of Hibiki's slightly bent frame. The Senju heir didn't even flinch, as he slowly turned his head to look over his shoulder, at another Samurai, who was staring at him in abject fear as the boy simply stared at him, a sword sticking out of his chest. _"That..._ However..." He twisted around, the blade was caught in between two of his nigh-indestructible ribs and snapped in twain, his healing factor immediately working on pushing the broken blade out of his body.

His hands again in his pockets, he kneed the samurai; there wasn't _any_ chakra behind the blow, but he still heard the man's spine pop and the armored individual flew back several feet. Just as Hibiki placed his foot on the ground, his head snapped to the side, immediately proceeding two rapid thunderclaps. Now bleeding out of the side of his head, Hibiki turned to the machine gunner, who had a semi-auto pistol in his quivering hands. Hibiki shrugged his shoulders and lifted his hands to the side, as if questioning the idiocy of the samurai's decision, before giving a noncommittal shrug of the head and straightening his left arm, pointing it at the closest tower, where snipers were already shifting their aim. Unfortunately for them, all they got was a brief glance of a baseball-sized yellow-white orb of explosive energy, before the bolt flew from Hibiki's hand and slammed into the tower.

It detonated in a massive fireball, with smoke and fire billowing out from all of the windows as the middle section of the tower ballooned outwards, showering the entire area in rubble as its top collapsed in a massive heap. Hibiki heard metal clanking, and his head whipped over to the machine gunner. The indomitable man had taken his pause as a chance to mount up and shift the heavy weapon's aim, and in the time it took Hibiki to casually frown and glance down at the thick barrel pointed right at his chest, the machine gunner pulled its trigger and roared loudly as it unloaded on the Senju. Meanwhile, in response to the sudden noise and explosions, the snipers stationed within eyesight of the main gate, and even the ones in the Daimyo's mansion, all took aim and added theirs to the volume of gunfire.

The thunderclaps and lances of white light didn't cease for a solid ten seconds, seven seconds after the Senju heir had sighed, let his shoulders slump, and burst into smoke. There was dead silence after the machine gunner stopped roaring, and after the smoke cleared, he thought, for just a moment, that he'd _done it!_ He'd _killed one!_ But after that moment passed, he saw, on the ground, a small log of wood, riddled with bullets.

"You know..." The samurai felt his heart stop, as he felt cold metal dig into the back of his skull. "I'll go ahead and admit, you're a badass, Guy. But uh..." The pubescent voice grew closer, now right next to his ear. "You guys have something I want. So..." There was a thunderclap and a large splatter of blood. "For what it's worth, I'm sorry." Hibiki heard stomping feet, and his head snapped up, several squads of Samurai were sprinting across the wall, ambling over the fallen, burning tower.

Hibiki turned his head to the right and saw multiple samurai assembling on the rooftops closest to the gate, and then he caught the glints of multiple sniper scopes reflecting sunlight. As they all assembled, surrounding as best they could, since his back was to the massive wooden gate, he wondered, morosely, if this was what it felt like to be a Zetsu during the early years of World War Three. Hibiki decided to humor the samurai, and he removed his hands from his pockets and raised them into the air as they assembled almost like British shoulders - some crouching to their knees, some standing above them, all pointing their weapons at him like a highly trained regiment.

_Oh that's just cute..._ Thought Hibiki, with a grin, as he slowly turned his hands so his palms faced the infantry square.

One Samurai stepped forward, one hand on his blade, another tightly clenching a pistol. _"Cease and desist immediately!" _He hollered in a voice that echoed throughout the mountains. _"If you surrender, you will be taken alive!"_ He roared, with an authoritative tone.

Hibiki scrunched up his face and bowed his head a bit, apologetically. "You see... That's the thing. If you had anyone else - _anyone else - _in a situation like this... They'd probably be more tempted to do as you said." He began, "but, let's count down the reasons why this won't work. First, while whiplash is a bitch, my skeleton is about as strong as tank armor." He nodded backwards, "that machine gun there was the closest you had to something that could penetrate it and get at the graymatter. But even if you did... I heal... Real fast." He paused, "oh, and there's this." He gathered and shot forth two explosive bolts, sending the samurai flying, that weren't immediately torn apart and fried by the blast.

That invited the soldiers on the roofs to open fire, and as Hibiki bit back scowls and flinches, his pain tolerance far greater than what these guys could produce - he'd literally had his chest ripped off at one point, ribs and all, he doubted they could replicate that - he shook his head and sighed.

"It's a nice appetizer, guys, really, bu-" He was cut off as a sniper round cut through all of the automatic fire and managed to slip between his ribs, bursting through a lung and taking the wind out of him. Hibiki stumbled forward and pressed his hand to his chest, a shocked look on his face quickly leading to a frustrated one, as he looked up and found the sniper who had shot him. "Alright." Croaked the Senju heir, "you first." He leapt off of the wall, partially crumbling it with the force of his jump.

* * *

"What the fuck do you mean _don't dispell?! _Are you goddamn _INSANE?!"_ Thundered the cracking voice of the Senju heir's shadow clone.

Inside the once quiet office of the Hokage was Team Dante, minus the Dante, and their Hokage, who patiently waited for the Senju heir to finish ranting. The Uzumakie heiress had been sent to the hospital to ensure she was who she was, and that nothing was wrong with her.

Once a second had gone by in ear-ringing silence, Danzo shifted his weight in his leather chair. "First of all... Do not ever speak to me in such a voice again." He said, locking his one eye firmly on the Senju heir, who still had both hands splayed out to the side. "Secondly... Do not _ever_ speak to me in such a voice again. Allow me to tell you the situation as it is, not as you see it. Dante Uchiha, former Anbu Shocktrooper, is currently out of the village on assignment. Jiraiya, too, has left the village for reasons you and I are aware of. That leaves myself, Tsunade Senju, and Orochimaru as the S-ranked shinobi in this village. Since you have a general mastery of the eight gates, and a solid mastery of the shadow clone technique, I can include you as well, but that is still but four shinobi. The rest are A ranked and below, not at all capable of our kind of power. If you were to dispel, that would leave three, and as your reports have shown, Katsuo and his people have the potential to be _very_ capable sensors.

"Now, as we've learned, the Kushina kidnapping was a ruse. Very... Very likely meant to draw you out of the village. Why? Well, perhaps it is to weaken our standing, you did take Jiraiya's student with you, after all. He is capable in his own right. With two sannin and a kage all that could truly stand in Katsuo's way, they have a very opportune moment to try and invade. If you were to dispel, to call yourself back, that would mean your entire presence in this village would be gone, and they would have a perfect chance to attack - and the damage they would do would be catastrophic."

Hibiki stared at the one-eyed kage as if he were the dumbest man alive, blinking once, twice, three times before shaking his head. "So your choice, instead of instant information passage, is to send _runners?!"_ He waved his hand at Noboru and Suboro, "these guys are fast, yeah, but the Alpha Hibiki and Minato _specialize_ in augmenting their speed, and it _still_ took them five hours to get there! By the time these two show up, the Earth Daimyo's city would be _flattened,_ and Minato and the Alpha would be moving onto Iwa!" He shouted.

"I believe, Hokage-sama, Hibiki-san is trying to say that if the goal is to call him back before he and Minato-san do too much damage to Earth Country, then having this clone here dispel would be the best possible option." Noboru said, with a lightly bowed head.

"I mean, hell, if it's _me_ you're worried about, it takes no chakra at all to make these things! I can have it done in _two seconds!_ Pop-pop and the Alpha and Minato are tearing up the earth to get back here!" The Hibiki clone literally could not believe what he was hearing out of this Kage's mouth.

Danzo, in direct contrast to Hibiki, simply shook his head. "The goal here is not to avert war, young Senju. It has already begun."

Hibiki blinked, his arms falling limply to his sides. "Huh?"

"I believe Katsuo making it appear as if he stole Kushina was done not to get you out of this village, but to put you on a warpath loud enough to distract you from what he truly did, in Sunagakure. Had you let calmer heads prevail, I could have told you this earlier, before you left. But I digress - Suna agents arrived yesterday morning to inform us that they would be calling upon our alliance soon, once they had a target upon which to declare war. Someone, whom we know to be Katsuo, stole their demon container.

"The jinchuriki of the Ichibi is missing."

* * *

A part of him wanted to know how he managed to end up ass over teakettle in some random person's home, his face buried three inches into the wood and concrete, and why everything was on fire. Then another part of him reminded that first part that taking the concept of gunpowder, and amping it up to get rocket propelled grenades _wasn't_ that far fetched, even if Katsuo didn't know enough about them to give anything more than an idea, six to ten years of nothing but research and development into weapons that could concievably kill shinobi would give any self-respecting engineer enough time to at least come up with _one_ good idea.

As Hibiki dug himself out of the concrete fireplace, hearing in the distance of his ringing ears the sound of a duo of terrified voices, and then several other much firmer, angrier voices telling the first two to run as far and as fast as they could, they would deal with the nuke-nin. The Senju heir fell forwards, or backwards depending on one's viewpoint, and his rear and his feet hit the ground with a loud thump and a plume of dust and debris. Seeing the miniature missile sail through the air had shocked him just long enough for it to hit him and detonate, which landed him in this situation, buried face first in a foreign home.

Truly, as Hibiki lied still and waited for the Samurai to get brave and come check and confirm the kill, he felt _bad_ for them. These were the weapons that killed _thousands,_ or if his memory was failing him, at least _hundreds_ of Konoha shinobi in just a few hours, and that was more than six years ago, with a largely untrained militia force. These Samurai moved with a much higher familiarity with these weapons, and even had some squad-based tactics they were using against the Senju heir. Hell, they had _rocket launchers,_ or something close enough to it, at least, though even if it wasn't, it was still powerful - the entire front half of the house was just _missing,_ revealing the area immediately behind the main gate a smoldering, flaming ruin, crawling with fleeing civilians and charging Samurai. But even with all of these arms, all of these powerful weapons from a time long past, they couldn't kill _one guy._

Did that mean Hibiki was just that hard to kill, or that the Monster hadn't been so right after all?

Regardless, when one of the Samurai stood above Hibiki and nudged his prostrate body with the barrel of his gun, Hibiki couldn't help but feel a little bad, though he pushed those thoughts out of his mind about as quickly as it took him to lunge up and bury three razor-sharp claws in the Samurai's sternum, cutting through his leather armor as if it were paper.

_Seriously..._ Thought the Senju heir, whose heart rate was only a fraction higher than it usually would be, if only because it stung like hell for a moment, every time he got shot, and his body was compensating by filling his blood with adrenaline, so he wouldn't have to be focusing past the pain. _Half of these guys probably had all the faith in the world in these things, and here they are, not working!_ The Senju heir whipped the Samurai around and wrapped his arm around the dying man's neck. In an instant, the house was filled with the thunderous bangs and pops, and the Samurai twitched and shook with each impact. _And where the hell are Katsuo's men? I mean, for chrissakes, I'm blowing up the main entrance to a country's capitol, here, and Kushina's in the damn main mansion. Runner should've been able to make that distance forty two times, by now!_ He threw the corpse forward and then roughly kicked it in the chest, sending it flying into the Samurai, who were bowled over by it as the Senju heir launched himself out of the smoking, burning home.

Sailing through the open air, Hibiki saw that, if anything, he _was_ succeeding in getting the attention of the local Samurai. They were clearly rallying, by now - half of their forces were putting everything they had into keeping Hibiki centered around the main gate, the other half were evacuating the surrounding areas, so they could have something to blow up without having to worry about civilian casualties. As Hibiki arced back towards the ground, the walls and volumes of gunfire quickly shifted upwards, and for a moment the sight reminded Hibiki of the bits he remembered seeing in old war movies, where one could see the lances of light from anti-aircraft guns blasting the air above them. The biggest difference was that it was broad daylight now, and even if the sky still had a tinge of morning red to it, it didn't light up with every gunshot.

Hibiki threw his arm forward, and an aspis sprouted out from the bones in his forearm. He curled up behind his shield as he hurtled towards the ground, the superdense bone construct taking most of the gunfire for him, with the sound of metal striking metal and bouncing off. Hibiki hit the ground and rolled forward, and on the up-roll, he spun once and detached the shield from his arm, throwing it with a loud grunt and a great heave. The shield's razor-sharp edge and the strength behind the toss cleaved through several Samurai, and scattered the ones in the immediate vicinity of the concrete home it buried itself into. Hibiki was already on the move, saving his chakra and focusing just on accelerating his healing factor, as he rushed straight for another hastily formed infantry square.

Hibiki put his shoulder down and launched himself forward with both feet, slamming into the assembled group of Samurai and sending most of them to their backs. Hibiki rolled to his feet and buried his fist into the armor of a lanky Samurai, before he hopped into the air and spun his foot into the man's face. The Samurai went flying, and upon landing Hibiki heard the sound of humming air; it was all he needed to duck downwards and dodge a sword. The Senju heir whipped around and dodged an upward swing, before he backpedalled to dodge a horizontal slice. The Samurai didn't give up, and practically chased the Senju heir, slicing left and right, chopping up and down, jabbing forwards, trying to catch the Senju heir even just _once,_ but even if he were a Samurai, all but unrivalled in his mastery of the blade, he was _not_ a man from the Land of Iron, he had _no_ chakra to speak of, and that meant, to Hibiki, who was used to fighting shinobi, the man may have well been moving at a snail's pace.

After he ducked underneath another horizontal slice, Hibiki surged forward and buried his elbow into the Samurai's gut, but before the man could even croak Hibiki stomped on his foot, shattering all of its bones, and followed the elbow up with several rapid jabs to the stomach and chest, trailing upwards before he ended it with a powerful haymaker. The Samurai spun around and hit the ground, and Hibiki looked up, seeing the man's surviving squadmates trying for another infantry square. With a light sigh and an incredulous raised eyebrow, Hibiki raised his hand and launched a small explosive bolt, no more powerful than a hand grenade. The men were dead in seconds, as blood, dirt and flame ballooned outwards from the point of detonation.

If anything, as Hibiki saw dozens of more Samurai rallying themselves and taking cover, Hibiki decided he would give these men a _lot_ of points in the bravery department. Here was the Senju heir, surrounded on all sides by fire, smoke, dead bodies and blood, with the bullet wounds on his body sealing up as fast as they could be made, and the Samurai persevered and _just kept coming._

It actually gave Hibiki paus, what with how similar this image must be to how things must have looked a thousand plus years ago. He frowned, and as the sound of an enraged, charging samurai reached his ears, Hibiki removed his right hand from his pocket and raised it into the air. Without looking, Hibiki caught and halted the katana wholesale, drawing some of his own blood in the process, but he snapped the blade in two with a twist of his hand. The Senju heir quickly turned to the right and launched a heavy left punch into the Samurai's gut. Hibiki followed it up with a spinning back kick that sent the man flying back to the approaching Samurai.

Hibiki stood barely ten meters from the flaming main gate, in the center of the formerly gray, now very red main road, surrounded on all sides by destroyed buildings, flames, and bodies. The Samurai were employing a different tactic now, instead of rushing him to keep him immobilized, they took cover in the buildings he and they had destroyed, and before Hibiki even realized what he was seeing, he found himself dead center of an army of angry samurai. They were all practically packed in shoulder to shoulder, looking like a tightly packed angry mob, or even a crowd at a concert or a brawling bar. Hibiki had a two meter wide circle of blood, stone, and bodies separating him from these enraged, chakra-less Samurai, and he watched, half interested, as they all knelt down. Those at the front of the pack knelt the furthest, with those behind them kneeling to where they were just above their shoulders. The first line had their weapons rested on rubble, the second had their weapons on the shoulders of the first line, and so it went until it got to the final line, who stood tall, their weapons firmly locked onto the armored shoulders of their comrades.

Thousands upon thousands of guns, with sniper rifles lining the rooftops and cannons and machine guns mounted on the wall above, and they were _all_ pointed at the lone shinobi, with his hands in his mostly shredded, blood soaked pockets.

_Come on, Minato. You've gotta have something for me._ Thought the Senju heir, before the mass of bodies and guns opened fire.

The bullets flew through the air in constant streams, slamming into the target area in showers of metal and shrapnel. The cannonballs exploded out of their barrels and whistled through the air loudly, before impacting the main entrance with enormous, dirt-filled explosions. The heavy machine gun rounds cut through the cascading showers of dirt and metal, almost looking like someone took a stick and tried poking a still-expanding cloud of smoke. The snipers fired as accurately as they could with the rapidly diminishing line of sight. The entire village heard this assault, the thunderous claps of bullets exploding and cannonballs slamming into the ground could be heard and felt by anyone within a few dozen kilometers, and the Earth Daimyo's samurai kept this up for thirty solid seconds.

There was complete, utter, terrifyingly still silence, as the gunfire finally petered out, the samurai reloaded their weapons, the machine gunners switched out ammunition boxes, and the cannoneers ran for more mortars. They couldn't see _anything_ in the thick black cloud of dust, smoke, dirt, and ash, but their experiences thus far this day told them to not even think about assuming this veritable _God_ was dead.

One samurai made the mistake of looking up while he was midway through ripping the rectangular magazine from his rifle, as his ears stopped ringing, and for a second he swore he thought he saw a flash of red through the cloud. It wasn't until he blinked and his ears ceased their ringing that he noticed he was seeing some blue in the thick, choking cloud of black and gray, and that the vibratory, ringing noise of a lightning strike was pervading through the air. As the smoke cloud cleared, it revealed brief flashes and cracks of swirling, blue lightning, and this spectacle gathered the attention of all of the samurai, many of whom slumped their shoulders and slacked their jaws in sheer shock, as the lone figure was revealed, hovering in the center of a several meter deep crater. He was enveloped in a thick cloak of lightning, his raven hair stood just a few inches on end, and there wasn't even a _scratch_ on his body.

The Senju heir, his hands at his sides and palms facing the ground, leaned forward a few inches. He hovered towards the edge of the crater, and touched down on the ground, his lightning cloak vanishing as he did so. He ran a hand through his hair and gave a light, almost playful sigh. "I had forgotten about the cannons." He said, conversationally. "Those would have been a problem." And even as he spoke, one of the distant cannoneers thought it prudent to fire again, but this time the Senju heir was ready for it.

His lightning cloak flared to existence again, and the world slowed down to a fraction of its previous speed. Hibiki's spinning red eyes locked onto the cannonball as it flew through the air, its sheer velocity meaning it moved quickly even to his lightning cloak, but not fast enough. The Senju heir locked both of his feet to the ground with his chakra, and threw his hands forward. The cannonball slammed into his hands, and quickly brought them to his chest, bear-hugging the cannonball and letting his cloak absorb all of the force. He skidded back a few inches, just to the edge of the deep crater, but he stopped just as the balls of his rear foot left the ground.

_"Would have."_ Hibiki said, dropping the cloak. Without chakra, the cannonball was _heavy, _nearing twenty kilograms, but it wasn't much of a challenge for Hibiki to shift his grip on the enormous iron projectile, and hoist it up into the air with one hand, for all to see. Why settle for just tanking a cannonblast, when he could _catch_ the fucking thing? _"Would. Have."_ He repeated, letting the cannonball roll off of his fingers and drop to the ground, cracking the concrete before it rolled backwards into the crater.

When he let the lightning cloak drop, he launched himself forward into the mob of samurai.

* * *

"You can understand why this is distressing news." Danzo said, eying only Hibiki as he said it.

Of course Hibiki did, perhaps moreso than _Danzo_ did. That one small bit of information put everything in perspective, it was the final piece to the complex jigsaw that was this damn day. Katsuo had predicted the time it would take for Suna messengers to deliver the news to their allies in Konoha - or more likely had had them _followed - _so when the time came for the news to be spread, he would launch his distraction, faking kidnapping Kushina to get Hibiki out of the village, but more than that, to set Hibiki on a warpath. Katsuo had predicted Hibiki would do _exactly what he was doing,_ and start bombing every place on his search list, until he found proof of Kushina's whereabouts.

Since the Alpha had started in the Earth Daimyo's capitol, that meant he was going straight to the center of Earth Country's political power, and blowing it up, slaughtering their samurai in droves while he and Minato searched for Kushina, or Iwagakure's location. When they found one or the other, they would leave the smoldering, bombed out city remains, and this would prompt the Earth Daimyo, if he was still alive, to declare war on Fire Country, which meant that not only would Suna instantly have a target, but Konoha's other ally in the form of Kiri would be forced to declare war as well. Then the domino effect would corral all of Iwa's allies into declaring war on all of the members of their alliance, battle lines would be drawn, and within a month the third shinobi world war would be on in full.

_And worse..._ Thought Hibiki, _he wants this._ It only took one look in Danzo's eye to confirm that he was making the best of a bad situation. He _wanted_ Hibiki to trash Earth Country, because eventually one of two things would happen: He would figure out he'd been had _again,_ and leave the smoldering ruins of Iwa and Earth's capitol behind him, or, through sheer determination and drive to _not lose_ Kushina, he would somehow _win,_ destroy Earth's capitol and Iwagakure, and _then_ figure out he'd been had. In doing so, he would, in the first case, leave two heavily damaged armies in his wake, or in the second, two utterly _destroyed_ armies in his wake.

"You want me to stay here, because dispelling and sending that information back to the Alpha would prompt him to return before he's done smashing the holy shit out of the Land of Earth." Hibiki said, for the benefit of anyone who hadn't yet came to his conclusion. "Telling the Alpha _now_ would remove any and all possibilities of destroying Iwagakure before they can martial their forces and start the war proper."

At this, however, Danzo shook his head. "Yes and no. If Katsuo the Monster truly is the ringleader behind all of this, that means he has Onoki's experience and intelligence backing him on this. They likely came up with this plan together, and if that is the case, then there are two options. One, they have their entire shinobi force situated in Iwa, or two, they are marshaling their forces on the border of Earth and Grass, with a direct line to Iwa. If this is the case, the moment the Alpha Hibiki attacks Iwa, they will charge across Grass, likely using the Monster's previous two incursions to locate and attack Konoha.

"This means that their primary force will be busy dealing with us, here, and beyond Katsuo's people, their Anbu, and their Kage, Iwa will largely be defenseless. Hibiki is not a fool. You are not a fool. He will go in there with his shadow clones, and likely use Namikaze as a means of searching the village for the missing Uzumaki. They will leave when either of their missions are complete. Meanwhile, you will still be here, with your team. You are the only team dedicated solely to combat, and as such your skills will prove _invaluable_ during the battle against Iwa's forces. Combine yourselves with our other shinobi squads, and the fact that they fight Konoha shinobi in the woods of the land of fire, and our victory is all but assured, leaving Katsuo's alliance down one country in less than a week." Danzo finished.

Hibiki gave his teammates a look, Suboro shrugged, but Noboru just nodded once, it was a sound enough plan. The problem, however, was the goings-on in Earth Country. He turned back to his Hokage, "Hokage-sama..." He said slowly, "I know I've been getting stronger since Kiri... But I think you're over-estimating my abilities. Even if I had a hundred clones, all fueled by the eight gates, I truly don't think that I could sack Iwa in its entirety. The obstacles are just too many, too vast." There was their Anbu, the shinobi who elected to stay behind, the Kage, and more than likely there were Katsuo's allies as well. Altogether, it would be too much - Hibiki's only shot would be just to nuke Iwa with a Big Bang Attack, and then pick apart the survivors, but since his goal was ostensibly to search for Kushina, the Alpha would not take that risk, meaning he would individually have to go through each and every shinobi in his way. Even Minato, strong as he was under Jiraiya's training, helping the Alpha, wouldn't be enough to tip those scales.

_Maybe,_ if he took out his guns and took the easy way out and just shot anyone who gave him more than a few seconds' trouble, but Ay and Bee had both proven that there were ways to use chakra to become bulletproof, and given Earth country's known chakra affinities, Hibiki wouldn't put it past them to have some kind of dense, chakra-laden stone armor.

"Your Alpha is a smart individual. I know how strong you, and he, are, and do believe whatever he chooses is within his abilities."

"But you're still going to let him blow up a country, looking for someone who was never lost in the first place." Hibiki had no idea what Kushina was thinking throughout all of this, as much as he was concerned for her - and whether or not he felt the tiniest bit bad for scaring the hell out of her in front of the gates - she was safe, which meant his primary concern was the big red button Danzo was hammering with all of his might.

"That is up to him, and whether or not he reaches the proper conclusions, in the proper time. Until then, first escort Uzumaki to the hospital, then ready yourselves for an imminent combat mission."

* * *

He met his new badass machine gunner.

This guy _didn't give up!_

Hibiki was standing in front of him, lightning cloak cackling, taking dozens of rounds to the chest every few seconds. The man manning the machine gun just kept roaring defiantly, holding down the trigger until the barrel of his gun glowed white hot and the ammunition boxes ran dry with several loud metallic clicks.

"You done?" The Samurai nodded, slowly. "So... Where the hell are Katsuo's people? I've been trashing this city for almost an hour, now." On that note, what was taking Minato so long? It couldn't have been too hard to locate Kushina, even if the Daimyo's mansion had sub-basements. Hibiki turned his gaze upwards, to the mansion, which was still standing in the distance, untouched by the chaos near the main gate.

The Samurai, for his part, didn't say a word to the invading Senju. He scrambled backwards, yanking his tanto out of its sheathe on his back. Hibiki rolled his eyes and kicked the barrel of the machine gun. The gun flipped over lengthwise and crushed the Samurai's leg, just as Hibiki hopped up in the air and landed on the man's neck, snapping it into pieces with a sickening crack.

Hibiki groaned loudly, but as he yawned, several more samurai came charging in, roaring loudly, one hand clenching their tanto as if they were bayonets, the other hand gripping the grip, their fingers hovering over the trigger, hoping and praying that perhaps stabbing Hibiki and _then _shooting him would be the magic bullet, so to speak, to win them this fight. Unfortunately for them, Hibiki had gotten bored of the charging game a while ago, and he simply thrust his hand forward, but before he could even detonate his chakra, he burst into a plume of smoke.

In the mountains, the Alpha Hibiki shook his head heavily, trying to bury away these memories in a box, to be looked at later, when he had the time to feel sorry for himself. He turned to Minato, who was breathing heavily, a thin film of sweat covering his body. The chunin had arrived in his designated spot with a bright yellow flash, and when Hibiki saw no Kushina, he knew trouble was waiting, and preemptively dispelled the clone down wreaking havoc in the city to get its chakra back, and so he could have a fresh clone ready for whatever news it was that Minato was bringing.

"What did you find?" Hibiki asked, plainly, his jaw clenched as he pushed down the memories he'd gotten from the shadow clone.

Minato shook his head, "I searched..." He gasped, "all over the mansion. I couldn't find her at all... The only thing I _could_ find was a chakra storage seal. I didn't get much time to look at it..." He explained, "but at first glance, it looked like it was designed to leak the chakra it stored at a set rate and volume, and there was a _lot_ in there."

Hibiki's eyes narrowed, and he shifted his gaze over to the village. There was no way Katsuo had come up with this on his own, he was a _kid._ "Was it red chakra?" He asked, to which, Minato nodded affirmation. "Damn it."

"What's going on, Hibiki? Where is Kushina?"

"First things first, did you find their messenger corps?" Hibiki turned back to Minato, who nodded firmly, and pulled out a map, which he tossed to the Senju heir. Hibiki caught it deftly, and opened it, quickly revealing a hastily scrawled circle around a small area in Earth Country, designating the location of the Village Hidden in the Stone. "Alright. Here's what I think happened -" He glanced upwards, "you didn't come across any shinobi while you were in there?" The blond blur shook his head, as he fought to get his heart rate back under control. "Then I think this whole thing was a sham. They've been planning this for a while... Most likely, they leached chakra from Iwa's jinchuriki, enough so they could fill this scroll you mentioned. Then they took Kushina, and predicted we'd start our search here, so they set the scroll to start leaking its chakra. That way, someone with a dojutsu or a sensor would see it, conclude Kushina was here, and launch some kind of rescue operation."

Minato's shoulders slumped, "so... All this time, we just wasted it?" He also left it unspoken, that all the people Hibiki slaughtered in broad daylight, and that Minato had killed from the shadows, were needless deaths.

Hibiki shook his head, "no. We got Iwagakure's location. That's the next most logical place they would take her... But we've got a whole host of problems to follow with that." He rolled up the map scroll, and stuffed it in his scrolls' pouch. "Come on. We need to go before they start searching the mountains. We can figure out all of what happened and what it means on the road." He said, "you still good on chakra? Shouldn't take more than an hour to get to Iwa, from here."

Minato nodded, "I'll need a soldier pill when we get there, but I should be fine." And with that, the two thundered to the southeast.


	56. Abduction: Not Even Yourself -IV-

Chapter 55

* * *

There weren't many lakes in Konoha, and all but one of them were surrounded on almost all sides by homes, fishing nets, and signs of society. Fortunately for Hibiki Senju, there was at least _one_ lake reserved for shinobi training usage, and it was big enough for his purposes.

_"FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK!"_ Bellowed the Senju heir, as he thrust both hands forward and let the hyper-compressed chakra fly. His voice was then mixed with the thunderous roar of his chakra as the beam blasted out, parting the lake down the middle. Hibiki felt his blood thunder in his ears as he tried to mix the raw chakra with that of his explosive chakra, but barely a second afterwards, as with every time before this one, instead of increasing the power of the destructive chakra wave, it just detonated in his hands, sending out a shockwave that shook and disturbed trees for hundreds of meters around.

The Senju clone let his arms fall to his side, both of them in varying states of extreme injury, one even having had all of its skin and muscles blasted off, and its bones scorched black. Hunks of flesh hung limply from his arms, blood poured out of the exposed veins, and Hibiki's entire body smoldered from the detonation; it was only through a timely application of his lightning cloak that he didn't kill himself, or shred his clothes. If the clone even felt the pain, he didn't show it, his blood red, livid eyes were just locked onto the raging lake, as it calmed down and the brief shower he'd caused died. His throat was raw from the shout, but the chakra still flowing through his system fixed that problem quickly, which somehow managed to anger the Senju heir more, as he stood there, his shoulders squared and his chest expanding in time with his heavy breathing.

Hibiki felt the skin and muscle growing back over his hands, and with the light sound of bones creaking, he flexed his hands. _"God..."_ He thrust both hands forward, in front of his chest, creating a cage with his fingers. A bright white orb of explosive chakra gathered in his hands, and just like with the previous attack, found itself unable to escape from in between his fingers, and kept compressing in on itself, building in on itself to the point where its own energy fed its further exponential growth, growing more and more dense as Hibiki poured more chakra into it. _"Fucking..."_ His arms shook with the strain of keeping the explosive orb. _"DAAAAAAAMN IT!" _He thrust his hands forward, trying to keep as much of the explosive orb contained as he could, and leave only a small practically pinpricked sized hole through which the energy could escape, but just like when he tried to add in explosive chakra to the kamehameha in-progress, trying to add the theory of the low-grade bijuu dama to the big bang attack simply did not work, and the result was all of the energy being released at once in an enormous detonation, forcing Hibiki to flare up the lightning cloak again to both protect himself, and keep as much of the explosion contained as he could, so he didn't blow up Konoha.

Again surrounded by black smoke, the Senju clone dropped the cackling lightning cloak, and let his arms swing back to his side. His ears rang painfully, but were still able to pick up the sound of the rocks on the bank of the lake being crunched underfoot. He turned his head over his shoulder and saw, instead of Dai, or Kushina, Suboro, or Noboru, _Arjuna._ The albino clan heir was almost literally at the bottom of the list of people Hibiki had expected to hear from, to the point where he expected to hear from Fugaku sooner than him. Regardless of Hibiki's expectations, Hibiki narrowed his eyes and nodded once, as Arjuna stuffed his hands into the pockets of his pale combat uniform.

"I see your ways of working out frustration aren't too dissimilar from our own, Hibiki-sama." Said the Kaguya clan heir. "But what exactly are you trying to accomplish?"

Hibiki shook his head, and on habit, tried to put his healing, skeletal hands in the side pockets of a lucky jacket that didn't exist. Even five years after losing it, he still had the habit, and had yet to find a new one. The magic just wasn't there, in any of the other ones he had seen. "Nothing that'll be useful in the time I'll need it." Which, if his math was correct, would be in just a few hours. "I didn't expect to see _you_, Arjuna." Hibiki decided bluntness was the best way to go, Arjuna and the other Kaguya were one of the few peoples in Konoha that seemed to prefer it over anything else.

Arjuna nodded, "indeed, I am not surprised. But I saw you, your squad, and lady Uzumaki leaving the Hokage's tower around the same time I was leaving the genin corps building, and none of you looked happy. You all have very different ways of dealing with your frustration, and yet very similar." Said the Kaguya, as he adjusted the fit of the hitai-ate he was using as a belt, and stepped towards the lake's edge. "You come out here and work on some sort of technique whose function I cannot guess. The Hyuga noble goes to his clan's training grounds and beats his palms bloody on their heaviest training dummies. Uzumaki goes to her home and writes, though if I wasn't aware of your shared affinity for fuinjutsu, that would have confused me. Your bald friend goes to the bazaar and, unless I'm mistaken, uses his genjutsu affinity to help others seduce people."

Hibiki recoiled, "wait, _what?"_ He turned his gaze from the still shifting, churning waters of the lake to the Kaguya heir. "Run that by me again?" He knew Suboro liked to play with his bloodline in public, but _never_ would he have predicted the guy was into voyeurism. Had he been hanging out with Jiraiya?

"I may have used the wrong words. The Kurama clansman likes to watch people, and it is usually the ones who have some sort of attraction to eachother, but a lack of willingness to act upon it, that he assists."

So _that's_ where the rumors of the 'couple's bazaar' came from, that made a bit more sense than Suboro convincing folks to get laid, though the why of it still escaped the Senju clone. "And how do Kaguya work things out?" He said, sighing, as he slipped his hands into his pants pockets, and took a few steps forward, pushing his chakra through his feet and standing on the surface of the water.

"We try to kill eachother." The Kaguya followed the Senju clone, though more cautiously - unless it was directly related to the shikotsumyaku, or enhancing their strength, the Kaguya didn't know about it, leading to even some thirty plus year old Kaguya clansmen not knowing genin-level chakra exercises. "But I feel that would be inappropriate, given the subject matter."

Hibiki raised an eyebrow, "you've got time to follow me, my squad, _and_ Kushina - and I don't even want to know how you slipped past the Hyuga compound guards - and now you expect me to let you know what's got us all pissed?"

"Is it truly that surprising? A warrior with a sharp mind is just as deadly as one with a sharp blade." Arjuna explained.

"And yet you don't know how to walk on water."

"Chalk that one up to a bad education system." Arjuna deadpanned, "tell me what is on your mind. You may be surprised."

_By advice from a guy whose clan, up until five years ago, existed by raping and pillaging its way across the elemental nations. Why aren't you people known as the Mongol Clan, again?_ "It's pretty damn classified, for the moment." If Hibiki hadn't been personally involved in it, his clearance as a Chunin wouldn't have been anywhere near enough to know about what was going on in Earth country.

"So you think. It's been three hours since Lady Uzumaki returned to the village. You spent thirty minutes arguing rather vocally with the strongest man in it. Then two and a half hours were spent sending out messenger hawks and runners, calling back everyone they could to the village. Just an hour ago my own sensei was informed of the situation, and after the present Jonin, the Chunin corps was appraised, while the Jonin sensei told their students to make preparations easier. After all, dependent on the next few hours, we may not only go to war, but we may have to fight its first major battle." Arjuna explained, succinctly.

_Well damn. Alright, Arjuna, you've got my attention._ "But do you know what they want me to do? They want me to sit here, not dispel, not send the current information back to the Alpha, and basically lie to myself through omission, on the chance that he's strong enough to tear apart a village."

Arjuna chuckled once, "Hibiki, do you truly believe yourself to be that powerful? From the stories, not even Katsuo the Monster was able to kill all of Konoha's strongest without taking injuries."

_I don't think he was trying._ "Let's do some math here, Arjuna. About... Five or six years ago, I took the Chunin Exams. During these exams, I had to fight a jinchuriki. Lady sprouted three tails before I beat her. But to do so, I had to open three of the eight gates. Three gates, to match seventy five percent of her full power, and that's pointedly ignoring her preference for brutality over skill. If I limited myself to _just_ the bloodlines I've been able to replicate, then _right now,_ I'm stronger than I was then. I've got a functional mastery over the Sharingan and the Swift Release, which gives me the speed and reflexes to dodge anything from a shuriken to a bullet and beyond, I've got a moderate mastery over the explosion release, which lets me blow stuff up with my mind, and I'm getting closer every day to figuring out and mastering the shikotsumyaku... To say nothing of the tweaking and studying I'm _constantly_ doing on all of the above. With _just_ those bloodlines, I am as strong right now as I had to force myself to be in order to fight the jinchuriki.

"But I don't have just bloodlines." Hibiki explained, with a deep breath, as he looked out over the calmed lake. "This curse mark, on my neck." He lifted a hand to place it above the dormant Cursed Seal of Earth. "It multiplies my power and chakra stores by... God, a few exponents, at least. But, low balling it, it makes me twenty times as strong as I am at a resting state... At base form. I add that to the swift release, I can get moving and reacting even faster, which means I can hit harder, because force is just the mass of an object multiplied by how fast it moves." And he had to force himself to limit the explanation to _just_ that equation. "And it doesn't just multiple my speed. Power, strength, chakra, everything gets increased, so my explosions are bigger, my techniques stronger, my muscles denser... It's practically like a jinchuriki calling on its tenant's chakra.

"I also have the Lightning Cloak, which, like the curse mark, multiplies my strength, speed, and durability to _insane_ levels. Let's just call it another twenty. Doesn't do anything to my chakra stores or ninjutsu strength, but it makes me a _beast_ in straight-up Taijutsu, and the more chakra I push into the cloak, the stronger I get, going from twenty, to thirty, and so on. Add that strength boost to my curse mark, and that's _four hundred times_ my normal power. Add that to the swift release, we'll just low-ball it again and say that doubles my striking power, and all of a sudden I'm _eight hundred times_ stronger than I am at base form. I'm moving faster and hitting harder than I possibly could have before, and with the Sharingan, I have the perception to handle that kind of speed." He actually attracted the Kaguya's undivided attention as he went into these details, the Kaguya heir's pale green eyes wide, and his eyebrows and red clan markings stretching up to his scalp. "And that's just what I can do to augment my power. That's just _me._ That's not all that I have. Take, for instance, the shadow clone technique. I've _mastered_ that, through and through, to the point where my clones will not burst unless they are completely and totally killed, and I can make about ten of those with chakra enough to be combat ready. So that's _ten_ of me, with the ability to multiply their power _eight hundred fold. _But even that's not it, because this entire time, I haven't mentioned something else that's gotten me into the bingo books. I haven't even _touched_ the eight gates, yet."

At this, Arjuna actually leaned his head back a bit, a grin stretching across it. "I did not believe it, when I read the book. You mean to tell me you truly can access and use the eight gates, at will?"

Hibiki nodded, "and because damage from a shadow clone does not transfer to the Alpha, suddenly there's ten Hibiki clones, with eight hundred times their base power, now adding the _eight gates_ to the mix. Shimon, the gate of death, is the final one, and is capable of multiplying the user's power by _one hundred._ So if those clones went buck wild and added in _all eight gates_ to the mix, they're running around with power _eighty thousand times_ their base. But... Even _that's_ not all, because I've figured out how to spawn _way_ more shadow clones than should be normal, by using as little chakra as possible. I got to about ten thousand before I finally ran out of space on the training grounds and had to give up trying to quantify that limit, and I wasn't even halfway through my chakra stores at that point. So now I've got an army of _ten thousand_ shadow clones, running around with _eighty fucking thousand_ times the power of a jinchuriki with three tails... And since clones send chakra back to the host when they burst, that means _all of that chakra_ is going right back to the Alpha when they finally disintegrate from Shimon... Allowing him to start the whole damn process over again, create ten thousand _more_, have them all augment themselves to their limits, and then head straight into battle, meaning that whatever price the enemy pays to kill _one_ Hibiki clone, they'll have to pay again... And again... And again. When _one_ clone falls, you run the risk of ten fucking thousand, just as strong and fresh-faced and ready for battle, replacing him." And ignoring that he was intentionally using low estimates, he didn't add that all of that was solely what he was capable of with chakra. He didn't even _want_ to get into the treasure trove of modern - or, technically, ancient - weaponry and knowledge he had access to, thanks to NORAD. The seals on his arm and back had gotten quite a number of twins, in these five years.

Hibiki turned to a positively _excited_ Kaguya heir, "so... Yes. Even if eighty thousand times my base power isn't really enough to take down Iwa's S-Rank and above shinobi... _Tens of thousands_ of clones with said power, should be. The problem isn't _can_ I, or even _how will_ I... My problem is _should_ I?"

* * *

_Sweet Jesus, how are we going to pull _this_ one off?_ The Alpha Hibiki thought to himself, as he and his blond orphan friend crouched low on their perch on the peak of a mountain, with a birds-eye view of the dullest, grayest village he had ever seen.

Like the Earth Daimyo's capitol city, Iwagakure was surrounded by a ring of titanic mountains, but unlike the layered-roofed homes, with clear pulls from ancient Japan, of the city, the Hidden Village took on a drab, gray and brown color scheme, and its buildings were large and thin, with domed roofs. They looked like they had been built into other mountains, and truly, they looked like they _were_ mountains, almost similarly to how Kiri's buildings had had grass-topped roofs to help blend in with the swamp. Though the stony, towering buildings of the Rock Village were _dwarfed_ by the central structure, a small skyscraper with the kanji for Earth stamped proudly on its front-facing wall.

And on top of _that?_ Was a ball of radiating green flame surrounding a burly, leather-skinned man, standing just on the tip of the spire of the Tsuchikage's residence. Katsuo was standing there, on top of the tallest building in the city, like some kind of watchman - though Hibiki's mind went to foggy recollections of the antagonist of one of the Zelda games he had played too much during his first life. He was watching, waiting, extending his senjutsu senses as far as he could, searching for the man he knew would be soon to assault the village. Hibiki was very thankful they both had decided to cap off and push down their chakra levels as far as they could, else they would have been long since found, by this point. One could think that Katsuo could sense them regardless, but he was facing the opposite direction of the two interlopers, and hadn't even made a single indication that he knew the two were there.

But this begged the question, why was Katsuo playing Superman and watching over his village, instead of 'reading' Kushina's tailed beast's chakra? Hibiki prayed that this wasn't indicative of Katsuo having already wrecked Kushina's seal and dragged the information out of her tenant.

As a gust of wind blew past the Monstrous Sage, causing both his vibrant green cloak of chakra, and his baggy, white and gray clothing to billow in the wind, Hibiki army-crawled backwards, into a cave in the mountain. He and Minato had dropped down a privacy seal that didn't need chakra to activate, they both prayed it was enough to at least keep the man who fashioned himself Superman from finding them if they slipped up and let their chakra leak out. Upon being enveloped by the low shadows of the cave, Hibiki got back to his feet, and reconvened with Minato, who was practically bursting with desire to go into the village.

"What'd you find out?" Minato asked, his light voice overpowering the white noise of the whistling wind of the cave, and that of their extreme elevation. In any other situation, Hibiki would have questioned to hell and back their ability to properly breathe, so far above sea level, but in all honesty? He didn't care, and didn't have the time to question it. Sometimes the 'it's magic' explanation would just have to do, so he could focus on more important things.

"Well... I've got good news and -"

"Bad news."

"Katsuo's there, which means his multi-bloodline allies are, too."

"How can they copy bloodlines like you?"

"I don't know." Hibiki lied, "but, this confirms that Kushina is most likely in Iwagakure... And to add to the good news, I didn't see many shinobi patrolling the rooftops, or the village wall."

Minato narrowed his eyes, and ran a hand through his blond, spiky hair. "Then where are they?"

"If I had to guess? Probably out making sure Konoha doesn't try to do to them, what we did to the Earth Daimyo." Hibiki said, "but right now, we can't afford to look a gift horse in the mouth. Kushina's down there, and if Katsuo isn't actively working on her, that means that either he's done, which is bad, or someone else is, which is worse." Hibiki sat back on his haunches, while Minato sat just above him, on a small boulder.

The both of them stared at the cave floor, in silence, as they each tried to come up with a plan. After a few moments, Minato looked up at his raven-haired friend. "Hibiki, I saw you've got more than a few seals on your body." He said, nodding to Hibiki's left arm, which had a small web of fuinjutsu seals.

"If you think that's impressive, you should see my back." The Senju heir chuckled mirthlessly, "what about it?"

"Well... A lot of the Flying Thunder God technique's chakra expenditure comes from me having to apply the seals through touch. I've been _trying_ to apply it to other things, like kunai and stuff... But whenever I try using that in battle with Jiraiya-sensei, he'll always hit me with an oil or a water technique, and the paper and the seal will be ruined. But what I was thinking was, you've got more experience than I do with putting seals on other surfaces... So what if you put it on those projectiles your thunder techniques launched?"

Put a seal on a bullet? The thought had crossed Hibiki's mind in a fever dream once, when he'd nearly defecated himself at the prospect of bullets containing fuinjutsu-applied shinobi techniques, but once Katsuo had disproven that with the Konoha invasion, the thoughts had drifted to the wayside. Then came Kiri, and NORAD, and mastering the bloodlines and techniques he had, trying out weird fuinjutsu applications beyond the space-time ones just hadn't ever occurred to him again. Once he got Kushina and got the eff out of dodge with her and Minato, he'd have to start looking into it some more.

"I guess... But I'd need to see the _whole_ seal, not the final, shrunken down and collapsed product, to copy it down. And I'd have to put one Hiraishin seal on at least one of every kind of bullet I've got, plus the ones your gun is chambered for. Plus I'll have to charge them all with chakra to get them active, and add in a whole host of new clauses to get them to shrink down so far... And to do that in any kind of timely manner, I'd have to use Swift Chakra to speed up the process. _Then_ I'd need to make a shitload of shadow clones to clone enough bullets to do what I think you're getting at. All of that chakra would be a freakin' beacon to Katsuo, we'd have to go all the way back down the mountains, run a few dozen kilometers out of the village, _then_ start working our magic... Then turn right back around, come up the mountains again, and then work out our plan of attack. And we can't use chakra to decrease the travel time, so even if we gave ourselves a good estimate... It'd be about mid-afternoon, approaching sundown, by the time we could get some kind of plan going. That's a _lot_ of time we'd spend, Minato." Hibiki warned the Namikaze orphan.

Minato just grinned, "but that's it! Then, all we have to do is send in an army of your shadow clones. They'll start shooting up the place, and in an hour or two, the whole village will be saturated with the projectiles with the seals on them! Even if they break on impact, more won't than will, so in just a few hours, the hiraishin seals will be _everywhere!"_ He said, his eyes aglow with blue fire.

Hibiki nodded, slowly coming to Minato's line of thought. "Then, while I take down the shinobi that can be torn apart with guns and ammo, and engage the ones that are too good or too durable... You'll slip through the cracks, start teleporting everywhere, searching for places they could be holding Kushina. You find her, and then because the master copies of the bullets will be up here with me, you'll just warp here, and while my clones keep keeping everyone distracted, you and I make a break for it." His own grin played at his tan features, "I like the plan." It keeps the attention on the expendable clones, leaves more than enough room for improvisation, and doesn't necessarily require him to blow up the whole fucking village, like he'd done at the capitol; all he had to do was keep everyone pinned down, and kill the ones whose balls were big enough to work up the courage to attack an army of gun-wielding Thunder Gods.

Even if all of the civilians and shinobi in Iwa had guns, the plan was still solid.

"It's the best we've got with the time we have. Let's get to work."

* * *

"I find it hard to believe that, working as a shinobi for as long as you have, that you have a problem with killing people." Arjuna pointed out, after a moment's silence.

The Senju clone, however, shook his raven-haired head. "No, at this point I can kill as easily as I breathe, and go to bed and sleep like a baby. What I have a problem with is senseless, needless killing." Which was why he still had night terrors about Ame, _tens_ of _thousands_ of deaths that could have been easily avoided. "And this is needless. Assaulting Iwagakure and sifting through the ruins to look for someone who we already know the location of... All of those deaths, be they shinobi, or civilian, they all would be pointless."

Arjuna looked down at Hibiki for a few moments, his brow furrowing as he thought. "People die, Hibiki-sama."

"I -"

"But what you have here is the opportunity to prevent death by causing it."

Oh god, he was about to get the Atom Bomb argument. _No, don't do that. I agreed with those, don't use that logic on me!_ The Senju heir sighed, "go on."

"If one of your friends was taken... Say, that Aburame woman I see you spending so much time with. What would you do?"

They both knew the answer, but the Senju clone was well aware that Arjuna wouldn't take silence. "I'd move heaven and earth."

"Is Lady Uzumaki not a close friend of yours, Hibik-sama?"

"She is."

"And what would you do if she were taken, and knew where she had been taken to?"

"A lot more than _move_ heaven and earth." Hibiki responded, slowly turning his head to look up to the Kaguya heir.

"Exactly." Said Arjuna, "it may surprise you to hear this, but despite our barbaristic nature, we are not savages."

Hibiki blinked, "what?"

"We got our reputation due to our combat style, but what few know is that when we could come across civilian villages, and we would send our warriors to make contact, even under our more brutal leaders, their orders were never to go out and kill. They were to obtain resources, and protect our own if the need arose. Every time we went out, we would try to initiate contact, to open a dialogue. But because of our reputation, civilians would see us, and while the women and children fled, the men would stand and fight; and even if the threat was negligable, it takes chakra to heal, and they could _eventually_ kill us, if they were so determined, so we would have to protect ourselves and our brothers and sisters. Tell me, Hibiki, if your friends and allies' lives were in danger, would you stand by to clear your conscience, or would you dive into battle protect their lives?"

Hibiki furrowed his brow, "I'd go help." He supplied, as the mid-January sun beat down on his tan flesh, and the cool, moist air of the lake helped to keep it cool.

"You wanting to dispel yourself to tell the true Hibiki-sama that Kushina is alive and well, is just the same as standing back to keep your conscience clear." Arjuna stated, "was isn't just coming, Hibiki, it is here. Be it in a few hours against Iwa, or in a few days against the whole of the Monster's alliance, it is _here._ Katsuo made a mistake in attempting to get you out of the village on a wild cat chase, because he angered you by taking your friend and pointing you in her direction. As I said, you have the opportunity to save lives, by ending them. You said yourself you would move heaven and earth for your friends, I would assume that to include storming into an enemy village for the _chance_ to cause a big enough distraction to rescue them... Yes?"

Hibiki nodded, his shoulders slumping.

"Well... By going to Iwa and ripping it apart, you will be killing thousands of their shinobi, destroying their infrastructure, and it is incredibly likely you will come across their Kage while doing so, and if your power is as vast as you claim, and your numbers as limitless as you believe, then even a Kage stands no chance before you. Not only could you destroy their infrastructure and tear apart the portion of their strength they left behind _specifically for you - _which, by necessity, would have to be vast, else they would be sacrificing themselves - but you could also destroy and dethrone their leader, forcing them to find a new one, and adapt to his policies and strategies at the worst possible time. All of this will lead to a disorganized, weakened, wounded army... All of which will lead to more and more Konoha shinobi surviving more and more battles. Even if Iwa survives your attack, they will be too weakened to fight their war for any great length of time, and Katsuo's alliance will inevitably soon be down one country, in just the beginning months of his war. We could focus more manpower on the stronger villages, which would allow us to win more battles against them."

Arjuna sighed, "but. If you dispel yourself now, it would be tantamount to valuing yourself more than the lives being risked during the war. I will be the first to say that even if you destroy, or at the very least cripple Iwagakure, the chances of everyone you know dying are still high. It _is_ a shinobi _war,_ after all. But staying your hand would be to let those risks grow, and if someone you knew died, it would be _your fault._ Tell me, Hibiki, do you think yourself more valuable than your squadmates? Than lady Uzumaki?" Arjuna turned his gaze back to the lake's bank, where, upon being joined by Hibiki, they both saw more than a few insects lazily floating about, trying to look as inconspicuous as possible. "Than your lady Aburame?"

_Did I just get the fated leader of the Mongol Horde to tell me it was okay to drop the atom bomb? What fucking world am I living in?_ Thought Hibiki, with a sigh. "I'll have to live with this for the rest of my life." He said, seeing the logic in Arjuna's words. "I hate it. I hate that I need to make this choice... God damn it, I do." He shook his head, letting it hang, letting his gaze fall on the lakebed, which could be seen clearly through the now still waters, after a moment, he shifted his focus, now finding himself staring at his reflection. His viking like hair fell over his shoulders, his blood red eyes glowed faintly, his round face hardened by age both physical and mental, and roughened by fifteen years of ceaseless training and battle.

"But?" Said Arjuna, as, in the distance, the sound of bushes being disturbed reached both of their ears.

Hibiki lifted his gaze, and saw Dai stepping through the woods, her gaze quickly switching from the shorter Senju to the taller Kaguya. She had a light arc to one of her eyebrows, as if thinking the same that Hibiki had, earlier - Arjuna had been on the last of her list of people she'd expected to see. If Hibiki had to guess, she probably thought she'd be the first one to come talk to him.

Hibiki let out another heavy sigh. "But... Sometimes the bomb just has to be dropped."

Where would this put him on Dai's scale of 'acceptable evils'?

* * *

Chakra was fucking magnificent.

How magnificent?

Tobirama Senju had figured out how to use it to create an _Einstein-Rosen Bridge._ A fucking _wormhole!_

Reading the seal Minato had developed for the Hiraishin, Hibiki was able, on some level, to guess its function. It basically worked by using the seal as the exit point for the wormhole, and the user of the jutsu as the entry point. The shinobi cast the jutsu and created the wormhole, and because he was at its center, the shinobi would instantly be transported to the Hiraishin seal, and because these were _wormholes_ they were playing with - _WORMHOLES! - _there was no timelag, no delay. Technically speaking, this was faster even than Hibiki going FTL, Hibiki's method was _functionally_ instant, but this _was!_

"Alright." Said Hibiki, as he stood back and admired Tobirama and Minato's handiwork. "When we get home, you've _got_ to teach me this. Like... No debate. I want this." Suddenly his pipe dreams of building spacesuits and flying to the moon and beyond didn't seem as impossible.

Minato, sliding down the side of a steep gray hill made of stone and granite, shrugged. "Sure, I don't see why not, but I've got a price." This attracted the Senju heir's gaze. "I want you to show me how to use your thunder technique."

_Whoa..._ Hibiki blinked, "you want me to show you how to use a gun."

"Yeah!" Said Minato, "I remember what they did to Konoha, I saw what they did over in the Earth capitol, and if we're able to plant fuinjutsu on the projectiles, _think_ of the possibilities!" He said, excitedly.

Hibiki put his hands in his pockets, thinking about it for a moment. "Alright, we'll get back to that - that's not a yes or a no - for right now... Hiraishin." And as he finished speaking, Hibiki crouched down low, and the world slowed to a crawl.

To Minato, it happened in an instant, in a split-second flurry of activity cloaked in a pale white aura trailing his every movement, almost like a detail-less afterimage. To Hibiki, however, relativity would extend that instant, split-second to something closer to nearly six hours of non-stop work. Minato's seal was a _bastard_ to replicate, and having to add in clauses that didn't conflict with the entire thing was tantamount to Hibiki redesigning the entire thing from scratch. These kind of seals had to be _very_ specific, which meant that whenever Hibiki added in a new clause - almost like adding in a line of code to a computer program - he had to add in thirty other ones to make certain it didn't conflict with something else, and it kept going like this until Hibiki proved that relativity was a conflicted mistress, sometimes his friend, sometimes his enemy, and he had a modified Hiraishin seal on one of every one of the bullets he possessed. Now laid out in a small row were six different kinds of slugs, only one of which the Namikaze chunin recognized.

Then, in another burst of speed, one bullet of each became ten, became one hundred, became ten thousand, and they continued to grow exponentially, until Hibiki finally had small piles, each enough to fill entire trucks full of just their type of bullet. After creating the supply, Hibiki placed his hand over his left ribcage, and Minato watched as the teenaged Senju heir accessed the ever-growing network of space/time storage seals, spider-webbing all across his body, though only currently visible on his two exposed arms. Out of this seal came a small, rectangular box, which Hibiki tossed to a shadow clone, who quickly got to work, creating more, and filling them with the bullets in a flurry of activity.

"What are those?" Minato asked, as the pile of rifle rounds was replaced by a pile of filled tin boxes.

"Magazines." Said Hibiki, as he moved his hand an inch to the right, and out came a backpack looking box of metal, with belt like implements sticking out of its bottom right edge. "You put bullets into them, and then when your gun runs out, you just drop the empty magazine and put in the pre-loaded one. Makes loading the gun faster than it is with yours, which has to be loaded individually." He said, as he gave the backpack to another clone, who, like the first, quickly began stuffing bullets into the feeding belt, and began filling the packs with ammunition.

Minato furrowed his brow, "but... Wait, the gun I have, the cyllinder spins the projectiles into place. If you put the projectiles in a box and then slap it into the gun, there won't be anything in the tube for the lever to hit." He said.

Hibiki paused, him and the clone waiting to be given a magazine nearly the size of his forearm, both turning their gaze to the blond blur. "How the fuck did you know that?" The Alpha asked, before tossing the massive magazine to the clone, who quickly began multiplying and loading.

Minato gave Hibiki a slightly exasperated look, "did you think I just stared at it in fear, these last few years? I took it apart. It wasn't hard." He said.

Hibiki stared at the Namikaze orphan, though if he were to be honest with himself, he wasn't too surprised. Clumsy and loud though he may be, dumb, Minato certainly was not - and it wasn't difficult at all to figure out how a simple machine worked if one could take it apart, inspect the parts, and then put it back together to see how everything worked. "Well then... Tell me." Hibiki flicked his right wrist, and out popped his own pistol, which Minato noted was much more different from his own, much boxier and darker, its projectile tube thicker around than his own. "How would you load the bullet, then?" Hibiki brandished the weapon, though his onyx orbs were locked firmly upon Minato's blue balls of fire, as the latter inspected the weapon from his small distance.

Minato frowned, his mind going back to the Earth capitol, what he had seen from the Samurai firing their weapons, which had had a similar shape to Hibiki's. When they had done so, the chunin had noticed that the upper halves of the projectile tubes had slid back, and one of the projectiles would shoot out of the top, before it slid back into place. It all happened very, very fast, but with chakra and adrenaline flooding his system, Minato had been able to see it happen enough times to get an idea. Hell, he had been tagged by more than a few projectiles, but they were mostly grazes, and he had taken one to the chest, but his flak jacket had managed to take the brunt of that one, leaving him only with a few cracked and one broken rib to worry about. Jiraiya-sensei had given him worse, but that wasn't the purpose.

"The... Projectile tube?" Minato slowly spoke, "you would slide it back, which would retract the lever and slide a bullet into place at the same time. And then, because the bullet is there, whenever it launches its projectile, the tube slides back again, and loads another projectile." He looked up, "right?" He said, tentatively.

_Well I'll be damned._ Sure, Minato didn't know _any_ of the proper terms, but he'd managed to eyeball how a semi-automatic worked versus a repeating revolver. Maybe he _was_ ready to respect the gun. "Yeah. Close enough." Hibiki spun the gun on his finger, and sealed it back into his wrist with a brief flourish, and a moment later, he felt a tap on his shoulder - his clones were done loading.

After a brief superspeed jump to get all of the Hiraishin bullets sealed up into their respective places, Hibiki turned to Minato, "pull it out, you're getting a crash course."

"Don't point it at anything unless you want to kill it!" Minato said, loudly, but with pride, as he reverently drew his revolver from his breast pocket.

Hibiki nodded his head, his eyebrows raised. "Damn, you remember. Alright, first -" The pile of revolver rounds behind him vanished, and with a brief burst of movement, Hibiki snapped back and forth, now holding a fist-sized scroll in his hand. "- this is a cyclical seal. Basically, every time you pump chakra into it, it sends out enough to fully load your weapon once." Hibiki unraveled the scroll, placed it on the arid, dusty ground, demonstrated, and six revolver rounds popped out, Minato was crouched down with him, watching with rapt attention, his blue eyes wide. "Give me the gun."

Minato held it forward, but before he could blink, Hibiki swatted him on the side of his head. "Wrong." The Senju heir snatched the weapon out of the Namikaze orphan's hands, "you do not give a person the weapon with the barrel pointed to them. You don't point the gun at someone you don't want to kill." He said, as Minato rubbed the side of his blond head. "Instead, you grab it by the barrel - this part here -" Hibiki demonstrated, "- let go of the grip, and then hand it to them." He explained, giving the gun back to the chunin the proper way. "That way you avoid accidents. With this thing, accidents get people killed." Hibiki seriously didn't want Minato to shoot Marvin in the face. "And never, ever, ever, ever have your finger on the trigger - that part right there, that you squeeze to fire the weapon - unless you are ready and willing to kill. In all other situations, keep your finger off of the trigger. Now give me the gun."

Minato nodded, taking in everything the Senju heir told him, and after a moment's thought, he gave him the gun the proper way. "Why all of the fuss over proper grips, and such? If I'm giving it to someone I don't want to kill, I won't pull the... Trigger, you called it."

"You have to always treat the gun as if it's about to go off." Said Hibiki, "always. And despite what I demonstrated in the Earth capitol, not everyone is bulletproof. I'd be willing to say every nine out of ten shinobi would go down with one or two well placed shots. That last one out of ten is either fast enough to avoid it, or has some kind of durability augmenting technique, like Ay's lightning cloak, or Katsuo's senjutsu."

"Okay." Minato nodded.

"_And."_ Hibiki stressed, "these weapons are powerful. They do a lot of damage - a _civilian_ could use this and kill nine out of every ten shinobi. So even an accidental discharge could cripple or kill someone, and you _do not_ want to be responsible for accidentally crippling or killing a teammate. You'll notice that even when it's a clone giving me a gun, it follows proper procedure, and I could shoot _myself_ and walk away. So always... Always... _Always_ follow gun safety. Like never gripping a knife by the blade, or handing it to someone blade out. Understand?"

Minato nodded.

"Alright. Now, to load it, it's simple. Pull this bit back here, push out the cyllinder." Hibiki demonstrated as he spoke, "then you drop your spent casings... Grab a fresh bullet, and drop them into the chambers, like so. Make sure they're secure, then push the cylinder back in, make sure you hear the click." Said Hibiki, just before he loaded the weapon, with a light, metallic click. "After that, you pull back the hammer, this bit here, and the weapon is live. This thing is now ready to kill." He slid the hammer back forward, flipped the gun around, and handed it to the Namikaze. "Yours is loaded with bullets with the Hiraishin seal on them, so _always_ be aware of where the slugs hit, because even if you miss, you gain a new avenue of attack... But be careful. Even with your reflexes, it's hard to dodge a bullet, and in a firefight, it's a safe to assume they're _everywhere, _so if you lean your head up for even a second, that could kill you. Understand?"

Minato slowly nodded, "it's a lot to take in."

"That's why it's a last goddamn resort." Hibiki stressed, as he rolled up the scroll, and the two got to their feet. "Never, ever, use this as a first option. This is a killing tool - it's not a knife, that can injure. It is a _gun,_ that _kills._ You pull this out, you don't expect to take your enemy alive, but above all else, have a backup plan ready in case you're up against one out of ten. Since you've got the Hiraishin, always be ready to fire that second shot, in case they take the bullet and don't go down. Always be ready to _miss_ that second shot, so you'll be able to jump out of there on a moment's notice."

Minato nodded, "alright." He said, with a thick swallow through a dry throat.

Hibiki gave Minato the bullet scroll, "and above all, don't be afraid of it. It's just a thing. It can't do anything unless you, or the person pointing it at you, make it. It's a _machine,_ and invariably, machines need people to work them. So never be scared of it - just be wary of the person holding it. _Never_ assume they won't fire, _never_ assume you can get out of it - even if you know beyond the shadow of a doubt you can just Hiraishin out of there and out of the way, if you see this, the game changes and your life is in danger. Period. No ifs ands or buts. Alright?"

Minato nodded, "yeah, yeah, okay. I got it." He placed the gun back in the breast pocket of his flak jacket. "So... Are we ready?"

Hibiki nodded, "aim for the center of mass, don't try anything fancy." He said, patting his chest. "And..." Did he really want to say this? Fuck it - this was drilled in the academy, so he had to at least mention it. "In last resort scenarios. As in, you cannot get out, you know you're about to be captured, and there is no avoiding things." Hibiki made a finger gun, and dug the 'barrel' under his chin. "Save _one_ bullet for yourself. It's..." He sighed, "better, and quicker, than capture."

To his part, the Namikaze didn't even flinch. "I understand." Though Hibiki didn't know if that was because he was aware of the potential risk, or because he had faith that either he or his allies could reliably get him out in those kinds of circumstances.

Hibiki grabbed Minato by the shoulder, holding him firm before he could turn back to the Stone Village. "I cannot stress that enough." He said, his wide, onyx eyes locked onto Minato's fiery blue orbs. "Absolute... Last... Escape or rescue is not an option... Capture and torture is imminent... _Last resort."_ Yes, this was drilled in the academy, and shinobi were taught how to both fake and actually go through with suicide, but with a knife, with a slit throat, there was still that few seconds, perhaps even minutes, during which a properly skilled shinobi could save themselves. With a gun to the head? There were no second chances, or, there were ,but they so astronomically improbable that they were functionally impossible.

Minato seemed to understand the finality with which Hibiki spoke, and nodded again, more firmly. "I understand." He said, a very serious frown on his face, as he locked eye contact with the Senju heir. "Last resort."

"Last resort."

_"Last resort."_

* * *

"I did not expect the heir to the Kaguya clan to be the first one to make it to you, Hibiki." Dai said, as she and the Senju clone watched said heir casually stroll away from the training grounds, quickly vanishing into the forest, and soon taking off with a pop and a plume of smoke.

"Be completely honest? I expected _Kushina_ first." Said the clone, to which he got a faux dirty look from the Aburame. "Hey, she's no stranger to controversy, what with being the sole survivor to the clan, and all." Given Dai's lack of knowledge over the whole 'fuzzy' issue residing in the Uzumaki's gut, Hibiki had to go for the less truthful truth. "But this is... Bigger than what she's used to. She's privy to her own usage as a tool of war." The Senju clone sighed, making a mental note to go talk to her once he was done feeling sorry for himself. "She's aware of the fact that, right now, her two closest friends... One of which she may or may not be sleeping with... Are halfway across the continent, setting the Land of Earth on _fire_, trying to locate her and ensure her safety." Though on that thought, Hibiki suddenly was very concerned with what Minato and the imposter Kushina had been doing the previous night. Had the Runner clone taken Minato to 'her' bed to keep him quiet? If so, it was very possible that circumstance could have destroyed anything the two had with eachother - Minato slept with an imposter, and a man at that, and Kushina would be mortified at the idea that someone had impersonated her, in her own village, used that image to seduce Minato, and to top it all off, had gotten away with it.

Fuck, Hibiki actually had some money riding on when they would finally quit dancing around the bush, similarly to how teams Four and Six had had a small betting pool going on when he and Dai would do the same. Apparently Suboro had been the one to win that pool, his vague 'before Hibiki's twelve' being closer than Suboro's ironclad fourteen years of age. Of course he was also concerned about his friends, if what he thought had happened actually _had happened,_ then any chance the two of them had of being happy with eachother was now a lot slimmer, which made him feel bad.

"It must be weighing upon her mind." Dai said, slowly, as she turned her gaze from the forest to Hibiki, who kept his red eyes locked to the trees that dotted the lake's shore. "What do you think she is thinking?"

"Any number of things. Chief among them that the Alpha and Minato come home safe." It was also very likely that she was somehow managing to simultaneously blush and worry over the fact that this would be the second time Minato ran headfirst into a situation he was outclassed in, for her safety, perceived or otherwise. "She doesn't have many folks. After Miss Mito passed on, the Alpha and Minato were the only ones who kept a consistent close contact with her. Their mutual friends through the academy checked in on her frequently enough, and team four did so, less frequently, if only because they knew her through the Alpha Hibiki. But even then, that's less than fifteen people, and her closest two are out starting a war over her. She's any combination of being worried sick, terrified out of her mind, confused, and god knows what else."

Dai did _not_ miss a subtle twitch of one of the hands buried in Hibiki's pockets, nor a brief furrowing of his brow, and she very, very nearly missed a hitch in his voice, a split-second hesitation before he finished his thoughts. Dai took ahold of one of the shorter Senju's arms, and started dragging him to the lake; Hibiki didn't protest, and soon enough the two were walking on water. "What about you?" Dai asked, knowing Hibiki wouldn't even hesitate to leave himself out of this if he was given the chance. For all of his self reflection and judgement, she knew that his precious people came first and foremost in his thoughts.

The Senju heir frowned, "Dai..." He said, before shaking his head and sighing, Dai felt the muscles in his arm clench in her hands, she held him tighter, slowly sliding one hand down his bicep and forearm, until she dug his own hand out of his pockets so she could take it into her own. Normally, if she was aware, she didn't afford his clones these luxuries - as an incentive to ensure he never relegated her to 'clone duty' - but for all of her pride and stubbornness, she knew that the clones were as much Hibiki as he was himself, and this one was facing an intense internal struggle. Whether he admitted it or not, he needed her. "I've shelved a lot of my old practices and beliefs for this new life. But there is one thing that hasn't changed from my old life to the next. If the situation called for it, there isn't a thing I wouldn't do for the people I hold dear. Not a damn thing."

Dai nodded, knowing where the Senju heir was going with this, before he even went there. "I know." She whispered, more to prompt him to continue voicing his thoughts, than anything else.

"If your life... Or Minato's life, or Kushina's, Suboro's, Noboru's... Fugaku, Shikaku, Chouza, Inoichi, Dante... Jiraiya, Orochimaru, Tsunade... Any of you. If any of your lives were in danger, there isn't a single thing I wouldn't do, if I knew it would save your lives, get you home for dinner. The Hokage knows this, and _I _know it." He stressed, "but..." He sighed, coming to a halt, though even though he tried, Dai wouldn't let him let go of her hand, as she turned to face the raven-haired Senju heir, who turned to face the Aburame, apprehensively. "Here, no one's in danger. Everyone's home. Everyone's safe. And I know that. And I _don't_ know that. If I told the Alpha that Kushina was home, he and Minato would turn their asses around and high-tail it to Konoha. The Alpha would get into a pissing match with Danzo, but nothing would change, everything would go on as normal... But in doing that, I'm letting an _entire_ enemy force stay at full strength. In its own way, coming home, mission accomplished, means I'd be putting everyone I know in more danger.

"But if I..." He inhaled deeply, "if I keep this information from myself. If I lie to myself through omission... The Alpha won't know. He won't know it was all a sham... And he won't stop until he's out of places to search. He will kill, and kill, and kill. He will fire until his guns are empty. He will stab until his blades are dull. He will punch until his hands are broken. He _will not stop_ until he has a body, breathing or not." He turned his gaze upwards, his onyx eyes meeting Dai's thick shades. "Even if it's the likely option, even if they sent out mostly chunin, some experienced genin, and a handful of jonin... That will still leave a sizeable chunk of their military left in Iwagakure, and if he has to, he will _find a way_ to kill every last one of them. All of those people will die, however needlessly... Because he couldn't even trust himself."

Hibiki felt Dai's hand tighten around his own, saw her eyes widen and her jaw open, but he cut her off.

"Dai... I'm not asking if this is the right decision. That's not what I'm concerned about, because I know, as twisted and horrible as it is... That this _is_ the right decision. Just as, thousands of years ago, American pilots were faced with the decision of dropping two horrible bombs to end a war quickly, or refusing the atrocity and letting it drag out... I must choose between hundreds or thousands of deaths now, or millions of deaths down the line. This doesn't just change history, it _writes it._ Even if Konoha loses, this choice won't be lost or forgotten.

"Dai, if we're to be completely honest here..." He said, as he cupped hos free hand over hers, and stared down at the linked limbs. "What scares me isn't that I'm making this choice. It isn't that I _can _make this choice. It isn't that the choice has to be made, or whether or not it's right or wrong. It's not that I'll have to live with this decision for the rest of my life, or that I'll be waking up with the nightmares of having destroyed a village -" _Two villages. _"- and having killed thousands of people needlessly." _Twice!_ "No." He said, shaking his hand, and slowly leaning forward, pressing his forehead into her sternum, Dai placed her free hand on his back, holding him tight, her wide eyes unwavering.

"What scares me, Dai... Is that I can get _stronger."_ Strong enough, perhaps, to raise up an army of unstoppable god-killing red-eyed monsters, and use them destroy the entire known world. If he was forced to stare into the abyss, would he eventually see ringed, purple eyes, staring back?

Would they be his eyes?


	57. Abduction: Melee A Trois -V-

Chapter 56

* * *

The first time, the Senju heir walked right up to the main gate and blew it up. So, clearly the only way to build off of that was to set up several hundred snipers in the mountains surrounding the village. Minato had nearly fallen over from shock, when Hibiki reached up over his right shoulder and channeled a small spike of chakra into a seal on the small of his back. With a light pop and a plume of smoke, an enormous rifle from the ancient vaults of the North American Aerospace Defense Command appeared. The massive, .50 Caliber dwarfed its cousins from the Earth Country's capitol, itself being nearly as long as Hibiki was tall, and though it took an hour to get everyone set up and coordinated without chakra, Hibiki had upwards of twenty five hundred clones, at the bare minimum amount of chakra, spread about the mountains encircling and hiding the Village Hidden in the Stone.

All the while, Katsuo stood, perched on top of the spire of the Tsuchikage's tower. Given his elevation, he was subjected constantly to the cold midwinter winds, his baggy clothes billowing in the wind, his arms crossed right in front of his chest, his frowning face simply staring out at the horizon, waiting for the Senju heir he knew to be coming.

Minato Namikaze turned to his friend, who stood crouched right next to a shadow clone. The Senju heir narrowed his eyes, before he nodded once, and patted the clone to his left on the shoulder. The clone, his sights set on the Monster's head, inhaled deeply, held his breath a moment, and then let it out; at the bottom of his exhale, he squeezed the trigger. A deafening thunderclap echoed outwards, as a bright flash and an enormous slug blasted out of the rifle's long barrel, and barely a second later, Katsuo's head snapped back from the impact. In less than three seconds, all of the Hibiki clones were opening fire, half of them blasting at the bulletproof Sage, trying to keep him pinned, whereas the other half sought out shinobi targets and picked them apart.

Katsuo's bright, vibrant green aura died down for a second, now appearing as weak flames licking at his flesh as opposed to a violent cloak of green fire, as he ducked his head down towards his still crossed arms. The world slowed down to a crawl as he snapped his head back up, and in a fraction of a second, hundreds more Senju clones launched themselves off of the mountains, arcing through the air and curving downwards, their hands outstretched almost as if they were diving into a pool. When they landed, some on Iwa's larger buildings, some on the smaller huts, and some in the streets, they all pulled guns out of the network of seals on their backs. Some pulled out rifles and paired up into tightly knit groups of five clones, whereas others, especially those who had landed on the tops of buildings, pulled out something else, just as fearsome as the massive sniper rifles held by the shooters lining the mountains.

On top of one building, towering above the local bazaar, dozens of kilometers away from the Tsuchikage's tower, one Hibiki held out both of his arms, one hand hovering near his hip, another held aloft several inches in front of the first. In a large plume of smoke, a dark gray Gatling gun appeared in his hands, with a large, metallic backpack settling itself on his back. The world sped back up as the clone began spinning the barrels, and as antimaterial rounds began peppering the village, the vulcan cannon let lose its loud roar. Hundreds of rounds spat out of the six spinning barrels every second, filling the air with bright white lines of death as the Hibiki clone fired wildly at the Tsuchikage's building, joined soon by the hundreds of other Hibiki clones who had decided that subtlety was for the weak, and that Katsuo needed a lesson in modern artillery.

In the two seconds it took for Katsuo to recover from the volumes of antimaterial rounds slamming into his core from all sides, the Village Hidden in the Stone was filled with hundreds of Hibiki clones, and a vast portion of those clones were firing their Hiraishin bullets at the Tsuchikage's tower, tearing off chunks both big and small from its outer walls, shattering its windows, and shredding apart the floors and ceilings inside. On the ground, the Hibiki clones fired warning shots into the air, urging and frightening the non-combattants into scattering and fleeing, running for their lives so the Thunder God could take solace in the fact that soon this warzone would only be filled with shinobi fighters.

Katsuo's flaming cloak of vibrant green senjutsu chakra flared back to life, and his head locked onto Minato and one of the few Hibiki's with a substantial amount of chakra. Minato's head recoiled backwards, before he looked to Hibiki, his every nerve tensing for that one signal, the one word he needed to hear. Hibiki, however, calmly shifted his eyes to their red state, and locked them onto the distant golden orbs of the Monster, who slowly levitated into the air.

"Remember what I told you." Hibiki said, briefly turning his head in Minato's direction, but still maintaining eye contact with Katsuo. "Just keep moving. Avoid combat if you can... And if you find any of his men, just get out of there. Take no chances." Hibiki got to his feet, and chakra started pouring out of his hands and feet, slowly cancelling out the earth's gravitational pull as he lifted himself into the air.

That one second seemed to stretch on into an eternity, as Minato looked back and forth between the Thunder God and the Monster. The bullets flying through the air froze in place, the screams of the civilians halted in silence, the shinobi, pouring out of their homes and contract buildings, halted in mid-air. In this single second, the sun, high in the sky, was eclipsed by the passing clouds, removing the warm yellow glow from the environment, and turning the world into much duller, muted shades of gray.

_"Go!"_

Katsuo rocketed forward with a loud sonic boom, Minato vanished in a bright yellow flash, and Hibiki bolted forward, blue chakra streaming from his hands and feet. Konoha's Thunder God and the Monster of Iwagakure collided in mid-air, and a shockwave flew out, hitting the village in seconds. Minato appeared inside the Tsuchikage's building and immediately began moving, crashing through doors and vanishing in bright yellow flashes whenever he encountered a shinobi he wasn't able to stab first. Iwa's streets and buildings quickly began swarming with shinobi of all ranks, ages and sizes, many engaging in gunfights with Hibiki's mobile clones, proving that Katsuo had even armed _them,_ others focused on evacuating the civilian non-combatants, where others still took to the hills and mountains surrounding Iwa, intent upon hunting down the snipers dotting the mountains.

It took sixty seconds for Iwagakure no Sato to turn from a peaceful, if tense, village, into ground zero for the opening shots for the Third Shinobi World War. Fires raged, smoke rose, people screamed, bullets flew, and above it all, for those precious few chaotic minutes, the only true combat came in the form of two undead titans facing eachother for the second time.

_"LIAR!"_ Katsuo screamed out in a voice that could have been heard as a low buzz from the distant countryside, before he threw to the side the tan elbow caught in his right hand.

Hibiki ducked underneath Katsuo's palm-strike to the throat and spun around the Monster's side, turning a pseudo-pirouette into a rocket-powered roundhouse to the small of Katsuo's back. Hibiki's foot bounced off of the invulnerable Sage, who kicked out to the back with both feet, catching the Senju heir in his chest and sending him tumbling backwards through the air. Katsuo followed up the attack, keeping up the backwards momentum by hurtling towards the tumbling Senju, his leathery fists flying forward in a flurry of wide, powerful punches. Hibiki bobbed and weaved, dodging a right, a left, and another right, he palmed aside a straight right and was forced to intercept a wide left, sending him arcing in the direction Katsuo's incredible strength obligated him to. The Senju heir flipped over his rear as he hurtled backwards, his feet ending up being that which faced Katsuo directly. This forced him to kick at Katsuo's meaty fists, each impact and each deflection sending powerful shocks down his skeleton as he bicycle-kicked the Monster's irresistably strong punches.

Their duel already taking them to the outermost edges of the Stone Village, Hibiki burst a great deal of chakra through the tenketsu in his back, causing him to bleed off almost all of his backwards momentum, and to flip him back rightside up. He threw a powerful straight right in tandem with his circular motion, slamming it into the side of Katsuo's face, before he followed it up by gripping the Monster's stomach with his left palm, and detonating his chakra, and as Katsuo flew backwards from the rocket-like force of Hibiki's explosion, an even larger explosion rocked eastern Iwa, looking for a moment as if a missile had gone off.

* * *

_"SENJUUUUUU!"_

The screaming voice managed to overpower even the constant cracks and rat-a-tats of the gunshots filling the village, and when the head clone of the pack flicked his eyes to the side, he saw an explosive bolt hurtling straight towards his squad's location. Unfortunately for the clone, it barely had enough chakra to pop out the magazines it would need for its gunfights, and trying to dodge this would put it at absolute zero, so it barely even had a second to flinch before the chakra bolt slammed into his position and detonated with grenade-like force.

A nearby squad of Hibiki clones got the information burst from the now deceased squad, and one, who crouched behind cover, quickly popped his head up and followed the trail of the explosive bolt. He saw, standing atop a small, angular home with a flat roof, a sandy-haired Iwa shinobi with a chunin vest, another explosive bolt already gathered in his hand. This Senju clone actually had the time to run from it, and he bolted away from his squad's location, keeping his head down as bullets from a trio of advancing enemy shinobi flew through the air. The squad behind him exploded and the Senju clone was sent soaring through the air in a small arc b the shockwave.

Groaning,Hibiki turned from his chest to his back, coughing lightly as the trio of Iwa shinobi advanced on his position in the center of a long and narrow road, flanked on both sides by buildings of varying degrees of destruction.

However, before they could try to execute the Senju clone, a voice called out. _"No!"_ The trio paused, and turned their gazes up to the explosive chunin, who leapt off of his building and landed in the road. "He's _mine!"_

"Dude... There's plenty of me to go around." And right on cue, several more Hibiki clones arrived.

Despite having the drop on the trio and the explosive teen, that all but two of the four of them were jonin, and one of the quad could detonate his chakra with but a thought. The two jonin snapped their revolvers up and fired at the Senju clones, landing kill shots on one, causing it to burst once its chakra hit zero trying to heal the wounds, and wounding shots on two more, causing them to lose their balance in the air and fall to the ground. The other two, however, raked the ground with gunfire, killing two of the shinobi before the explosive man detonated his chakra again, in a massive, conical wave.

Now alone and outnumbered, the clone considered bursting himself, but the words of the explosion-release user caught his attention. "Get out of here. They're making a stand at the Tsuchikage's tower. They have armor." He told the younger gunman, who nodded, and bolted for the mentioned tower.

_Armor, eh?_ Thought the groaning Senju clone, as he pushed himself to his feet. _Not a surprise... Looked like Minato's flak jacket had taken a few rounds, and he wasn't bleeding anywhere._ And given that Iwa rounds used fireworks powder as their propellant, they had a much lower muzzle velocity than Hibiki's more properly constructed rounds. This meant they lacked a great deal of force and penetrative power, to the point that shinobi flak jackets could take some small arms fire, so long as it was a certain distance away.

The two now stood several feet from eachother, almost looking like an old western, given the abandoned street they stood upon. The Iwa shinobi looked up into the air, as a shockwave from the duel above raged at them both, causing Hibiki's hair and pants to billow in the wind, and the shinobi's hitai-ate's straps to flap about. "I remember how you fight. That's not your true self, and neither are you." He turned his gaze back down to the Senju clone, who just flexed his fingers, waiting. "Oh... How I have waited for this day. Some thought me a coward for volunteering to stay here, but I knew from Katsuo-sama's plans that _this _would be where I -"

"Do I know you?" Bluntly interjected the Senju heir.

The explosion-release user glared at him, gobstricken. "We've fought before."

"We did?" Hibiki didn't really recall any sandy-haired Iwa shinobi that could blow stuff up with their minds. "I've taken a few hits to the head recently..." And that wasn't counting the fact that he'd once gone several minutes without oxygen, on account of being nearly choked to death and having his lungs shredded by a sentient mass of oily black chakra. "Where have we met before?" He asked, as the sounds of gunfire and warfare raged around him, and the titanic battle above them grew in intensity, another brief shockwave blasting past them.

"We - _we fought at the chunin exams, five years ago!"_ The explosion release user sputtered, angrily pointing at the Senju heir.

"No... I fought Emi Miu, kicked her ass." Did he fight someone before her? "Speaking of, where is she?" Would he be fighting her again? She mentioned she wanted to kill him, he'd like to see her try now that he had a curse mark and a lightning cloak.

_"Before her you asshole!"_ Raged the explosive user.

"I seriously -" The hairs on the back of Hibiki's neck stood up, and he felt a huge influx of chakra. At that moment, the Senju heir spawned his pistol and charged forward.

The Iwa shinobi did the same, ripping a pistol of his own out of his pocket and charging Hibiki with it. The both of them fired wildly during their charge, multiple bullets soaring through the air before they were even halfway to eachother. Hibiki launched himself upwards, and the explosion user followed; the two collided in mid-air, Hibiki's hand going to the explosion user's gun-hand, and vice versa, both trying to keep the other from burying their firearm into the other's head, as they kept firing their weapons. The two landed on the ground, jarring their gun hands from eachother's grips, and an instant later, the barrels were buried into their opponent's temples, but all that happened were several loud, metallic clicks signifying empty magazines.

_"You're empty!"_ Growled the amber-eyed Iwa shinobi.

"Seriously... I do not remember you." Who the hell was this guy?

With an enraged yell, the explosion user slammed his free hand onto the ground, and used the strength of his strike to send him flying backwards. Hibiki, on the other hand, leisurely got to his feet as the explosion user spun through the air. With the two on their feet, one with a confused, if alert expression on his face, the other the very picture of anger and frustration, they each gave their weapon's a brief glance. The Iwa shinobi angrily tossed his aside, and tore off his flak jacket, whereas Hibiki spun his on his finger, before sealing it back up in his wrist, and patting down his black shirt.

"So..." Breathed the Senju heir, "this is happening." And the two charged eachother again, both collecting baseball-sized orbs of explosive chakra in their right hands.

Upon reaching eachother, the Senju heir and the chunin thrust their hands forward. The impact of two dense orbs of explosive chakra, and the inadvertent clash of recoil-eliminating bloodline side-effects, magnified the effects of the explosion dozens of times, but the two's contact with their hands kept the detonation contained. Hibiki realized what was happening before Iwa, as this was the same theory he had used for the kamehameha, and had been trying to expand upon for years now. In response, the Senju heir locked his right arm in place and swung his left around in a wide arc; Iwa quickly concluded that safe was the way to play, and deflected Hibiki's left arm with his own, having to awkwardly reach over his right arm in order to defend himself. His next attack came by thrusting his head forward and ramming it into the Senju's nose, splitting it open and sending blood streaming down his face, but Hibiki reacted quickly. He uppercutted the Iwa shinobi in the stomach, causing the man to grunt in pain, before Iwa tried switching tactics, grabbing at Hibiki's arm and wrenching it upwards, locking them both in an upper-body struggle, one pair of hands keeping a rapidly building explosion contained, the other trying to overpower their opponent's grip.

Meanwhile, below their hands, their legs started striking back and forth, Hibiki tried to lock his right leg around Iwa's left and sweep them out from underneath him, but Iwa dodged the sweeping attack by briefly lifting his foot and then sending it hammering down onto Hibiki's. What he wasn't prepared for, however, was a bone sprouting out from the top of Hibiki's foot and impaling the explosion user's own. Iwa grunted in pain, but reacted quickly enough, channeling just a small amount of explosive chakra into his heavily bleeding foot and using the micro-explosion to destroy the bone connecting him to Hibiki. He then tried to do the same to Hibiki, that Hibiki had done to him, especially since most of Hibiki's weight was on his backfoot, and the other was extended out in front of him.

Hibiki, however, used his shin to block the Iwa shinobi's two rapid kicks, and then his knee to block the desperate shinobi's gut attack. The conjoined explosive orbs in their hands were beginning to grow so powerful that their arms were bulging and shaking, trying to keep them contained. Hibiki pushed forward with his knee, and with the struggle under his strength, he used the brief moment of superior influence to send both feet slamming down onto the ground, granting them both purchase with both of their feet, and giving Hibiki the chance to come sweeping in with his other foot. Iwa slid his uninjured leg backwards, sending them both inching back in his direction as Hibiki missed his attack, and in the moment when Hibiki's balance wasn't at its top, Iwa thrust his head forward again. Hibiki met the headbutt with one of his own, and as their arms began shaking violently, they both drew back and slammed their heads into eachother again, now drawing blood and cracking the explosion user's skull with a dull, fleshy thud. Fortunately for Iwa, he had learned from his attempt on Hibiki's foot, and shot his head back before two horns sprouted from Hibiki's head, just fast enough to avoid being lobotomized by the demonic looking Senju heir.

It was as the Senju's horns disintegrated to dust that the power in their conjoined hands grew to be too much, and before Hibiki could augment it with his lightning cloak, their chakra detonated in an enormous explosion, vaporizing everything within six meters and shaking the entire village with the shockwave, both in the air and absorbed by the ground.

* * *

The flash of light briefly blinded a short, squat man who stood surrounded by Anbu atop the Tsuchikage's tower, a look of pure rage on his wide eyes as, in between his hands, a slightly opaque, pale white cube expanded to the size of a fist. His eyes bulged, locked onto the dueling S-ranked shinobi in the sky, and his jaw shook from the strength he used to clench it. He snapped his gaze down to the bazaar, three kilometers away from his tower, and as the shockwave from the explosion to the east brushed by his thinning white hair, he thrust his hands forward, and the clear cube shot out from in between his thick, meaty hands.

"Tell the men not to bother with their firearms if they encounter clones with chakra. Senju is one of _them,_ they won't work!" Growled the short, stout man, as he sensed the cube hit the intended location, and quickly expand to encompass the entire bazaar, in an area of three kilometers, squared. It took him a moment of focus to pick out the hostile chakra signatures from the non-hostile ones, and then a moment more to ensure that the latter wouldn't be affected by the technique that would take down the former, and once he was done, he clasped his hands together, and in an instant, four and a half hundred enemy clones were turned to dust by the one of the most powerful area-of-effect techniques in the shinobi world.

The Tsuchikage grunted, and dropped the Dust Release technique. "I've opened up a front in the bazaar. Tell the chunin to advance. Corral them. Surround them. They have weak, pitiful levels of chakra. They will not heal from injuries, and if they do, they will use what little chakra they have and be unable to sustain themselves. Stone Armor will protect from glancing and mid-range shots, give them time to close in." Without a word, an Anbu vanished in a flicker of movement, he would inform one shinobi, who would inform two more, and in minutes his orders would be spread. He turned to another Anbu, "you. While our chunin advance and keep the Senju's clones pinned down and in one spot, our Jonin and civilian volunteers need to retreat to the tower, and ramparts. Man Katsuo's cannons and watch for hawks sending in locations to fire upon. We _do not_ outnumber this enemy, they will keep coming until we kill the true Senju." A bullet from the mountains slammed into the pale blue barrier erected by several fuinjutsu seals, and boiled into steam, and a moment later, the Anbu in question vanished, he turned to third. "Coordinate with the Anbu assassins. There is no way the Senju is foolish enough to send his true self charging in to fight Katsuo. Search the mountains for wherever the clones are coming from, and report back with his location." This Anbu too, vanished, leaving two more, crouched low behind their Kage. "You, gather Katsuo's two swiftest runners, tell them to charge the mountains and take down the shooters. If we can't eliminate his long-range superiority, we won't be able to leave what few locations we can confidently control. You, Yui was left behind. Find her, get her moving through the village as fast as she can. She needs to resuscitate everyone she can while we rally our forces and regroup, before she comes back here to deal with the wounded we can evacuate." The two shinobi vanished without even a plume of smoke, leaving the Tsuchikage to turn back to his village.

His every _single_ instinct told him to go out there to fight alongside his men, but his rational side told him it would be a fruitless venture. The Senju heir built himself something of an ironclad defense with his peculiar shadow clones. Since they didn't dispel until or unless death, it didn't matter if they were ignored, confronted, or avoided, they were a threat, and because of their sheer numbers and his reputed ability to control the eight gates, that meant any one of them, with just an instant of time to react, could be as powerful as the true Hibiki, and it would be an exercise in futility to actually try and seek out a fight with them. The only fight that mattered was the fight against the true, 'Alpha' Senju, because it was only his death that would defeat his innumerable army.

The Tsuchikage's head snapped to the west, where he sensed a small crowd, at least thirty, of his chunin being forced far too close together for comfort. Though his eyes were dulling with age, a small flow of chakra sharpened his eyesight and he was able to see the multiple squads all being suppressed by two groups of Senju clones, one with the spinning tree-trunk gun, and the rest with firearms, all pushing on the Chunin and keeping them immobilized. The chunin couldn't even kneel up for an instant to try and counter attack, they were completely suppressed.

The Tsuchikage took in a deep breath, and lifted his hands. It took a lot of chakra, but if there was one thing age granted him, it was _decades_ of training and experience. The Dust Release was chakra intensive, but chakra was something he had in spades. Two clear, bubble-like orbs appeared in his hands, and with a grunt, he thrust them forward.

* * *

Sixty seconds, against _Katsuo,_ with no power augments?

Yeah, too good to be true.

Nursing seven broken ribs, and desperately bobbing his head and upper body back and forth to dodge Katsuo's savage fists, Hibiki snarled. Katsuo hadn't been being a good supervillain, the bastard had _trained_. Be it through simple virtue of always absorbing and being over-saturated with senjutsu chakra, or that he actually refined his technique and grew strength through effort, Hibiki couldn't tell, all he did know is that Katsuo was faster, stronger, and - somehow - more durable than before.

Fortunately, so was Hibiki, and with but a thought, electricity arced through his body and a loud, cackling cloak of lightning chakra flared into existence, just as Katsuo came in for a haymaker. Hibiki was just barely able to inch his head to the right, the fist grazed across his cheek and he lunged in for a straight jab to Katsuo's stomach. The Monster grunted, and Hibiki felt the man's stomach cave around his fist, demonstrating that the cloak was at least _enough_ to cause damage. Katsuo darted backwards, rubbing his stomach, his bright green chakra flaming around his body, as Hibiki took on a defensive stance, one fist clenched next to his side, one hand held up and open.

"I told you... Katsuo." Hibiki called out over his own lightning, and the sounds of war below. "You go after _any_ jinchuriki, and I'd _kill_ your ass!" His lightning cloak picked up in intensity, actually causing his hair to begin standing on end. "Now _where is she?!"_ He bolted forward and threw his fist forward in an appropriately lightning-fast jab.

Katsuo dropped out of the air to dodge the punch, and quickly darted back upwards to uppercut the Senju heir in his stomach. Even through the lightning cloak, Hibiki felt the strength behind Katsuo's meaty, leathery fist, and he was launched further up into the sky from the strength behind the blow. Hibiki threw both hands out and pulsed chakra to bleed off his momentum, and quickly was locked back into a punching match with Katsuo. Hibiki palmed away a brutal right from the Monster, and launched three quick crosses across Katsuo's face, before he bolted upwards and roundhoused the Monster in the head. Katsuo spun over lengthwise, but he took advantage of the reorientation and grabbed at Hibiki's feet. With his grip locked, as fast as he could Katsuo began flipping through the air, and when he reached G-force momentum he let go, hurtling the Senju heir towards the ground.

Hibiki was buried into one of Iwa's roads, right in the middle of a firefight. Three squads of clones were on one end of the road, with two squads of Iwa Jonin on the other, both advancing towards eachother. Hibiki wrenched himself out of the ground and dashed towards the Iwa Jonin at breakneck speeds, managing to bury his fist in the chest of one before he hopped into the air and snap-kicked a second, sending him flying back across the street.

It was here that Katsuo made his re-entrance and slammed into the ground with a large shower of debris. He didn't even let the rubble fall back to the ground before he charged the Senju heir. Hibiki frowned and channeled more chakra into the lightning cloak, and the world slowed down as his strength, speed, and perception were all increased by several multiples. Hibiki dashed forward and launched several cannon-strength punches into Katsuo's head, chest, and stomach, before he slammed both fists into the man's chest and sent him flying backwards.

With his enhanced speed, Hibiki snapped back behind Katsuo and slammed his fist downwards onto the monstrous sage's face, burying the back of his leathery head into the ground. The Senju heir's lightning cloak went from blue to onyx in a fraction of a second, and with his doubly augmented power, he began pounding on the Monster, the sheer strength in his arms blasting a crater several meters wide and burying them deeper and deeper with every subsequent punch. Hibiki roared loudly as he pummeled the monster, a twisted side of him _reveling_ as he saw blood leaking out of the undead man's nose, but before Hibiki could follow up or continue his attacks, Katsuo's eyes snapped open - _at his doubly augmented speed._

So fast that, to Hibiki, it was as if his speed and reflexes hadn't changed at all, Katsuo's hands flew up and caught both of Hibiki's. Barely a second later, the Monster's eyes glowed a vibrant green, and Hibiki was blasted in the chest with his senjutsu chakra, sending him hurtling upwards into the air. When the energy beams cut off, Katsuo rocketed upwards into the sky, one hand held forward like the hero he fashioned himself after. Hibiki had a fraction of a second to adapt to the new situation, he threw both hands forward and used Katsuo's extended fist as a springboard to flip off of, pushing himself out of Katsuo's reach. The Monster halted himself in mid-air and hairpin-turned back to the Senju, diving straight for him.

_Oh shit!_ Hibiki threw his arms up, he deflected one punch from the Monster and took another to the chest, rattling his doubly durable skeleton.

The Thunder God attempted to kick Katsuo in the side of the head, but the Monster blocked the foot with the back of his hand, and used his other to again punch the Senju in the chest. Hibiki had to use both hands to catch Katsuo's one fist and halt it just before it hit his chest, but with his hands occupied, Katsuo wrapped his free hand around Hibiki's leg and then wrenched him around to the side. As Hibiki tumbled through the air, Katsuo again blasted him with more senjutsu chakra - this one actually managing to burn Hibiki through his onyx lightning cloak. At hyper speed, Hibiki cursed loudly and pulsed his chakra to duck down underneath the column of energy.

The vibrant green beam shrank down and dissipated, and the world snapped back to normal speeds. Katsuo's cloak was just as vibrant as ever, and Hibiki's died down in intensity, as the former took in a deep breath. _"I will go home, John! You cannot stop me!"_

"God damn it, Katsuo!" Cursed the Senju, "_this is _your home! It was destroyed by the Sage of Six Paths, so give me Kushina - _you can't go back!"_ He roared back.

_"YOU LIE!"_ Katsuo screamed, before charging back in.

* * *

Say what one would, Hibiki Senju was _damn_ good at creating a distraction. Instead of sprinting about the Tsuchikage tower searching for two potential interlopers, the entirety of Iwagakure's shinobi forces were mobilizing outside, sticking to the bottom three floors, and leaving the upper floors - and, most importantly, the Kage's office - vacant. Well, mostly vacant, but the number of shinobi running about had been lost in a blur of blood, stabbing motions, and torn throats. He was too focused on moving as fast as he could to take into consideration his killcount - that came later.

Now, Minato Namikaze wasn't stupid enough to think that he could just waltz into the Tsuchikage's office, even if it had been left in a hurry. For the several minutes now, as the war raged outside, he had been slowly orbiting his way around the shadows of the office, finding and disarming any traps, and crumbling any fuinjutsu seals he found that would have given him trouble. It was only now, as the air shook and the building quaked from Hibiki's efforts outside, did Minato finally make it to the elderly Kage's desk.

_Okay... Come on, come on, come on..._ Thought the chunin, as he gingerly opened and rifled through the drawers. He found mission reports, classified documents, merchant reports, a few updates on the search for their missing four-tails jinchuriki, but nothing on any captives they had taken, or even anything regarding jinchruiki they had stolen. Nothing on Kushina. _Damn it!_ He ran his hand through his spiky blond hair, standing up straight, staring at the desk, as if it would give him the answers he craved. _Where do they keep their prisoners? Where's Iwa T&amp;I?_ He poured back through the desk, now searching for district maps, or anything that could help him.

The way Minato saw it, as he rifled through the desk, if they wanted something, information wise, from Kushina, that meant they would be keeping her either in T&amp;I - the only place capable of containing shinobi, and thus the most highly qualified prison for someone of Kushina's unique circumstances. Hibiki mentioned to him that even if Iwa didn't know, Katsuo _did,_ so Minato was searching for anything that mentioned someone of her description, or even just mention of a jinchuriki or new prisoners. If he could just find Torture and Interrogation, he could Hiraishin there and start searching - even if Kushina wasn't there, she would have _had_ to pass through there, and all Minato would have to do would be to leverage freedom for any of the prisoners there, and they'd tell him.

_Ha!_ Minato pulled out a map of the village, annotated by the Tsuchikage himself. Two areas of interest jumped out instantly, both orbiting the village. One was marked T&amp;I, but the other, simply 'Undead', with the Earth Daimyo's seal stamped next to it. Katsuo was supposed to be in close with the Daimyo, perhaps this was some sort of hideout or headquarters for him when he was in the village?

Now with a place to search, Minato vanished in a muted flash of bright yellow light.

* * *

_Okay... Ow._ Ringing ears, throbbing head, sore skeleton, in the aftermath of the explosion, Hibiki's entire body was sore.

The Senju clone coughed heavily, smoke and ash billowing out from his lungs as he lumbered up to his hands and knees. He looked around, seeing that his surroundings were choked by the smoke, dust, and rubble resulting from the aftermath of an enormous explosion. With his Sharingan, Hibiki was mostly able to pierce through this smoke screen, and through it he could see that he and his explosion release-using opponent had flattened at least a kilometer of Iwa's eastern sector. Hibiki's black shirt had been shredded to pieces by the explosion, revealing the spider web of fuinjutsu seals covering his chest, back, and arms, and as the smoke cleared, he saw, several meters away from him, the Iwa shinobi, charging fast.

The chunin was in a much better state than Hibiki, very likely due to a much greater mastery of his bloodline - and given the fact that his clothes were still mostly unsinged, Hibiki didn't think it at all impossible that the man had mastered it so well that he'd figured out how to protect himself from its effects. The Senju heir coughed again and lumbered to his feet, but the shinobi reached him too fast, and buried his foot into Hibiki's stomach. It was here that Hibiki felt a load of foreign chakra invade his system, and in the time it took him to blink, that chakra detonated, and Hibiki was sent flying back into the smokescreen.

_"My name is Don Shiro!"_ The shinobi bellowed, _"of Iwagakure's Gelignite bloodline!"_ Hibiki landed on the ground, his eyes wide as he saw his chest gaping open and bleeding profusely, his organs barely protected by his blackened ribcage.

_That's new!_ Hibiki hadn't even considered that one could shoot explosive chakra into an enemy shinobi and blow them up from the inside out. Chakra injection was Hyuga crap!

_"And you are not welcome here!"_ Don appeared in front of Hibiki again, but at least now the Senju heir was ready for him.

Hibiki batted aside the sandy-haired Gelignite's foot with the back of his hand, and as his chest healed, Hibiki smashed his palm into Don's chest with a burst of chakra out of his elbow, resulting in a rocket-powered palm strike. Don stumbled backwards, as Hibiki's smouldering chest sealed itself back up, and the Senju clone scrambled back to his feet. Don regained his footing and lunged forward, Hibiki dodged two lightning-fast punches and ducked under a wide roundhouse, before he sent three rapid-fire, back-and-forth punches to Don's chest. Hibiki's combo ended with a right cross to Don's head, sending the Gelignite shinobi's head into Hibiki's waiting left hand; the Senju clone locked his hand to Don's head and tried forcing his explosive chakra inside it, intent upon blowing Don's head off and ending the fight quickly, but Don offered up a resistance Hibiki hadn't expected.

The Gelignite somehow _pushed_ the foreign explosive chakra back out of his system, nullifying it in the process and stunning Hibiki just long enough for Don to uppercut Hibiki in the jaw. Another explosion shredded Hibiki's raw upper chest and the underside of his jaw, and sent him flipping end over end as he flew backwards. Now leaking streams of blood from his jaw, Hibiki backpedalled out of range of three more jabs and a front kick from Don. Don lunged forward and tried to breech the Senju's defenses with a straight right punch accelerated by chakra detonated from his elbow, but the Senju heir twisted to the side and caught the arm, before throwing Don over his shoulder and burying him into the charred concrete.

The multiple explosions from Don created enough small shockwaves to clear their immediate area of the thick ash cloud, but they were still surrounded by smoke and ash, darkening their battlefield to an almost pitch black level. Hibiki, as his jaw and chest sealed themselves up again and the fuinjutsu on the latter reformed as if it had never been gone, reared his fist and pounded it repeatedly on Don's face. Three punches to Don's nose, one of which broke it in two, and then two more to his cheek before Don gathered the energy and the wherewithall to throw his hands up and block the incoming blows. After a moment to regain his bearings, Don attempted to catch one of Hibiki's fists and detonate it as he had done his chest and jaw, but Hibiki predicted what he would do the moment his blood red eyes perceived the Gelignite's fists turning around and snapping open.

The Konoha chunin leapt backwards and skidded to a halt, his boots digging up small gray grooves in the ash settling on the scorched concrete road. Don was on his feet in a second and charging again, forcing Hibiki to sprint right back into the fray. They each met mid-way across the street, their fists collided with eachother, and the dual explosive detonation created a shockwave of such degree that the ash and smoke choking the air parted before them, briefly creating a zone of open air at the center of the billowing cloud of smoke and ash. Don found himself briefly bathed in sunlight, as the distant fiery orb passed between two shifting clouds, and Hibiki found himself stuck in the gray, ashen monochrome of his battlefield: Iwa.

_"Do you know what you did, Senju!?"_ Don snarled, his arm shaking as he poured all of his energy into trying to beat Hibiki in this contest of strength.

"Who the _fuck_ are you?" Even knowing this guy's name didn't help jog the Senju's memory, "and aside from assaulting your village, what did I ever do to you?"

_"You kami-damned killed her!"_ Don pulled his fist back, causing the Senju heir to stumble forward and into the Gelignite's free hand, which slammed into his gut.

The Senju heir croaked, and Don roundhoused him in the face, sending him flying into the ruins of a nearby building, crashing onto the ground and causing whatever still stood to collapse upon him, burying him in its flaming ruins.

_"Who?"_ Hibiki felt the paltry amount of chakra that had been sent to him from the Alpha was running out, his wounds were healing slower; it was time to play a card.

_"Emi!"_ Don roared out, as he stalked over to the Senju heir. "You beat her and then she _vanished!"_ His voice grew closer through the choking black ash cloud, and as Hibiki pushed the support beams and the burning ruins off of his body, Don shouted again. _"It was _your fault!_ You and your _damned_ team's! You assholes made her reveal her status, and then someone came and snatched her up!"_

_Well... Shit._ If that were true, that meant Katsuo already had one jinchuriki, at least. It wasn't a pleasant thought, especially as it made the Senju heir consider that perhaps Katsuo _wasn't_ inactive these last few years, and that maybe he had been gathering up jinchruiki during this interim. Not a good outcome, because that meant Kushina wasn't the first, but the last, and that if Hibiki didn't win this day, he'd _lose_ this war. _Alright... Time to shake things up.  
_

Hibiki lumbered to his feet, shaking his head. "Okay... You know what? I think I _do_ remember you." It was coming back to him, as he hunched over and clasped his bleeding, burned abdomen with his right hand, positioned right above a large black seal. "Sparky sparky boom lad! Yeah!" Hibiki lifted his head, his raven hair splaying over his hitai-ate and partially obscuring his sweaty face. "You're the _only guy_ so far that I didn't need to open the eight gates, or pop a curse seal to defeat!" He challenged, boldly, his wide red eyes and his large, bloody grin clashing with Don's livid scowl. "Okay, Don." He said, with a light nod. "Tell you what. You've given _me_ ideas, and a taste of how you've grown... So let me respond in kind." He patted his abdomen, as the sounds of gunfire dotted the distance, and he got a large burst of memories, as dozens of clones were taken out within seconds of eachother.

"See this seal? It took a while to develop. It's a storage seal, but it's not like the others. If you want to, you could view it as a... _Ninth_ gate." That caught Don's attention, the sandy-haired genin took a step back, as the hand clasping his abdomen glowed with chakra. "Now, the science and the research and development would bore and confuse you... So I'll put it simply. This seal stores chakra away, for situations exactly like this - when shadow clone soldiers, meant only to use their guns, need to get a field promotion to shadow clone _fighters."_ Hibiki twisted the hand clockwise, and the seal instantly lit up, glowing a bright red-orange for a brief second, before chakra exploded outwards and then enveloped Hibiki in a great aura. It built for two seconds, before the seal ran out of chakra and then crumbled to dust.

Don could _sense_ the difference it made, and could physically see it as well, as Hibiki's burns and injuries instantly began to vanish before his eyes.

"Ahh..." The Senju clone groaned, and stood up straight, his shoulders squared. "See, I figured one day that sending in an army of clones with no chakra would eventually bite me in the ass, if I didn't have enough time to make another one to open a few gates, dispel, and then send the chakra their way. So, I made this seal - and conveniently enough, it helps out with my chakra training too. Every night I drain it like a bucket of water, and to fill itself back up, it has to take what I'm generating during my sleeping hours. I do this day in and day out, and it _doubles_ the rate my chakra stores grow." He lifted both of his hands to his sides, in a 'come at me!' fashion. "Do this for three years, and you would be fucking _amazed_ at how much goddamn chakra I have at my disposal now." With two fingers, he pointed firmly at the village beyond the two of them, "and _every one of those clones_ has this same seal!" He lowered his hand, now pointing at Don. "So you want to piss me off, tough guy? You want to help with the guy that abducts my friends?!" The Senju roared, as the Gelignite's expression of fear turned to one of determination, and his backpedaling stance turned to one of defense. "You want to go to war against _me?!"_ Lightning began cackling and flaring around the Senju heir, whose red eyes flashed brilliantly with the influx of chakra. _"THEN COME ON!"_ He surged forward with a crack of lightning and a brief shockwave.

* * *

"Tsuchikage-sama, we found him!" The voice seemed to appear before the speaker did, but if it startled or set off the stout Kage, he didn't show it.

Instead, the Tsuchikage's head snapped to the Anbu agent who arrived to his right with a small pop. "Tell me."

"As do many of Katsuo-sama's allies, the Senju has Swift Release chakra, and he's set up multiple clones with large chakra stores to create constant streams of reinforcements for his firearm users." The Anbu explained, "this was done to confuse and throw off any trackers or sensor-nin. But despite his attempts to mask his chakra, the true Senju wasn't able to completely hide the small bursts of chakra he gets when his clones dispel. I simply had to track down the one who had the _most_ chakra, and got the most consistent boosts. He was hiding himself as one of the shooters in the mountains -" As he spoke, another bullet slammed into the barrier surrounding the two of them, evaporating on contact. "Given his position, I believe him to be the one that has been testing Yui-sama's barrier seals." Another bullet, "constantly."

The Tsuchikage nodded once, firmly, a deep scowl settling on his face, as he about-faced and looked up into the mountain. Another two bullets buried into his barrier, as if in greeting, before being followed a brief moment later by two distant thunderclaps. It took only a minute amount of chakra, focused into his eyes, to be able to see so far, so clearly. The Senju was resting behind his massive firearm, much sleeker and boxier than the ones Katsuo had provided, confirming to the Tsuchikage that the Senju's Bingo Book name came of his own accord, and not from stolen arms from the Monstrous Sage.

"Run to the army." He made sure to speak clearly, in case the Senju was reading his lips. "Tell them that it is dawnbreak."

"Understood, Tsuchikage-sama." Said the masked Anbu, as the stout kage saw the distant Senju seal up his rifle in a cloud of smoke, and give him a lazy, arrogant two fingered salute, and then, after a brief pause, lifted both hands and waved his fingers in a 'come here' fashion.

This arrogant gaki thought he was strong enough to destroy a hidden village. This arrogant gaki thought his S-rank in the bingo book actually elevated him to the level of his mother and her squad. This arrogant gaki thought he was strong enough to defeat the only living kage to have fought and survived against Madara Uchiha. This arrogant gaki thought he could _win!_

With his teeth bared, the third Tsuchikage clasped both hands, and then splayed them out wide. A basketball sized clear orb of chakra expanded in the space between them, and he threw it forward with a livid bellow. The distant Thunder God arced an eyebrow, and vanished, when the Dust Release technique reached the mountain, the entire thing vanished as it was torn apart on a molecular level. The Tsuchikage heard the sound of a zipper being drawn, and of boots scraping against the ground.

"Damn!" Said a teenage voice, with a light crack, the Tsuchikage angrily, slowly turned his head to his right, seeing the Senju standing there, two feet taller than him, both hands in his pockets, an impressed expression on his face as he stared at the space where a mountain had once been. "Please tell me that's a bloodline. I think it's a bloodline." He turned his head to his left, looking down upon the Tsuchikage. "I'll figure out anyways, saw how your chakra flowed when you did it... And you've been doing it a lot to the grunts, down there." He nodded over his shoulder, to the gun fights happening below the two. "But if you could just expedite the process a bit, I'd appreciate it." He drawled. "Oh, and tell me where you put the Kyuubi Jinchuriki. I swear to god I will literally leave right now if you just do that." He said, turning to face the Tsuchikage completely. "It's Onoki, right?"

The Tsuchikage raised his small, meaty hand and gripped his kage hat, before slowly removing it from his balding head. "No." He growled, slowly lowering it below his eyes. "It's _TSUCHIKAGE!"_ He bolted forward, the strength of his leap actually tearing apart the front curve of his tower, exposing its top three floors.


	58. Abduction: Boom -VI-

Chapter 57

* * *

Given the sheer amount of chaos Hibiki was causing, Minato had, perhaps rightfully so, predicted that any and all available shinobi assets would be dedicated to fighting him or evacuating the civilians. One could, therefor, imagine the bloodstained shinobi's surprise when he saw three Jonin guarding the T&amp;I building. They weren't standing out in the open, but Minato had been exposed to Jiraiya-sensei perving in the hotsprings enough to be able to catch the minor details that came with transparency techniques, of which all three Iwa shinobi were using.

Crouched beneath a closed window inside an abandoned building half of a kilometer away from the low-built T&amp;I building, Minato slid to his rear, thinking his options through, as he swallowed through a dry throat. There hadn't been a lot of fighting in this part of the village, which meant there weren't a lot of Hiraishin bullets to give him the maneuverability advantage, and since the Jonin were invisible, the shooters Hibiki had in the mountains were too far away - even with their telescopes and their sharingan eyes - to see and deal with them. This meant that the odds were all stacked against the blond blur, and that was before considering that, given how long they had to have been keeping this technique going, they _had_ to be Jonin-level shinobi, meaning they were more skilled than he was, fighting on their home turf, and probably even armed with a few guns of their own. He, by contrast, was one fifteen year old chunin, halfway through his chakra reserves, his strongest technique one that he hadn't yet mastered, and technically wasn't even a combat technique to begin with.

_However..._ Thought the chunin, as he crouched low, and barely peeked his head over the window, to look down at the three Jonin, who were still as statues. _I'm fast... And I've got the jump on them._ He swallowed again through his dry throat. Perhaps, if he were fast enough, he could fire down at the jonin and drop a few Hiraishin bullets close to them. Then he could jump in and, while they were scrambling to get out of the way, he could use his speed and the seals he'd spread about to keep them off their balance, maybe even kill one or two before they had a chance to react.

Minato nodded, and reached up to tighten his hitai-ate. It was a good plan, it played to his strengths, and left room to improvise. So, with a determined expression, Minato drew the gleaming metal revolver from within his flak jacket. The 'machine', Hibiki called it, weighed heavy in his hand, heavier than it usually was, with the projectiles loaded in, but still manageable. The blond blur's hand clasped around the wooden grip, and his finger hovered over the trigger, before he remembered his Senju friend's words, and took it off of the trigger since he wasn't ready to fire.

His heart hammering in his chest, Minato again peered over the window, and pressed the gun against the glass with a light clink. He looked down the barrel, pointed right at the door to T&amp;I. He had six shots, and he wanted to keep one for each of them, in case of emergencies. So, before he let go, he tapped his hand on the ground, and with a significant burst of chakra, his Hiraishin seal spread out from his fingertips and covered the floor below the window. After that, he took in two quick breaths, pulled back the hammer on the pistol, and clenched his jaw.

_Just point... Aim... Pull._ Recalled the blond blur, as he did just that.

With a deafening clap of thunder and a bright flash of yellow-white light, the window exploded in a shower of glass, and barely a second later he sensed a new Hiraishin seal appear. His wrist flared into pain due to an improper stance and grip, but he was able to control it enough to adapt for the second and third shots. The Shinobi instantly dropped their genjutsu when they heard the first thunderclap, and dived for cover, Minato fired twice more and then, with a kunai in his off hand, vanished in a bright yellow flash. With no delay, Minato appeared just above the door, and with his great reflexes, he instantly deduced his location and took into account the locations of his three opponents. Two were to his left and right, and one was to his center, all in front of him. Minato frowned and threw his kunai at the skull of the shinobi to his left, before he pointed, aimed, and pulled at the shinobi to his right. They both fell, and the shinobi to his center whirled around, his hands blurring through handsigns.

With a yelp, Minato used the Hiraishin to swap out his and one of the corpse's positions, similar to the substitution technique, but much quicker, and not requiring an injury or a handsign on his end. The Jonin's stone bullet crushed the corpse that had once been Minato, and the yellow flash and sudden appearance of his dead comrade confused the Jonin for a moment, before all of his senses told him to dive backwards. Minato's next kunai dragged over the Jonin's thigh, but before the Iwa shinobi could attack again, Minato jumped out of the way with another yellow flash. Minato jumped everywhere the four seals were, filling the air with brief flashes of brilliant yellow light and throwing the Jonin off balance until finally Minato stopped and buried a knife into the Jonin's throat.

Minato felt the warm red blood wash over his hand and heard the wide-eyed, pale-skinned Jonin gurgle, as the clouds above began glowing a bright green. Minato ripped the knife out and let the shinobi fall to the ground, dying. The blonde blur took only a moment to take in the corpse he had made, far too much adrenaline and stimulants from soldier-pills running through his system to try and make up any accurate count, before he shook his head and stuffed the gun back into his flak jacket. He stormed inside the T&amp;I building, a low-built, square construct of stone and concrete. He moved as fast and as quietly as he could through the dark, warm, candle-lit place. Some of his thoughts lingered outside, on how quickly he had gotten through killing three J_onin_, but not everyone was as tough to kill as Hibiki, and with enough speed and surprise, it wasn't difficult to kill _anyone,_ Jonin included.

_Besides..._ He thought, as he carefully rounded a corner after ensuring no one was waiting for him down the cramped corridor. _Hibiki drags out a lot of his fights by necessity... I can't think of any examples of him actually going for broke right out of the gate._ Well, save for one, but the Earth Daimyo's capitol wasn't really an example of a fight, was it?

Regardless of the thoughts he absolutely wasn't thinking to keep his mind off of three more kills on this emergency mission, Minato soon found himself standing next to a staircase. He carefully descended deeper into T&amp;I, all of his senses on edge, ready to jump to a Hiraishin seal at a moment's notice. It took him several minutes to reach the bottom, where there was a large corridor lined with interrogation rooms and jail cells. All of them were surprisingly empty, causing Minato to quickly check if he was caught under a genjutsu, but when he confirmed he wasn't, he sneaked down to the end of the corridor, where he found a door with a thick, complicated seal keeping it barred shut.

_Well... This is probably the place._ Looking at the seal, Minato saw that it was more meant to trigger if someone was trying to go from the inside out, and had no defenses for someone from the outside going in.

So, with only the slightest amount of hesitance, Minato backed up, and drove his shoulder into the door. With a burst of chakra, the metal door flew off of one of its hinges and swung inwards, allowing Minato entry, at the cost of a swelling shoulder. Inside, however, wasn't what he hoped he would find, but simultaneously was something he couldn't believe what he was seeing.

Lit by a single, solitary candle, and hanging by her hands from chains attached to the ceiling, was a teenage woman with thin, unhealthy, oily hair that, if she had been properly fed, likely would have been bleach-white, or maybe even a very pale blond. Her skin was paler than some of the Kaguya Minato had seen running around, but it was her body that drew his attention. Her legs were covered in prisoner's rags, and her feet barely dragged against the ground, both of them were covered in dried blood. He upper body and chest, however, were bare - no clothes covering her pale, bruised breasts, no bandages for the open wounds, and there was some sort of grotesque, mottled seal adorning her stomach that may have been elegant and functional at one point, but was right now damaged almost to the point of destruction. How it was still working on the tortured, half-nude girl, Minato had no idea, but whoever had created it must have predicted an eventuality that included someone actually expanding the seal and trying to forcefully take it apart, piece by piece, to break into it. The thing was a trooper, he'd give it that, but what had he walked in on? His mind said she was just a prisoner being tortured, but his gut said something more.

Then the ground shook violently underneath his feet, and when his head snapped up to the ceiling as dust fell from it, the quakes seemed to jar the girl awake. He heard the light rattling of chains, and out of the corner of his eye he saw her head laboriously raise itself. Her pale gray eyes locked onto Minato's deep blue orbs, and briefly looked upwards, to his hitai-ate. A flash of something, perhaps recognition, went through her gray orbs, and she said only two words, in a tortured, raspy voice.

_"Senju..."_

Minato's head snapped down to the tortured teen, he took one step back on instinct. "Uh -"

Her eyes laboriously raised just that fraction of an inch, to again look at Minato's hitai-ate, and even that seemed to take all of the energy she had, as her head fell back to the ground. _"You... Konoha."_ Minato saw her throat twitch up and down, as if she were swallowing something. _"Take me... To Senju..."_

"Why... Do you want to speak to Hibiki?" Trusting as he was, Minato was also a shinobi, and he wasn't nearly naiive enough to just take this woman up on her offer - especially since it was likely this could be some sort of elaborate trap.

_"There is... I..."_ She rasped, her chains lightly clinking about from the slight movements. _"I know... Why you're here."_ She said, after swallowing through her dry throat again.

Minato looked the tortured soul up and down, before biting the proverbial bullet. "You know where Kushina is?"

But the not-even-twenty year old shook her head. _"There's... No one else."_ She said, her voice barely able to go above a whisper.

Minato felt his heart slow down, "what are you saying?" He asked, his face paling as he already began reaching conclusions.

_"Oh... Would you look at that?"_ Came a new voice, much higher pitched and feminine than the tortured voice before him.

Minato snapped around, taking two large steps back, just as the tortured jinchuriki's head snapped up in fear, and she swung lightly back and forth on her chains. Before them stood a statuesque woman with features so large that Minato felt for a moment that Hibiki's mother would have been jealous. Hell, _anyone,_ even some men, would be jealous seeing the sheer size of this blood-red haired woman's gravity-defying features. She had affixed around her shapely body a kimono as deeply red as her hair, and her two large, onyx eyes bore holes into Minato's own blue orbs. As bad as it sounded, it was her general shape and exaggerated features that jogged the Namikaze's memories more than anything else, because while they had met once before, the lighting had been so awful that she had been cast in deep, featureless shadows.

This was the woman Hibiki called the Viper, the woman who spat acid and had taken an inhuman amount of projectiles from Hibiki's thunder technique and survived; and if the look of sheer terror in the eyes of the albino torture recipient was any indication, it was also the woman who had been responsible for the injuries and mottled sealwork of the room's previously sole occupant. Minato swallowed thickly, not taking his eyes off of the Viper. _Run_ had been Hibiki's words, don't try to fight, just _run_ as far and as fast as he could.

Minato wasn't a bad sensor but he, like anyone, could feel killing intent, and the amount of killing intent gushing out of this woman was enough to lower the temperature in the room by ten degrees, and even cause some of the puddles of blood to thicken up. Minato had grown in power by leaps and bounds since that night in Iwa, but the fact still stood that he had few combat techniques that were ranked high enough to do damage to this woman, and Hibiki's gun had already been proven to be useless against her. Pride be damned, he knew he had to run - and with the Hiraishin, he knew he _could,_ and the woman wouldn't even be able to follow. The problem, however, was the jinchuriki to his back - she was a source of information, one he couldn't afford to lose, she knew where Kushina was. If he left her behind, they would lose any chance they had at finding her quickly.

_"It seems like the blonde brat is all grown up."_ Minato didn't understand a word the woman said, but the tone she used was similar to that a mother would use when babying their child, and combined with her low, womanly voice, it only served to set Minato's nerves on edge. He took another step back, now just out of arm's reach of the tortured jinhcuriki, and the Viper took a step forward. _"Oh... Wait..."_ She cleared her throat, "is this better?" She asked, causing Minato's ear to twitch as he recognized the Common Tongue.

The ground shook again, almost as if someone were tearing chunks out of it. Minato didn't flinch, his mind solely focused on his need for just another minute, so he could take one more step back, and take the jinchuriki along with him. "Who... Where is Kushina?" Minato demanded, his voice as deep and confident as he could make it, despite how outclassed he knew he was. Chief on his list when he got home would be creating some sort of combat technique, adaptable to situations like this, and hopefully usable with his Hiraishin.

The Viper smiled, her smooth face hardly even wrinkling as she took another step forward. "Now... Why would we focus on other women when you've already two in one room?" She asked smoothly, her wide smile melting into a confident one-sided grin, and her hazel eyes remaining as wide as they had been when she'd entered the room.

Minato frowned, "where is she?"

_"She's not -"_ But before the Jinchuriki could even finish croaking, the Viper spat out a small dollop of a viscuous, green substance, which shot out of her mouth as fast as a kunai, sailed over Minato's shoulder, and smacked the Jinchuriki's cheek, instantly filling the room with the sound of sizzling skin and the smell of acid.

"I thought I told you that you would speak when I told you to!" The Viper bellowed.

Minato, however, took that distraction as all the signal he needed. He lunched backwards on one foot, his right hand splayed outwards. The Viper's head snapped to him, craned forward almost unnaturally as more of the acidic substance built in her mouth, but before Minato could blink, she vanished, and then reappeared behind him with the sound of a zipper. He felt a hand plant itself on his back and push him forward, sending him stumbling back towards the stairwell and spinning on his feet.

_"Such a fascinating design..."_ The Viper had somehow not only gotten behind him, but had stolen his gun from his flak jacket and was now admiring it, holding it above her head, curling her long, dainty fingers around the steel barrel and slowly dragging them downwards. "I must say... If your friend hadn't shown it to me so many years ago, I wouldn't have recognized it, it is so different from Katsuo's." Quick as a flash, she dropped the grip of an inspector, and now had it properly gripped in her thin hand, pointed right at Minato. "The ones made by his design, and by Earth Country's factories are so... Rough, and unpolished." She licked her lips, the sight making Minato's skin crawl, as he slowly got to his feet, a plan formulating in his head. "But this one, you can tell the difference in the craftsman. This one is so... Smooth, so... Heavy." Her grin became wider, and for the first time in their meeting, she blinked. "_Long."_ She drawled.

"Stop that!" Minato didn't consider himself a prude, but _damn,_ was she trying to make him think he was!

"Oh... I thought modern men enjoyed these kinds of things. Tell me, do you know what life was like for me? Living in caves, scavenging for hardly enough to fill one stomach, let alone four. _Hairy... Dirty."_ She shivered, "imagine my surprise when one night I went to bed hungrier than ever... And the next morning I woke up in a terrifying place. Unnaturally straight and angular surfaces... Stones so smooth, but with no rivers to smooth them. The smell of fruits, but only burning wax to show for them." What the hell was this woman on about?

As a matter of fact, Minato didn't _care_ what the crazy woman was talking about. The one thing she had no possible idea about was that there were still two or three Hiraishin bullets in that gun, and with but a thought, Minato vanished in a bright yellow flash. In an instant he appeared to the gun's right, in between the woman and the Jinchuriki. Minato wrenched the gun out of the woman's hand and grasped the Jinchuriki's leg, but before he could vanish in another yellow flash, the Viper latched her hand onto his shoulder.

An instant later, the three of them were outside the village, on a distant mountain, just in time for Minato to see an enormous pillar of earth, jutting out of the ground in the village, begin dropping downwards, as if being slurped up by the ground. Before Minato could blink, the Viper had him by the throat, held aloft in the air as if he weren't a several dozen kilogram shinobi, in a heavy flak jacket. Minato dug the gun into the woman's ample chest, but in the brief moment it took him to pull the trigger and for the hammer to fall forward, the woman's skin turned jet black and began reflecting the green clouds above her with a metallic sheen. Two bullets slammed into her chest and rebounded with the sound of metal striking metal, and after Minato's gun clicked on empty, the sound of metal ringing from a large impact was left in the air.

"Aw... Did the widdle boy hope he could kill me with his _big_ gun?" The steel-skinned Viper smiled maliciously.

Minato, however, shook his head and croaked out, "nope." And a second later, the Thunder God himself appeared, burying his foot into the side of the woman's head.

The Viper was sent flying away, back towards the village, as the Senju heir landed on the ground and skidded forward a few feet, his boots carving small grooves in the dirt settled on the ridge of the mountain. "My _god_ that woman had the biggest tits I've ever seen!" He said, without any hesitation, as he shook his throbbing foot, "and what the fuck was her skin made out of? Metal!?"

Minato stowed his gun away, shaking his head, "go to the second spot, she'll be back when she lands."

"Got it." And the three vanished again, one in a pale white contrail, two in a bright yellow flash.

They reappeared in a cramped cave, in which none of the green light cast from the clouds reached them. The only light came from the dull green glow from the mouth of the cave, some four meters away from them. Minato turned to Hibiki, who had one hand in his pockets, the other one pointing at the slowly recovering albino Jinchuriiki.

"I know you. Aren't you Emi Miu?" He looked to Minato, as a gun appeared in his hand in a small plume of smoke. "Why'd you bring her?" He turned his gaze back to her, "what the hell did you do to her? Where's her shirt?" There was a pause, before he shook his head and, with a bamboozled expression, ran his hand through his hair. "I've seen far more pairs of bountiful breasts today than I'd expected." While Emi's were certainly not as head-sized as the Viper's, they weren't anything to shy away from, either. "Please don't tell Dai. I like my penis where it is."

Ignoring Hibiki's joke, Minato shook his head, "I don't think she's hostile." To prove his point, Emi, leaned against the damp wall of the cave, curled up in the feetle position, her legs pressed against her bare chest, a distant look on her face as she stared off into space. "I think she knows where Kushina is." He added, after that brief, silent pause.

To his credit, Hibiki resealed his gun with a flourish and a plume of smoke, as the sight of the once powerful Jinchuriki being reduced to what he could only describe as broken, settled in. He crouched down to one knee, one hand draped over it, his bright red eyes glowing with a concerned light as he looked over the Jinchuriki. "Emi..." He said, his voice low and rumbly. "What did he do to you?"

The once proud genin shook her head, and buried it in the crook of her arms.

Hibiki allowed her a moment of silence, before he pressed. "Emi... I need to know where the Kyuubi Jinchuriki is. That's all. My friend and I will leave the village, with her, if you tell us. All of the fighting will stop - I'll take you with me, if you want. Take you away from _him_." He stressed the last word, knowing that she wouldn't even need him to say a name, she was likely very acquainted already.

Emi just breathed, audibly, for several seconds. As Hibiki drew in breath to speak again, her head slowly raised above her knees, her pale gray eyes locking onto Hibiki's blood red orbs. "He wants to talk to you."

Hibiki blinked, "who?" He asked.

"Yonbi." Whispered Emi, as her eyes morphed into their pale orange and white state.

In an instant, Hibiki's world shifted and lurched underneath his feet.

* * *

Hibiki stood, with Don Shiro held high in the air by his throat, his legs kicking uselessly as the Senju heir kept him aloft, his lightning cloak providing a gentle electric shock whenever the Gelignite's struggles became too much.

"Seriously, Shiro. I wish I could say I expected better than ten seconds, but..." Hibiki cocked his head and shrugged a shoulder. "But since you're hanging around, maybe you can tell me where they took Konoha's jinchuriki. Make this whole process easier?"

Don just glared at Hibiki, croaking through a partially crushed throat. He tried forcing some explosive chakra into the Senju clone, but it had the same effect now as it had had the last two times he had tried, which is to say, none at all.

The Senju clone rolled his eyes, "come on. Do you know what covalent bonds are? Never mind. They're bonds created by sharing electrons." He got a bank look from Don, "electricity. Lightning. Right now, my body is over-saturated with lightning chakra, which means there's an _abundance_ of electrons flowing through it. So that means my body not only has an ungodly amount of covalent bonds _due_ to said electrons, but those bonds are also _much stronger._.. And since it's my whole body benefiting from this, that means it takes a whole _hell_ of a lot more force to make me feel the effects of things like shock, or - well, force..." He tightened his hand around Don's neck, "ergo... It would take a _lot more_ than what you've _got_ to hurt me. So _please,_ just make my job easier. Where in the god damn hell did you put Konoha's jinchuriki?" He said, letting go of the Gelignite and then punching him in the gut before he could even fall an inch.

Don hurtled through the clearing air and skipped twice off of the ground, before he came to a halt by slamming into the door of a still standing house. His partially blackened vision began to clear up as oxygen again began to flow properly, but he still coughed and sputtered as he slowly got to his feet, one hand leaning heavily on the door. He wiped some blood from his lips and glared at the Konoha chunin, angry that the boy he had once been equals with was now _so far_ beyond him. Angry that this was just a shadow clone he was having such a hard time with. Angry that the damned thing was _holding back._ Angry that his village was being burned to the ground around him, and nothing he did mattered!

The Gelignite let out a bellow of rage and thrust his hand forward, before he sent bolt after bolt of explosive chakra downrange, each one detonating with the force of a thousand - no! _Ten thousand! -_ explosive tags, each one enough to kill a _squad_ of jonin! Each one as powerful as he could make it! But each one was tanked by the seal-covered, lightning cloaked Senju clone! The only damage they did was to his damned clothes! It was only upon discovering that he was actually _nude_ now, did he finally stop his slow, predatorial advance.

"Hm..." Grunted the Senju clone, as he looked down and inspected himself. Before Don could even blink, the Senju heir was clothed again in his black shirt, tan cargo pants, and black boots, a small, unfurled scroll in his right hand, which he soon threw over his shoulder. "There we go." He turned his gaze upwards, "figured out about a year ago that, until I fix the whole clothes-durability problem, keeping a spare on me would be a good idea."

_Was he even taking this seriously?!_

"Alright. This is seriously your last chance." Exasperatedly said the Senju heir, "because I'm getting tired of repeating myself. _Where does Katsuo keep the jinchuriki?!"_

But, as Hibiki predicted, the man had his orders, and a healthy amount of spite and rage to back them up. _"FUCK YOU!"_

Hibiki sighed, placed his hands on his hips, and shook his head. "Alright, I warned you." But before he could even crouch down into a sprinter's stance, the sky exploded, causing the clone and the Gelignite alike to turn their gazes upwards.

* * *

The force of impact from Onoki's rock-covered fist on Hibiki's crossed arms sent the Senju heir sliding back across the roof, right to its edge and almost over it. Before Hibiki could even blink, and accentuated by the distant flashes and thunderclaps of medieval cannons being lit off and parts of the village exploding, Onoki drew back the fist and it grew to be three times its size and mass as more earth appeared out of thin air and covered it. Onoki spun around in mid-air and backhanded the Senju heir, sending the arrogant child spinning through the air.

With a gaze that could have frozen small children, and enough killing intent to peel walls, Onoki thrust his hand forward and used his other to stabilize it. Aimed right at the airborne Senju heir, the Tsuchikage's rock-entombed fist began shattering to pieces, with spikes of densified, super-sharp stone flying through the air, straight towards the one-man invading army. Hibiki recovered just in time to take two rock spikes, one to the chest and another to the leg, but he dodged the rest by pulsing his chakra and soaring back to the Tsuchikage, arcing above his initial volley of earth bullets, and then dodging the rest as he grew closer and closer.

Onoki caught Hibiki's straight right and threw the boy over his head, burying him into the already partially destroyed roof, before he slammed his fist onto the Senju's throat. Hibiki was sent crashing through the Tsuchikage's tower, making it through six floors before he finally had bled off enough force and momentum to be unable to crash through the seventh one. Hibiki's eyes snapped open, just in time to behold Onoki, with his massive, earth covered fist reared behind his head, hurtling through the holes in the floors the taller shinobi had made.

_"YOU WILL LEAVE MY VILLAGE!"_ He roared, as Hibiki rolled out of the way.

Somehow, despite his speed and mass, Onoki managed to land gingerly, and transfer all of that downwards momentum to the side, where he slammed his superdense fist into Hibiki's chest, blasting him through multiple walls and out of the building, where Hibiki bled off a lot of his momentum and was left floating in mid-air as his chakra thrusters caught and suspended him, but in that brief moment he spent to turn back to the building, he was slammed into from below, by a circular slab of ground raising into the sky. Onoki launched himself back upwards through the tower and when he made it back outside, he cut off chakra to his Moving Earth Core technique, and instead poured it into multiple instances of the Earth Clone technique. The sudden stop of the rising pillar of earth sent Hibiki a few feet into the air, and by the time he reached his apex, five Tsuchikage clones burst out from the pillar. The one closest to him slammed its fist into the side of his head, sending him careening into the range of the next Tsuchikage, which round-housed him into the next. This veritable ping-pong game lasted for several seconds, the Onoki clones punching and kicking the Senju heir between them before one finally uppercutted him high into the air. The true Onoki launched into the sky, followed soon after by his five clones. Before Onoki could make it to him, however, the arrogant, heavily bruised and bleeding Senju seemed to finally reach the conclusion that this wasn't an opponent to be trifled with, and in an instant had his Lightning Cloak cackling.

Onoki, however, scoffed, and wrapped his earth-covered fist around Hibiki's head. _"Do you think me a fool, boy!?"_ He demanded of the Senju, staring into the one visible eye from the space between his thumb and forefinger. _"I've encountered this technique before - AND I KNOW HOW TO COUNTER IT!"  
_

If asked, Hibiki would be completely unable to do the feeling coursing through his body justice. It felt as if his weight was being stolen away, stored somewhere else. Onoki's use of the Light Weight Rock technique tore away at Hibiki's relative mass, leaving his once veritably indestructible body a fraction of what it once had been, and giving him all the openings he needed to slam his fist into Hibiki's chest. Hibiki's decreased mass, combined with the increased mass and density of the Tsuchikage's earth-covered fist meant that the force of his impact didn't just penetrate the Senju's lightning cloak, but it disrupted it entirely - breaking several of the Senju heir's previously superdense, indestructible ribs. Once he lost physical contact with Onoki, his mass snapped back and, combined with the force of the impact, he was sent hurtling back down towards the ground faster than a bullet, where he was instantly surrounded by the four earth clones, all of which had their hands extended, and into a slightly opaque cube of chakra, the size of a small truck.

Hibiki, however, was able to see the cube clearly with his Sharingan, and he remembered what happened next from the information he had gotten from his clones, and Onoki's mountain destruction. With a deep frown, the moment Hibiki's hand touched the ground, he channeled Swift Chakra for a brief moment, and was able to vault away from the Dust Release technique. The clones crumbled to dirt as they ran out of chakra, and Hibiki spun to his feet, back-handing away Onoki's next earth-covered punch and responding with one of his own. He buried his fist into Onoki's chest, which itself was just barely one and a half times the size of the fist that hit it. Onoki, however, then demonstrated his ability not only to manipulate the mass and density of other objects, but himself as well. Onoki had changed his relative mass and density enough such that it was as if Hibiki were trying to punch a six foot thick block of steel, packaged up into a four foot tall, old man. Hibiki's fist bounced off of the elder Tsuchikage, and he had to duck underneath a wide swipe of the man's massive stone fist. This turned out to be a feint on the Kage's part, as his super-dense knee slammed into Hibiki's nose and sent the Senju heir sliding backwards, again to the edge of the tower. Upon hitting the tower, Hibiki's lightning cloak faded away; Onoki had knocked him out.

Onoki lowered his gaze dangerously, tightened his scowl, and stalked over to the Senju heir, the earth around his arms falling apart as he stepped forward, each foot creating a loud thump on the destabilized roof. "Allow me to correct my previous statement. You _will_ leave my village, but only in a body bag!" He grabbed the limp Senju and wrenched him up to eye-level, his own brown eyes locked onto Hibiki's glazed red orbs. Onoki smacked the Senju across the face with his free hand, "I will claim your eyes as _trophies!"_ He roared, before he reared his hand for a powerful punch, which he sent flying down towards the Senju's nose.

Before he hit the Senju heir's face, however, Hibiki's eyes snapped back into focus, and in a flurry of activity, his hand went to his gut, twisted around clockwise, and suddenly there was an explosion of chakra, purposefully assisted by the Senju heir, who pushed more chakra out of the tenketsu on his chest, the resulting whirlwind created enough force to send Onoki sliding back just a few feet. The Tsuchikage leered at the Thunder God, as the latter got to his feet and wiped the blood from his face with the back of his hand. The Senju heir patted down his chest, and raised his gaze back to the elder shinobi. Gone was the playful shine in his blood red eyes, and in its place was a look that said he meant business.

"Well." _Crick_ went his nose, as it was snapped back into place by his healing factor. "Warm up's over?"

Onoki's glare didn't budge.

With no warning, he was sent _flying. _His chest having felt felt as if he had been punched a thousand times by his own rock clones. In the blink of an eye, Hibiki, his deep blue lightning cloak once again raging around his body, followed Onoki into the air. Onoki was able to dodge two punches and deflect one more before the feeling returned and he was sent flying through the air again, so fast that he left a pale contrail in his wake. With the sound of a zipper, Hibiki was behind him, and his foot buried itself right in between both of Onoki's shoulder blades, almost managing to bend the man's spine with the force it brought to bear. Onoki was again sent flying back through the air, but this time he halted himself under his own power and, predicting that the Senju heir would snap to his front to keep the wicked pinball game going, he threw his fist forward.

It was as his fist was halfway between him and where he predicted the Senju heir to be, that he saw it. Just a brief instant - a fraction of a fraction of a second, but just long enough to leave an impression on his greatly experienced senses. Hibiki had zipped to _exactly_ where he thought he had been, looked Onoki dead in the eye, grinned, and then zipped away. Onoki over-extended his punch and flipped head over heels, right into the waiting elbow of the Senju heir. The Tsuchikage flipped through the air again, but before he could gain control over himself, he was slammed in the back by a bolt of explosive chakra. The detonation rocked him to the very core and nearly shattered his eardrums, but he wasn't sent flying upwards, because the Senju heir was there, right above him, his fist buried into his gut with the _exact_ force of the explosive bolt that hit his back, meaning Onoki felt that force on both ends, and didn't move an inch.

Hibiki then vanished again, the arrogant child actually _giving_ Onoki the chance to recover, as Onoki had refused him mere minutes ago. Not one to look a gift horse in the mouth, Onoki righted himself so the ground was down, and turned on one point until he found Hibiki, hovering in mid air, hands at his sides and spraying chakra, a small frown on his face.

"Was that fast enough, for ya?" Hibiki called out, from his small distance away.

The Tsuchikage glared at him, not willing to play his game. He knew about this man, perhaps more than anyone did, for Katsuo-'sama' himself had been the one to explain the Senju heir's unique circumstances, and it was through that explanation that Onoki deduced Hibiki's method. Using the Raikage's lightning cloak and his Swift Release bloodline, Hibiki had accelerated himself so much that it was as if Onoki wasn't even moving. Following that, he had launched dozens upon dozens of punches, and perhaps even a few kicks if the sides of his ribs had anything to say about it, during that brief instant he had frozen the world in its place. Then he let the world speed up, and after a moment, slowed it down again. Rinse, lather, repeat.

"I really don't think you'll answer me, but you can't fault me for trying, so I'll ask you this _once!"_ The Senju heir called out, before he lowered his voice to a deep, rumbly drawl, and roared as loud as he could, _"WHERE IS THE JINCHURIKI?!"_

Though he ignored the Senju heir's demands for the most part, he did note with some sense of anger that he had avoided calling the creature by its human name, perhaps out of some desire to keep its identity a secret. Instead, he spent those brief moments of dialogue thinking. Fortunately for him, he had had more than his fair share of experience against the Hast clan. It was not at all impossible to counter their great speed. Adding the lightning cloak's strength enhancements to the problem would be a challenge, but Onoki already had a host of ideas flowing through his aged mind.

Above them, a flash of green energy signaled their battle to recommence. Onoki hurtled forward and, as he predicted, the Senju heir used his vastly superior, doubly augmented speed to his advantage. Hibiki appeared behind the third Tsuchikage with a zipping noise, but when he slammed his fist into Onoki's back, he found that the elderly man had raised his mass to such an insane degree, that all of the variables acting in Hibiki's favor - velocity, chakra, the lightning cloak - meant nothing to the Kage, as his fist hit his back and was halted wholesale. A large shockwave blasted outwards from the point of contact, and in an instant, Onoki whipped around and smashed his fist onto Hibiki's face. It wasn't as damaging as when he had lowered the arrogant fool's mass, but some did still manage to break through the defense the boy put so much faith into.

Hibiki hurtled backwards, straight towards the pillar of earth Onoki had created earlier. The Senju heir was buried into the center of the pillar, and in an instant he found his world heaving as the pillar was again influenced by the Tsuchikage's chakra, but instead of rocketing higher up, it began sinking downwards. Hibiki was buried in the earth in a second, but Onoki kept pushing the earth down with his chakra, to the point that Hibiki felt the temperature getting greater and greater, as the crazy old man actually pushed him towards the earth's mantle!

Not one to let a challenge like this go by, Hibiki used what little wiggle-room he had to smash himself some space in the pillar, which he used to fly straight upwards. Onoki seemed to predict this however, and as Hibiki flew upwards in the hole in the earth, more pillars began sprouting of the sides. Hibiki saw Onoki standing at the edge of his cylindrical prism, his arms buried into the earth. It was when he was actually hit by one of the pillars that he realized why Onoki was doing this: He was pouring his chakra into the earth itself, and using the physical contact to manipulate its mass. The already weighty pillars now hit with what Hibiki felt had to be only comparable to being run over by an aircraft carrier. One pillar slammed into his chest, another into his back. A third pillar burst out of the ground at an angle, smashed through the first two, and slammed Hibiki into the side of the cylindrical crater, with another at a different angle slamming into him again, actually burying him in the ground. With the sheer amount of mass Onoki was adding onto the earth, Hibiki found that he was completely imprisoned, as more and more pillars, both big and small, pinned his limbs in place and kept him immobilized underneath the earth.

_"Grrr-AAAAAAAH!" _The Senju heir bellowed deeply. _"GIVE HER TO ME!"_ And as he screamed, the Cursed Seal of Earth stretched across his body, turning his blue lightning cloak black. The sheer amount of chakra pouring through his body and into the lightning cloak multiplied his power by several dozen orders of magnitude. He was _done_ attending to the elderly.

The resultant exponential jump in power gave Hibiki the strength he needed to crumble to pieces the pillars of earth keeping him in place, and in a exploding flare of black lightning, Hibiki launched himself upwards and tunneled through the earth, roaring loud enough to shatter windows as he did so. Hibiki exploded out of the earth, causing Onoki's head to snap up to the Senju, as the Thunder God smashed his fist into Onoki's chest. Hibiki relished the feeling of the Kage's ribs breaking underneath his strength, and blasted off after him. Hibiki overtook the tumbling kage in a microsecond, not even needing his Swift Release with the cursed seal's chakra rampaging through his system, covering his skin in jagged, narrow black lines and turning his lightning cloak into a deep onyx shade, almost appearing as if Hibiki's battle aura was of blacklight.

Hibiki slammed his fist into the Kage's super-dense back. The Tsuchikage seemed to be putting everything he had into increasing his mass, so he could survive the blows Hibiki sent his way, but nothing he did could absorb and deflect the force, and even without taking damage, the Tsuchikage was sent flying through the air again. The roaring Senju heir hurtled towards the Kage, who whipped around and deflected two of Hibiki's three lightning fast jabs, the third one slamming into the side of the elderly man's face. Onoki rolled with the punch and let it slide off of his face, causing Hibiki to over extend himself and slide forward through the air just a few inches too many, bringing him inside Onoki's striking range.

The Tsuchikage grasped Hibiki's face once again with an earth-covered hand, and once again played hell with Hibiki's relative mass. But Hibiki decided to take advantage of this, because with less mass, he could accelerate _far_ faster for far _less_ energy. Trading mass for acceleration still meant he hit hard, and Hibiki slammed his fists three times into Onoki's chest, before Onoki had gotten Hibiki down to nine tenths of his original mass. Ninety percent of Hibiki's mass was just floating elsewhere - where exactly, neither of them knew or cared, all Onoki cared about was killing the arrogant Senju, and all Hibiki cared about was when he'd hear from Minato again, so they could get the hell out of dodge.

With all of his might, Onoki slammed his exponentially massive fist into Hibiki's comparatively mass-less chest, dispelling the black lightning of onyx cloak and sending Hibiki flying back through the air and towards the ground, blood spraying out of his mouth as his ribs shattered into a fine powder, some even briefly penetrating his lungs. Hibiki smashed through several towering buildings before he buried himself into Iwa's roads and carved himself a long groove in the ground. Onoki flew through the gray air, cast briefly into detailless shadows by the green, glowing clouds above him, which crackled with thunder at a frightening interval.

Upon reaching the Senju, he saw that even Iwagakure itself had done its part in fighting the Senju, as multiple rocks pinned him to the ground, and multiple more were jutting out of his chest and stomach. The Thunder God was dragging himself out of the ground as fast as he could, but his skeleton was mush, and until it healed, his fast wasn't fast enough. Onoki raised both of his hands, and a clear sphere of chakra appeared in between them. Without even uttering a word, the sphere bolted forward and enveloped the Senju heir. Hibiki's head snapped up when he saw what had enshrouded him, but he barely even had a second to scream before he was pulverized on a molecular level by the Kage's most powerful technique.

The entire village grew silent for several long seconds, before the silence was broken by a clap of thunder. Onoki let his shoulders slump, and as he felt his mass snap back to regular levels, he simultaneously felt the lethargy of having used so much chakra through his dust and earth techniques, and a _terrible_ pain in his lower back. Groaning, but still keeping his eyes on where the Senju heir had been, Onoki leaned forward and pressed his hand onto his back, wondering if it was the multiple blows to that area, or his old age that was causing it to flare up into pain.

He allowed himself a small smile, wondering how many points he would get with Hanzo, once the Salamander learned he'd killed the son of Tsunade -

_Bang!_

His head snapped up, and to the east.

_Bang! Bang!_

"No..." The Shadow Clone technique was supposed to disperse when the original died, was it a uniquity of Hibiki's personal usage of it, or -

With a much louder clap of thunder, Onoki suddenly felt a much harsher, much more terrible pain in his back. A bullet dug right into his spine, severing it and sending the old man sprawling across the ground. Unable to move his legs, Onoki turned to his back and saw Hibiki Senju, standing there at the end of the partially ruined road, a smoking gun in his hands, and a calm, if somewhat frustrated expression on his face.

"You!" Coughed the Tsuchikage, "how?!" The Anbu don't make mistakes! They couldn't afford to! They wouldn't have said anything unless it was a _certainty!_

"Theatricality and deception are _powerful_ agents to the uninitiated, Onoki-sama." Casually said the Senju, who threw both hands to one side and bowed low, the dying Tsuchikage just glared at him, as blood poured out of his back, and he backed away, only able to move with his hands. "No?" Said Hibiki, as he straightened up. "How about..." He stalked over to the bleeding Kage, both arms angrily swinging back and forth in tandem with his footfalls. "The best way to keep a secret is to shove it under everybody's nose and _wait?!"_ The completely uninjured Senju heir shouted.

He got right up to Onoki and kicked downwards onto the man's chest, causing him to call out in pain as the ground dug into his bullet wound.

"See... Once folks started figuring out and copying my party trick..." Said Hibiki, as he crouched down, foot still on the Tsuchikage's chest. "I felt it prudent to add another step... Another fold to the figure... Another layer to the ruse."

Onoki's twitching, angry eyes widened. "You - it wasn't -"

"Backwards. It wasn't me." Hibiki corrected, "the way I figured, the best way to keep the Alpha safe would be to send him into the fray, and delegate clone spawning responsibilities to a much more... Exposed one. That way, once people get smart again, at least they'll still be chasing clones, and not the real me. Now, your obliteration techniques - which I really can't wait to dissect, by the way -" He said, briefly gesturing with his pistol as he cut himself off, "- had me worried for a second. It was by some miracle you missed me that first go-round. But after that I was able to slow down time enough with my swift release and my Sharingan, see the chakra saturate the air and the shapes encapsulate me. After that it was just a matter of getting out of the way in time."

"And in case you're wondering why I'm going Bond Movie-villain." Another Hibiki appeared from in between two small homes, "all I really have to say is... If _that_ wasn't me -" He pointed at the groove in the earth, and the crater where the clone had died. "- what makes you think _that_ is?" He pointed at the Hibiki with the pistol in his hands, "- or _I_ am?" He patted his chest, as the clouds above them rolled with another wave of thunder, and the green glow brightened.

"Because that's the thing." Resumed the gun-wielding Senju clone. "The best part about _being_ me... Is that there are so _many_ me's." He buried the pistol in between the Kage's eyes. "Now before you go... Please, humor me. Make my goddamn job easier - because I _swear_ I will _leave -"_ Onoki actually caught the boy's voice shaking - not cracking but _shaking - _as he spoke this line. "- if you just goddamn _tell_ me where my friend is. Fuck, I'll heal your ass up so you can fix your village, because I do goddamn _not_ want to deal with another one. _Tell me!_ It is _that_ motherfucking simple!"

The Tsuchikage spat in the Thunder God's face.

And then the sky exploded.

* * *

Hibiki felt as if he were a square peg, fitting through a round hole, at sixty miles per hour. His world twisted and turned, leapt and lurched, squeezed and softened so many times in such a small timeframe that he could hardly even tell what side was up. Colors flashed behind his eyes and before he could even draw the energy to scream, it all stopped, and he found himself floating on his back inside a sewer. The place was dark, cavernous, run down and all-around awful looking. The ceiling, some thirty meters above him, had tiles hanging on by threats, the enormous walls were more cracked and ruined than they were smooth, the entire place had a sickly green glow to it, and the water Hibiki was floating in had the look of a pallid brown ichor.

Hibiki yelped and flailed about as he tried to get his bearings and stop floating on his back, but when his foot hit the sewer bed, he paused. Cautiously, Hibiki leaned forward, and both feet touched the ground; the Senju heir stood up, revealing the ichorous sewage to only be ankle-height. Once to his feet, Hibiki looked around, but everywhere he looked was the same thing: An endless, rotten, falling apart sewer in one direction, and an endless, rotting, falling apart sewer in the other direction, both ways stretching so far that their ends just drifted off to darkness.

But when Hibiki blinked, he found his environment had changed, and he stood in an enormous cavern, with a rusted iron gate, itself the size of a skyscraper, looming above him. Behind the gate he saw, of all things, a monkey so large he could have qualified to be King Kong himself. Its heavily bleeding, partially burned, furry head was pressed against the bent, rusted bars of its cell, and its orange and white eyes were locked onto Hibiki's blood red orbs.

Hibiki blinked, "uh... I guess you're the Yonbi."

_"I am."_ The creature whined, in a pained voice, though still louder and deeper than anything Hibiki had ever heard before, in either of his lives. _"You are the one he calls John."_

Hibiki stared up at the titanic red monkey, his eyes drifting from the two massive horns on its head to the four tails partially submerged in the ichor. "Uh... Yeah. How am I here? And where is here?" He gazed around his dull green surroundings.

_"You have the eyes of His son. The eyes that enslave my kind. The gateway, the link, between my kind and your will."_ It rumbled, so loud that Hibiki felt its voice in his chest.

"Okay..." Hibiki breathed, running his sopping wet hand through his raven hair. "Has he - has Katsuo spoken to you?"

_"No."_

"I saw your seal was pretty heavily damaged. Has he been able to... 'Read' you?"

_"No."_

"Then what has he done?"

_"The Monstrous Sage had his viper woman attempt to shear apart the seal keeping me imprisoned, but despite her skill in fuinjutsu, she has no experience in demon containers."_ The Yonbi rumbled, _"mine was made with defenses against just that. To curtail any escape attempts on my end, or sabotage attempts on the human end."_ Hibiki noticed how he spoke the word 'human' with a great deal of disdain.

As much as he wanted to pick the monkey's brain, he had more pressing matters to attend to. "Okay... Listen - I need -"

_"I know what you want, human. I have a price."_

"I don't want _you,_ I want -"

_"Kill my container."_ It bellowed.

Hibiki blinked, "uh... _What?"_

_"Tailed beasts, by nature, are not alive, and therefor cannot die. But it takes time for our chakra to leak out of our host's deceased bodies... And time more to collect it back into our original physical form. It varies, but is indicative of how many tails we have. For me, it will take four years to reform."_ Its house-sized eyes narrowed, _"if you want to know where exactly your container friend is... You will kill mine. Release me."_

Hibiki tilted his head, "I can't imagine that would be pleasant."

_"No."_

"Then why?"

_"The Monstrous Sage... You know not what masters he unwittingly serves."_ Drawled the baritone beast. _"But you are powerful. More powerful than some of my weaker brethren... Perhaps as powerful as my container and I could have been, had she been allowed to keep _stealing _my chakra, as she once had."_

Hibiki stared at the monstrous monkey, jaw slack. This was a lot of information, and the damned ape was only giving him half facts. "Who does _Katsuo_ serve?"

_"A creature of such age and villainy that its very skin has turned black, like the night sky. Whose pale white eyes -"_

"Zetsu, got it." Hibiki was tolerant of rhetoric, but when it became this excessive, especially given his time constraints, that tolerance dried up fast. "Listen, Yonbi. I..." He ran his hand back through his hair, "you want me to kill her, and you - no matter how temporary the latter is, because it will set Katsuo and Zetsu back four years. Okay. But... You've got the wrong idea about me, man. I kill, yes, but -"

_"Do not lie to me, as he has said you've to him."_ The Yonbi thundered, _"I can sense the darkness in your heart and soul. You hide behind your morals and your intelligence, but that shield is being eaten away by the power the graverobber gave you. The power you once not possessed but do now. You _crave_ battle, the very curse that haunts the blood behind your eyes has pervaded you perhaps more than any else. I correct myself, you do not crave battle - you lust after it. At the slightest hint, the most meaningless provocation, you will blast out of your home and burn across an entire country, fullly prepared to slaughter countless men and women so long as you can hide this lust behind claims of defending your new home, protecting your shallow bonds with your lessers. You attempt to justify yourself by sparing they who do not bear arms against you, but you contradict yourself by tearing apart those who do."_ The gigantic gorilla paused, _"the _rage_ I see in your eyes right now as you listen to me is but proof that I am right, and the silence echoing from your lungs proves that you _know_ this. _

_"Do not dare to presume to be able to deny your nature in my presence, human. You would kill scores and sleep that night without a hint of struggle in your dreams. Even now, you have armies, fragments, fractions of your very soul, imprisoned inside a bastardized body as it is, out there, slaughtering without hesitation. Do as you crave... Do as you lust after... Do as you damn well _desire_ and kill me, kill my host. That is my price, and it is a dreadfully simple one for you."  
_

Hibiki, a deep frown on his face, stared up at the horned, four-tailed ape. When more than a second went by and the massive monkey didn't speak, Hibiki cleared his throat. "You're wrong."

_"You deny. You lie. You hide. __If you spare my host, it will not be because of morality, but out of spite. If you heal her, it will not be because it is the right thing to do, but because you want to torture me."_ The Yonbi's eyes now grew angry, _"did you know I leveled the place you called New York City?! The concrete jungle they called it - well I destroyed every one of those buildings! I flattened the entire city and I enjoyed it, no matter how much it angered my father! I cracked one of your warships in twain over my knee! I used your skyscrapers as a bo-staff! Do you want me to yet live?! Do you not want me to die?! To avenge the people you feel you have more in common with than those who live today?! All you have to do is leave, put the damned gun to the bitch's head and -"_

"She's not here." Lowly drawled the Senju heir.

That shut the ape up, causing Hibiki to grin.

"Yeah. You played too many cards, monkey."

_"**DON'T YOU DARE CALL ME -"**_

"Shut up." Hibiki narrowed his red eyes, and despite his anger, the massive monkey did, indeed, cease talking under Hibiki's command. "If you really had anything over me, you wouldn't be trying to piss me off. Kushina and the fox aren't even here. You're the kind of prideful, arrogant _monkey_ that would only care about his kind over ours, and if the Kyuubi were in Iwagakure, you would be begging me to put you **_both_** out of your misery, and _not_ just yourself!" He pointed up at the a silently raging Yonbi. "You want to see me get _violent,_ you furry fuck? You mention my world again! Brag about how many weak humans you killed again - I _dare you!_" He roared, with a livid expression painted across his face.

The Yonbi, still under the will of Hibiki's eyes, fitfully remained silent.

Hibiki dropped his hand, "I'll _ensure_ Emi Miu survives this day. Fuck, I'll fix her goddamn seal _myself!_ Make it so you _can't_ say no! Make you nothing more than a trained... Pet... _Monkey!" _At Hibiki's bellowed declaration, the enraged ape began thrashing around in its cage, smashing its arms and horned head against the iron bars and sending the brown ichor flying as it silently raged against the Thunder God before it. Rust filled the pale green air, but Hibiki didn't even flinch, for as weakened as the demon container seal was, it still held firm. _"Settle down!"_ Hibiki thundered, and just like before, the ape immediately obeyed, freezing, rooted to the spot, its head again pressed against the iron bars. "Now listen here. _You. Are. Wrong._" He declared, _"what I do, I do because I must."_ He rumbled in his native tongue, because he _knew_ the gigantic gorilla could understand him. _"Katsuo's gathering you all because he thinks you can tell him how he can travel through time and go home. _He's_ wrong, and I'm trying to stop him. And I have no fucking _clue_ what it is Zetsu's doing, but he's serving the will of your bastard of a father -"_ He saw the ape struggle against its verbal binds, its muscles bulging underneath its red fur and its eyes widening as far as they could, as Hibiki flippantly insulted the Sage of Six Paths, "- _and I'll stop him too. Make no mistake, Yonbi, the tailed beasts aren't my enemies, but they're not my friends either. You helped _destroy_ my world while I slept in death, and you got to walk free and terrorize what was left of humanity until Hashirama Senju gathered you all up and finally gave you your comeuppance. Finally put you in the most ironic of prisons - a human being._

_"You want me to kill you? I say _no. _But let me make one thing abundantly clear - I fight the battles that come to _me._ Despite what you claim, I don't actively seek them out, and I never have. But if I ever suspect that you and your multi-tailed cousins are siding with Zetsu in your blind devotion to a man who fashioned himself a god... You who _aren't_ my enemies will _become_ them."_ He declared, firmly, as he crossed his arms over his chest, _"I'll be back."_ And with that final declaration, Hibiki cut the chakra to his eyes.

* * *

"Whoa..." Hibiki lurched back on the heels of his feet, as he returned to the dank, dark cave.

Minato looked down at the kneeling Senju, blinking. "What just happened?"

"How much time passed?"

"Between what?"

_"None..."_ Cut in Emi, who sank her head back down into her arms.

Hibiki blinked, and slowly got to his feet, just the slightest bit unsteady, as his senses returned to him. "Kushina's not in Iwagakure. Katsuo had to have taken her somewhere else." He gritted his teeth, thinking as he stared down at the tortured Jinchuriki.

_"What?!"_ Minato cried, "where could she be?!"

_"I DON'T KNOW!"_ Hibiki whipped his head over to his friend, _"he's_ not going to tell us -" He waved his hand over to the dully glowing mouth of the cave, "- and I doubt _she_ even knows to begin with!" He indicated Emi, who still rested against the cold, damp wall of the otherwise arid and dry cave.

Minato ran his hand through his spiky blond hair, "kami, Hibiki, what do we do? This was our best bet! If he took her somewhere else, how will we even find her?" He said, despair inching its way into his pubescent voice.

"I don't know..." Hibiki fell back a step and pressed his back against the cave wall, "I don't know..." He breathed and dug his hand into his unkempt raven hair. Where the hell else could Katsuo be based out of? All roads led to Rome - the guy was known as the Monster of Iwagakure, for Christ's sake! He had pull with the Earth Daimyo and had literally been _waiting in Iwagakure!_ "Oh god..." The only thing left that made sense was if Katsuo had gone overseas to hide her, and if that were the case, Hibiki was _fucked._ Even with the Swift Release, even with FTL, it was impossible to comb over every inch of the planet to find someone that Katsuo was making increasingly clear _did not want to be found!_

Minato looked from Hibiki, to Emi, and in a fit of rage, stormed over to the latter and grabbed her by her thin arms. He lifted her to her feet and then roughly slammed her into the wall, she didn't even cry in pain. _"Where would he take her!?"_ He screamed, spittle flying from his face and covering hers. _"Where is Kushina?! You have to know!"_ His voice shook with rage and despair, but Emi just shook her head, her blank, distant expression not budging, nothing Minato could do could compare to what had already been done. _"Don't give me that - if you were his prisoner you had to have heard something! You HAD TO!"_ He screamed.

"Minato..." Said the Senju heir, "Minato, she doesn't know."

The blond blur dropped the target of his rage, wheeling around to face Hibiki. _"Then who does, Hibiki?! Katsuo?! The Tsuchikage?! Come on, we'll take them both -"_ He rounded to the cave mouth, but was stopped by a hand on his shoulder.

"Minato. They won't tell us."

Minato looked at Hibiki over his shoulder, and the expression on the Senju heir's face managed to freeze his own rage-filled glow. Where Minato was the epitome of anger and despair, Hibiki's expression was one of sorrow, surrender, and acceptance. Ever the man to act on knowledge, Minato could see that Hibiki had already reached the best conclusion: They had failed.

Minato's expression melted to one of sorrow, and he fell to his knees in the middle of the cave. "No..." He breathed, lowering his hands into his face. "We can't have lost her..." A sob wrenched itself out of his lungs and was muffled by his hands. _"We can't have!"_

"Minato... The only thing we can do now is go back to Konoha. You and I are high on food pills, we can't function much longer. We need to eat and sleep. The Hokage will send out Hunter-nin and spies to try and dig up anything he can, while we recover." He said, his own voice shaking.

_"We can't just _give up!" Bellowed the Namikaze, who lurched forward and pressed his hands on the earth. "There has to be something we can do! Something we missed!"

Hibiki turned from his friend, whose tears of rage and sorrow fell from his face to the ground, to the broken Jinchuriki, who had slid down the wall and was seated against it again, but now wasn't even bothering covering her heavily bruised chest, as she just stared, blankly, at the ground between Hibiki and Minato. "Minato... The best we can do is go home. Rest. Give it a day, we can round up a search party. We both know a few Hyuga who would be willing to help, and Dai's a part of a search and retrieval team. Hell, I can call out my eagles and they can widen the search area. Cover more ground than we ever could, faster than we ever could." Though he knew it wouldn't help, if Kushina was hidden somewhere overseas, then even Inuzuka ninken, Hyuga Byakugan, Aburame beetles, and all of the eagles on planet Earth wouldn't be able to find her. Not in the time they had to do it, not with the distance Runner could have crossed between that night and now.

Minato's arms shook, as he clenched his jaw. "Please, Hibiki. There has to be something."

The Senju heir frowned, though instead of anger, this one was of nothing but sorrow. "There isn't. We lost, Minato. We have to go home. My clones will cover our -" The green light from the cave mouth suddenly turned white, and grew so much in its intensity that it looked as if the sun had fallen and lit up the earth right outside. "Oh hell..." Hibiki sighed, exhaustedly, as Minato caught sight of the growing light.

"What's going on?" Minato ran the back of his hand under his nose, and took Hibiki's extended hand.

"I don't know." Hibiki said, hauling Minato to his feet.

When the two made it outside, however, they both froze. Both of their gazes were locked to the sky, as they saw a massive lightning storm focusing on a single point. The light grew brighter and brighter before the lightning finally hit whatever was attracting it, and that one point, now wreathed in its own lightning storm, surged forward, colliding with a similarly intense ball of green fire.

And then, the sky exploded.

* * *

Fighting so fast that a second felt like it took an hour, Hibiki and Katsuo clashed again above Iwagakure. The sheer force of their fists meeting their opponent's body sent powerful shockwaves through the air, comparable to missile detonations. Their battle brought them higher and higher into the sky, until they could no longer be seen from the ground by anything but their green and black glows, one of raging fire, one of streaming lightning. Again and again they clashed, slamming into eachother, trading blows, and then separating, practically forming a double-helix with their contrails as they grew higher and higher into the gray, cloud-filled sky. It wasn't until Hibiki actually breached the cloud barrier that he finally stopped ascending.

In the brief few centiseconds Hibiki had before Katsuo too breached the cloud barrier, he took in his surroundings. Right inside the thick layer of graying clouds, Hibiki saw all of the condensed water vapor, the rolling, pillowy fields of gray. It almost looked as if Hibiki were in some kind of enormous, walled off, domed arena, with curved, ragged floors and high ceilings. This large environment he found himself in, added onto the distance between him and the ground, made Hibiki feel small, but in the distance, he saw a bright flash of blue-white light, arcing from the 'roof' of the clouds to the 'floor' several dozen feet below it.

_Perfect._ With that lightning flash confirming Hibiki that the storm conditions were worsening, he knew now that all he needed was time.

Katsuo burst through the cloud barrier in a blast of water, the vibrant light of his chakra lighting the entire cloud layer up in a bright green glow. Hibiki rotated on an axis, onyx lightning-laced chakra pouring out of his hands as he turned his curse-seal covered face to the leather-skinned Sage. Katsuo and Hibiki stared at eachother for a moment, before launching right back at eachother. The Senju heir caught Katsuo's fist and wrenched it to the side, before he smashed his free hand into Katsuo's face. The Monster launched a knee into the Senju's gut, his inconvievable strength managing to translate through the lightning cloak and cause the Senju heir to bend over his knee, croaking as blood sprayed out of his mouth.

Katsuo whirled around and threw Hibiki through the air. Hibiki managed to spin back around to face Katsuo just an instant before the Monster got within his defenses, the Senju Heir wrenched his upper body left and right, dodging Katsuo's mountain-crushing punches as swiftly as he could. After a moment, Hibiki ducked down and chopped upwards with his left hand, causing Katsuo's arm to rebound in a wild upward arc, giving Hibiki the time he needed to elbow the Monster in the gut and then whip up and plant a powerful sidekick to the bridge of the Monster's nose. Katsuo hurtled backwards, as thunder again surged through the clouds, but no lightning, not close enough to matter. Hibiki frowned and clasped both hands together in a tiger seal, before he whipped his head back and forth and belched out a boulder-sized ball of fire. It clashed brilliantly with the green glow set against the clouds before it crossed over to Katsuo, who backhanded it away in a colossal fiery explosion.

Hibiki was inside Katsuo's defenses before the Monstrous Sage realized he had been had, and the Senju heir launched five rapid punches, trailing upwards before he spun around and elbowed Katsuo in the side of his face. The Monster spun through the air, but caught his balance and quickly oriented himself so his back was to the ground, and his feet to Hibiki. Hibiki furrowed his brow and bared his teeth as Katsuo's eyes glowed green, and in a millisecond he had an aspis bursting out of his forearm. Katsuo blasted the Senju heir with green energy, the energy beams slammed into Hibiki's aspis, and the Senju heir bellowed loudly as he charged forward through the air, the bright green beams of light reflecting off of his shield in a massive display of energy.

When Hibiki closed the distance between him and Katsuo, the Sage dropped the eye beams, and Hibiki dropped his fist onto Katsuo's chest. The Monster grabbed Hibiki by the face as he was sent flying back down, though by this point neither of them knew which way was up or down, they only knew forward - towards their enemy. Katsuo tried to crush Hibiki's skull with his intense grip, but Hibiki just grabbed the Sage and increased the intensity of his lightning cloak, forcibly channeling that chakra onto the soaking wet Sage, electrocuting him from the outside in and forcing him to let go of the Thunder God as he drifted backwards, convulsing.

Breathing heavily, Hibiki watched Katsuo drift back. He let his lightning cloak and his curse mark die down, lowering their energy drain but not letting them recede entirely, as he tried the talking option again. _"God damn it, Katsuo!"_ He shouted, over the unfiltered thunderclaps. _"Where is she?! Do you think I want to be doing this?!"_ Hibiki waved his hand around in a wide arc, ending as it hovered, reared behind his back. _"Do think I _enjoy_ it?!"_

_"YES!" _Katsuo roared, from his aerial position multiple meters below Hibiki.

Hibiki blinked.

_"You tell me you don't like this, John!"_ Katsuo roared, his own cloak dying down as he too took advantage of the calm. _"Lie to me again! You had a chance - you had a DARN CHANCE to end this peacefully! You had EVERY CHANCE! But you wasted every darn one, and then you LIED TO ME!"_ His deep voice thundered through the thinner air, echoing throughout the cloud barrier the two fought within. _"And not just me! You lied to every one of us! When Aojiroi came to me with your request, all of us thought that this would be our chance! We could be a family, united in our suffering! United by our goal - TO GO HOME!"_ The force of his final bellow actually sent out a small gust of air through the sky, causing his pale white and gray clothes to billow in the raging winds, and blowing Hibiki's statically charged hair back and forth. _"Yui even wanted to apologize, for what she did in Kiri! SHE THOUGHT IT WOULD HELP! YOU don't want this?! **WE** don't want this!"_ He inhaled deeply, his muscly, leathery, brightly glowing chest expanding as it took in air. _"WE JUST WANT TO GO HOME!" _The force of his voice shook Hibiki's eardrums and made them ring, and his declaration was followed by another thunderclap.

Hibiki briefly cast his blood red eyes upwards, noting that they were getting closer. _"You can't, Katsuo!"_ He called out, shifting his gaze back to the Sage. _"I've been trying to tell you_ _this!" _He patted his chest, his jet black shirt sticking to it like a sheet._ "Our home is gone - it's been destroyed! This IS our home! This IS our world! Chakra can do many things but it can't turn back time!"_ Hibiki argued, _"it CAN NOT!" _The way he - and the people Back Then - understood things, time slowed down when one approached light speed. By that logic, it should _stop_ when one reached said speed, and _reverse entirely_ when one went _faster; _but it didn't. While his excuse had been to have a little fun, deep down inside, when he tried for FTL he was truly seeking to prove the Monster right or wrong, and he _had._ Even chakra had limits, and time was one of them - everything Hibiki had pointed to time travel being impossible. It could not be done, _period._

But Katsuo just wasn't willing to believe him. _"SHUT UUUUUUUUUUP!"_ His enraged, frantic bellow caused his fiery aura to flare to life, larger and more brilliant than ever before, and he rocketed towards the Senju heir.

Unfortunately for Katsuo, the nature he drew his energy from decided now was the moment to conspire against him, and an enormous lightning bolt began arcing through the air with a deafening clap of thunder. Since Hibiki was so highly electrically charged, he acted as a lightning rod for the whole bolt to draw towards, and with his cloak and his Sharingan both enhancing his reflexes and perception, he saw it happen in a slow enough motion that he was able to react to it. Hibiki's head snapped down to Katsuo, his red eyes both glowing red with rage as his entire face contorted into a livid expression. The Senju heir bolted down towards Katsuo, his entire body streaming lightning, but both of his hands enveloped in so much chakra that the onyx lightning cloak around them was almost opaque.

Hibiki clasped both hands together, leaching chakra from his left hand to his right._ "FALCOOOON!"_ He reared the right hand, and at that moment, the lightning surrounding them and pervading the stormclouds struck, arcing downwards and instantly colliding with his hand_; _and as Monster let out a chest-shaking, earth shattering, animalistic roar, the Thunder God's reared fist took in all of the raw electrical energy given to him by the skies, it, and the entire body to which it was attached, practically exploded as the lightning cloak was supercharged and began streaming inconceivable amounts of energy, going from its onyx shade to pure, blinding white in a fraction of a second. _  
_

_"PUUUUUUUUUUUUNCH!" _The Thunder God bellowed, just as he and his opponent both threw their fists forward.


	59. Abduction: Shock -VII-

Chapter 58

* * *

The Lightning Release: Falcon Punch was an oddity, and though Hibiki had developed the technique rather quickly during his early years as a Genin, it hadn't been until long after he'd gotten his promotion to Chunin that did he finally figure out exactly what it did, how it did it, and what made it so powerful that Dante had initially outlawed its use after its initial inception. Hell, the rumor was that it was slated to be labeled a kinjutsu, due to its sheer power. The regular falcon punch just used Hibiki's concept of chakra leeching to exponentially raise its striking power, but the Lightning variant did something so much more. It used Hibiki's lightning natured chakra as a catalyst to spread out into the atmosphere around it - usually appearing as if Hibiki's fist was streaming lightning. The punch then began attracting all of the ambient protons and electrons in an area dependent on how much chakra Hibiki put into the technique, and given that _all _atoms had at least one proton or electron orbiting their nucleus, this meant that it was capable of drawing in ungodly amounts of energy even from just a distance of one square meter. The further out the lightning streaming from Hibiki's fist could spread, the more electrical charge it was able to sap from the atoms that made literally everything up, and the more and more exponentially powerful it could become. It was as if Hibiki started out with a five, and then went to a twenty five, then to six hundred twenty five, and then to _three hundred, ninety thousand, _six hundred twenty five, and that was just his estimate for an 'depleted area' of about two square meters, it just grew in power the further out it went.

Here, in the center of a building lightning storm, there was a great deal more electrically charged subatomic particles flying about than usual. Then add in Hibiki's lightning cloak, which, of course, was made of his lightning chakra, meaning that by virtue of standing - or floating - around, Hibiki was already over-saturating the air with lightning chakra and electrically charged particles. Then take into consideration that the previous two would mean the punch would stream out much further, much faster, than normal and be able to attract _all of that energy_. Finally, take into consideration that the whole plan was to get struck by a bolt of lightning, and one had all of the variables for one of the single most powerful taijutsu techniques in the elemental nations; and all of that was ignoring the curse mark stretched across Hibiki's body, which already multiplied the power of his techniques by more than a few factors of ten.

One could argue that all of these variables made _this_ instance of the Lightning Release: Falcon Punch more powerful than both, the Big Bang Attack, and Hibiki's bargain-bin bijuu-dama, the Kamahameha.

One would not be wrong.

_"PUUUUUUUUUUUUNCH!"_

One fist, wreathed in vibrant, raging green flames, and another cloaked in blinding white lightning, both surged forth at the same time, each aimed at the object of their wielder's hatred. The fists collided in an explosion of green senjutsu chakra and white lightning. The two enormous explosions struggled against eachother, clashing and bursting outwards at the point of contact, one half a vibrant green, the other half, a blinding white. From the ground, it looked like two gods, two titanic forces struggling against eachother, two tsunamis crashing into eachother. The energy and shockwaves burst outwards in massive waves, growing larger and larger with every passing second as the two forces of nature struggled for dominance. The clouds vanished, dissipated by the shockwave, the ground below was set aglow by the mixture of white and green light, and all fighting stopped as everyone, from the lowliest Iwa Genin, to even the Hibiki Clone holding the Tsuchikage's life in his hands, turned their gazes skyward in equal parts fear and awe.

In the center of the struggle, both Hibiki and Katsuo bellowed at the top of their lungs, their fists pressed together and their arms shaking under the strain. Neither was giving an inch, but they both were attempting to take a mile. One held in his hands the power of nature, the other, of science. One had a limitless, unstoppable flow of energy always keeping him at his peak, the other had to rely on his own power and his own ever-growing limits to combat his enemies. They both were titans among giants, gods among mortals, heads of the pantheon, forces of nature, and they both answered the call most natural to the people of earth: The call to war.

All of their not inconsiderable power was pouring into these attacks, and the earth below shook violently as shockwave after shockwave assaulted it. The aurora above flowed violently from the center outwards, shooting across the sky until finally, the green slowly began to overtake the white. It was slow, relatively speaking, the stalemate lasting for all of two seconds before the green energy began to push back the white lightning. Hibiki's fist and arm began to struggle and shake even more underneath the strain, but the Thunder God didn't falter under the Monster's might, for in this fight, he still had one trump card.

Throughout this battle, he had stood on equal terms with an almost literal force of nature, using only what he had at his disposal through natural means, augmenting his power through skill, both given and earned, but there was still one thing he had, one tool in his belt, that he had tried to save, that he had tried to not use. Unfortunately, the might of the Monster was great, and the weight of the Thunder God's pride, was greater. He hadn't lost the first struggle, so he wouldn't lose this one. It would damage him, it would hurt him, but so long as he played the card quick, he would be just fine should he need to continue to fight.

So, as he felt his opponent begin to overpower him, he took in a deep breath of air. _"KAIO-KEN **TIMES SEVEN!"**_ Roared the Senju heir, before his body exploded in bright blue chakra, mixing in with the pure white lightning cloaking his body.

The ground below them shook violently as the shockwave from Hibiki's body shot outwards, causing some buildings in the shattered village to fall in massive heaps, but that destruction paled in comparison to what came next. The bright blue fire, wreathed by the pure white lightning, immediately pushed back and broke the vibrant green advance of the monster, and with a clap of thunder louder than the biggest bomb, the mightiest cannon, or the brightest bolt of lightning, Hibiki surged forward, his fist slamming into Katsuo's chest. The two were sent hurtling towards the ground so fast that anyone watching, who wasn't Jonin or above, wouldn't have been able to follow it. The two titans slammed into the earth an instant later, and the earth, in its weakness when compared to two of its reborn children, heaved.

An explosion mightier than anything the world had seen since the days where man needed metal wings to fly, rocked the planet. A bright pillar of the purest white light shot upwards, before it exploded outwards in a dome of burning light. The dome picked up and heaved everything in its way, and turned to rubble anything that remained anchored to the ground. Buildings were torn from the ground, people were vaporized, the earth shook from here to the village hidden in the mist, and the sky screamed for thousands of kilometers.

For on this day, Iwagakure no Sato died in a brilliant white flash.

* * *

The blinding dome of energy and fire slowed its expansion to a crawl as, in the mountains surrounding Iwagakure, the Alpha Hibiki channeled his Swift Chakra.

Even with his snap decision, he had almost been too late, for the dome was barely even _three meters_ from his position. Hibiki didn't have time to consider the sheer enormity of what was happening, right now he had to _act._ Hibiki whipped around, knowing Emi Miu was in the caves and would die if he didn't save her, he turned to his right, seeing his friend Minato, and knowing he would die if he didn't take him. These would likely be the only two lives he _could_ save this day, but he forced himself not to focus on that - now was _not the time!_

Forcing his Swift Release and his Sharingan to their absolute combined limits, Hibiki acted fast, as even so close to lightspeed, the dome of light behind him was still encroaching upon him. He couldn't freeze the dome by going FTL, because that would only save himself, and not the two lives still in his care. Quickly, Hibiki spawned a shadow clone, which zoomed into the caves as the Alpha grabbed Minato around his stomach, and _bolted._ Never before had Hibiki been thankful that Swift Chakra's 'protection' extended to anyone Hibiki was in contact with, else his rough handling of the blond blur could have snapped his neck through whiplash.

The Alpha and the clone ran for more than thirty kilometers before they stopped running, and the world sped back up. The dome of light chased after them, but upon slamming into the mountains surrounding Iwa, a great, great deal of its explosive and physical force was absorbed by the earth they were anchored to. Mother Earth may not be capable of the feats of her sons, but she was powerful in her own right, and what remained of the explosion was barely able to stretch ten kilometers past the mountains.

"Hibiki, what -"

Hibiki dropped Minato on his feet, and grabbed him by the shoulders, his wide, red eyes staring directly into Minato's. "There's no time - take her -" He pointed at Emi, still held bridal style in the arms of the clone, "- _GO!"_ With that order, Hibiki turned back to Iwa, his heart hammering in his chest as he sprinted back as fast as his Swift Release could take him.

Multiple mountains in the layered rings were still standing, and it was as Hibiki crested one of their peaks that he froze so fast he nearly tripped and fell. Where the Senju clone and the Monster had hit the ground, was now a titanic mushroom cloud. Iwagakure was _gone,_ less than an eighth of the buildings were still standing, all of them were on fire, and the ground had been flattened completely.

His eyes wide and frantic with terror, Hibiki ran both of his hands through his hair, and clenched the sides of his head. "Oh my god..." He breathed, falling to his knees as he stared down at the devastation he had wrought.

No one could have survived that - Katsuo excluded. The civilian bunkers weren't designed to withstand this kind of a blast, and there were few shinobi alive powerful enough to withstand that blast and stay standing. How many people lived in Iwagakure? There were five million in Konoha - were their populations similar? They had to be - Iwa was one of the few villages out there that rivaled Konoha in terms of military might, that had to be reflective of their population, and even if he was off by one or two million, that meant Hibiki had just killed _three million people, minimum!_

Hyperventilating, Hibiki saw, down there in the dust and soot, a small glow of vibrant green energy. Given the silence of the area, and the power of the speaker, Hibiki was able to hear him, just barely. He was screaming at the top of his lungs, bouncing all over the village, looking for someone named Yui. Like Hibiki, Katsuo couldn't behold the power his opponent had just unleashed, and was terrified for whoever it had been that was caught in it. Was this someone Katsuo cared for? Had Hibiki killed her too?

_Oh my god..._ Hibiki felt tears sting at his eyes, as the blood red orbs focused in on Katsuo throwing car-sized piles of dirt out of the way, digging at the ground until he found what he was looking for: A shapely woman in a shredded kimono, glowing in a muted green chakra. To Hibiki's near-telescopic vision, he saw that three quarters of her upper body were shredded to the bone, and though the chakra tendrils wrapped around the exposed bits of her body were doing their job, it wasn't a fast process, and both Hibiki and Katsuo were beholden to the nearly dead kunoichi's regeneration process.

His eyes still wide and his mouth still slack, Hibiki shook his head. _I've got to get out of here!_ Thought the hyperventilating shinobi, as he labored to his hands and feet, turned on his heel, and bolted, running as fast as he physically could, given the lack of focus his frantic state of mind gave him.

* * *

Hibiki caught up to Minato in half an hour, the Namikaze had the advantage over the Senju in that he had been taken away from the situation before he could see the cloud. He wasn't nearly as frantic as the Senju heir, who was hardly even able to bring up his Swift Release chakra.

On the edge of a deep ravine, Hibiki found the Namikaze dashing across the rocky terraces. He caught up to the blond blue after another few minutes of running, and the two, both heaving lungfuls of air, barely got a word out. Minato had a blissfully unconscious Emi in his arms, both of her hands and feet tied up by ninja wire. The mid-afternoon fog surrounded the two of them, and they both were caked in sweat and soot.

"What happened?" Gasped the blond blur, as he looked to his friend for answers.

Hibiki swallowed through his dry throat, shaking his head. "We... We need to keep moving." He said, "if... If Katsuo gets it in his head to chase us, we're dead." He said.

"What happened?" Minato asked again, but all he got was Hibiki shaking his head, the Senju heir's hair flipping about.

"It's... Just..." He swallowed thickly through his throat, "it's gone."

"What?" Minato blinked.

"Iwagakure. I... I don't... It's gone. Blown up."

Minato's jaw fell slack, and his eyes widened, as he looked back in the direction the two of them had come, his mind scarcely able to imagine what it had been that Hibiki had seen.

The two sat there for several moments, before Hibiki finally wiped his soot-covered arm over his sweaty face. "Come on." Even having seen it for himself - _having gotten the memories from the clone that had done it - _it was just beyond Hibiki's ability to comprehend. He had just blown up an entire hidden village. "We need -" But he couldn't even finish speaking, the hairs on his neck began standing up.

With a frightened grunt, Hibiki launched himself forward and tackled Minato and Emi out of the way of a bright green meteoric object hurtling straight towards them. Katsuo demolished the ground they had just been standing upon, and barely a second later there were multiple sounds of zippers being undone. Hibiki and Minato scrambled to their feet and were quickly back-to-back as, surrounding them and growing with every passing second, were the Undead.

Hibiki could _literally_ see the progression in play, with some having terrible, thick surgical scarring and leathery skin like Katsuo, others being pale and sickly, some being huge and monstrous like Aojiroi the Hulk, and going on until they had normal pigmentation and healthy looking bodies, the oldest of them were similarly aged to Katsuo, in their late thirties, whereas the youngest looked to be just a year older than Hibiki himself. Hibiki only recognized a few of them - Katsuo, in his tattered white garb, Yui the Viper, in her shredded red kimono and red, raw skin, Aojiroi the Hulk, in his goliath-esque form, and Runner, his skin coated in dark steel, but they weren't the only ones there. There were eleven more surrounding the exhausted, wounded trio, all with eyes as bright and bloody red as Hibiki's, some with kaleidoscope patterns, some with regular tomoe.

_Fif-fucking-teen, all ranging from Katsuo to Me._ "We're fucked." Hibiki breathed, his bright red eyes snapping from the seven in his range of sight.

"Hibiki..." Whispered Minato, as his own bright blue eyes locked onto the several pairs of red orbs.

_"I'm **done** playing with you, John."_ Katsuo rumbled, as his vibrant green aura began to flare, and the other Undead surrounding them all began to hannel their own chakra as well. _"Hand her oooooooooovvvv..."_ Katsuo's words dragged out into obscurity as Hibiki sped up.

He had _one_ shot.

_Just_ one.

In a flurry of motion, Hibiki spawned a shadow clone, and before the smoke had even disippated, its hand lowered down to its left thigh as they both saw everyone's eyes light up in recognition - their sharingan eyes seeing Hibiki channeling the Swift Chakra and reacting accordingly. As fast as they could, the clone ripped out a space/time storage scroll from the seal on his thigh. Hibiki saw Swift Chakra being flared by the later generation, younger Undead, and in response he and his clone activated their curse marks, accelerating as fast as they were comfortable, with Minato and Emi at their backs. He needed power, and he needed something that _none_ of these reborn people had, something that would give him an advantage over each and every one of them. He couldn't rely on his power augmentation techniques to see him through this one - not with so many people - and he couldn't rely on a healthy dose of shadow clones - someone would inevitably slip through the cracks. He needed all attention on him, and something just as enticing as Emi Miu's bijuu to keep said attention on him. There was only one thing in his possession that could do something like this.

So, it was time to field test the Rinnegan.

In seven nanoseconds, Hibiki and his clone hastily tore out the clone's eyes and replaced them with the rippled purple orbs. Immediately, the clone felt a huge influx of power, and an equally huge drain on its reserves. Quickly, it opened up the 'Ninth Gate' chakra storage seal to buy it as much time with these eyes as it could, and just as Aojiroi - his own swift chakra having been augmented in a similar way to Hibiki's - made it within feet of the two Hibikis, the clone's eyes shot open, and the purple orbs snapped to Aojiroi, as the Alpha bear-hugged Minato and, after shattering his own chakra storage seal, pulsed his chakra thrusters.

Aojiroi's huge, meaty fist slammed into the clone's outstretched hand as Hibiki, and with him, Minato and Emi, blasted off into the sky. Katsuo's head snapped towards the airborne trio, but just as his feet left the ground, Hibiki's other hand shot up, pointed right at the Monster. Even with five years of practice, there weren't many abilities the Rinnegan possessed, that Hibiki had a mastery over, or even a general understanding of. Through trial, error, time, and a hefty dose of winging it, he discovered there were six suites of abilities the Rinnegan gave its user, but the problem he faced was, again, a lack of mastery. He couldn't use any of these abilities simultaneously, and all of them took great amounts of chakra to sustain - so great that even with his curse mark granting him bountiful stores, it still drained him thoroughly. Truly, currently the Rinnegan's biggest function for the Senju heir was its exponential increase in power output.

Fortunately for Hibiki, at the moment he only needed _one_ of its abilities, and as Katsuo made to chase after the clone's Alpha, Hibiki splayed all of the fingers of his lifted hand out.

_"Banshō Ten'in!" _Muttered the Senju heir, before Katsuo, Aojiroi, and all of the other Undead were pulled towards him by the will of Hibiki, and the unrelenting force of a sudden and drastic increase in his gravitic pull. No one was spared its influence, even the Alpha, as he hurtled away at relativistic speeds, briefly felt its pull, but he poured more chakra into his thrusters and, thanks to his distance, was able to fight it off, preferring not to think about what would have happened if he'd just been a few meters closer.

The Alpha was buried in a pile of the Undead, with Katsuo pressed against one hand, Aojiroi crushed against another, and the remaining all pressed against his body in a grotesque group hug.

Hibiki's ringed, purple orbs met Katsuo's dangerously glowing golden ones. _"If you're done playing, Billy. Then so am I."_ True, he knew all well and good that he quite literally couldn't move after using these gravity techniques - likely because his body was trying to bleed off the relative mass he'd gained to be able to influence local gravity so much - but he didn't _need_ to move.

Not to use gelignite chakra.

* * *

So tired from the previous days events, having used so much of his chakra in the previous fights, and functioning more on food pills than anything else, Hibiki's body wasn't metabolizing chakra anywhere near as efficiently as it should be. The result was that the Alpha had to quit using its curse mark seconds after taking off, and had to cut its Swift Chakra barely a minute after that. With any less presence of mind he may have seriously injured himself, Emi, and Minato by crashing into the ground, but fortunately he'd had just enough wherewithall to bodily turn himself over and take the brunt of the impact to his back.

They tore apart the land of grass' countryside doing it, leaving an ugly gash in the rolling green hills, but they survived, albeit at the cost of the Alpha Hibiki losing consciousness. Fortunately, however, this loss of consciousness didn't last long, given the sheer amounts of adrenaline in his system. Minutes after he had landed and Minato had recovered, his onyx eyes snapped back open, and his entire body flared into pain.

Groaning loudly, Hibiki turned over onto his shoulder, seeing Minato, covered in dirt, soot and debris, wrapping up some of Emi's wounds. The jinhcuriki was just as unconscious as Hibiki had been, and Minato was streaming sweat, as he bandaged up her mostly bare chest and applied ointment to some of her burns. Hibiki was spared only a glance by the Namikaze.

_"Oh... god."_ Groaned Hibiki, "how long was I out?" If he lost the time his clone was buying them, they well and truly _were_ fucked.

"Just a minute." Said Minato, "do you have a change of clothes?"

"Urgh... Yeah." Grunted Hibiki, as he pulled out one of his storage scrolls and tossed it to Minato. "We need to..." He gathered up some of the blood in his mouth and spit it onto the ground. "Move. Soon. What that clone's doing won't last long."

"What _is_ it doing?" Minato asked, as he pumped chakra into the scroll and pulled a shirt from the small pile that burst forth. He tenderly pulled the oversized article over Emi's thin body.

"Something really stupid." Though, if he had to be honest with himself, it wasn't too out of character, either - by this point, using untested techniques was his damned calling card. "But it burns a shit ton of chakra. We need to get back to Konoha before they're done with it."

Minato nodded, "your chakra stores have bounced up and down so many times that your system can't process it as well, and I'm nearly out." He said, before he tightened his chest and hauled Emi up into his arms, bridal-style. "How long will it last?"

"Probably not long enough." Hibiki forced himself back to his feet, "but I've only got one trump card left after this." And without further deliberation, the two bolted.

The two of them took another twelve hours to cross the border and make it to Fire Country, and another eight hours after that to drag their tired, exhausted bodies up to the gates of Konohagakure no Sato, just as the sun was cresting over the horizon. To its credit, the Rinnegan clone managed to keep all of the Undead in one spot for thirty minutes before their combined efforts and chakra-draining bloodlines had him high and dry, but by then, Hibiki and Minato were so far away that none of the sensors could pick them up, and none of the Swift users could catch up. Unfortunately, to ensure that kept up, they had to keep up their explosive pace en-route to Konoha, leading to their twenty hour travel time, as opposed to what would have taken a few days at normal speeds. Hibiki fell to his hands and knees and gasped for air, long since tapped out on chakra, and Minato, the blond blur who never seemed to run out of energy, for once fell to his knees in an exhausted heap, the tortured jinhcuriki still cradled, bridal style, in his arms. It took the two gate guards but a moment to realize that the flickering presences they were sensing were shinobi, and it only took a second for the Hyuga to flare his Byakugan and locate the three of them. Hibiki and Minato were recognized instantly and before the two could even labor back to their feet, they were surrounded by four Anbu in dark armor.

Hibiki hardly had the strength to lift his head to meet the black slits of Wolf's pale white mask. He _didn't_ have the energy to make any kind of remark, he didn't even have the _will, _but it only took one look into Wolf's mask to know he wouldn't be getting any sleep this morning, he and Minato were going straight for the Hokage's office. Emi, meanwhile would be placed under Anbu guard and admitted to the hospital. A part - a very small part - of Hibiki was worried for the albino woman, but he knew he'd be seeing her again, and soon. It would likely take him, Jiraiya, Kushina and Minato all working together to fix her jinchuriki seal.

Fortunately for the two exhausted, sore chunin, neither of them had to move a muscle to get to the Hokage's office. Two Anbu agents body-flickered both of them inside, where Danzo awaited. It appeared that he had had something of a statement prepared, but upon actually seeing the state of the Senju heir - caked in grame and covered in soot - and the Namikaze orphan - covered in sweat, dirt, and blood - he actually paused a moment, as if second guessing his initial choice of words. No one broke the silence for several long minutes, during which Hibiki eventually gave up and fell to his face on the ground, and Minato just let his shoulders slump, his entire body going limp as he lay there, sitting on both of his knees, his arms limply resting at his sides.

The heavily bandaged Hokage finally gave both of the exhausted shinobi a look, before asking, "what happened?" In a tone neither of the chunin, and even none of the present Anbu, had ever heard before: Genuine concern.

His lungs rattling, Hibiki slowly, laboriously, placed both hands on the floor, and pushed himself up to a seating position. He swallowed thickly through a dry throat, but before he could even speak, an Anbu appeared next to him, a canteen in his extended hand. Hibiki looked up, seeing that it was Wolf with the canteen; he thanked the man, and upended it, drinking half of it before he had to come up for air. He turned his gaze to the right, and offered it to Minato, who took it graciously, and finished it off.

Now with a hydrated throat, Hibiki swallowed thickly and said, "Iwagakure is gone." Just saying it out loud seemed to take all of the steam out of the fifteen year old shinobi.

One could have heard a pin drop, the room grew so silent.

If it hadn't been before, Danzo's one visible eye was now firmly locked onto the kneeling, exhausted Senju heir. "Choose your words very carefully, Senju. _What do you mean... Gone?"_ Slowly asked the Kage, though with the shine in the eye, it appeared as if he already knew. "Start from the beginning, from the moment Uzumaki was taken."

So, Hibiki did. He let everything out, beginning with him seeing Kushina being kidnapped, to his brawl with the Runner. He explained how Runner had used the shadow clone technique to switch Kushina out with a clone, to confuse and stall Hibiki while he made off with the Uzumaki heiress. Hibiki told him of his thought process, how he came to conclude that Earth Country would be the best bet to start the search, given Katsuo's connections with the Earth Daimyo. He told them of how they assaulted the Earth's capitol and how Katsuo had left evidence to try and provoke them into doing so, but once they found Iwa's location on their maps, they canceled the assault, retreated, and beat feet for Iwa.

He paused to take another drink of water, from another canteen offered to him by Wolf. "Given their prevalence in Earth's capitol, their presence during the invasion several years ago, and Emi Miu's possession of one during the Chunin exams, I suspected Iwagakure to be outfitted with the thunder techniques. So..." He rumbled, his voice as numb as his body. "Minato and I prepared a plan, applying his Hiraishin seals to the projectiles and using that as his springboard. I sent in a great deal of shadow clones to assault the village, and he used my distraction to sneak into the Tsuchikage's tower, to try to find Kushina's location."

Minato spoke up, "I found proof leading to their Torture and Interrogation division."

Hibiki nodded, "and during this time, I was engaged by Katsuo, the Tsuchikage, and a few scores of less notable shinobi."

Danzo tilted his head, his brow furrowing. "You fought the third Tsuchikage?"

Hibiki nodded.

"He is dead, now?"

"Died in the explosion."

"What explosion?"

"During Katsuo and I's fight, we took to the skies, where a lightning storm was brewing. I used the ambient electrical energy to supercharge one of my lightning ninjutsu. He countered it with some sort of senjutsu technique. We clashed, and..." Hibiki swallowed, "I was forced to open Kyomon. The sudden surge of power sent us both flying towards the ground, and when my fist hit his chest, it completed the technique, and all of that energy exploded outwards." He explained, "and before that, Minato found Miu, chained up and tortured, her demon container seal damaged, but functioning.

"She told us that Kushina wasn't in the village, and after that was the explosion. I was able to evacuate the three of us before the explosion caught us... And then, lacking any better option, we retreated, with Miu." Finished the Senju heir. "We had another encounter with Katsuo and his allies, but one of my shadow clones was able to distract them long enough for us to cross the border into Grass."

Danzo lowered his folded hands to the desk. "With Iwagakure..."

"Completely leveled. _Flattened._ Whatever was left standing was on fire. Katsuo survived, as did one of his associates. If anyone else did, I didn't see."

The bandaged Hokage was silent for several long minutes, as he took in all of the information. The Senju heir had just told him that maps would have to be redrawn, that one of the most powerful hidden villages had been wiped away and destroyed, and that, by and large, _he_ had been responsible. He observed the Senju heir, who stared blankly at the ground, his mind having slowly come to grips with what he had done as he had laid it out. He observed the Namikaze, who stared off into space, rage and sorrow in his eyes as he came to terms with the fact that he had failed his mission, and failed his friend.

"Panther." Spoke the Hokage, "bring her."

Hibiki shook his head, "Miu is... She won't be able to talk for a while, sir." But the Hokage ignored him.

Several minutes passed by in silence, before the assembled shinobi heard the sounds of running feet slamming on wood. There was a pause before the doors to the Hokage's office crashed open, prompting Hibiki and Minato to turn their exhausted heads to face the newcomer. Before they could even do so, however, they were each tackled to the ground, their midsections being crushed under the awesome strength of a red-headed sealsmistress.

_"Oh kami you two are still alive!"_ Sobbed a voice neither of the chunin thought they would hear again for a long time, as the speaker hugged the both of them so tightly that their ribs creaked under the strain. _"I was so worried they weren't telling me anything I didn't know if you were coming back please don't ever leave me again I'm so sorry!" _She managed to cry in one long breath.

Hibiki was in such a state of shock that he couldn't even blink, let alone turn his numbing head to the left to look at the red-headed Uzumaki heiress, as she hugged him and his companion so tightly it almost seemed as if she would never let them go. Minato, on the other hand, snapped out of the shock after a few seconds and with the happiest shout, and biggest, most flabbergasted smile he had ever produced, he gained his second wind and managed to envelop the Uzumaki in his arms, pick her up, and press her tightly against him.

_"Kushina!"_ He cried, tears freely flowing down his sweat-crusted face, as the Uzumaki was forced to let go of Hibiki so she could hold reciprocate. "I - how -" Words were failing the blond blur, as he and the Uzumaki embraced tightly.

Hibiki, meanwhile, numbly got to his feet, his onyx eyes wide as he turned his body to face the back of the Uzumaki heiress. His shoulders were slumped, his jaw was slack, and his hands were limp; his legs were hardly even strong enough to hold him up, he was in such shock. What was happening? What was going on? Was this her? How was this her? This couldn't be her! He'd left a clone back here, and it had never dispelled - _if she'd returned, he would have known! **It wasn't her! It couldn't be!**_

But before he could even try to test it, he heard another new voice speak over Minato and Kushina's collective sobs. It was a voice Hibiki wasn't accustomed to hearing from the sidelines. A voice that had taken him fifteen years to get used to using. _His voice._

"It's her." The speaker croaked.

Hibiki turned his numb head to his right, staring at the entrance to the Hokage's office, where the Shadow Clone stood, his hands held behind his back and his head hanging guiltily, not even able to make eye contact with himself.

With those two words, and that guilty clone, all of the pieces fell into place.

The soot-covered, sweat crusted, exhausted Senju heir fell to his knees, his ears ringing as his wide eyed gaze slowly revolved around the room, passing over Minato, who too was staring at the Hibiki clone, passing over Kushina, who wore a confused expression, indicating she wasn't privy to these revelations, and settling upon Danzo, whose stone faced resolve told Hibiki everything left he needed to know. He felt his wide eyes burning as tears started to stream out of them, and his gaze fell back to the floor right in front of his knees, as he heard someone begin screaming.

This had been the plan, all along. Katsuo wanted a war, so he'd used Hibiki's devotion to his friends and his propensity for rashness to his advantage. The magnificent bastard had _staged_ Kushina's kidnapping from the very beginning. He'd sent Runner into Konoha, Runner had cloned himself, then run out, catching Hibiki's attention. He'd cloned himself again, twice, and sent those ones packing, while Hibiki caught up with the ones he was supposed to have. Runner fought him in such a manner to make it appear as if he was distracting Hibiki from his absconding with the Jinchuriki, all in the efforts of convincing Hibiki that he'd been had, and that Kushina had been taken. Minato had been a byproduct, and accident, but not one Katsuo was willing to throw away. The two of them bolted from a village, leaving a Hibiki clone behind to update them on the situation.

Then, Kushina returned, and Danzo convinced the Senju clone not to dispel itself, so Hibiki would remained focused on his fool's errand. The clone, so far separated from the situation, technically, saw the logic in the decision - the mortified Alpha saw the logic in the decision! - and allowed it to happen! He knew as well as Danzo that Hibiki wouldn't give up, wouldn't lose, wouldn't stop until he had no other choice! This would lead him to assaulting Iwagakure and weakening their forces for the war that would no doubt start in earnest once all was said and done. The weakening of their army would seriously cripple their stance in the war to come, if not force them to withdraw entirely. This would spare more Konoha lives to fight on the other fronts. All that had to happen was he had to just lie to himself, through omission, and let him go and destroy a country.

Hibiki had been presented with the atom bomb argument - _Hibiki had been the bomb! **And the bomber!**_

Katsuo, meanwhile, could use all of this as his leverage to finally spark the third Shinobi World War and get the nine Jinchuriki out on the playing field. From the very beginning, Hibiki had been playing into his hands. The complete obliteration of Iwa had been unplanned for on all sides, but didn't hurt _anyone's_ cause.

It was only now, as the Senju heir's throat began to hurt, and his eyes burned from not having blinked _once,_ did he realize that the person screaming was him.

He had just killed three million people.

_**Needlessly.**_

Several minutes passed, after Hibiki's throat became so raw he was just unable to scream anymore. His clone vanished in a plume of smoke, but he was so numb he hardly even registered the influx of memory.

Three million people. _Minimum. **For no goddamn reason.**_

Hibiki got to his feet, his wide, burning eyes still staring off into the distance. He turned to the door to the Hokage's office and began walking, but one voice stopped him.

"Where do you think you're going?"

Hibiki snapped, but where some saw his straightening posture and squaring shoulders as a sign of impending violence, no one was able to predict what he would do next.

"Home." Said a dead, rumbly voice, as Hibiki turned around. Danzo looked like he was about to speak, but when he saw the Senju heir's eyes, he closed his mouth. Where once there were three tomoe, there were now two spirographs, their centers so thick that they appeared to be hourglasses. "I just blew up an entire village and killed, at minimum, three million people, and all of those deaths were pointless. Needless. Avoidable. All of them. I am tired. I am hungry. I am in shock, and I am _angry_ almost beyond the capacity for rational thought. And before you say another word... Keep this in mind." And for the first time in his new life, Hibiki Senju began leaking killing intent.

One thing no one in the room was aware of was that, since he had died already, Hibiki knew the value of life. He also knew the fear one got when theirs was at an end - he himself had experienced that fear in those few seconds before his brain shut down after being hit by a speeding semi-truck. Normal killing intent, it set the nerves on edge and rooted lesser people to the spot, it was just chakra creating some sort of weak, but effective, depending on the shinobi, ninjutsu/genjutsu combination. Hibiki's killing intent, however, was different, due to circumstance. His penetrated the chakra circulatory system, went straight for the brain, and caused it to begin producing all of the chemicals and neurological responses centered around the fear of impending and unstoppable death. Everyone in the room, from the Anbu on the walls, to his two friends, to even the Kage himself, lost a few shades of color, and were rooted to the spot, as Hibiki's killing intent lowered the temperature by a good twenty degrees.

"If I hear... One word from your mouth. I swear to god, I will snap." Hibiki stated, as plainly as if he were saying the weather. "I will kill. And kill. And kill, until I myself am killed - and my demonstration yesterday should be pretty fucking indicative of how difficult that is." He said, his expression blank and his spirograph eyes wide. "I will stop at nothing. Man, woman, child, shinobi, animal... I will kill them all. And when the day is done, I will sleep like a baby. And I will rise the next day, with the sun, and begin killing again." He pointed at the Hokage, "if _you_ say _one more word." _He said in the dead tone, speaking from the bottom of his throat.

Danzo, though Hibiki wasn't aware, was only silent because he didn't know what the Senju's eyes were capable of, now that he had seen the metamorphosis take place right in front of him. That decision saved his life.

"I'm going home, now." Said the red-eyed Senju. "I swear to god... If I am summoned by you, before I decide to come of my own volition, I will kill. If I get a mission contract, I will kill everyone on the contract. I will kill everyone who touched the contract. I will kill the people that made the paper and the ink and the brushes that helped the contract come into existence. And then I will kill. If I see Anbu following me, I will kill. If a pre-emptive attempt is made on my life, while I sleep, or at any other time in the day, you literal-minded bastard, I will kill." He again pointed at Danzo, "you own this village. Your word is the weightiest one in it. You can ensure this doesn't happen. You can keep me _un-snapped."_ He rumbled, numbly. "But if you test me... In any way. I swear to god. I will kill." With every sentence, he nodded firmly.

He kept his wide, spirograph eyes locked onto the Hokage for several seconds, before he finally turned back on his heel, and left the room. The killing intent left with him, but its effect had long since pervaded the walls, it would be _days_ before the room felt normal again.


	60. Or, A Determined Naara

Chapter 59

* * *

There were advantages to using the Shadow Clone technique, as the Senju heir did. There were the obvious ones, like being able to train functionally forever, so long as there was just _one_ clone lounging around and building up energy, and of course being able to get multiple things done at once. However, what few realized was that while the Senju Heir himself, the true one who had coined the term 'Alpha' to delineate the real deal from the clones, was able to use his clones no just to accomplish goals, study, and train, but also to ensure he was able to stay in close contact with those he called friends. Reflective of his previous life, the Senju heir had not a large crowd of people he called friends, but rather a smaller, close-knit group with whom he could spend more time with.

Take, for instance, Fugaku Uchiha. In a year, he was set to take over as the head to one of the most powerful clans in the world, and he had known Hibiki since their academy years. Their meeting had been a tumultuous one, with the Uchiha heir arrogantly demanding he fight with the heir to the once-rival clan, and technically, neither of them had won the fight. To anyone else, it would have been enough of a test to try once and then cut ties, but the Senju heir had won Fugaku's respect with that one fight, and even a friendship, though he wouldn't truly admit it, not even to himself, as the man was too proud to do so. Instead he deigned to declare to anyone who brought it up that the heir to his once-rival clan was a rival and nothing more, that Hibiki's growth in power facilitated his own, and their continued contact was merely a political move, as even though the Senju were now limited to just two people, they each were still S-Ranked shinobi and their weight and strength carried a great deal of power.

Despite this, however, deep down inside he knew that the raven-haired man of the Senju bloodline was, and always would be, a friend to him and to the Uchiha. Hibiki was so open to Fugaku that the Uchiha heir many times still found himself wondering if he were _aware_ of the stigma and prejudice surrounding the Uchiha, and simply chose to ignore it, or if he weren't aware of it at all and saw Fugaku as an equal, as he did all shinobi. In either case, it burgeoned a respect within the fifteen year old Uchiha, because if the heir to the clan that had once been _mortal enemies_ with his own could transcend the past and instead look to the future, then maybe, _just_ maybe, under their rule the two of them could bring the Uchiha out of the darkness many other clans and civilian groups had cast them in. Fugaku saw in the Senju a flame, perhaps brighter than all around it, and wondered if that wasn't what the four Hokage had called the Will of Fire. Truly, if it was, then the Senju lived by it whole-heartedly, accepting anyone who requested his time of day and treating all as equals until such a time as they proved they were not worthy of such a treatment; for proof, if Fugaku were to not count himself, he needed only look at Hibiki's relationship with Arjuna Kaguya, and his vital role in bringing the formerly nomadic clan into Konohagakure's walls.

The entire world viewed the Kaguya as bloodthirsty savages, primarily due to how the days of the Warring States Period had ended _generations_ ago, and yet the Kaguya still kept to those ideals. Their story was similar in some aspects to how the Uchiha were viewed in Konoha - with disdain and distrust. Like how many saw an Uchiha and instead of smiling and waving, they would instead shy away and keep up their guard, many who saw a Kaguya would run for the hills and pray for their life. The stigma had been entrenched in the public mind so much that few were willing to look past the ideals of their ancestors.

Hibiki, however, was different. He saw the past not as something to be repeated, but something to be respected and learned from. Even ignoring the direct orders to ensure he brought them into the fold, Hibiki had taken one look at the Kaguya clan's request for acceptance and paid it no second thoughts. He simply geared up for battle, learned the rules of his bout, and respected them. Then, to help them assimilate easier, he had - perhaps in his first act as future clan head - _donated_ almost the entirety of the Senju compound.

With his finger on the pulse of the public mind, Fugaku had seen very quickly the effects Hibiki's actions had had. If the heir to the name Senju trusted the Kaguya so much that he would give them his ancestral home, then perhaps they weren't so bad? If Hibiki was willing to dedicate so much time and energy to assist in their transition from ill-educated nomads to productive members of modern society, then perhaps they should be given a chance? After all, Hibiki's ancestors had been the ones to bring Konoha into existence in the first place, to unite so many of the world's most powerful cans and pave the way for society as they knew it, so where was the hurt in braving a decade or two of adjustment, so they could bring this prosperity to another people, who had never known it?

Seeing this happen before his eyes, it filled Fugaku with a sense of hope he had never once truly felt. When compared to the anger and hatred of his father, and his father's father, and their subsequent stoicism and separation from Konoha's people further perpetuating the stereotype, Fugaku felt that Hibiki's method, of simply respecting the past, but not repeating it if at all possible, was truly the best method. Fugaku knew it would be hard, he knew there would be a great deal of strife within his clan if he tried for this method, many would disagree, but if the prize was acceptance - the very acceptance no Uchiha had felt since the beginning of the village itself - then the price would be more than worth it. Hibiki had taught him that sometimes, a burden must be bared for the benefit of all.

So, when reports had begun spreading that the Senju heir and his Namikaze friend had bolted out of the village in search of some random, abducted kunoichi, neither with even a hint of hesitation, Fugaku hadn't even questioned it. He knew it was what Hibiki would do, the Senju heir was the type to give his life unflinchingly for those he cherished; it was part of what made him so well loved by the village, his willingness to walk into a wall of fire if it meant he could protect those who could not protect themselves. _Nothing_ would stop Hibiki Senju, if the end-goal was protecting or rescuing someone he cared for.

But, when rumors had begun spreading upon his return that he had _destroyed_ a hidden village, and not just that, but because the whole thing - from the initial kidnapping to his return - had been a sham by one of his enemies to spark war, Fugaku found himself halted. Then came reports that not only had it been a sham, but it had been a play by the fourth Hokage, who had discovered not long after Hibiki had left that the kunoichi was safe and sound, and had deigned to force anyone involved and in the know to _not_ send the Alpha Senju any information, Fugaku found himself appalled. Not by Hibiki - true, while hearing the man had destroyed a village had been surprising, for Fugaku hadn't ever considered him _that_ powerful, Fugaku knew Hibiki would willingly level cities if it meant he could protect his friends - but by his Kage.

Here was a _good man,_ who tirelessly worked to better himself to protect his village, who ceaselessly made efforts to improve the quality of life in said village, oftentimes at cost to himself, being betrayed by the one man above all who should have understood that. Fugaku knew Danzo by reputation, as his father revealed more and more secrets of the clan to him, he came to know of the Hokage's shadow, and how Shimura had taken the role after being passed over for third Hokage; but never had he thought Danzo would be capable of this. Konoha's ideal, as set by Hibiki's great grandfather, was supposed to be one of peace and love, one of trust in one's comrades, and above all, one of _hope._ Hibiki fought tirelessly for these ideals, he inspired those around him and those merely even exposed to him, to fight for those ideals, and yet the one man who was supposed to _embody_ those ideals, had instead betrayed him, and them.

War wasn't something to be sought out, it was something to be avoided. Innocents, civilians, and noncombatants were to be avoided and shunted from the battlefield, not actively slaughtered. Even _Madara Uchiha,_ for all of his faults, didn't kill civilians if he could avoid it. Danzo, on the other hand, silently _encouraged_ it by not batting an eye when he realized he had a chance to eliminate, or cripple, a fighting force so the oncoming war would be easier. The Hokage had betrayed everything he should have stood for, and then presumed to defend his actions by saying he did not _tell_ the Senju to kill those people, that he did not _instruct_ the Senju to assault the village. Technically, he maintained, Hibiki had left without proper clearance, and by that same technicality, the destruction of Iwagakure was an unsanctioned act by a duo of missing-nin.

Needless to say, it was _not_ a popular opinion, and no matter how much Fugaku wished to fight it, he felt the highest priority was to ensure Hibiki hadn't gone and broken himself under the weight of the lives he had taken. What he found, however, was what everybody found: An empty room, cleared of even its wall postings, with but a single note pinned on a desk, that said in as few words as possible that Hibiki had gone home, but would return.

The _anger_ that surged through Fugaku as he saw what Hibiki's other close friends saw could only be described as biblical. Here was the heir to the clan that had veritably _founded _not just the Village Hidden in the Leaves, but the entire hidden village system itself, so crippled by the guilt of the actions he'd caused by his betrayal, that he'd felt he'd been _pushed_ from his own village! Even if his promise was to return once he had, to paraphrase, calmed down, the effect was the same: Hibiki felt so guilty, so betrayed, that he was no longer welcome in his _home._

Had it not been for the calm demeanor, and subsequent actions and reactions of Hibiki's other friends, namely his old Nara friend from the academy, Fugaku may very well have fallen into the very curse that plagued most of his clan, and let his hatred and anger consume his soul.

* * *

Noboru Hyuga wasn't a religious man, not by a long shot. Very few Hyuga were, and most of those few were the civilian Hyuga who hadn't seen a single life ended in their entire time on this earth. Despite this, however, he would openly admit he felt blessed to have been placed on the same team as Hibiki Senju. That man was a force of nature, and to a clan who respected power and battle prowess above almost all else, that alone was one of the highest compliments that could ever be paid to an individual. Hibiki was the kind of man who could stare down a monster, dozens, if not, hundreds of times more powerful than him, and hold the line. He was a man who routinely got into confrontations with people stronger than him, and he always came out on top. Noboru learned as much from the Senju heir as the Senju _claimed_ to have learned from him, and it was alongside he and Suboro Kurama that they cemented the reputation for Konoha's first ever shinobi shock-trooper team.

Their meeting hadn't been as accidental as his and Minato's, or as pride-fueled as his and Fugaku's. They had simply been assigned together to a team, and the Hyuga noble actually remembered wondering if the eight year old Senju would be able to keep up. This was, after all, a Genin's game, and Senju or no, Hibiki had been _eight_ at the time. Boy, had he been wrong. Under Hibiki, they had been able to, technically, beat _Dante._ That right there had set the tone for their squad's dynamic and relationship for the rest of their lives. No matter what Suboro managed to say or do that would make him sputter about in embarrassment, Hibiki was quantifiably the life of the squad. He cut the tension with ridiculous jokes, kept everyone level headed and on task, and above all he was always willing to put himself on the line first and foremost. The man was a born leader, just everything about him, from the way he talked to the way he fought, always bearing the burden so his subordinates and allies wouldn't have to, just begged to be listened to.

Ever since the three of them had made Chunin, Dante had felt more confident in taking more frequent B and A ranked missions, and in the last five years the team under him had even undertaken two _S-rank_ missions, killed a squad of seven A-ranked shinobi, and had only seen fit to continue to grow in their power. But no matter how many boulders Noboru could shatter with just a touch of his palm and a burst of his jyuken, or how many scores of people Suboro immobilized with his genjutsu, Noboru always felt as if the true powerhouse of the team was their Senju heir. Alone, each of Team Dante was formidable, Suboro could kill scores of people with his mind, Noboru could take down opponents _leagues_ above him in power with just minor applications of his family's fighting style, and Hibiki could stand as a titan among giants, but together? The three were unstoppable, to the point that Dante was letting loose murmurings of letting them take their Jonin tests, imminently. The three of them had sacked a village together, fought the A-B tag-team together, had killed, bled and sweat together, and had grown together. There were few people in the world that knew the three of them as well as they knew eachother.

So Noboru could say with the utmost confidence that he knew Hibiki was a good man. The Senju heir was the kind of person who would - and sometimes _did - _offer the last of his water to a wandering traveler, if only so the traveler's own water supply would be able to stretch just a but further. More than once, Hibiki ran out into the field of fire, or in the way of a particularly powerful ninjutsu, just so he could ensure his teammates wouldn't take that hit. Once, years ago, when Suboro was wrapped up in quickly learning the intricacies of his clan, Noboru had been approached by the elders of his clan about having his techniques inducted formally into their archives. The problem, however, was that the techniques Noboru had developed were _lethal,_ and aside from his particular brand of jyuken, none of them could be properly demonstrated without some kind of fleshy target.

So obviously Hibiki volunteered himself as the 'test dummy', and six hours later Noboru had pulverized his stomach with his burst-jyuken, carved open his chest with his Kaiten Drill, and nearly broken every bone on the upper right half of his body with a ranged jyuken demonstration. All Hibiki had had to say about it was a small tip on how to tone down the power of the ranged jyuken - Noboru had coated a kunai in his chakra, where Hibiki suggested a senbon. As his partially flattened chest and shoulder slowly snapped back into place. And his bleeding chest sealed itself up. And blood openly leaked out of his mouth, along with small bits of stomach.

All with a smile.

Then, to spare everyone the sight, the clone burst into a plume of smoke.

Noboru attributed his branch's continued nobility to the Senju heir, without him, his sister's son likely would have been slapped with a Caged Bird Seal. Noboru hadn't even gotten halfway through telling his friend that he would owe him for life for that, when Hibiki just cut the Hyuga off and told him he could make it up by showing him the chakra drill. When asked why, he just said something about 'Mister bubbles wanting to play', and Noboru decided not to press it any further.

It was these stories and so many more that served as direct proof of why Noboru thought Hibiki was a _good man._ There wouldn't be anything that could change those thoughts, especially not being woken up very early in the morning - or perhaps very late at night, he hadn't been able to tell - to be told that something had happened and they needed to get to the Hokage's tower immediately. A Hibiki clone had been waiting there, and when it had told them the full story, Noboru quickly understood why Hibiki had decided to leave the clone, as opposed to wait up for the numbers. As good as Team Dante was at combat, Hibiki was their fastest member, the only one of them that had even remotely specialized in the attribute. Minato Namikaze, meanwhile, was a fuinjutsu-specialist who was fast enough to keep up with the Senju heir on his best day, it was the logical choice.

But when the Hokage had ordered them all to stay, period, Noboru had gotten confused.

When Kushina had come back home, revealing the whole thing to be a ruse, and the Hokage still refused to update the true Hibiki, Noboru had gotten angry. Sure, he saw the logic in the Hokage's decision, but the problem was that sometimes even Kage shouldn't make the _logical_ decision, not with so many lives on the line. Not with Hibiki's mental sanity riding on the outcome. This was a situation in which only one side had all of the facts, and it wasn't theirs, and yet the fourth Hokage had decided that this mattered not, that crippling Iwagakure's army was the most important thing, with war not only looming but _here._

Noboru had actually seen Hibiki, Minato, and their prisoner-slash-rescue return to the village. Part of his chakra training exercises was a constant use of his Byakugan, and while he wasn't nearly as proficient with it as Hibiki was with his Sharingan, through _years_ of training he had managed to accustom his body to the strain, and had tripled the time he could use it in combat, let alone at a resting state. With his Byakugan, Noboru had seen his squadmate and the former rookie be escorted to the Hokage's office, and had had a side-seat to the Hokage's callous treatment of the truth. Without a word, or even an attempt to explain himself, he had just ripped the bandage off and shown the Senju and the Namikaze that Kushina was still home.

Noboru vowed he would _never_ allow that broken, defeated look to pollute the Senju's eyes again. He had seen the Senju tear apart his throat from the inside out, as he screamed it so raw that some of his blood had spat out. It had taken all of his self control not to gather Suboro and storm to the Hokage's office, that and a timely intervention from Dante, who just shook his head, as if he had known what Noboru was going to do.

The Hyuga noble hadn't been surprised at all that Hibiki had retreated to wherever 'home' was, and he didn't need the letter to know that Hibiki would inevitably return. It wasn't a matter of if, but when, and what the village would look like when he did return, because if the promises of a certain Nara heir were anything to go by, a certain Kage may be facing war crimes in the very near future.

* * *

Hibiki Senju had walked through hell to help Suboro Kurama.

That wasn't a metaphor. One night, the Kurama clansman had found himself in the midst of an intense nightmare. He'd dreamt he was back in Kiri, and Ay and Bee were tearing Hibiki and Noboru apart, with Suboro buried under the rubble and unable to form the handsigns needed to at least _try_ to help. In response to the stress of his dream, he had unconsciously activated his bloodline, and set the home provided to him by the Kurama ablaze. Anyone who approached his home was instantly caught in the heat and hellfire of his nightmare, and the longer it went, the further out his chakra leaked.

It had been late at night, and Hibiki, as was his custom, had been stuck awake, unable to sleep. He had seen the chakra burst from the small Kurama compound, and had come over mostly out of curiosity. When he was appraised of the situation, without hesitation the Senju heir had waded right into the area of effect of Suboro's genjutsu. Even with his bloodline making him immune to genjutsu in general, Suboro had been refining his particular brand of genjutsu so that he could cast a low-level illusion on his surroundings, similarly to what he had done to make teams Four and Six invisible during the chunin exams, but on a much different level. Instead of just bouncing light around, Suboro's unique genjutsu had minute effects on the world around him, nothing on the level of what Dante had once told the Senju heir was capable with a different, specific bloodline that had never been named in Suboro's presence, but still powerful on a scale no one had ever dreamed of possible. Had Hibiki not gone in with his Sharingan active, he would have been wading through something _far worse._

The result was fire that burned so hot that the flames were pure white, and this had been before Hibiki had fully mastered his lightning cloak. The Senju heir, without hesitation waded through the hellfire, into Suboro's home, and with a smack on the nose, woke the Kurama clansman up.

"Listen, I know you think you're hot, but this is ridiculous!" Hibiki had called out over the flames, once Suboro's glazed over eyes locked onto him.

The genjutsu had vanished on the spot, and Suboro made it a point to apologize to every Kurama who had been effected by his lack of control, but most of all to Hibiki, whose entire lower body was almost burned down to the skeleton. Hibiki hadn't paid the former orphan any mind, and had instead just given him some advice - particularly on chakra control, but also on preventing this in the future. The way Hibiki figured, until Suboro mastered his mind to the point that he never tried to out-burn the sun gain, a good way to prevent something like this was by doing the same chakra exercises he and Noboru did, namely, draining himself dry every night before bedtime.

And then, just to get a rise out of his bald teammate, Hibiki told him that he may think he's hot shit, what with his 'kill people bloodline', but that doesn't mean he gets to skip out on fights.

If ever Suboro had needed proof that Hibiki was one of the best friends he'd ever had, that moment was it. The day - or, night, really - Hibiki had walked through hell for him. Of course, he couldn't forget the time he and Hibiki had filled Noboru's canteen with a water absorbant. Noboru had almost broken the canteen open on a rock before he'd figured out what they'd done, but by then it had been too late, and the absorbant had been exposed to open air, and the canteen exploded.

The Kurama clansman may not be as bright as his friends, or as quick on the uptake as they were. Hell, they outclassed him in almost every way, physically. The only way he compared was because of his frankly _insane_ genjutsu mastery, but they still treated him like family, so he, in turn, was willing to do anything for them. Their problems were his problems. Their concerns, his. Their friends would be his friends. He would help bear the burden of their struggles. He would give them the shirt off of his back if they asked, and he would help them bury a body without hesitation. He would lie to his Kage for these two, they were his family, even moreso than the Kurama were.

So, when Hibiki bolted from Konoha to go rescue Kushina, Suboro had been the very first one to demand he be allowed to follow. If anyone, his skillset could be the _most useful_ on a mission like this. His maximum distance as of this moment was five kilometers - he could catch as many people as he wanted in a circular area of five kilometers, and that would be _invaluable_ in a situation like Hibiki was in, outnumbered tens of thousands to one. Just one word from the Senju heir to go lethal, and all of those people would be dead for trying to hurt Hibiki, for trying to take his friend.

But the Hokage said no. Initially, Suboro trusted the Hokage - he was the Hokage!

But then Hibiki began arguing with him, and Suboro realized what the Hokage was asking the clone to do, and he realized instantly how _horrible_ that would be for the Senju heir. Killing in self defense was one thing, killing in the service of protecting your comrades was another thing, but killing in cold blood? Potentially _thousands_ of people? That was something else entirely. It wasn't the same. It wasn't something Hibiki did, it wasn't something he wanted to do, and yet the Hokage all but _forced_ him to do so, using his twisted logic to convince the clone that it was the right idea.

When the true Hibiki came back to Konoha, and then promptly vanished the next morning, Noboru knew something was wrong. It had only taken one look at his sensei's face to know something was _very very wrong._ When Noboru had sat him down in the teahouse to explain what had happened, Suboro couldn't believe it. Was Hibiki okay? Would he come home? Did he need help? They didn't know, he said he would, they didn't know. All they did know was that Hibiki had been played like an instrument, used like a tool, and he had killed _millions_ of people. The Senju heir regretted things like nobody's business, he questioned his decisions all the time, always wondering if he could have done something better, to the point where Suboro still saw him having thought experiments over how he could have executed his defense in the Konoha invasion differently. The _Konoha invasion!_ That had been years ago, and the village was fully rebuilt!

This was something totally different. Suboro knew that it was very likely that Hibiki would never recover. Ever. This would stay with him for the rest of his life, and he wanted nothing more than to help him, in any way he could.

Fortunately, he got his chance, in the form of Shikaku Nara.

* * *

Despite their nearly comparable age, Kushina Uzumaki saw Hibiki Senju as an older brother. Sure, _maybe_, _once,_ a looooong time ago, when he had been the only boy she knew in the whole village, she may have had a little small tiny crush on him. Just a little one, you know? But when she'd seen the way Dai Aburame looked at him, and the way the two interacted even before he'd taken the hint and the two had started actually dating, she knew that in him she would only have a friend. Fortunately, a friend was something she was glad to have, especially after the one-two punch, losing Uzu and then Mito. Hibiki and Minato had spent _hours_ with her, just silently drinking tea, not even talking if she didn't want to. She had appreciated it then, and she had appreciated it now.

She remembered fondly the day Hibiki blew himself up on purpose, making a bad space/time seal, just to make her laugh, as well as the water balloon fight that had taken them all across the village, from the Uchiha compound to the Hyuga compound. Sometimes she still found little bits of red balloon in random places in her apartment, and she secretly loved to just drop deflated balloons in Mikoto's room whenever she stayed over. Seeing the Uchiha kunoichi go mad every time _the damn balloons_ showed up again was always funny. That was one thing she was pretty sure she liked about Hibiki above all else - he knew the value of a good laugh, and even if he had to get a rise out of her to do it, he'd make sure she had laughed at least once whenever they spent time together.

She loved to _hate_ it when he'd start cracking jokes and poking her in the ribs whenever they were looking over eachothers' fuinjutsu progress together. One time she had nearly blown herself up because of him. He'd stopped real fast when the ends of her long red hair had started levitating.

Of course, she knew Hibiki's reputation. 'Konoha's Thunder God' - _oh_ how she loved to use that name! It pissed him off as much as the name that shall not be named pissed _her_ off! Hibiki was reputed to be a force of nature on the battlefield. He built his legend around the felling of shinobi who towered over him in strength, and the speed with which he was able to dispatch those weaker than him. She knew that he was a genius when it came to battle, able to pick apart strategies, adapt, and improvise on the fly, and always last long enough to find his enemy's weakness and exploit it, and if that didn't work, use his own skill to take apart his opponents in straight up taijutsu. Truly, if he wasn't the strongest taijutsu specialist in their village, then he was at least the strongest one in their year.

She'd _experienced_ this reputation for herself, more than once. A few years after her failed kidnapping and subsequent acquisition of a certain furry 'tenant', she had decided it prudent to try and find a way to draw the thing's chakra out for herself, should the emergency ever arise. Given the nature of the seal, small amounts of it leaked out and mixed with her chakra on their own, it was what gave her her crazy stamina beyond that which was already afforded to her by her Uzumaki heritage, and nearly Hibiki-level capacity for healing. Beyond that, however, and she couldn't draw it out on her own, so she went to Hibiki for help.

Never one to fail her, the Senju heir had theorized that a high stress situation would probably be their best bet, if they didn't want to crack open her seal and see what made Mito's last work tick. So, with that in mind, she had straight up asked if he wanted to spar with her, and before she knew it, his foot was on her chest and she was halfway across their training ground. She countered quickly and the two engaged eachother, but try as she might, she wasn't able to overpower the Senju heir, who hadn't even used his unique clone technique, his thunder technique, or even his curse seal or his then-unmastered lightning cloak. She was no slouch in the fighting department, but it had felt pretty embarrassing to see the Senju heir be able to so easily hold her at bay.

Also enraging. Pretty quickly she realized he was just playing with her, and her first instinct was to get mad. That was when she had heard it - the voice of the Kyuubi - for the first time in her life. That brief instant when she was able to project herself inside her seal, because of how mad Hibiki had intentionally made her, she had figured out how to open up the seal and have a dialogue with the chained up fox. The way she figured it, he was her tenant, and she was its landlord, so if she came a knockin', looking for rent, he better give it.

He promptly insulted her and the 'undead shinobi' she was fighting with too, but then a black chakra chain appeared out of nowhere and wrapped around its jaw, muzzling it. Then its chakra began to be forcibly drawn out of those chains, and channeled into her body.

She _may_ have lost control after that point. She remembered everything, but the rush of power had been so much she hadn't been able to fully control it. That was when she saw Hibiki the Thunder God, and not the Hibiki she was more familiar with. Her red aura had started raging around her body and she savagely attacked the Senju heir, whose eyes quickly turned red and whose cursed seal stretched across his body. It took him fifteen minutes of intense fighting, before he had finally figured out exactly what and how Kushina was doing, and how he could get around it without killing her, and once he'd done so, it took him only fifteen seconds to knock her out and bury her head in the ground.

But, despite _knowing_ his reputation, and having experienced it for herself on at least one occasion - because that wasn't the only time the two sparred - when she thought of Hibiki, the words 'Thunder God' never entered her mind. Instead, Kushina thought of the kind smile, the hand brushing through thick, unkempt raven hair. The laid-back posture and the goofy grin that usually preceded a stupid, awful joke. And then the never-regretful giggles and laughs as he saw her try to hold her own laughter in. She didn't think of the man who could fight Katsuo the Monster and not lose, she didn't think of the shinobi who had spearheaded the Kirigakure invasion, she thought of the man who, at the age of fourteen, had locked her and Minato in a room together and sworn not to undo the durability-enhancing fuinjutsu seals until 'they saw what he saw'.

Embarrassing as it was, that was how she and Minato had finally started dating.

Apparently Hibiki's girlfriend still found that story hilarious, though she hardly ever laughed in Kushina's presence. She hardly showed _anything_ beyond Aburame stoicism, when in the company of anyone else... Not if she thought Kushina was looking, anyways.

But it all only served to reinforce this image of a kind, jovial, even brotherly, man. She was all but certain that Hibiki wouldn't hesitate to abandon an S-ranked mission if she needed his help somewhere, that was the kind of man he was. So it had actually terrified her to her core that morning, when he had pinned her to a tree outside of Konoha and shoved the catalyst for his thunder technique in her face. She had been so confused - why was he so adamant in seeing her identity seal? What had happened? It hadn't been until she was debriefed - long after him - that she realized the gravity of what Hibiki was involved in.

But when the true Hibiki came _back?_ When he confessed to destroying the whole of Iwagakure? The only thing on her mind was whether or not he and Minato were okay. It took her _hours_ to get the story out of Minato, and from him she got the larger picture of what Hibiki had done in what he thought had been his attempt to rescue her from Katsuo the Monster. He had done what had been done to her - he had _destroyed_ a _village!_

She had actually ran from the hospital room at that news. She couldn't believe it, that wasn't the Hibiki she knew. She tried to find him, to get him to explain himself, but by the time she had gotten to his home, he had already abandoned ship, going to wherever this _other_ 'home' was, that he mentioned in his 'I'll be back' letter.

Kushina truly didn't know what to think until Shikaku gave her the pieces to the puzzle she was missing. The Nara heir had actually had to bind her by her shadow to keep her from going to the Hokage's office and throttling him. She'd forced him to promise her that they would help Hibiki, that they would help Minato, and Shikaku merely nodded, his hands folded in front of his mouth, and promised her that he was working on it.

Then she ran back to Minato's hospital room, brushing past Hibiki's girlfriend on the way. But when she'd gotten there, he had been gone. She checked his apartment, but he wasn't there too.

All she could do, as she fell to her knees, wondering what she had done wrong, was pray that the both of them would return to her. That it hadn't been her fault they had left.

* * *

Minato Namikaze had never had a brother, not until he met Hibiki Senju.

Or, well, crashed into him and drawn blood.

Same thing, right?

Close enough?

Regardless, to the sole surviving Namikaze, Hibiki was the closest thing to family he had left. Yeah, sure, it was kind of hard to keep being his rival with the way Hibiki kept vaulting forward in his training - those shadow clones were cheating! - but Minato was working on it! Jiraya-sensei felt his chakra was good enough now to learn the shadow clone technique, and when Hibiki taught him how to use his thunder techniques, he'd have a whole host of things to add to his arsenal! Then take into consideration what Hibiki had theorized about his Hiraishin, and Minato's ideas for his own combat technique, it wouldn't be long before Minato could stand his own against the Senju Heir, make no mistake about it!

Sitting, heavily bandaged, in a sterile white hospital room, Minato was given a lot of time to reflect, and given the sheer amount of things that had happened this last week, he wasn't going to be sleeping any time soon. The pained wail he had heard come out of Hibiki's throat when it had all been revealed... Kami, he hoped he never heard that again. Ever.

He shook his head clear of those thoughts, instead going back to happier memories. He remembered one time, about six months before he had taken his chunin exam, Jiraiya-sensei had actually paid Hibiki a B-rank salary to follow them around during one of their out-of-village missions, and steal Minato's things. Hibiki had started benignly at first - a kunai here, a fuinjutsu brush there - but it kept growing as Minato never noticed. It hadn't been until Hibiki had, using his Swift Release bloodline, stolen the headband off of Minato's head, did he finally figure something was up.

Jiraiya-sensei probably would have sent him back to the academy, if he hadn't been laughing so hard at the befuddled expression on the blond blur's face. Then Hibiki, also laughing, fell out of a tree, and all of Minato's things spilled out of his backpack. They'd had to blame the several trees Hibiki and Minato destroyed in the resulting fight on a B-ranked missing nin.

Minato could hardly put to words how happy he was to know Hibiki. Even with the Senju's ability to copy bloodlines, the sheer heights of power that man was able to reach _baffled_ Minato's mind, but above all, it gave him a goal. One day he wanted to fight Hibiki, with nothing held back, and maybe not win, but at least _not lose!_ It could happen! Jiraiya-sensei maintained that, as long he kept up on his training and his studies, Minato certainly had the makings for a Hokage in him.

He had even asked Hibiki about that once, about a year ago. Hibiki thought Minato would make a good Hokage, before he threw his chopstick at Minato's nose. When it bounced off, the raven-haired Senju heir just grinned and said that Minato still had a lot to learn though, if he wanted to order _his_ ass around. That prompted the Namikaze to ask the Senju, over a bowl of rice, if Hibiki had ever considered going for Hokage. He'd probably be a _shoe-in_ at this point, with how strong he was, and with the war coming up, Konoha would _scramble_ to have a Senju lead them again.

But Hibiki just shook his head, saying it would take far better men than him, far more idealistic men, to lead a village the right way. And besides, he said, he preferred kicking ass, not telling others to do it for him. Though he maintained that if Minato ever tried for Kage, and his proof of candidacy was a trial by combat, Minato could bet his ass that Hibiki would be first in line to fight him. He would _not_ miss the chance to beat up Minato before he'd get accused of treason.

And then he'd thrown his other chopstick at Minato's head, which Minato caught. He thought he'd won, but then he saw that Hibiki had switched out their bowls of rice, a smug grin on his face as he took in Minato's shocked expression.

_Yeah..._ Thought the Namikaze chunin, as he sank his head into the pillows on his hospital bed. _Hokage. Hokage Namikaze. Namikaze-sama._ He grinned, _I would love to hear Hibiki have to say that._ How much would _that_ piss him off? Minato might have to do it _just for that._

After a few moments of silence, as he thought of all the ways he could subtly mess with the Senju heir if he were Hokage - not the least of which being getting Anbu to move everything in his house one inch to the left, like Hibiki had once done to him - he heard the door to his room rattle a bit, before it opened up, revealing a person Minato had not expected to see.

* * *

Dai Aburame loved Hibiki Senju. She hadn't said it yet, but she could tell he knew, and she knew he felt the same. Perhaps she hadn't said it yet because she irrationally feared he wouldn't reciprocate, perhaps he hadn't said it yet because he was too scared to. Perhaps it just wasn't the right moment, they both did have a _slight_ flare for the dramatic.

It was the subtle things they did, that all but confirmed it for her. Staying up until daybreak, not even talking. Him telling her stories of his old world, her holding him and watching as he read his old - his _ancient - _books. Her trying to get him to blush as she became more and more blunt as time went on. Him pretending to blush because he knew she liked to get a rise out of him. Him letting her use him as her own personal wall to lean on whenever she wanted.

She loved the little things, but above all she loved just spending time with her Senju. Her 'Thunder God' - and just thinking of the faux-angry expression he always got when she said 'the name' brought a smile to her face.

Of course, it wasn't just little things. Having the single most powerful shinobi in Konoha - indeed including the Hokage - wrapped around her finger had its bonuses. It hadn't been until he had turned thirteen that she had gotten the bright idea to have him help train her, perhaps he knew ways to create some combat applications for her Kikaichu, to fall back on? And of course, her Senju didn't disappoint. 'Entomology' he called it, the study of bugs. He admitted that a lot of the 'old rules' got thrown out with chakra, but there were ideas they could use, and the sheer amount of experiments they had conducted together over these three years, Dai was hearing rumors that her name had been put forth for a Jonin promotion, making her the first Aburame since her father to get such an honor. Even their current clan head had stopped trying a while after getting his place.

Oh yeah, that had certainly shut the old man up about him.

And then where the small bits and pieces from his home that he let her see. She loved seeing those. His culture - and even the ones he claimed weren't 'his' culture - was fascinating. The paintings were huge and beautiful, the music was incredible, from the 'classics' to the 'contemporary', and the 'movies', the 'motion pictures', if she hadn't seen one for herself already, that first day in NORAD, she would have thought she was seeing magic. And the fact that he was able to fit all of these things on this small, square device he called a tablet? That was hardly any bigger than his head? His 'science' matched up with her definition of 'magic'. Of course, since she didn't speak the language, she had to make Hibiki stop the movies every few minutes just so she could follow along, but if he minded, he said nothing, a part of her was sure he enjoyed it. She had two favorites - the two that had gotten him to gush and talk at length for _hours,_ to the point where he would actually have to tell her what had happened in the entire movie up until that point, because he had talked so long. The first one was this film he called 'The Dark Knight', apparently about a crazy man with no chakra or abilities of any kind, dressing up like a bat, and beating people within an inch of their lives every night. Hearing Hibiki talk _at length_ about the history of the 'comics', the stories upon which the movie was based off of, was fascinating. Every little detail in the film seemed to have eons of history behind it, and that was before he had gotten to the man in the purple clothing. The second movie had been one he called 'Citizen Kane', which he claimed was oftentimes called the greatest film _ever._ Just watching it, she couldn't really tell why, of course, but hearing him gush over the 'camera angles', and the 'editing tricks' and 'visual metaphors' every few seconds, they had spent more than three hours on just the first ten minutes of the film.

She would give anything to go back to that night, as the two of them sat in his room, staring at the magical little device, him gesticulating in the low-light with his hands, pointing out every little thing on the 'screen', his smile stretching across his entire face as his memories came back, 'just like riding a bike'. She would willingly hang up her hitai-ate if she could just go back to that night.

Tears stung her eyes as she stood in his room, the only person in the nearly completely empty room. The drawings and postings on the wall were gone, the clothes hung up in his closet were missing, the scrolls and fuinjutsu supplies were all absent. The only thing in the room was a single note, written with a startlingly calm hand, sitting upon his desk.

_I'm going home. _

_I need to calm down._

_I'll be back._

_-Senju Hibiki_

Dai was the only woman in the village that hadn't been confused by the word 'home'. When everyone else read the note and saw the word 'home', they wondered why he wasn't here, why he wasn't at the place he had been raised, but Dai knew better, as she pressed her pale hand to her mouth, staring at the note from behind her dark sunglasses, and under her tightly drawn hood. By 'home', Hibiki didn't mean _Konoha,_ he meant _home._ Not the place he had been born, but the place he had lived. The place to which he craved to return more than anything else. The place where god was a man in the sky, where the information of the universe was at their fingertips, where a person in one country could talk to a person in another with a push of a button. Where he saved lived instead of ending them. Where things like chakra were just a work of fiction. Where crazy little men dressed up in bat costumes and bet people half to death.

When Hibiki said 'Home', he didn't mean the little slice of the formerly Senju Compound, he meant _America._

Dai felt her queens trying to calm her down, but it took every ounce of her strength to ignore them. They had been wrong about him before, they were still wrong about him, and they would _always be wrong about him._ He wasn't some 'gold-blooded monster', he was _Hibiki,_ the man tearing himself apart from the inside out because the leader of his adopted country had used him like a tool to destroy another country almost in its entirety. The man who had accidentally killed three and a half million people and would bear that guilt for the rest of his life. _Her Senju,_ who was on the other side of the world, where she could not follow!

She couldn't read his language, she couldn't understand his maps, she couldn't track him by pheromones. He was so devastated by his own actions that he had fallen back to that cold, isolated pit he had been in for _ten years_ until that day he rediscovered NORAD. _Kami,_ she thought he had made so much progress, she thought she had helped him so much, but now, staring at this note, knowing the meaning behind it and the dead village that had caused it to be written, she knew that it would all be for nothing, and worse still was that she could do nothing about it. Tears now freely flowing from her eyes, as she pictured Hibiki, alone, buried beneath a cold mountain, surrounded by the decaying corpse of his world. The image broke her heart, and knowing that there was no way she could go there ripped at her soul.

She couldn't just try to _run_ there, she wasn't even half as fast as Hibiki, and even if she was, she couldn't read his maps or recognize his landmarks, she wouldn't be able to find him. She couldn't try to strike a bargain with the Eagles - for whatever reason they refused to do business with her, they refused to even _speak_ to her, even with her Senju present. She couldn't try to use his uncle's toads, his other uncle's snakes, or his mother's slugs - this planet had seven whole continents, each _dozens_ of times the size of the elemental nations, and the summons could be on _any_ of those, leaving her worse off than if she'd tried to run after him.

Again the queens in her stomach tried to convince her that this was for the best, that this was her chance to abandon the abomination, but she bit her lip to drown out their words, biting so hard that she drew blood, as she fell to her knees in her Senju's bare room. She was shaking now, tears flowing freely from her eyes as she silently cried for Hibiki, silently prayed to any god that would listen that she could just _go to him._ Or, if not her, at least...

She blinked.

Someone he could trust.

She could trust.

Someone she had seen using a teleportation technique.

Based in Fuinjutsu.

With no range limitations.

Who would not hesitate if it meant he could help him.

She was out of the room barely a second later, leaving behind a plume of smoke.

* * *

Shikaku Nara was, as were all Nara, the very embodiment of the term 'Brilliant, but lazy'. He accomplished every goal he was given as quickly as possible, with as little effort as was required, as quietly as he could do it, whilst simultaneously getting as much sleep as he could. He was quiet and collected, preferring to watch and gain all of the facts of the problem at hand before he came to a conclusion. It was this tendency to collect information that drew his eyes immediately to one of his closest friends, Hibiki Senju.

Since day _one_ in the academy, Shikaku had seen the same kind of glint in Hibiki's eyes as many Nara children had. Even so young, Hibiki was smart, and even more, he was crafty - able to do almost exactly as most Nara did, burning through his work and passing his classes with flying colors, usually biding his free time by reading a book or taking a nap. Hibiki wasn't loud, like his Namikaze friend, but despite his quiet, reserved demeanor, he was able to read people almost as easily as a Yamanaka. Hibiki had stuck to Minato just as easily as Minato had latched onto him, and it was this wisdom, bordering on _experience,_ in people, that drew the Nara heir to him.

The Nara could vividly remember the first time Hibiki and he had been alone together, without Minato or Chouza to fill the silence. As would all Nara, Shikaku suggested they play a game of Shogi, and after teaching Hibiki the basics, he found that the Senju heir could keep up with him much better than some _Nara_ of comparable age. It was the shock of this discovery that had led Shikaku to lose their first ever game against eachother, and though he won the next won, Hibiki would win the third, and before the two of them knew it, it would be the next morning, and each would have won as many games as they had lost, without even saying a single word to eachother after the initial rules discussion. It was through these games that Shikaku was able to not only get a read on what kind of person Hibiki was then, but what kind of man he would grow up to be, and _all_ of his predictions came true.

Hibiki was a man of great caution, but also one capable of acting as rashly as he must, when the situation called for it. He was incredibly intelligent, able to think twenty moves ahead, yet still be able to be so focused on the present that he could improvise and change his plans on the fly. Hibiki was ruthless in battle, capitalizing on any weaknesses he saw, but forgiving as well, sparing Shikaku the pain of an agonizing defeat by simple getting it over with, not gloating or boasting, simply learning. Above all, however, Hibiki was patient and kind, willing to wait as long as he must for that _one_ opportune moment, and was more than willing to make great sacrifices to ensure the most benefit was had to all. Oftentimes this manifested in Hibiki willingly losing great amounts of territory and time just so he could protect as many pieces as possible, and he only ever struck when he knew he had a decisive advantage, and would lose as few pieces as was possible in his attack.

This all had told the Nara heir that Hibiki would one day grow up to be a great man, and he was right. Hibiki was the kind of man to bear all burdens on himself, if it meant sparing his friends the horror, pain, or suffering of whatever it was he was taking unto himself. Hibiki valued his bonds above everything, and was willing to drop everything at the mere inference of help being needed, he was simple in that. Once, Chouza had been admitted to the hospital due to injuries sustained on a mission, and Hibiki hadn't even blinked an eye, spending hours beside the Akamichi heir, laughing and telling jokes, sneaking him food and ensuring he was comfortable. Shikaku had once even been in dire straits with his clan on the troublesome subject of women - celibacy for fourteen years was largely unheard of, even in the traditionally lazy Nara clan. Shikaku hadn't even _said_ anything, he'd just been talking to his friend one day, and Hibiki just nodded once, gotten to his feet, and gone to speak to his mother, somehow managing to convince the woman that Shikaku wasn't being lazy or noncommittal about the subject, but 'traditional'. After all, he said, especially in the shinobi world, marriage was a sacred thing, not easily thrown to the wayside at the whims of emotion, or the lack thereof, as the case may be. Sure, he may be dragging his feet, but Hibiki argued that Shikaku would rather find someone he could be happy with, than someone he could sire children with _right now; _and before Shikaku even knew what was happening, Hibiki had bought the teen another half decade to figure out what he would be doing on this front.

Shikaku would later hear that Hibiki's woman, Dai, had somehow been aware of the whole conversation and he endured _endless_ teasing over it, with the Aburame even now, years after the fact, still making cheeky references to it, but therein lay another strength of Hibiki: He endured it without question. No matter how well Shikaku hid it, marriage was something that freaked him the hell out, and given the average lifespan of a shinobi - which was only fifteen years out from his current age - bearing children was all but a _priority_, especially for clan heirs. Some, like Fugaku Uchiha, took this with aplomb, their mountainous pride begetting their finding _something_ tolerable in their arranged marriages. But others, like Hiashi Hyuga or Tsume Aburame, did not, instead fighting their clan every step of the way until they found someone they preferred, and then they would fight for them. Shikaku, meanwhile, found himself at an impasse, the prospect of children not being unappealing, but being anchored for the rest of his potentially short life to someone he may grow to detest _certainly_ being so. Yet, without even a word beyond _mentioning it _ in passing as a problem he was dealing with, Hibiki had picked up on Shikaku's indecision and thrown himself onto the fire to help his friend, without a second of hesitation. Then, once he had finished his self-assigned duty, his _own_ woman began teasing him about it, but Hibiki did nothing but bear it and laugh, for both he and Shikaku knew that he didn't regret it, and he would do it again if he had the chance. Such was Hibiki's way, to help his friends if only because they needed help and he could do so, and to unflinchingly bear the consequences of said help, no matter what they may be. Shikaku had even heard stories of Hibiki jumping onto explosive tags, or in the way of large ninjutsu, just so his squadmates wouldn't bear the brunt of the injuries, and yet when asked, Hibiki's only 'regret' would be that he had yet found a way to ensure his clothes survived these encounters; to the point that Hibiki coming home with a damaged wardrobe had become a common occurrence, at least until he started packing changes of clothes with him in storage seals, partially fixing that problem for the time being.

It was through these experiences that Shikaku knew that Hibiki was a man to be trusted, and more than that, that he was, at heart, a _good man._ Sure, he had his faults - the Senju heir loved a good fight, whether he admitted it or not - but, in his own words, Hibiki had once said 'let he who is without sin cast the first stone', in essence meaning that _everyone_ had a fault that they weren't too proud of, and he was no exception. It was a sentiment shared by all of Hibiki's friends, from the ever-trusting Chouza to the mind-reading Inoichi. From the proud Fugaku to the energetic Minato. From the loud Uzumaki to the stoic Aburame, anyone who knew him, when asked, wouldn't hesitate to respond that they would walk off a cliff if Hibiki told them it was safe, that evil just wasn't his way_, _that he was a man who could bear many burdens, but that was one he could not, not for even a second.

So, when the reports had come in that Hibiki's friend, the Uzumaki heiress herself, had been stolen from the village, and that he and Minato had bolted from the walls without hesitation to track her down, Shikaku had been among the first after Hibiki's squadmates to volunteer his services, should they be needed. Inoichi and Chouza hadn't even considered disagreeing. The Hokage, however, had denied their requests to follow him, even after the clone Hibiki had left behind had given out the information of where they were headed; Earth country made sense, given Katsuo the Monster's connections to its Daimyo, and using the capitol as a means to find Iwagakure had been a stroke of brilliance. But, everyone who had been present had understood the Hokage's reasoning - Hibiki and Minato Namikaze were shinobi who specialized in their speed, Hibiki with his copied Swift Release and his lightning cloak, Minato with his history of crossing _countries_ in single nights. They were both capable shinobi and they both were more than capable of tracking down Katsuo's Runner and returning with Kushina, forthwith.

But when Kushina returned, and Shikaku had heard rumors that the Hibiki clone had been _barred_ from sending the information back to the true Senju, he had grown suspicious. When Hibiki and Minato _did_ return, both covered in blood, dirt, soot and sweat, and with a nearly dead shinobi in tow, Shikaku knew that the possibilities for what had happened weren't good. When he heard the rumors of what had been said in the Hokage's office, all of the pieces fell into place for the Nara heir. The Hokage had used Hibiki as a living weapon and Hibiki, by accident, had destroyed Iwagakure and killed its millions of inhabitants.

Upon receiving this news, Shikaku knew that Hibiki's entire morality and sense of self would be _destroyed._ Hibiki was a man who lived by his ideals, and questioned everything he did - Shikaku even heard him questioning decisions he'd made at the onset of his shinobi career, _years_ after having made them. Killing so many people, and all but being told that the deaths had been needless, it would tear the Senju heir apart, and worse was that Shikaku knew Hibiki would blame no one more than he did himself. Shikaku knew the way Hibiki thought, and he was all but certain that Danzo was aware as well, and as such they both knew it would only take the _slightest_ prodding, the _barest_ appeal to his protective nature, to convince him that this was the right call. Danzo had used this and convinced the clone - knowing it was separated from the situation and therefor able to look at this from Danzo's twisted logical perspective - to stay its hand and remain home. Therefor, to Hibiki, it hadn't been Danzo who had made the call to eventually destroy Iwa, but _he himself;_ but to Shikaku, it was Danzo, manipulating Hibiki on his most base level, to commit evil in such a way that, strictly speaking, his hands would remain clean.

Well, that shit wouldn't fly, not on Shikaku's watch.

There were many things feared by many people in the world, but one thing _all_ people feared was a motivated Nara, because when a Nara got his act together, they were capable of turning entire wars. Back during the Warring States Period, _one_ motivated Nara had actually been able to take his numerically superior and statistically weaker clan and not only drive off an attack by the then war-like Uchiha, but lead a brief guerrilla campaign, which ended in a casualty ratio of _one_ Nara dead, for every _thirty_ Uchiha killed, and they had killed _four hundred and twenty_ Uchiha. In one battle. The Uchiha never again attacked the Nara, for as long as the Warring States Period continued.

But the important part of that story was that that had been _one_ Nara, with only the resources available to his clan, in a day and age where it was his clan, or nothing. Shikaku, however, had much, _much_ more resources at his disposal, and he intended to turn them _all_ on the Hokage. Some would call it treason, but treason was intending to do harm to the village from within, or betray it in some way. Shikaku was doing no such thing.

In twenty four hours, Shikaku went from the resources the word of the soon-to-be-heir of the Nara clan, to a _mind boggling_ amount of resources from nearly all sectors of Konoha.

As it turned out, Hibiki got around.

The _morning_ Hibiki had left for wherever he called 'Home', as indicated by the letter that ensured he would return soon, and before the sun had even arisen, Shikaku got to work. His first target was his own clan, and that had been the easiest of all of them - his father, the current head, was a reasonable man, and respected Hibiki as more than just Shikaku's friend. It took only fifteen minutes to wake his father up - again, before the sun - and explain to him what he intended to do, and then another five minutes for the elder Nara to process the information and wake up, before agreeing with one tired nod, and then going back to bed.

So he had the support of the Nara clan.

Next, Shikaku went to his friends, allies, comrades and squadmates, Inoichi and Chouza. Chouza had turned sixteen mere weeks ago and had already begun taking over as head of the Akimichi clan, and his own fondness for the Senju heir meant that all Shikaku had to do was ask if he would be willing to help, and Chouza vowed that, come hell or high water, the entire resources and weight of the Akimichi clan would be put to work. Inoichi had been a bit more difficult, given that he only truly knew Hibiki through Shikaku and Chouza, but seeing both of his friends so willing and dedicated to this one man had been all he really needed to know that helping them as best he could would be the best possible decision.

So he had the support of the Nara, Akimichi, and Yamanaka clans, and the sun had barely even been up an hour.

Shikaku's next target was Hibiki's squad. Noboru had been first, and Shikaku had needed only to throw the names of the head of the Akimichi clan, and the soon-to-be heads of the Yamanaka and Nara clans, at the Hyuga gate guards, to get them to wake up the Main Branch member. Shikaku hadn't even gotten two words out before Noboru abruptly told them that they needed some tea, but instead of sending them into the Hyuga compound, they found themselves in a small teahouse. At their confusion, Noboru pointed silently at the table they sat at, and Shikaku needed only see the nearly invisible carvings in the wood to realize where he was: Anbu's enigmatic headquarters. This teahouse was lined with so many secrecy seals that Noboru had unleashed such a profane line of language and insults at the elderly proprietor, who stood with her back turned not even five feet away, and she hadn't even turned around.

Following the briefly startling introduction to one of the most secret places in Konoha, Shikaku recovered quickly enough and outlined his plans to the Hyuga noble. Since he was Hibiki's teammate, and given his combat specialization begetting him be at the top of the list when it came to imminent threats to Konoha and its safety, Noboru had already been aware of Hibiki's return and the destruction of Iwa. He even let out that the survivors of the attack, and Iwa's remaining shinobi force, were spotted moving through Grass Country, pressing at Fire's borders, and that their hesitance wouldn't last long, once the news spread to them as well. Regardless, he said, of whether or not he would be in the village at the time, he knew he could get assistance from the Hyuga.

As it turned out, Hibiki had _several_ points of contact in the Hyuga clan, Noboru was just the one Shikaku was openly aware of. He was also acquaintances with a Branch member by the name of Akane, who was slated to be wedded to the Hyuga clan's heir, Hiashi, once the man finished fighting his elders on the decision, which meant that through Akane, Hibiki had connections to the soon-to-be clan head of the Hyuga, though that, however, wasn't the only way Hibiki was connected to the Head of the Hyuga. Minato Namikaze, upon Hibiki's departure from the academy, had sought out to fill the void by finding new clan heirs to pick on, and had done so by befriending the Hyuga twins, Hiashi and Hizashi. Despite this caustic friendship, both of them were fond of the blond blur, and they three were all close friends, still frequently seen associating with eachother. With Noboru and Akane guaranteed, and through the latter and Minato, the Hyuga's heirs, Hibiki was associated with, on some level, some of the most important people of the Hyuga clan; and that was before what Noboru let out about his own influence in the clan.

Noboru, as it turned out, had power in his own name, because his 'chakra burst' style of their jyuken, what he called the 'Kaiten Drill', and something he called _ranged jyukan,_ had all been added to the Hyuga Clan's prestigious archives, an honor just one of which was rare, but three, by the same shinobi, before he was a jonin, and all within a decade of eachother, was _unheard of._ This meant that Noboru was a man even the highest levels of the Main House respected, that he had the eyes of their greatest elders, and that it was all but guaranteed that if he were to marry someone from the Branch Family, they would be elevated to main house, their Caged Bird Seal removed, and their offspring forever clean of the Hyuga's ancient defense mechanism. So with his word, Akane's word, and the words of the heir and his brother, Shikaku all but _had_ the Hyuga clan for whatever he needed them for.

So he had the Nara, Akimichi, Yamanaka, and now the Hyuga clans. He'd added one noble clan to his growing roster, and the sky was still red from the rising sun.

But there was still another noble clan Hibiki had ties to, one that had fallen to the wayside in the recent decades, but whose name still held a considerable amount of weight, through their history in the village. Shikaku spoke with Suboro Kurama, formerly Suboro Nil, Hibiki's second teammate and one of the only living possessors of a manifested Kurama bloodline. This bloodline allowed the user to create genjutsu so powerful that they were capable of influencing reality itself, such that injuries taken in the genjutsu were translated to the body, in short meaning that Suboro was a man who could kill scores of people with his mind. Given the dangers of such a bloodline, few Kurama who manifested it ever survived long enough to gain control over it, but Suboro had been lucky in that it had only manifested during his Genin years, when he had the experience and presence of mind to not easily lose control. The buzz-cut chunin was remarkably similar to Chouza in his steadfast dedication to his allies, and with Noboru's word backing up Shikaku's request, he all but vowed to sell his soul if it meant he could help. Such actions, clearly, wouldn't be needed, but Suboro soon revealed that as he grew in experience with his bloodline, so too did his pull in the Kurama clan grow, to the point where now, at nineteen, his was a household name in the small clan, and apparently he was in the running to _take over_ as clan head. If that were the case, Shikaku hoped Suboro did away with their inbreeding problem, but that wasn't the issue at hand. Through Suboro, Hibiki had connections to an admittedly shrunken clan, but one that had once been noble, and powerful enough to rival the Hyuga and Uchiha. Their name still carried weight, and since Suboro's was so influential, they would do anything to keep him appeased and them in his good graces.

So he had the Nara, Akimichi, Yamanaka, Hyuga, and Kurama clans under his belt, and it wasn't even time to warm the ovens for the morning tea.

Their next target, however, would take a bit longer to get to their side. Fugaku Uchiha was an acquaintance of Shikaku through Hibiki and Minato, so they had a history together, enough such that Shikaku had been able to pull him aside and bring him to the teahouse without much fuss. Given what Hibiki liked to call their 'totally not friendship', Hibiki had direct connections to the prospective head of one of Konoha's founding clans. Shikaku was more than aware that Fugaku would be aware of the goings on surrounding Hibiki, and Fugaku had admitted plans to visit the Senju teen's home once they were finished speaking, but once Shikaku told him Hibiki likely wasn't in the village, he had Fugaku's undivided attention. The Uchiha heir's first request - or demand, to be closer to the truth - had been to know where Hibiki was, and through a long chain of logic that consisted of Shikaku guessing, considering Hibiki's last AWOL stint, Shikaku concluded that he was in Amerigo with the Eagles. This satisfied the Uchiha heir long enough to hear all of the information Shikaku had gathered, and the conclusions he had made from said information.

To say Fugaku was livid would be an understatement. He had been so angry that he'd shattered the teacup given to him by the elderly proprietor, but she had moved so fast that both of them had almost missed her switching out the cup with another one, filled with piping hot tea. Shikaku wondered if the woman was Anbu herself, or at least a retired one. Regardless, Shikaku knew that actively trying to calm Fugaku down wouldn't work, so instead, he simply continued explaining his plan to the Uchiha heir, who silently took all of the information in, listening to Shikaku as he went through the entire day, from his discussion with his father to right now, before he nodded once. Fugaku swore on his honor that, no matter what it took, and no matter how much the current Hokage may not like his clan, he would bring the full might and weight of the Uchiha name to this 'meeting', to put the term politely.

So he had the Nara, Akimichi, Yamanaka, Hyuga, Kurama, and now the Uchiha clans backing him up, and breakfast had only just barely come off of the stoves of the civilian homes in the village.

It was after he had parted ways with Fugaku that Shikaku had _intended_ to hunt down Hibiki's mother, to get her and the Sannin in on this, but instead, _he_ found himself hunted down by an Anbu agent. Shikaku had nearly bound the agent with his shadow out of sheer paranoia and fright, but he kept himself calm and composed under the face of what would likely be his imminent death; but the Anbu in the Wolf's mask instead assuaged his fears. Apparently, Hibiki _really_ got around, as he knew on some level at least one active-duty Anbu, and Wolf let slip that several other Anbu had been there when Hibiki was born, and he was something of a 'pet project', or perhaps the more appropriate term would be 'mascot', for the Anbu that had been alive and serving during that time. Those Anbu, and Wolf, had been following Shikaku ever since he'd gotten the help of the Kurama clan, and Wolf assured the Nara heir that he would have their discretion against certain 'roots' that have been working actively since Hibiki's disappearance, whatever that meant. Before vanishing, Wolf also promised that Shikaku also indeed would have their opinions and anecdotes to back him up whenever he confronted the Hokage with his political army.

So, the Nara, Akimichi, Yamanaka, Hyuga, Kurama, and Uchiha clans, and now a small menagerie of Anbu agents. _Awesome._

Unfortunately, Shikaku now had to deal with his mortal enemy: The opposite sex. Even with all the names he could throw around, he didn't want to try and force his way into R&amp;D to try to speak with Orochimaru-sama, that would be too high profile. Jiraiya-sama was out of the village on assignment, so that left Tsunade Senju. She had already been _beyond_ livid with what little information she had been privy to, leading up to and proceeding Hibiki's temporary departure from Konoha, but when Shikaku told her his conclusions and discovered facts, it had taken everything he had just to convince her not to storm her way to the Hokage's office right now and put that 'old one-eyed fuck' through not just a wall, but the mountain. Specifically his own head. Shikaku hadn't needed a single other word after that to get Tsunade's help, and through her the weight of the head of the Senju clan, and all three Sannin in one fell swoop.

So by the time civilians were finishing their breakfasts and getting dressed for work, the determined Nara had wrangled the help of his clan, the Akimichi, Yamanaka, Hyuga, Kurama, Uchiha and Senju clans, plus a collective of Anbu and the three legendary Sannin; and he hadn't even gone to Hibiki's woman, or her squad, yet.

Though that would indeed be his next target, he unintentionally ran into Kushina Uzumaki first.

He swore he saw her eyes turn a slight shade of red when he mentioned Hibikis' name, but that redness vanished as quickly as it came, replaced by sorrow and concern. When he took her to the teahouse and told her the story as he understood it, she burst into tears. Apparently the overly emotional woman had been under the assumption that, in her name, Hibiki had bolted over to Iwa and just blown the place up, and she'd been having a terrible time reconciling that. She didn't calm down for ten whole minutes, but then, as if a switch were flipped, she went from tearful to vengeful, and Shikaku had barely been fast enough to bind her shadow before she could charge out of the teahouse and to the Hokage's office, to 'throttle' him.

It took another ten minutes to calm the woman down again, and then he was made to swear he would help Hibiki and Minato. The Nara heir nodded firmly, it was his only goal, he told her, and he would not rest until he did so.

After adding the Uzumaki heiress to his ever growing list, he then searched for Hibiki's woman.

As it turned out, Dai Aburame had been running herself _ragged_ all around the village, searching for her Senju, but it had only been after she'd been let in on the fact that he'd left a note that she finally stopped. When Shikaku found her, she was in the hospital, just finishing a conversation with a recovering Minato Namikaze, who, with a grim, determined expression, nodded once. Then, despite being covered in several layers of bandges and being put on a _very_ strict doctrine of bed rest and relaxation, the blond blur vanished in a body flicker, though his had been a bit more peculiar than others, his cover being a yellow flash rather than a plume of smoke.

When he asked what she had been speaking with Minato for, she simply told her she wasn't in a position to help her Senju, but Minato was, and left it at that. So, Shikaku took her to the teahouse, but he hadn't even had to tell her the story - she'd long since worked it out on her own. According to her, she'd been aware of the potential outcomes of the 'Uzumaki Rescue Mission' since Kushina had returned to the village. She had spoken with the Senju clone who had been manipulated by Danzo into staying his hand, and her descriptions of his incredibly conflicted nature, and the sheer grief and sorrow he displayed as he reached the conclusion his Kage wanted him to, only strengthened Shikaku's resolve. So, by that point, continuing to speak to her was merely to get her and him on the same page. Though her father wasn't Hibiki's biggest fan, apparently Hibiki had the man's respect through some idiotic stunt he'd pulled, and had been pulling, for five years now, and her mother liked him even less, but her husband's begrudging respect had at least been enough to get the woman to stop trying to sell Dai off to other suitors. Through Dai, Hibiki had influence with her father, who, as a Rinkaichi user, was very well respected in the Aburame clan, and though Dai said it would take a great deal of favors on her end, she promised Shikaku that she'd be able to get her clan's support.

By this point, literally the only major clans the Nara heir hadn't had the backing of were the Kaguya and the Inuzuka clans, and when he voiced this to her, the hooded Aburame told him that she would be able to take care of the latter of the two. Her squadmate, Aoi, may not have a great deal of influence by herself, but her squad had once been commissioned to help track down a missing pack of ninken puppies, apparently belonging to the ninken of the current Inuzuka head. That was a favor she hadn't cashed in yet, and with the weight of Hibiki's name backing her request, she was certain that, if not the head of the clan, then at least the stoic Aburame could get a few notable individuals to help them out.

As a side note, Shikaku had _no idea_ how Dai was able to switch from the blunt, teasing girl he frequently saw hanging off of Hibiki's arms, to the picture-perfect image of the stoic, monotone Aburame. It was unnerving, especially since it told him that while she may respect and trust him because Hibiki did so, she didn't trust him in that same way that would allow her to drop that facade, as she would do around Hibiki, though she would only ever do so in public whenever she was certain no one was looking. If the Nara hadn't been pretending to nap, and hadn't Hibiki's stories to back up those few occasions, he wouldn't have even known the difference existed in the first place.

First the Uzumaki going from sobbing and sad to enraged and kill-happy at the drop of a hat, and then what he could only describe as _the Aburame._ And his parents thought he was a loon for dragging his feet with women.

It was after he finished securing the help of essentially every major and minor clan in Konohagakure, hours before _lunch,_ that Shikaku had toyed with the idea of considering his job completed, but then, by sheer _chance,_ as he was passing through the Bazaar on his way back to his clan's compound to work out the next stage of his master plan, he heard a civilian name drop the Senju heir. It was an elderly woman, back bent by age, and arms struggling with the effort of holding her groceries. Shikaku slowed his pace to keep behind the elderly woman, and listened as she conversed with her considerably younger companion, likely her granddaughter, who herself was ladden with twice the amount of paper bags than her elder was. The elderly woman lamented that the 'nice Senju lad' hadn't left any clones in the village before he'd gone off for his mission, and commented on how strange the day felt when there wasn't a single Hibiki Senju running around the civilian parts of the village.

That final comment prompted Shikaku to approach the woman and, after offering to take her bags, he asked her if she would elaborate. How did she know Hibiki? The plump, white-haired woman smiled warmly and asked the Nara heir if he was friends with Hibiki. Shikaku confirmed that, yes, he was - he had known Hibiki since he was in the academy. The wrinkly woman nodded, making an 'oh' sound as she commented that she should have known, what with Shikaku taking her bags like the nice young boy would. On Shikaku's prompting, she elaborated, explaining that during the times when Hibiki was in the village and training, he usually had hundreds, if not, thousands of 'those clone things' running around, and it was usually as those clones were resting from the more intensive training - which Shikaku concluded meant when they had to stop beating the hell out of eachother - they typically came to shopping districts, and just walked around, assisting whoever felt he needed it. The nice Senju boy, she said, had started helping her take her and her husband's groceries home almost every day - and he always refused payment, she added, as if she'd suddenly been struck with the idea that Shikaku were an evaluator of some sort.

After helping the elderly woman take the groceries home, and getting a quick thanks from her granddaughter, who mentioned offhandedly that it was nice that it wasn't just Hibiki who would help her grandmother out, Shikaku rushed back to the bazaar. From there, he would just enter shop after shop and ask the proprietors if they had ever had experience with Hibiki Senju. This turned out to be the longest part of the day, taking him straight to high noon, as he just collected story after story, and for a moment had to bask in exactly _how far around_ Hibiki got.

From the stories he got, at some point around five years ago, which he eventually narrowed down to the _day_ after he'd sealed the deal with the Kaguya clan, Hibiki had just up and begun filling those moments in time when his clones couldn't train, for whatever reason it may be, by assisting the civilians of Konoha in their day to day, to the point where some of the jobs the Senju heir sounded close to qualifying for _D-rank__ salary._ Hibiki was explained as being seen pretty much everywhere - helping elderly folks out with their errands, assisting store owners with their upkeep, even hearing stories of him covering shifts when he was asked. It got to the point that more than one civilian mentioned how the day just didn't seem normal anymore unless there was a few Hibiki clones running about. More than once Shikaku had been pointed to farms out in the middle of nowhere, where the farmers would look dull for a moment before they realized that Shikaku was talking about 'That shinobi boy!'. Hibiki had actually been going around the farms of Konoha and helping out there, and all of the farmers, without fail, mentioned how, under Hibiki's assistance and here-and-there advice, their crop yields actually _grew._ He would help tend the fields, pick the plants, spread fertilizer, he would do all sorts of actual D-ranked jobs, in addition to giving out crop and plant-tending advice when it would be taken. Most of the farmers admitted to not heeding the advice at first, but when they would just to humor the boy, they noticed their yields were bigger and healthier, and as such they started spreading his method, until all farms had adopted the 'Senju method' and Konoha was in the middle of its highest food surplus in _decades, _and Hibiki didn't stop there.

The tireless Senju heir would actually track down families who either had not the money, time, or connections to put in D-ranked mission requests with the genin corps, and go out of his way to complete what now _actually were_ D-ranked missions, and in all of the stories Shikaku had gotten, like clockwork, whenever he asked if Hibiki had accepted any sort of payment, everyone had just shaken their heads. The Senju heir _never_ took payment, even if he was offered double what he should have made, or home cooked meals, or anything more substantial than a hearty thank you, or a hug from the more emotional civilians. Some said that he would merely request they help out their neighbor, though Shikaku got that line infrequently, making him wonder if they were embellishing for his sake, but regardless of if they were or not, it spoke _volumes_ of what the _people_ thought of Hibiki Senju. To them, Hibiki wasn't the Thunder God, or the heir to the Senju Clan, or some figure they would put on a pedestal and consider 'above' them, to them, Hibiki was _one of them._ No request was too simple or too menial, if they raised up the courage to approach a Senju clone to ask for help, the clone would give them his undivided attention and ensure that the job was done.

How this hadn't caused a serious dip in the Genin Corps' domestic D-ranked missions, Shikaku didn't know. What on earth prompted Hibiki to suddenly take on the workload of what was essentially a small fraction of the Genin Corps, he didn't know either. Nor did he know why, for some reason, Hibiki felt this workload, these random acts of kindness during his endless training sessions, were so casual, or so _not mentionable_ that he hadn't brought it up even once, not even to his squadmates, but Shikaku did know one thing: It only helped him. Because through all of these people, that meant the Senju name had to have floated up to the Civilian Council, and wouldn't you know it? Shikaku's father was actually going to be having lunch with a member of said council, _today._

For the first time in a non-combat, non-training scenario, Shikaku performed a body flicker. Appearing almost instantly outside of his house in a plume of smoke, Shikaku casually walked in, and saw, to his confirmation, his father eating with one of the chubbier members of the council. It took only ten minutes to ask the councilman if the Senju heir's name had ever floated up his way, and to Shikaku's great fortune, it _had._

Every major clan, the Sannin, a group of Anbu, and now the _Civilian Council. _

First of all, if Hibiki's name wasn't put forth for Kage at some point or another, Shikaku would kill someone.

But more importantly, now there was no kami-damned way the Hokage could avoid the determined Nara's wrath.

So he sat down in his room and got to work, because this next part would take a few days.


	61. Into the Fold

Chapter 60

* * *

In order to establish a finding as fact, one had to repeat the experiment and achieve the results at least twice. This way the variables could be accounted for, the results could be recorded, and could also be established as something more than an act of random chance. It was one of the reasons why some scientists would perform the same experiment over, and over, and over again, would send their data to other scientists so they could set up the same experiment and perform it themselves a few dozen times.

Science never changed. The way it was conducted, never changed. The facts, never changed. What was learned changed with the winds, what was concluded from said learning changed even more frequently, but how it was learned and the ways these findings were confirmed never changed. It was these constants that many would find solace in, that there were certain inalienable facts of the universe. Matter _could not_ be created or destroyed.

Except with chakra.

Force, _is_ mass multiplied by acceleration.

Unless chakra was involved.

_Every_ action had an equal and opposite reaction.

Save the forces channeling chakra.

Light speed _was_ the end-all absolute maximum velocity of the universe.

But not if one was using chakra.

The remains of metal buildings and various aspects of contemporary Terran society shouldn't even be collapsed heaps, let alone still mostly standing after thousands of years of neglect.

Unless the world was pervaded with chakra.

Zapping someone with a bolt of lightning shouldn't fucking supercharge them and make them go nuclear unless they were using chakra!

_"FUUUUUUUUUUUUUUCK!"_ From the bottom of his throat, from the pit of his gut, from the depths of his lungs, came the anguished scream of the Senju heir, as he dropped out of the sky and slammed his lightning streaming fist into some random mountain he'd found after running around in what he thought was Russia for a few hours but no matter what he did _and no matter how many clones and how many eight gates they opened **the god damn lightning Falcon Punch WOULDN'T GO NUCLEAR.**_

Standing in the middle of a crater not even thirty meters wide, rubble falling to the ground in a large shower, his chest heaving and his chakra radiating off of his body, he clenched his fists next to his hips and threw his head up high, screaming out to the heavens as the black smoke cleared. _"HOW DID I BLOW UP A VILLAGE WITH THIS?!" _He demanded of the world that hadn't heard the language in God knew how many thousand years. _"GOD -_" He reared his fist again, slamming it into his other before cloaking it in lightning chakra. _"-FUCKING -"_ He threw the fist downwards again, lightning shot outwards, expanding for dozens of meters in a circular area, drinking up all of the energy of the protons and electrons in the local area. _"DAAAAAAAAAAAAAAMN IT!"_ The lightning all shrank back to his fist and in a brilliant detonation, he deepened his crater and blew a wider hole in the mountain, but still nothing even remotely resembling the dome of light that had taken apart Iwagakure.

Still raging, he threw his hand up and pointed at the sky, _"YOU TELL ME HOW!"_ He demanded of the pale gray sky. _"WAS IT THIS -"_ Not ten seconds later he and another clone slammed their lightning streaming fists together, but they didn't even succeed in blowing the top off of the mountain, let alone nuking what he thought was Russia, but could very well have been England, or China, or even Greenland for all he knew. _"- OR THIS -"_ He collected explosive chakra in his hand and then slammed it onto the mountain, which ballooned outwards before its peak exploded in a shower of dirt and debris. _" - OR HOW ABOUT -"_ He launched himself from the mountain, flying three kilometers on just his leg power alone, no curse mark, Swift Release, or lightning cloak needed. He landed on the ground, there was only grass, with no trees in sight, but he already had both hands hovering above his hip, collecting as much chakra as he could force into it. The blinding blue-white orb continued to grow in strength and in density, until the chakra collected in his hands was so dense that some of the rubble around him began to levitate, its own mass and its own density creating a gravitic pull _just_ strong enough to cancel out the gravity of the earth below.

Of course, if that were the actual answer, then by sheer convenience of standing there, right then, Hibiki should have been royally ruining tidal effects, tearing apart the earth around him, and probably screwing with the orbit of the moon, too. Yet another magical 'fuck you-niverse' from the cancer known as chakra.

_"THIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIS?!" _Screamed the Senju heir, as he thrust both hands forward. The beam of chakra surged forward and after a moment's pause it slammed into the mountain, destroying it in one massive, blinding, fiery explosion, and going further still until it evaporated the clouds and left the edges of the atmosphere.

Yet still, the level of destruction Hibiki hath wrought was nothing even remotely close to what he had done mere days ago in the Village Hidden in the Stone.

The Village _formerly_ Hidden in the Stone.

Hibiki roared again in rage, as the chakra dissipated and the mountain that had probably once had a name was gone, obliterated by Hibiki Senju, who stood in the middle of his grassy clearing, shaking with unbridled rage and dissipating adrenaline. His shoulders were squared and his hair billowed in the howling winds. He stared down at the ground below him, and as his adrenaline ran through, he began to feel the chill of the cold Russian air. It was mid-damn February, or January, or March - hell, it could even be December, Hibiki hadn't looked at a calendar in _months,_ and he was in what he thought was Russia, the only thing covering his upper body being a coat he'd stolen from a clothing shop before the sun had gone up.

Well, not necessarily stolen. Hibiki had found the hooded cassock by chance as he'd been on his way out of the village, elbowed the window to the shop open, grabbed the coat, and had left on the pedestal it had once been on, all of the money in his wallet - some thirty six thousand Ryo. Hibiki hadn't spent practically any money since he'd discovered his Something From Nothing technique.

So, blow up a village, get what could probably best be described Neo's coat.

Maybe if it had been a pair of pants... Maybe if it had been a pair of pants.

You know what? No. Even if it had been a pair of pants. They were not worth three million lives. If he had to give up the chance of ever getting a pair of pants, if it meant undoing Iwagakure? He'd do it. With no regrets.

Hibiki, his lungs still expanding and contracting, in and out, rapidly, shaking now, fell to his knees in the center of the frigid grassy plain, the distant place where there had once been a mountain now just a smoking crater. The bottom of his totally not stolen coat pooling up around his feet, his hands roughly coming to rest on his knees. Hibiki didn't know how long he just knelt there, staring at his hands, the hands that had flattened one village and then _obliterated_ another. His lungs still shook, his chest still quaked, his eyes bulged and his teeth gritted, before finally tears began to fall.

Intelligence put Iwagakure's population at three million people, minimum. If their invasion procedures were anything like the Leaf's, then they evacuated to safe spots _inside_ the village. The problem was, they weren't nuclear bunkers, and Hibiki had obliterated the entire place. Iwagakure no Sato was gone because of him, three million people were gone because of him.

_Him._

Not Danzo, not Katsuo, _him._ His clones weren't just extensions of himself - they _were him!_ They thought like him, talked like him, walked like him, felt and heard like him; that damn clone had made the choice on its own. _He_ had made the choice, _he_ had used the nuclear argument _on himself._ Oh, Hibiki saw the logic - he couldn't _not_ see the goddamn logic, in his highschool debate class he had debated _for_ the use of nuclear weapons! He _had_ to have killed those people to spare the Konoha shinobi a lengthy and costly invasion! The choice had been his, the consequences were his, bloodied hands were his, the ended lives were his.

Amegakure _paled_ in comparison. That had been less than a hundred thousand people. This was _three million. _It was like comparing a shot of alcohol to a whole goddamn barrel.

What, was the universe just trying to make good? One guy had come back from actual, literal death, so they had him repay the debt by killing three million people? Where was the logic in that? Where was the _good_ in that? Where was _he_ in that?

An entire village, gone because of him. An entire way of life, destroyed because of him. A culture, obliterated without a trace, because of him. An art style, a way of life, a belief structure, training methods, shinobi techniques, economy, potential... All gone, and why? Because he'd gotten proud. Because he wanted to win a fight in a situation where that hadn't been the objective in the first place.

_Jesus Christ,_ what if this all hadn't been a ruse? What if Kushina actually had been there? She would be _dead now_ because of him. He would have been responsible for the death of one of his oldest friends. He would have killed her, because he was too proud to lose a beam struggle. _Not even!_ That punch had been a glorified arm wrestling match with explosions. If the damn clone had lost, another one could have just taken its place and kept up the fight. But no - the clone had gotten proud. _He'd_ gotten proud.

And what came after pride?

What was the difference right now between him and the Sage of Six Paths? _What was the difference?!_ They both had an objective, and they killed everyone - literally everyone - in the way of them accomplishing said objective. They both had an ideal, and they used that ideal to justify _everything_ they did. They both had power, and they used that power not for the betterment of others, but for the fulfillment of their own selfish desires.

Hibiki's hands now were shaking, as he let out a single, rasping sob.

Three million people.

For Christ's sake, that had to be a significant percentage of the current human population! How much of the world population had he just killed? Ten percent? Fifteen? How many humans were there left? There couldn't be more than a billion - when he'd died, Japan hadn't even had _two hundred_ million, and that was with cities, the baby boom, and overpopulation. There couldn't be more than a quarter billion people in the world - no, _half of that._ That was the absolute maximum, and even that felt like a stretch when he took into consideration the amount of power everyone was able to throw around. He had killed so many that he could hardly wrap his head around the sheer enormity of it. He found it difficult to picture three_ thousand_ people, let alone three _million_.

_Fuck... _How many people had _Katsuo_ killed? _Now_ who was better?

_Now_ where was he on Dai's scale of 'acceptable evils'?

"Hibiki?"

The Senju Heir blinked, turning his gaze to his left. There was a hand on his shoulder. He was so numb that he hadn't even noticed.

Looking up at the figure, Hibiki saw that he stood in front of the sun, its bright light and the gray sky above casting his front into deep black shadows. It took Hibiki a moment before he recognized the figure's familiar mane of spiky hair. Minato, perhaps the only person alive who could relate, or even understand, the crushing guilt on Hibiki's shoulders, as the only person who had _been there_ when it had happened. The only person besides Hibiki who had actually killed on this fool's mission.

Hibiki didn't even have to ask why Minato was here, in what could be Russia. The Hiraishin had no range, and Minato had dropped a seal on him before they had started the fight - started the _war - _so he had come to check on him, inadvertently finding himself in the middle of maybe-Russia, in the winter, with nothing but a standard issue blue shirt and his flak jacket to keep him warm.

Of course, then Minato threw the curveball. "Dai sent me." He said, kneeling down to Hibiki's level, shrugging off some of the sunlight and letting Hibiki see clearly the concern in the teen's deep blue eyes. "She wanted me to tell you to bring me to... NORAD."

Hibiki kept his tired onyx eyes locked onto Minato's, "she told you that?" He whispered.

"That's all she said." The blond confirmed, with a nod.

Hibiki felt like declining. He felt like saying nothing, just sitting here and letting the cold get to him. But he knew Dai, and he knew Minato. Dai was the kind of woman who wanted nothing more than to help her man when he needed it, and she knew that Hibiki trusted Minato, so much so that she was willing to take that leap of faith in placing _this_ secret in Minato's hands. Minato, meanwhile, was the kind of guy who helped, period - it was just his nature. Hibiki was his friend, and when Dai came to him, likely saying that only he could help the Senju heir now, he probably hadn't even hesitated, briefly causing Hibiki to wonder how much chakra he spent teleporting around to get ready.

Hibiki's somber tone matched his weary face, "do you have enough chakra for one more jump?"

Minato nodded.

"Then Hiraishin to me in three seconds. It's too far to walk." With a small gust of wind, and the sound of a zipper being undone, Hibiki vanished.

He hardly thought at all as he zoomed across the planet. At his speed it took him a full second to make it across Europe and the Atlantic Ocean, another second to get to the Colorado ruins, and then a half second to slide into NORAD's command center. The place felt empty, he had dispelled the clones in here hours ago, not willing to deal with the information stream.

A moment later, Minato appeared inside the brightly lit command center with a brilliant yellow flash. The Namikaze blinked once, then twice before he started looking around, taking in the utterly foreign appearance of the ancient technology and construction. There was probably more metal and plastic in here, than Minato had ever seen in his life. Minato's head eventually came to rest on the rows of gigantic computer screens, lining the wall to their front, his blue eyes wide and his jaw slackened.

"What -" Before he could finish his thought, Hibiki hit a button on the console in front of him.

The lights dimmed down, causing Minato to jump, but when the screen in front of them came to life, he actually fell backwards. He would have fallen to the ground had his back not hit a desk behind him. He heard a light click, as Hibiki pressed a button, and for a moment, the computer was still, before the multiple massive screens that lined the wall in front of them all activated in turn, each one displaying a different image, some displaying silent video clips. The Senju heir leaned back in his chair, his expression blank as he watched the video unfold before him; he had seen it so many times that he could almost quote it from memory. Minato, on the other hand, slowly got back to a standing position, his deep blue eyes snapping between every screen as he watched it all, his eyes as wide as dinner plates and her jaw slack as magic happened right in front of his eyes, and his mind tried to comprehend what it all was. One screen flitted between images of various families, all smiling and happy, another screen displayed small video clips of men in odd white uniforms swinging wooden sticks at leather balls, knocking them out of large, dirt-filled, chair-lined stadiums. Another screen showed images of men and women in various colorful uniforms, their hands held like knives in front of their foreheads.

After a few minutes of nonsensical displays, the monitors all faded to one uniform image, of a pale blue flag. In the center of this flag was a circle, with concentric circles all shrinking down towards the center, and multiple odd shapes filling it in; lining the circle were two olive branches. The image stayed for thirty seconds, before the center, largest screen, faded to black, and after a moment, in came a video, of a man seated behind an ancient, wooden desk. Behind him were massive windows, displaying a green, grassy field, trees, bushes, flowers, a small pool of water, and a clear blue sky.

The tan-skinned man folded his hands on the desk in front of him, sorrow etched firmly upon his heavily wrinkled face.

_"Hello."_ The man said in a language that Minato didn't understand, but actually recognized - the drawl, the syntax, the sound, the Viper woman had spoken words similar to this during their encounters! Minato turned to Hibiki, but any questions, any thoughts in his mind died out as he saw the defeated, exhausted expression on the Senju heir's face. The lack of any energy, any joviality on Hibiki's face almost made him look decades older than he was. _"If you're here... Then the worst has happened. My name is Richard_ _Ellis." _

* * *

It took fifteen minutes for the epitaph of the human race to play out in its entirety.

It took three minutes for Minato's shock to wear off.

"What _was_ that?" He breathed, jaw still slack, as he turned his gaze from the wall of computer screens, to Hibiki.

"It's a _long_ story... But the short version is... Back during the Second War, a man named Kenichi the Graverobber decided to create life. To do so, he had to grow bodies, and to do _that,_ he stole the blood of as many major clans as he possibly could." Hibiki said, tiredly, his own eyes not moving from the screen. "But whenever he tried to animate the bodies, they didn't have souls. So with some very, very complicated fuinjutsu and kinjutsu, he managed to tear open the barrier between our world and the afterlife, steal a soul, and insert it into a body." Hibiki patted his chest, feeling the compressed soul seal, right above his heart. "I am one of those people, the bastard creations of an arrogant man."

Minato blinked, "_what?!"_

"But that's not all. These souls had lives, and the memories of these lives were imprinted upon them. I come from a time... Very, very long ago. Before the elemental nations. Before _chakra_ even existed on this planet."

"Hibiki, that's not -"

"Possible?" Hibiki finally turned his tired gaze to Minato, looking at the chunin from over his slumped shoulders. "Minato, you can teleport across a planet at will. Does that sound _natural_ to you?" He asked, his voice low and rumbly, as opposed to its usual light and jovial tone. "Don't answer that." Hibiki turned his resigned gaze back to the computer screens, "anyways. Back before chakra existed, humans used metal and machines to live, to think, to learn. But then Kaguya Otsutsuki, and her son, the Sage of Six Paths, came." He nodded to the dark screens, "they destroyed society as it existed then, catalyzed chakra as we know it now, within humans, and then paved the way for the warring states." Hibiki knew he was going too fast, but he just felt so tired, he could hardly muster up the energy to give the long version.

He probably sounded insane, as a result.

Minato was silent, as he looked from Hibiki, to the computer screens, to the command center around them. "And... You're... One of these ancient people?"

"More or less." In mind, yes. In body, not so much.

"You have memories of a world that no one else does." Minato turned his gaze back to Hibiki.

"Minato, you saw the video. You heard them speak." Hibiki paused, _"I'm not crazy."_ He switched to English, _"I'm just... Tired."_

Minato's head felt like it was filled to burst. First magical screens speaking a language he had only ever heard from one woman, who had tried to kill him, now Hibiki claimed he was some undead reincarnated _thing,_ with memories from a society that existed thousands of years ago, and now he was speaking the Viper woman's, _and_ the magical screens' language!

"This is..." Minato found a chair, and fell into it, swiping his hand through his spiky hair. "_Big."_

"Yeah." Hibiki's shoulders slumped even lower. "Katsuo and his people, they're like me. Undead." He explained, "they have a multitude of bloodlines, like me. Sharingan, Gelignite, Shikotsumyaku, Swift Release... So many more that I can't access yet. But Katsuo's different. He's closer to me than any of them, because he came from a time very, very close to mine." Hibiki rumbled, blankly. "He was born and died just about a century before me. That gave him knowledge no one else _but_ me had..." He lifted his hand and with a plume of smoke, his gun appeared. "Like these."

"So _that's_ where his army got them?"

Hibiki grunted in affirmation. "You see... Katsuo wants to go home. Like me, he came from a time before chakra even existed. He thinks it's magic. He thinks he can use it to travel through time... But to do it, he needs the Bijuu."

Minato tilted his head, and leaned forward, the weight of the information being poured onto him so quickly almost physically pressing at his back. "Can he?"

"No." Firmly grunted the Senju heir. "Time travel _can't_ be possible, even with chakra." He explained. "But we're off topic." He waved at the screens, "Dai knows. She was the first, and up until now, only one I ever told."

Minato's head snapped up, "this is where you two went when the Kaguya showed up!" He proclaimed, eyes wide with realization.

Hibiki nodded, "it was around that time that I figured out everything I just told you. That this was my world, its twisted future." He sighed, "I damn near broke. If it hadn't been for her, I probably would have." He said, absently.

Minato ran his hands through his hair again, leaning back on his chair as he did so. "So... You're a... Forcibly reincarnated man, from millennia ago, from a time before chakra existed... And so is Katsuo, and all of his allies?"

"The other Undead were born earlier than us, I think. They don't know about guns, and technology. Apparently a few of them don't know about books, or knew about them, but couldn't afford them." Hibiki had wondered once if that meant that there were some people walking around that had lived in the Dark Ages, or perhaps the Crusades.

"And... Because of this Kenichi guy... You all actually _have_ these bloodlines, you aren't copying them?"

"The copying story is one we made up once I started openly displaying these abilities. We called it a Senju bloodline." Hibiki explained, "and that Katsuo and his people must be part Senju, perhaps some rogue sect lost and unrecorded in the archives. It's plausible enough." He said, turning his gaze up to the dark ceiling.

Minato nodded, slowly, trying to take in the information he was being layered with. "So... When Katsuo took Kushina -"

"I think he was trying to provoke me by _pretending_ to do so. I doubt his plan was to have me blow up Iwagakure, but... It will start his war."

"And that was why I found the white-haired lady chained up?"

"Yup." Hibiki said in a dead tone. "He's already gotten to work." Hibiki felt a little guilty, it had been _his_ fight with Miu that had opened her up to Katsuo's eye. After a moment, Hibiki sank his head into his hands. "And he tricked me into killing three million people."

Minato blinked, before he hopped up from his chair and strode over to his friend, firmly placing his hand on Hibiki's shoulder. "Hibiki... It's not your fault, man."

"Minato, don't." Hibiki shook his head, letting his hands fall into his lap, and his neck hang. "Denial is _bad._ Shadow clones aren't just autonomous units - they're _clones._ Exact copies of me. They think like me, talk like me, and act like me. The decision to withhold Kushina's return had been mine. The decision to let pride get in the way of the mission was _mine._ And now three million people are dead because of it. _I killed them."_ He sighed.

Minato knew that this wasn't something he could rationalize to Hibiki, as he saw the Senju let his head hang with the weight of his guilt. "Hibiki..." He sighed, and crouched down to eye-level, beside the Senju heir. "Katsuo invaded our village once before. He's..." Minato was about to say he killed innocent people, but that wouldn't help. "He wants to take the jinchuriki. That's what you said. _He_ won't feel guilt about what he has to do - but you do!" He said, pressing his hand harder onto Hibiki's shoulder, jostling him lightly to reinforce his point. "That makes you a good man." He said, earnestly.

But Hibiki just shook his head, "three million people, Minato. That's sixty percent of our village's population. More than three quarters of those people were civilians. I wouldn't even say _half_ of them had the time to evacuate." This _wasn't_ an acceptable evil, this was just plain _evil._

Minato gave his friend a concerned look, as he thought of everything he could that would help. "You thought you were rescuing Kushina."

"I could have _killed_ Kushina."

"But I would have found her. She would have been kept in the same building."

"Fifty fifty shot means a one in two chance of missing. And the battles were going on the entire time."

"Hibiki -" Minato's breath caught in his throat, he turned back to the screens. He sighed, "you said the Sage of Six Paths killed your people, after you died."

Hibiki grunted in the affirmative.

"How many people do you think he killed?"

"Six and a half billion."

Minato hadn't expected such a quick, or _large_ response, but he took it in stride. "Do you consider yourself to be _that_ evil?"

"Kind of." Hibiki's voice cracked, his words not even coming out as anything above a whisper.

"You're _not."_ Minato said, "the Sage fought to conquer... Katsuo fights selfishly. Yes, you're proud - but you have a right to be! All of your power, you've worked, bled, and sweat for it. For kami's sake - you're so fast now that most Jonin can't keep up with you! If you didn't seek out good fights, you'd be _bored,_ and boredom _kills_, Hibiki. You're _allowed_ to be proud of yourself, you're _allowed_ to have some pride! The difference between you and the other Undead is that you don't use it to... To..." He shook his head, "to just throw it around, to tear places apart because you can. Those guys -" He pointed in a random direction, "- they're using their power to tear apart the world, so they can find the nine jinchuriki. And what do you think will happen when they figure out what you have? That they're wrong?"

Hibiki remained silent.

Minato pounced on it, "they'll grow _angry, _Hibiki. They'll take it out on everyone and everything around them! And if they're anywhere even _close_ to how powerful you are _now,_ just budding at puberty, like me and everyone else in the academy, even the _kage_ won't be able to stop them! And without the junchuriki, _no one_ will be able to do it! They'll finish what the Sage started, and exterminate everyone who's left!"

"I know..." Whispered the Senju heir.

"You'll be the only man alive, strong enough to fight them!" Minato pressed, "the only man alive who's even remotely capable of understanding and combating them! And you will because you're a _good man!"_ Minato tightened his grip on Hibiki's shoulder, "because I know you won't sit around and just _let them!"_ He grinned, "you're too _proud_ to let them win that easy!"

In spite of himself, that jab actually managed to get a chuckle out of the Senju heir.

Minato seized the opportunity, "see?" He paused for a moment, "Hibiki... We all do things we aren't really proud of. That's the burden we have to take as shinobi... Sometimes we do things we regret. You and I... We'll be taking what we did to our graves. But what we've got to do is work as hard as we can to make those deaths mean something. We're alive, and they're not. We've got to make up for it, because we've _got that power,_ and others don't. You understand?"

Hibiki nodded, "yeah." What had Minato just said?

With great power, comes great responsibility.

Hibiki had abused his power and three million people had paid the price of his pride, and now _he_ would be reaping what he sowed for the rest of his life. Given the sheer enormity of what he had done, there was no true way to make it _right,_ so the only way he could even try would be to work as hard as he could to do so, likely for the rest of his life. First, he would have to deal with Katsuo; then, Zetsu and the Sage of Six Paths. After that, who knew? Maybe if he survived all of that, he'd have to work to bring his society back, educate the people of the Elemental Nations, bring science and post-enlightenment thought back to the world, raise the standard of living. Slowly but surely allow mankind to lift itself back to the heights it once reached.

_Were it so easy._ He sighed.

"Are you okay?" Minato asked, giving Hibiki another jostle on the shoulder.

"I'm fine, Minato." Hibiki said, putting a little more life in his pubescent voice. "Listen..." He sighed, straightening up and leaning back into his chair with an exhausted sigh. "I'm just... Coming to terms with what I did." He paused, "what we did." Because he knew Minato had killed and regretted things in their fool's errand as well. "I just need some time, is all." He explained, "I need to go home."

"This isn't it?" Minato asked, as he got to his feet, and waved his hand in a wide arc, indicating the underground bunker.

Hibiki barked out a quick laugh, "ha! No... No, this is as far from my home as it could get." Halfway across a country and deep underground from his home, as a matter of fact. "No, my home was... A small house in the middle of suburban America. Two cars, four bedrooms... _Hot water."_ He needed to take a shower before he left. "Parents." He doubted the place was still even standing, but the town he and Dai had stopped at had been mostly wood and plaster, and a quarter of those buildings were still upright; granted more than one collapsed entirely when Hibiki had so much as poked them, but he digressed. "Twenty odd years I lived at that place, before I amassed enough of a paltry sum to move out."

Minato nodded, letting the formerly displaced man remember his past. "You're going to go back?"

Hibiki shrugged, taking in a deep breath as he got to his feet. "I don't even know if it's still standing, to be perfectly honest." He said, "anything not built of stone falls over pretty damn quick if it's not kept up with. Repaired and patched up." That was actually one thing Hibiki still had a hard time understanding - taking into consideration how long the Warring States Period existed before the Hidden Village system, that meant Hagoromo walked the earth - _at minimum - _a thousand years ago, and it was likely longer than that, given how long it would have taken for communities to form in the ruins of Japan, those communities to get set up well enough to develop infrastructure, and then start recording their history. Hibiki considered it likely would have been closer to fifteen hundred years, perhaps even two thousand. In two thousand years, there shouldn't be _anything_ left standing from the twenty first century, and yet there was still enough around for Hibiki to more or less recognize major cities, follow major roads, and set himself up in an ancient nuclear bunker.

It made him wonder if those seed vaults vaults in Norway, or Greenland - he couldn't remember - were still around. They were supposed to be there in the event of an apocalypse. The thought made him smile, maybe - just maybe - he could find coffee grounds. _Maybe he would never have to drink tea, again._ _Ever!_ Tea was nice and all, but that had been a problem and a half to acquire a taste to, after a lifetime of the brown drink.

_I haven't drank coffee in fifteen years... Sweet Jesus._ He cleared his throat, "but I want to check." He said, "I promise, I'm fine... As can be, anyways." He said, with a shrug. "I'll come home. I promise. I just need some time, come to terms with things." He explained.

Minato looked Hibiki over, taking in the teen's overall appearance, his physique mostly hidden by his stolen longcoat, but his stance, slouching backwards with his shoulders slumped and his hands hidden in his pockets, suggesting that he wasn't as okay as he should be. The Senju heir had a reflective, sorrowful look on his face, still locked onto the near-blank monitors lining the wall in front of them.

"Are you sure?" Minato finally asked.

Hibiki nodded, "I've _died_, Minato, and I snapped back from that... Mentally and physically speaking." He explained, "just do me a favor, when you get home?"

"Yeah, sure!" Minato nodded, energetically.

"Just tell Dai I'm working some stuff out, would you?" He said, "I know she's gotta be second guessing the hell out of herself, right now. Wondering if she's made the right decision."

Minato nodded, he hardly understood a fraction of what was going on, surrounding Hibiki and his past, but he knew that whatever it truly was, it was _big,_ and Dai had to have taken a big leap of fate to trust Minato with it. Minato trusted his Senju friend enough to get the full, less depressed and rushed version of his story at a later date. "What should I say?" He asked.

Hibiki shrugged, "the truth?" He said, "I dunno. I doubt she'd take anything else." He turned to look at Minato, "I should be back in a day or two. My travel time... Doesn't take too long to travel cross-country, anymore." He grinned.

Minato joined him, and followed the coated Senju heir out of the control center, and through the massive underground complex. "I dunno, Hibiki. With my Hiraishin, I'm _kind_ of faster than you... And what, with all of the practice in the field I've been getting recently, I'm getting the stamina thing down pat. I just have to get my reflexes down and I'll be able to travel the same distance in less time!" His grin turned to a full-blown toothy smile.

Hibiki, meanwhile, shrugged his shoulders. "I dunno, Namikaze. Sounds like you're boasting, there... Which is strange, considering that Hiraishin is probably the best technique you've got - and just teleport spamming won't be enough to kick _my_ ass."

Minato laughed, "don't you worry about that! I've been watching real close, I've got ideas of my own."

Hibiki chuckled, "I look forward to seeing them."

* * *

An hour passed, after Minato left. Hibiki spent most of that hour just walking, slowly as opposed to the quick gait he was more than capable of with his Swift Release. Mid-winter in the landmass formerly known as the United States was a lot more mild than it was in what he thought had been Russia, but it was still chilly enough that Hibiki felt the chill through the thin sleeves in his longcoat. Yeah, he was feeling a little bad about stealing the thing, but he'd left a substantial sum of money in its place, more than enough to pay for it and the window. Going five years without a new lucky coat and then blowing up three million people made one want a few creature comforts.

He wasn't rationalizing it at all.

Maybe he'd take up smoking? Would his healing abilities work against lung damage? They didn't do anything to stimulants, else soldier pills wouldn't work.

It was after that hour that Hibiki finally pulled a map out of one of his storage seals, used it to locate an interstate that would lead him to Georgia, and sprint towards it. Now on the highway, one side of which was filled with abandoned cars, Hibiki simply strode down the long, gray, dilapidated road, his hands in his ankle-length coat's pockets. The Senju heir frequently flashed his Swift Release, covering hundreds of kilometers in those few seconds, and reaching state borders in minutes, as he walked down the road.

_Fuck, man..._ He thought, lifting his head and gazing around him. Flanked on both sides of the highway were thick, green forests, and outside of very distant animal and bug noises, Hibiki couldn't hear anything. The world outside of the last vestiges of civilization in what used to be Japan was silent, and dead. _It's just impossible to stay mad around him._ Minato had that quality about him, just _talking_ to the blond blur, even if it was just reiterating what one already knew, it helped. _In another life, that guy probably would've made a good therapist._ Hibiki lifted his gaze to the gray sky, filled with thin clouds.

Hibiki was still pissed beyond reason, at himself, at his Hokage, at the world and at Katsuo. He still felt unending amounts of guilt over what he had done, be it by accident or by design; but somehow that miracle in blonde hair had managed to calm him down somewhat. He knew Minato was right, in that this wasn't just a moment to quit, and he wasn't going to, not by a long shot.

_I just need... Time._ Thought the Senju heir, after another brief flash of Swift Chakra brought him over another few hundred kilometers. _Time to figure things out... To sit down. To remember things and decide what my future should hold._ He knew that within the next year or two he would be taking over for Tsunade as head of the Senju, a fact of which she seemed to be relishing.

_"Oh, yeah. Hardest damn job in the world, Gaki."_ She said one morning, over breakfast._ "Have to make decisions in regards to _all two of us. _You'll do fine."_

But after that? There were more pressing matters to attend to. There was Katsuo and his people, there was Zetsu and whatever the hell it was that thing was up to. A part of him wanted to see if he couldn't do something about the Cries of the Damned, try and figure that out. Another part of him wanted to set up some kind of memorial to his world, but NORAD already filled that function in spades.

_Then there's Dai..._ Hibiki thought, as another few hundred kilometers flashed by beneath his feet, and he passed underneath a heavily rusted signpost, so withered and deteriorated with age that it was now illegible. There were a few animals on the side of the road, deer, by the looks of them, Hibiki slowed down to watch them, as the stags and does nibbled at the grass beneath them. _Things go like they are, I'm going to _have_ to put a ring on her finger. Whether or not her Dad respects my stubbornness, and if that was a good or bad decision in the first place, I can't just expect to keep her tied down and unaffiliated forever. Shinobi don't have a lifespan that extends far beyond their forties... Damn, Dante's getting up there, isn't he? _He shook his head. _I know she'll wait..._ One of the stags, with enormous, beautiful horns, raised its head, its beady eyes making contact with Hibiki, from their long distance away.

The two stared at eachother for several moments, it dawning on Hibiki that it probably didn't see him and have instincts kick in to run. Here was a strange animal with odd, multilayered fur that billowed like leaves in the wind, hair on its head, pale skin, and front-facing eyes. This was likely the first deer in millennia to have ever seen a human being, beyond the Nara Clan's deer, at least. Eventually, the stag lowered its head again and went back to grazing with its mate, and Hibiki resumed his trek.

_I know she'll wait... She's put a hell of a lot of effort into understanding me and how my people - her ancestors - courted, and I'll be damned if she isn't accommodating... But I can't make her do that._ He thought, passing by the deer, his senses letting him know the stag and his doe briefly watched him as he did so, as well as alerting him to the arrival of a third doe, late to the party. Hibiki kept walking, his onyx eyes locked to the ground ahead of him. He tried to activate his Sharingan out of habit, but the burning sensation returned, forcing him to turn it off, and file a note to get it looked at by Dante. _So, I do that, then I'd have to start thinking kids._ Technically, he was reaching forty, all things considered. Perfect time to start thinking about these things, even if his body wasn't quite up there with his mind. _I do _that,_ and then there's everybody and their mother who would want that kid, and Dai, to get to me. Katsuo, the Iwa survivors, whoever I piss off during the war... Maybe Danzo, I doubt I'd made him happy, threatening his life like that. _He hummed to himself, before he passed over another few hundred kilometers with a brief zipping noise. _Yeah, I'll have to get Minato to teach me the Hiraishin. I tie that in to a chakra reactive seal, I can add it into the identity seals. Then someone pumps some of their chakra into it, it'll be the equivalent of dialing nine-one-one. I'll get the call, warp to their seal, beat the _fuck_ out of whoever's trying to hurt them... Yeah, I'll trade a gun for that._ Hibiki hadn't forgotten Minato's request, after all.

He looked up and saw, in the distance, the road dipping down. There were city ruins enveloping the intersection of more than one interstate, telling Hibiki he was close to Atlanta. The skyline was nothing like he remembered it, where once there had been dozens of skyscrapers and hundreds of smaller buildings, now the roof of the city was one skyscraper, nearly ninety percent of its windows shattered, and missing its top half in its entirety, while the rest of the city was all but leveled-out rubble plugging up the roads and alleys between the buildings.

Hibiki could still vividly remember the first time his father had taken him to Atlanta. He had been stupefied by the giant buildings and the shiny windows, dumbfounded by all of the people and the sounds of commerce. It had been a planet come to life, a symbol of what people were capable of, a visual representation of effort applied to time. Now, it was the exact opposite, with grassy patches extending onto the road where the rubble met dirt, vines and kudzu growing up the sides of buildings, trees having penetrated the city limits. Any buildings that still stood likely wouldn't for much longer, as the combined weight of the rubble and the long-since invaded nature pressed down upon them. It was a dead city, devoid of human life, but rich with the natural kind.

"Fuck." He breathed, as he zipped right into the middle of it.

Surrounded by the dead city, Hibiki could actually still see the scars of the war that claimed it. Chunks of building blasted out, smokey, watered-out glass jutting out from the dirt and debris, rusted out metal pipes, abandoned vehicles in the small bits of road that were still visible, a tank here and there. In the distance, Hibiki could actually see the destroyed cockpit of a helicopter buried into the top of a low-built stone building, a human skeleton hanging from the windshield. The lone human pursed his lips and sighed, finding more and more evidence of a war long passed as he looked longer and longer. Discarded, partially crushed, mostly weathered skeletons, weapons untouched and rusty from millennia of neglect, humvees and jeeps overturned and on their sides and roofs.

_Did Georgia fall before, or after Kaguya?_ Hibiki wondered, as he turned to face the south. He knew in his logical, rational mind that he wouldn't find anything - Atlanta was a city, it made some amount of sense that it still stood. But his little slice of the state, his county? Not so much, it was a city in name, not a major one. If anything, the only buildings Hibiki felt had survived the test of time would have been the mini-malls and shopping centers, that had been made of stone and concrete.

_But..._ He thought, as he stretched his back, his coattail billowing about as the wind picked up with a lazy whistle. _The fact that there are cities still standing has to count for something. Wooden structures, too._ His only theory was that it had something to do with the natural chakra that permeated the air, perhaps it kept things at some kind of an equilibrium, or slowed down the deterioration process with man-made materials. He straightened back up with a yawn, and with another pulse of Swift Chakra, he zoomed further south.

By the time he found something even approaching familiar, the sun was high in the sky, and even starting to set. Of all of the things that triggered his memory, it was a certain small string of buildings and a gas station that did it. He stopped combing every inch of the state when he arrived at these buildings, long since overgrown with vegetation. One L-shaped building with wide, thick windows covered the right and center, were one facing them from the road, and the second, shack-like building sat to the left, its shack-like size dwarfed by the buildings it stood in front of. Their outer walls were made of stone, and many of their windows had been shattered - even this little area hadn't been spared warfare, it seemed, given the two tanks resting in the wide parking lot. Behind the shack building and down a steep hill was a federal building; a big, sweeping, luxurious place meant to look pretty and be functional, all while giving the air of wasted money.

What Hibiki remembered most about this place, funnily enough, was how much he had come to despise it in another life. The small shack, barely even a hundred square feet, if that, had once been a fast food joint. Primarily selling sandwiches, Hibiki remembered that, back when he had a different name, he had thought the owner a genius for setting up a 'healthy food place' not even a hundred meters away from a dance academy filled with hormonal teenage girls obsessed with their weights and their figures. It had been his first job, and while Hibiki had been good at it, his fellow employees had been too focused on smoking weed or sleeping with eachother in the freezer - more than once, he recalled, as the long-term memories began flowing again - than actually doing their jobs, which only meant more work for him, to the point where he ended up working sixty plus hour weeks more often than not.

Hibiki found himself laughing breathily, shaking his head and covering his mouth with his callused hand, as he stared at the small fast food building. It was amazing how much he had, buried under his subconscious, irretrievable without that one spark. Damn, those worries felt so _petty,_ now that he was older, had different ones, and was several thousand years separated from them. A wide, nostalgic smile painted on his face, Hibiki walked around the far side of the building, to the employee's entrance. The windows had long since been broken, and if the uniformed skeletons inside were any indication, likely by gunfighting. Around the employee's entrance was where Hibiki used to park, a gravelly parking section, there was but one car here, and it looked like it had been run over by a tank, and then raped by nature. It was rusted, sprouting weeds, covered in as much green as it was red.

He walked up to the car, not able to see inside it. Walking past the car, Hibiki came to the edge of the hill leading down to the federal building. Just on the other side of that was a road that, when he hit it with his car, got him home in fifteen minutes. Walking would likely take him twice that time, and when he did so, and confirmed that the road was, indeed, there, he again marveled at how much he remembered. All he needed was to just see it, and everything came flowing back to him.

He started down the smaller road, this one empty save for pock marks and vegetation. The larger, main road that it connected to a half mile behind him, that one had been empty too, likely having been evacuated when the Zetsu had been spotted, so the soldiers could have room to fight. A part of Hibiki, as he kept up his leisurely pace, wondered what the war would have looked like, but then he remembered what it had _been_ like to sack the Earth Daimyo's city, and assumed it had been rather similar, just with a lot more wanton slaughter.

Two kilometers down the small road, Hibiki passed by a shopping center. Eight kilometers past the shopping center was a dollar store, largely untouched even by battle, and a lot of trees. Three kilometers past the dollar store, Hibiki passed by a park, with grass so high that Hibiki almost hadn't even recognized it, had it not been for the great stone arches and rusted out fences. As he passed it by, the first human to do so in an unimaginably long amount of time, Hibiki wondered if the swings and rides were still there, or if they had been overtaken by nature. Right next to the park were several baseball fields, all of them so overgrown and filled with grass and vegetation that Hibiki was sure it would take a determined landscaper _years_ to fix it up. Seven kilometers past the park, Hibiki came to an intersection, flanked on all sides by dollar stores, gas stations, fast food places, car mechanics, and grocery stores. He was walking almost entirely by memory now, as he made a right, and then a left, walking another three kilometers before he came to suburbia.

Here, the roads were almost entirely overtaken by grass, the pinewood trees loomed so high and leaned so low that they nearly blotted out the sky. But as he walked down the final roads, he saw houses, wooden and plaster houses, the same kinds he had predicted to have long since fallen by this point. Some certainly had, some were damaged by looting and the evacuation, others were damaged by nature, he even passed by some neighborhoods that looked like they had seen some fighting. The Army had fought for every inch of their land, it seemed.

It was now, twenty four kilometers from an old, old job from a long, long time ago, after many long and winding roads, that Hibiki found what he was looking for. Hidden behind a thick layer of tall grass, behind a stone curb in the road, Hibiki found the remains of a white fence, a sign posted that had long since had its paint completely worn off. Hibiki felt his heart-rate quicken, as he turned at the sign and went deeper into suburbia. Most of the houses here were still standing, all had some level of nature attempting to recapture them, some had broken windows, _none_ had cars. Not even jeeps, or tanks.

And finally, after an hour of walking, Hibiki found it. Fifth from the stopsign, left turn. The paint had long since peeled off, leaving a giant gray wooden mass. The windows had _long _since fogged over to water damage, but somehow, the damn Shanty Shack was still standing. Hibiki recognized it by sight, it was the only house in the entire neighborhood whose main level, was the second floor. It was the only house in the neighborhood built at the bottom of a hill, whose driveway was a steep incline. Aside from age, light weathering, and kudzu vines and vegetation growing up the sides and curling around the chimney, the damn place had been untouched.

If there was a god, he had a sense of humor.

Hibiki walked down the steep hill, feeling the weight of his life slipping away as he immersed himself in the nostalgic memories of a previous life. He made it to the stairs leading up to the front door. The wooden, water-mottled gray structure creaked loudly, and his foot sunk about an inch into the weathered wood, but it held his weight. With each step upwards, Hibiki felt time turning back. One step, he was ten years old and wanting to throttle the man who coined the 'Thunder God'. Ten steps, he was a newborn infant experiencing the early years of life for the second time. Fifteen, he was twenty three, walking away from this home with nothing but the turnout gear in his trunk, sixty three hundred dollars, and a shitty apartment to his name. Twenty steps, he was eighteen, graduating from highschool and getting his first car. Twenty one steps, he was, of all places, sixteen, with three heavy bags of groceries in his hands.

He turned to look down at the driveway from over his shoulder; it looked alien without two SUV's parked at the bottom. It felt silent without the sound of his mother and father cracking jokes and making obscure references.

But it still felt like home.

Hibiki turned to the door, and placed his hand on the knob. With a loud grind and the feeling of rough, rusted metal, the knob turned a full rotation, and the door cracked open. The wood creaked and groaned, audibly crackling and snapping, having been moved for the first time in thousands of years. At this point, Hibiki didn't even care how it still existed, how it still stood - it _did,_ and for now, that was all that mattered. He entered the house, the air inside was dry, and slightly warmer than it was outside. To his front was the staircase leading to the basement, and beyond that was the hallway leading down to the two spare bedrooms. To his immediate right was a spacious living room, a large leather couch lining the far wall and a big cloth chair seated right in front of the chimney. To the left of the couch was a door, wide open. Next to the television, which lined the wall opposite the chimney and the fireplace, was the arch leading to the kitchen and dining room.

_God..._ Hibiki leaned against the doorway, tears threatening to spill from his eyes, his lower lip quivering. _It's still here._ Sealed off from the outside, the inside was still in good condition, aside from a thick layer of dust covering nearly everything. _It really is._

Hibiki Senju had returned home.

He took a few minutes to compose himself, hardly even able to step foot past the threshold of his first life's childhood home. When he had full control of his facilities, Hibiki stepped inside, and idly used his foot to swing the door shut. It was so rusted that the knob didn't turn on its own, it just stuck in place, cracked just slightly open, but it was shut enough for the Senju, who walked through the living room, towards the door next to the ancient, dried leather couch. His lips pursed tight as he passed by the glass-topped coffee table, the glass long since stained by repeated exposure to summers and winters without people to take care of it. Underneath this table was all of his mother - his _real_ mother's old Rolling Stones magazines; Hibiki hadn't ever even known if she read them, they just kept showing up every month, and she kept shoving them under the coffee table.

At this point, his mind wasn't even remotely close to continuing to question how all of this was still here, and still so recognizable. He didn't care about the physics, or weathering - against all odds, it was all still here, as if having been frozen in time until he specifically came to reawaken it, to experience it again, for the second time in both lives, and the first time in his second. It was all so familiar that it brought an ache to Hibiki's heart, one he hadn't had since his first trip to NORAD - one of homesickness, and sorrow. Everything being here, so similar and yet so different, it only served to further cement that this wasn't some fugue-state dream, it was _home,_ it was _dead,_ and it was forever gone from him.

Passing the couch and the table, Hibiki reached the door to the master bedroom. The king-sized bed took up its center, pressed up against the far wall. On top of its mattress were clothes, duffle bags, suitcases, and books. Hibiki again covered his mouth with a rough, callused hand as he clenched his jaw tight. They had been in the middle of packing, probably when the country had been invaded. He could almost hear his father taking charge, yelling out to just take clothes, water, phones and chargers, and food - they didn't need books, they didn't need anything else. Given everything on the bed, they had likely abandoned any fancy, large packing ventures, and instead deigned for one bag each, probably under military advisory to take only what they could carry.

His mother, however, had had different ideas, it seemed, as he walked closer to the bed. Where his father's half of the bed had clothes, medical supplies and various essentials spilled out over his side of the bed, on her side of the plainly dressed mattress were books. Not just any books, however. Not magazines, novels, or anything of the sort. Albums.

Photo albums.

_Oh my god..._ Somberly thought the Senju, as, with a shaking hand, he reached out to one of the leather bound photo albums. So old and untouched for so long, the leather had long since dried and begun cracking, showing an age that little else around it did; but much like everything else, age was all it showed - it was still as solid and nowhere near as fragile as its outward appearance would suggest.

Of _course_ his mother would have tried packing these, god damn near every time they took important photos, every month she had them developed professionally. Hibiki had believed that she personally was the reason those places stayed in business. He was also certain that she had to have been taken kicking and screaming from this thing, but she had had _dozens_ of them, all filled with the same pictures. One for each car, one for each room, one for family members when they came by, backups for every one, she spent a significant portion of her salary every year on copies and copies of her photos.

Hibiki remembered, as hand touched the aged, dried leather, the first year he'd started working. She had been without a camera for three years at that point, sticking to camera phones because she'd broken her 'good' one. He'd spent half a thousand dollars that Christmas on a new, good, wi-fi enabled camera for her. She'd cried. He opened the photo album so slowly that it felt like it took years just to bring one cover to the mattress.

The first page that opened up almost made him shut the album again. The very first picture was one the three of them had had taken the week before Hibiki had turned eighteen, about an hour before a spoken word show. Henry Rollins, he remembered, as the ancient memories began flowing back, thanks to the stimuli jarring them loose. On the right was his father, a squat man, mostly muscle but a little wide around the middle and barely five and a half feet tall, his face proudly covered in a beard that only he on his side of the family could grow. On the left was a plump woman with auburn hair and gray eyes, just as tall as his father - so she wouldn't have to lean up to kiss him, she'd say. Both of them were smiling wide, the plump woman showing her teeth, the round, bearded man simply crinkling up his beard, both of them with their arms around the shoulder of the teen in the center. Pale skinned, two inches taller than the people he had his arms wrapped around, thin and lanky, and with a stupid, obnoxious, open-mouthed smile that reached his wide blue eyes, masked slightly by a pair of thick 'Harry Potter Glasses', his unkempt brown hair falling in waves over his shoulders and out of sight behind his back. The sky and environment around them was dark, the show hadn't been until late at night.

Just seeing this picture brought the memories to Hibiki's mind. Soap and soccer balls, Hibiki remembered the stories that had been told. It felt like a lifetime ago.

_"Fuck..."_ It _was_ a lifetime ago.

Then he heard the floor creak.

He hadn't had the time to do anything but blink before he heard, _"Uh..."_

With a light pop and a plume of smoke, Hibiki's hand was raised and pointed at the entrance to the room, his gun held firmly in his no-longer shaking hand. Standing in the doorway was a beast of a man, eight feet tall, with a pale complexion, almost to the point of graying, leathery skin and deep, thick surgical scars all over his body. The scars that criss-crossed the figure's body were so deep and thick that it looked as if parts of him had simply been stitched together; it appeared as if there was a scar at least a tenth of an inch deep around all of his joints. His hair was a deep, dark brown, and he had a bushy mountain-man style beard. His eyes were big and soft looking, with a deep golden, highly reflective hue, however sunken in his head they may be. His expression was soft, eyes wide in what looked like shock and excitement, and his jaw was slightly agape, as he stared at the Senju heir.

Hibiki blinked, as, almost in unison, the both of them sized the other up, looking eachother up and down. The beast of a man took in Hibiki's appearance, his ankle-length, waist-hugging longcoat, his hitai ate, his gun. Hibiki, on the other hand, only really needed to look once to see everything. Literally, everything.

The man was nude.

And very, very, _human._


	62. Impeachment

Chapter 61

* * *

When Minato Namikaze returned to the Village Hidden in the Leaves, he was bodily tackled to the ground by a certain red-headed bundle of energy. He hadn't even been in his apartment for a minute before the door crashed open and he was on the ground being crushed by the monstrous strength of the Uzumaki heiress, who cried so loudly and so deeply that she wasn't able to speak clearly for a quarter of an hour. Minato, largely due to the fact that he was pinned to the ground, but also because he had no idea what was going on, simply stayed there, comforting the Uzumaki heiress and encouraging her to let it all out.

He hadn't even been gone for more than an hour or two, what had he missed?

When Kushina finally calmed down and released the Namikaze, he led her to his couch and rushed off to make some tea. He wasn't the best cook around - Hibiki liked to joke about how he could burn water - but he could at least make a cup of tea. After he set the kettle on the stove, he went back to Kushina, who practically leapt over to him the moment he sat down on the opposite side of the couch, clinging to him with all of her strength.

_"I'm sorry!"_ She cried, _"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry! I - I didn't mean to make you and Hibiki mad I was just confused you know and I didn't have the whole story and it wasn't until shikaku told me what really happened that I understood it and I didn't mean to run away from you and make you mad I just was scared you know and I couldn't understand it I needed to get outside and then -"_ She hiccuped, marking the first pause in the entire tirade, which seemed out of order to the Namikaze, who at least had use of his arms now, and as such he rubbed the Uzumaki heiress' back. _"- I realized what I did but Hibiki was gone and I couldn't find you and I was so scared that I made you two mad please don't be mad I didn't mean to I was just confused you know?!"_ She pushed out with what she lad left in her lungs.

Minato blinked, masking his utter confusion with contemplative silence. Made him mad? What was she talking about? He _couldn't_ be mad at her - she was Kushina! Being mad at her was like being mad at... A puppy! Or Kushina!

"Hime..." He said softly, pressing his hand on her back. "We aren't mad at you." He said, firmly.

_"But -"_ Kushina hiccuped.

"But nothing." He said, grabbing ahold of her shoulders and holding her a few inches away, so he could look into her deep green eyes. "Hibiki had to go somewhere so he could come to terms with what Hokage-sama and Katsuo tricked him into doing, and I had to go help him out." He shrugged, innocently. "It's that simple."

Kushina blinked, _"but... _I ran away from you! I didn't even say anything to you two, and you both got tricked into killing a lot of people for me!"

Minato nodded, the wounds from that were still fresh and open. "Yeah..." He said, "but, you're our friend, Kushina." He said, firmly. "We're not the getting mad type." He chuckled, and flicked her nose. "Hibiki likes to say he doesn't get mad, he gets even."

Kushina managed to crack a grin at that one, as the teakettle began to whistle. Minato took his time extricating from Kushina, before he took off the kettle and grabbed a few cups and teabags. After he got back to his living room and the two had some time to drink their tea, Kushina broke the silence.

"So... Shikaku Nara is planning on getting the Yondaime impeached." She said in a small voice.

Minato choked on his tea.

* * *

There was a saying that predated the Warring States period, one that even the idealistic Hashirama Senju was known to have believed in. Paraphrased, it said that power would corrupt, but absolute power would corrupt absolutely. This meant that those who had power were willing to do whatever they could to get more, and those who had all of it were willing to do everything they had to, to keep it. Even Hashirama, who had created and firmly believed in the Will of Fire, knew this to be true - his best and closest friend had fallen to it, after all. So, knowing the nature of power that chakra could grant its wielder, and the sheer god-like _heights_ a determined shinobi could reach with it, when the Shodai Hokage had created a protocol that allowed for the impeachment of the current Kage of the Leaf Village.

Stated simply, should there be sufficient evidence and popular opinion in regards to the immoral actions of the man who was supposed to physically embody Konohagakure's Will of Fire, any one of the Heads of Clans or Civilian Conclave could call for the Kage's impeachment. It was meant to protect both the world and the village against the wills of a potential madman, drunk on the power a hidden village afforded him, and it had never once been used, to the point that few even knew about it, outside of the clan heads and conclave. This was also why the Kage, despite being the absolute authority over Konoha's shinobi and therefor the leader of the entire village, always was willing to listen and adhere to his advisors, be they civilian or shinobi - because if he did, and they were wrong, it was their fault. But if he didn't, and he was wrong, depending on the severity of the repercussions, he risked impeachment. That wasn't to say if one shinobi died a fool's death, that was the Hokage's head, but more to say that if it could be proven that the Hokage had issued an order that was considered and agreed by all to be immoral and beyond reason, that something could be done about it to avoid civil war.

This was, of course, considering that the world and village they lived in was one in which people were routinely hired out to go and slaughter for a living. Ninety percent of the shinobi at Chunin rank have done at least _one_ assassination mission, and all ranked above Chunin had done one or two. It was their way of life, and it was accepted as it. So, to them, the death of a few men, or perhaps a family here and there, wasn't too immoral, per se. It was a fact of life, and if it was done in the defense of their country and their village, it was an acceptable fact of life. One they were willing to live with. Hell, during the second war, Dante Uchiha had gotten his war name from his Anbu missions as the one and only Anbu shock-trooper, and in the line of duty he had managed to save three quarters of Konoha's chunin corps and half of their Jonin by exterminating Amegakure's Hast Clan, people _accepted_ this. It had to happen, else the speed-freaks would have killed more than twice their number of Konoha's shinobi. Sure, some were horrified at the power Dante was now revealed to possess, and the sudden fame had forced him to abandon his mask, but all it had taken were the mothers and fathers of the Chunin and the younger Jonin he had saved to cry his name from the rooftops, to thank him so profusely in public, and people soon concluded that it had been a necessary, if unfortunate, act.

However, in a shinobi village, news spread fast. It hadn't even taken twenty four hours, after Hibiki Senju and Minato Namikaze had returned from their emergency mission, for the news of their deeds to spread to every corner of the village. It had taken another several hours after that before the wide and varied stories had settled down to the facts of the matter, and in this case, _no one_ felt that this had been justified. Iwagakure was a village of comparable size and strength to Konoha, so even if they took the low average of three million civilians and shinobi, and took into account the report Hibiki had filed that there was reason to believe a sizable chunk of their shinobi forces had been out of the village at the time, that was still _three million people_ dead.

To Shikaku Nara's endless satisfaction, very few blamed the two Shinobi. Even Minato, though he wasn't known as well as Hibiki, was at least known as the apprentice to Jiraiya of the Sannin, and even with the Toad Sage's lecherous reputation, everyone knew he was a good man, and as such, Minato was as well. No, instead, the questions and blame were shunted towards the Yondaime Hokage, Danzo Shimura.

Why did you send out Senju and Namikaze?

Why did they destroy a village?

Why didn't you call them back?

Why didn't you wait?

Why did you not send Anbu instead?

Was this to mean war was here?

What of Kumogakure, and Iwa's allies?

What of Katsuo the Monster?

Where had Hibiki gone since his return?

Where were the rest of their shinobi?

Why weren't they being called back?

Were the borders secure?

What about their money?

Were they safe?

Shikaku had let those questions build up for forty eight hours, the determined Nara heir even going so far as to poke and prod the growling giant, showing some civilians and less-connected shinobi where to send what they wanted to send, to ensure the concerns made it to the Kage; and he may or may not have surreptitiously dropped some Ryo to a few rookie Nara clansmen to go tell the Civilian Elders how to more efficiently write and send these requests, calling it an 'E-ranked training mission', ensuring that even the Civilian Conclave knew how to properly apply pressure. From what his mutual 'friend' through Hibiki, Anbu Wolf, had said, Danzo was a patient man, but even he withered under the ire and anger of an entire village. The people wanted answers. Danzo, not being anything even _approaching_ the public, open man his predecessor had been, wasn't giving them.

It was at noon on the third day that Shikaku finally felt Danzo had been pressured enough that he was on the precipice of action and inaction. Any further time spent would give him time to formulate a plan, but if he had acted sooner, Danzo would still have his facilities fully in check. So, at noon of the third day, Shikaku sent word to the web of contacts he had created through the weight of Hibiki Senju's name alone. The Nara heir called the heads of clan and the Civilian Conclave to a gathering in Konoha's State Building.

With such a gathering of so many high-profile individuals, it hadn't even taken ninety seconds for the Anbu not affiliated with Hibiki to inform Danzo, and only ten seconds after that for the Yondaime to come calmly waling through the auditorium doors, his heavily bandaged face the epitome of calm. He was too proud, too intelligent to let his emotions slip into rage and come bursting through the doors. Shikaku even predicted that the man likely already _knew_ what was going on, the moment he had heard of the unannounced meeting of Konoha's most connected.

A part of him, as he sat at the head of the whole deal, felt nervous, as the Hokage calmly approached the center of the room, looking up at the ring of seats. Another part of him, however, knew that he had come with his ninjutsu prepared, so to speak, and with so many people here and all more or less on the same page, his outcome would be _the_ outcome. Barring some kind of divine intervention, the Yondaime Hokage would be dethroned by mid-day.

Danzo reached the center of the room, his lone eye locked directly upon Shikaku, before he slowly surveyed his surroundings. He saw the heads of most of the major clans in Konoha, he saw the two of the three Sannin, he saw Team Dante, sans the Uchiha. He saw several clan heirs and unaffiliated chunin, he saw the heads of the civilian council. Most importantly, however, he saw Hibiki Senju's name at the tips of their tongues.

The bandaged kage turned back to look to Shikaku. "Get on with it."

Shikaku cleared his throat, "Danzo Shimura. Former shadow to the Sandaime Hokage, then Yondaime Hokage. It has come to a consensus that your actions these last weeks have called into question your capability to lead Konohagakure no Sato." He began, keeping his deepening voice from cracking through sheer force of will. "For those of us not yet briefed upon the full story, five days ago an infiltrator with ties to Katsuo the Monster weaved through this village's security. In an effort to entice war, he performed a transformation technique and took on the form of a close friend, who, due to many extenuating circumstances shall go unidentified, of Hibiki Senju, and staged an abduction. Awake at the time, Senju saw the what he believed to be an attempt made upon this shinobi's safety, and pursued the abductor, whom he referred to as 'Runner' in his reports.

"He engaged Runner and took the transformed shadow clone back to the village. Runner utilized a mass of clones to keep the true, or Alpha Senju bogged down and busy fighting, while Senju's clone took the kunoichi to the hospital. However, upon arriving, the Runner's clone dispelled, and Runner made his escape. Senju came to the conclusion that he had been tricked and, gathering help in the form of another close ally and apprentice to Jiraiya of the Sannin, Minato Namikaze, pursued Runner, while leaving behind a shadow clone to keep the village appraised of the situation.

"Concluding that Runner, through his ties to Katsuo, had come from Iwagakure, Senju and Namikaze made haste for the capitol city and home of the Earth Daimyo. There, Senju staged an assault on the city to distract their samurai from Namikaze, who searched the city for the missing kunoichi. For honesty's sake, Senju's estimated kill count is somewhere in the vicinity of five hundred samurai, and Namikaze's close to one hundred, as even though Senju kept a vast majority of their military and police forces busy dealing with him, Namikaze had to infiltrate the home of the Daimyo himself to gather their information.

"However, during their joint assault on Earth City, here on the homefront, the missing kunoichi _returned._ Senju's shadow clone made a positive identification of the kunoichi and confirmed that it was, indeed, her, and they made for the Hokage's office for further orders. The Hokage, knowing of Senju's protective instincts and reputation for feats far above and beyond his rank, predicted that this could be used as the opening salvo in an oncoming war between hidden villages, and ordered the Senju clone to abstain from sending any information to his alpha."

As Shikaku read out his own report on the proceedings, Noboru Hyuga and Suboro Kurama both felt a silent tap on the small of their backs.

_"Do not move. Do not react. Listen."_ A voice, nearly inaudible above Shikaku's, spoke. _"Report to the walls immediately. Be silent, else all will be ruined."_ And the speaker was gone.

The Hyuga and the Kurama briefly exchanged glances, and with a small nod, the Kurama vanished in a noise-less body flicker. The Hyuga noble waited a few minutes before he did the same.

* * *

Outside, under the mid-winter sun and on top of the massive stone wall that surrounded Konohagakure, Suboro and Noboru both flickered into existence, almost immediately followed by an Anbu in a ghost's mask. Noboru saw Suboro stiffen up at the sight of the mask, but the Anbu spoke before anyone could even voice a question.

_"Hyuga-san."_ Said the muffled voice of the Anbu, as he rested his right hand on the tanto fastened to the small of his back, and pointed to the south with his left hand. _"If you would please."_

Noboru warily activated his Byakugan and began scanning south, and almost immediately saw what he was looking for, just as Minato Namikaze arrived on the scene, followed by Anbu Wolf. Focusing on the south, Noboru extended his byakugan further than if he deigned for a three hundred and sixty degree field of view, achieving a cone-like 'spotlight' of sorts. Forty two kilometers outside of Konoha, far enough to be unseen and unheard by the village, but close enough to be _very_ problematic, Dante Uchiha was engaging the forces of Iwagakure.

All of them.

Some twenty thousand shinobi, all either survivors of Hibiki's attack or having not even been in the village in the first place, of all ranks, and there were three Dantes, including the Alpha, trying like mad to stave them off and delay them, and explaining why he had been late to the impeachment hearing. The problem was, while Dante was powerful and was more than capable of taking on a force with superior numbers, the sheer mass of shinobi he was facing meant that, unless he had a mastery of shadow clones to rival _Hibiki's,_ he couldn't do much but delay them until they dedicated a small portion of their numbers to doing the exact opposite: Holding _him_ down, and delaying _him; _and under the leadership of the stout Tsuchikage, that was exactly what they were doing: half of their attack force, nearly ten thousand shinobi were being dedicated to holding down Dante and forcing his clones to bleed their chakra, while the rest broke off and made for Konoha.

Noboru knew why, beyond the obvious, this was a _bad thing._ "Iwagakure's surviving forces are attacking." He said, with a level of calm that belied the intensity of the situation.

Ghost nodded, and bade Wolf to return to the hearing. _"Yes. We need you three to hold them off for as long as you can."_

Suboro blinked, "uh... Ghost, we're _three _shinobi."

Ghost pointed at each of them in turn, _"who can kill with mass area-of-effect genjutsu. Who can shatter boulders with but a tap. Who possesses Hibiki Senju's thunder technique, and experience with the Nidaime Hokage's Hiraishin technique."_ He let his hand fall, _"all three of you are combat specialists. Two thirds of you are two thirds of the first and only shinobi shock-trooper team, who fought and defeated Ay and Bee of Kumogakure. One of you is the apprentice of Jiraiya of the Sannin."_ Ghost's deep voice rumbled from behind his mask. _"And all of you have experience training with Hibiki Senju, whose battle instinct and ability to dissect and expand ninjutsu is heretofore unheard of. This is a situation in which no is not an answer - if the enemy makes it to our gates, it will give Danzo Shimura the time he needs to mount a proper defense against the impeachment, and so too will it give him popular public opinion, having defended this village from two hostile invasions. That happens, and not only do you all run the risk of losing this battle, but you run the risk of gaining the ire of him and his Root."_ The lean Anbu turned to the south, _"you all are more than capable of this. Three quarters of that fighting force are chunin and below. The threat comes from the surviving Tsuchikage, his Anbu, and their Jonin."_

"Will you help us?" Minato asked, racking his brains for any possible way he could contribute in an impactful way.

_"I cannot beyond words. If you see me again, it means you have failed."_ Ghost looked to Minato over his shoulder, _"each of you are capable of keeping up with Hibiki Senju in combat. The way Anbu manage to be so skilled is through speed and stealth, and all three of you have at least one of those skills. I suggest you use them."_ And with a plume of smoke, Ghost vanished, leaving three noticeable paler chunin in his wake.

Suboro was the first to break the silence, "shit."

Noboru followed suit, his Byakugan still bulging. "Shit... They're moving."

Minato, however, grinned, an idea popping into his head. "I know what he's getting at." He turned to Suboro and Noboru, "Suboro-san takes point, I'll be second, Noboru-san you'll be the last." The two of them turned their heads to Minato, eyebrows furrowed in confusion. "He said it himself - Anbu are capable of taking down such mighty opponents through stealth and _speed._ They attack so fast their opponents can't defend themselves properly, and then vanish too fast for anyone to mount a counterattack." He pointed out to the thick ironwood forest. "I'll head out and meet them at the pass. I'll spread the Hiraishin projectiles around a wide area to give me a good platform to attack from, and with my reflexes, I'll be fast enough to take down anyone in range, and jump to the next target."

Noboru looked incredulous, "you think you can kill ten-odd thousand shinobi?"

Minato grinned, "no." He said, as he adjusted the fit on his flak jacket and pulled out a storage scroll, "if we ignore my natural reaction time and the speed of the Hiraishin and limit us to realistically averaging one kill every second, in an hour I'll only kill thirty six hundred. But Suboro-san can take down twice that many in half of the time." He said, looking to the buzz-cut chunin. "How far can you stretch your genjutsu? Do you know the shadow clone technique?"

Suboro blinked, "uh... About five kilometers, yeah, but I can't make more than six and expect to still fight effectively."

Minato was already nodding his head, "good, you'll only need three. Set yourselves up at the edge of your respective spheres of influence, and catch as many of them as you can. Kami-willing, if not kill, you'll at least _get_ three quarters of them, leaving twenty five hundred. I'll be the second line of defense and I'll deal with the stragglers." He pulled out a standard kunai and had it in a reverse-grip in his right hand, "the Hiraishin is instantaneous, and Jiraiya-sensei measured my reaction time to be somewhere around eight milliseconds... So hopefully I'll be able to average more than one per second, but I digress. I'll slow them down enough such that they'll need to dedicate a number to try and pin me down and kill me, worst case scenario that leaves five hundred for Noboru-san, but realistically we'll be looking at half that number, and in a perfect world, or even a generous one, even less." He nodded, a fire in his eyes as he talked himself and his allies through his thought process. "Noboru-san." He turned to the Hyuga, "it's more than likely anyone that makes it past me and Suboro will either be Anbu, Jonin, or the Tsuchikage himself. You'll have to deal with that, and with your Byakugan, you can locate them all." He paused, "can you do it?"

Noboru's pale eyes flitted down to the ground as he thought, before he nodded. "I've got a few tricks up my sleeve, Minato-san." He said, turning his gaze back up. "As long as I am fast enough, I should be able to locate and kill them before they get to Konoha's walls."

Minato didn't even bother asking how Noboru would be able to reach those speeds, he said he could, so he believed him. "Alright, then we need to move _now - _Suboro, buy me as much time as you can so I can set up the Hiraishin bullets as far as I can. Okay? _Go!"_

* * *

"The Yondaime Hokage is nothing if not a tactician. He was raised and built his power and influence during the first and second Shinobi World wars, the latter of which he frequently fought underneath his predecessor, the Nidaime, and alongside the Sandaime. War, one could say, is in his blood, and it has shaped his view of the world." Shikaku raised his head, making eye contact with Danzo and the various assembled in turn. "Here I feel it due to mention that, despite the unquestionable immorality of his actions, they, as were all actions before and during his tenure as Kage, were done in the interests of our village. He is loyal, unflinchingly so." He looked back down as his papers, "but it is this loyalty that caused him to order the Senju clone to withhold the updated information from his alpha. He knew the way Senju thinks, Senju would not hesitate to do anything and everything within his power to protect those he cares for, up to and including the kunoichi he feared abducted." He said, his deep voice carrying throughout the wide meeting hall. "Senju is not a man who accepts defeat, not when it is within his power to win. With his mastery of the shadow clone jutsu, his various copied bloodlines, and his multitude of strength-augmenting techniques, to say nothing of the eight gates he is proficient in the use of, Senju is a shinobi more than capable of taking on and defeating kage-level threats. It was five years ago, when he himself was abducted by Katsuo the Monster, that he fought said Monster and was able to do so on equal enough grounds that he was able to see all of his rescuers flee to safety. Then, mere weeks after that, he and his squad fought the Ay and Bee tagteam from Kumogakure, again defeating them.

"These feats and more were what the Yondaime no doubt had in mind as he ordered the Senju clone to keep his mouth shut. He used Senju's protective instincts and convinced him with numbers, stating that the Alpha Senju was wise enough to realize what was going on on his own, and even if he did not, when he inevitably retreated from Iwagakure, having found no sign of the abducted kunoichi, he would have done so after wreaking havoc on their shinobi forces and shattering their fighting ability. In doing so, he would have guaranteed victory over Iwagakure in the war Katsuo sought to start, meaning it would only be Kumogakure, and the other villages in Katsuo's alliance, that we would have to fight." He paused, "but he miscalculated. Upon arriving at Iwagakure no Sato, Senju and Namikaze again concluded that the best plan of attack would be for Senju to attract all of the attention to himself, to allow Namikaze time and room to search the village. This meant that Senju's goal was less to fight and defeat opponents... But to cause as big a spectacle as he could, and to drag things out as long as possible. In other words, he fought less to win, and more to draw attention. For as much as he fought to defeat those he engaged, he also fought just to _stall._ This meant that his battles would escalate accordingly, and among the shinobi he engaged in close combat, he reported fighting a Gelignite user, the Tsuchikage himself, and Katsuo the Monster. He defeated them all, but not without cost. As his goal was to drag things out and get as much attention focused on him, that meant he augmented his power slowly, raised it in accordance to the strength demonstrated by his opponents... And none were stronger than Katsuo the Monster, whose influence curtailed even the Tsuchikage.

"The kill counts, according to the reports, are as follows: For Minato Namikaze, he confirmed the kills of fifty eight Chunin, twenty seven Jonin opponents, and zero civilians. For Hibiki Senju... Everyone else."

The current head of the Hyuga clan spoke up, "please clarify 'everyone else'." He requested, "reports have varied and no one has solid facts."

Shikaku acquiesced with a nod. "Senju explained that during his battle with the Monster, they both unleashed the most powerful of their taijutsu techniques. He could not explain the Monster's, but his has been classified by his jonin sensei - who is currently out on mission - as an A-ranked kinjutsu, due to its destructive capacity. Senju has spent years alongside Orochimaru of the Sannin, studying the technique and creating an explanation for its power. Paraphrased, their findings have stated that it draws the ambient electrical energy out of the surrounding area, and uses it to augment its striking power. The more chakra he uses, the further out it draws, the higher the exponential growth of its power it becomes.

"In his fight against the Monster, Senju unleashed this technique during a lightning storm." Shikaku paused to take a sip of water, and cleared his throat afterwards. "According to his report, it, clashing with the Monster's own technique, caused a detonation of such strength that it wiped Iwagakure from the map. There was little but some smoldering buildings, fallen mountains, and rubble left after the detonation. Its devestation was compared to that of multiple bijuudamas. Therefor, the estimated kill counts for Hibiki Senju is _everyone else. _He destroyed Iwagakure no Sato, killing off all of their shinobi, their civilians, and their kage."

"It is important to note." Danzo interrupted, "that the Senju heir left the village before he could receive any orders from myself, his sensei, or anyone else. His actions -"

"Are still yours to bear, as he left behind a direct line of communication, and there are multiple witnesses willing to attest to these facts." Shikaku interrupted, perhaps being the first person to _ever_ do so to the Yondaime. He turned his tanned face to Orochimaru, "Orochimaru-sama, could you please explain the use in information gathering of the Shadow Clone technique?"

The pale snake-sannin nodded, and stood to his feet. "The Nidaime Hokage envisioned the Shadow Clone technique initially as a tool in information warfare. It is capable of sending all the memories, thoughts, and experiences of the user to the original, 'Alpha' shinobi. Hibiki-kun uses this as a method of direct-line communication whenever he is in battle; during the invasion of Kirigakure, he was able to coordinate tens of thousands of those clones through just information dispersal, and he has shown the capacity to be more than capable of handling such loads of information." He said in his light, snake-like tone. "It is therefor impossible to keep something from him, in regards to these clones. Anything that they know, he will know upon their dispersal, with no delay in time."

Shikaku nodded, and the snake Sannin sat down, in between his two teammates; the Nara heir turned back to his papers. "By accepting all of the affiliated reports, Hokage-sama, you validated this mission. By ordering the Senju clone - in the witness of multiple Anbu, present in this hearing, and Senju's squad -" He briefly cast his eyes where Noboru and Suboro had been but finding them gone, he switched gears with no delay, "out on assignment. Corroborated with Namikaze's - who is on medical leave and unable to attend this hearing - reports, you ordered the Senju clone to withhold the updated information, knowing that it would spur the Alpha Senju to fight as hard as he could for a fool's errand. This resulted in the needless deaths and destruction of an entire hidden village, and will likely also result in the deaths of a great many allied shinobi in the resulting war, which - as logic would dictate - likely _will not end_ until one side or the other is completely incapable of fighting anymore.

Shikaku looked down upon Danzo, "I merely have one question for you, Hokage-sama. Do you deny sanctioning this mission?"

All eyes shifted from Shikaku, to Danzo. The room seemed to collectively hold its breath as the Hokage held the much younger Nara's gaze, his one eye as blank as his expression. The silence seemed to stretch on for years, to the point where Shikaku began playing endless scenarios in his head, of the many - _many_ \- ways Danzo could feasibly deny these accusations. Hibiki _did_ technically leave the village without orders, and even took a second shinobi with him. He had _technically_ been the one to cause those deaths, and his pride wasn't necessarily a secret among those who knew him, be it by association or by reading his reports; the boy loved a fight. Worse, was that Danzo could use his history in serving Konoha, as well as his once saving it from invasion, against -

"No."

* * *

Alive right now out of the five hundred members of the once noble Kurama clan, there were three who were capable of using their bloodline, and only one who was over the age of three, and was conscious for more than six hours a day. No one knew how Suboro Kurama had been able to control his illusions and conquer his fear before his bloodline either killed him or everyone around him, to the point that the Kurama clansman had had every test imaginable done to him. Blood tests, psyche evaluations, chakra sensory sweeps, sperm checks, and among others he had even had a small amount of his bone marrow taken out and examined. There was _no_ explanation for why he had been able to conquer his demons, and no one else who manifested the bloodline could.

Of course, while he most certainly wanted to know so he could help the clan that had so readily brought him in, if he never got an answer, he wouldn't necessarily question it. His bloodline was what allowed him to stand alongside his squadmates, even if coincidence and circumstance kept him out of most of his squad's major confrontations, or 'the good fights', as Hibiki liked to say. Of the three of them, the Kurama clansman was the physically most frail, the slowest, and weakest, but as five shadow clones of the Kurama clansman charged ahead of the Namikaze orphan and the Hyuga noble, he knew that, in his own way, his capacity to kill people above his rank rivaled _both_ his squadmates.

The five Suboro clones all reached their assigned positions, spread out as far as they could, so that their spheres of influence just barely overlapped, creating a 'fence', of sorts, stretching across twenty five kilometers. If he judged the advancing army's speed and direction correctly, they would be crossing his 'fence' in thirty seconds. Suboro clasped both of his hands together, his face scrunching up in a small frown as he summoned up his chakra. Using one less clone than his maximum allowed him more chakra to burn, and a larger area to effect. Given that the chunin only ever had the feelings he got when he was around his squad, when they called on their bloodlines, Suboro judged that calling his bloodline was strange. There wasn't any pressure of chakra in any one place, any ferocious buildup and collection of energy, or anything of the sort. Instead, what Suboro felt was what nearly anyone felt when they crafted a genjutsu: A slight numbness in the mind, as anything he saw and thought was transferred to the illusion, but the biggest difference was in the fluidity of the genjutsu, his ability to change it on the fly.

Most genjutsu users had an ironclad development method: They had one vision in mind, and performed a strict set of handsigns to mold their chakra the exact way they needed to create their illusion. Suboro, however, could simply start up the illusion, and then add and subtract anything he wanted, as much and as often as he wanted, likely as a result of the uniquity of Kurama genjutsu. Suboro had once gone to Hibiki for some sort of explanation behind the whole deal - after all, unless one wanted to deal with R&amp;D and brave Orochimaru of the Sannin, Hibiki was the man to speak to if one wanted a thorough dissection of nearly anything involving chakra. Hell, even outside of chakra - the Senju heir knew why the _sky_ was _blue!_ But when Suboro had gone to Hibiki to ask what he thought of genjutsu and his bloodline, the Senju heir had just shrugged his shoulders, saying that he'd tried to understand the 'Why of Genjutsu', but once he'd figured out he could ensnare someone with eye contact, just as easily as he could do it with brief physical contact, a musical note, or pheromones, he had given he felt his chakra begin to bubble and boil, like turning water to steam, Suboro then thrust both of his hands outwards. Instantly, his chakra shot out of his body and began coating the air, spreading out for thousands of meters before finally coming to rest five kilometers away. He felt other chakra get added to his own, as his shadow clones performed the same area of effect technique, and their radii intersected with his own. Fortunately for him, the startup cost to initiate this technique was greater than the cost of keeping it active, so with his chakra reserves he had more than enough time to form and stabilize it, before his targets made it.

Even better, whether it be due to his own skill or his bloodline begetting its necessity, Suboro wasn't that bad of a sensor. In a squad with two Sharingan and a Byakugan, such a skill was more or less needless, but it still had its uses. Especially, for instance, when he had to set up a massive area of effect technique, and needed to know exactly when to start having specters start lopping off heads. Every time a new shinobi with an unfamiliar chakra signature entered the 'bubble' that was the radius his technique encompassed, Suboro felt it almost as clearly as if someone poked him in the abdomen with a senbon. Instantly, that person would be accosted by a specter, formless in nature but humanoid in shape, wearing a billowing black cloak and a porcelain white mask. The Specter would be the first thing they saw and, thanks to the mask, they would assume Anbu - at least until it pulled its butcher's blade off of its back and dashed forward; in one mighty swing the executioner would cleave through the person's neck, separating skin from bone, and the resulting damage would quickly translate to the outside world.

A field of severed heads and a small lake of blood would quickly result, as more and more shinobi would dash straight into Suboro's hastily named Illusory Wall technique, and he prayed that the time he was buying would be time enough for Minato to set up his Hiraishin 'bullets', whatever they were.

* * *

To his credit, Shikaku Nara reacted quickly enough, barely letting a half second go by before he broke the silence that ensued. "To ensure clarity, Hokage-sama, you do _not_ intend to dispute these charges, in so doing validating them all without a word of defense otherwise." He said, both of his brown eyes locked onto the soon to be former Hokage's one functioning orb.

The Yondaime nodded once, "it is clear to me, with the sheer amount of influential individuals attending this hearing, that I am nothing approaching the leader I thought I was, or the leaders I was attempting to live up to. Should so many people be of the same mind, then clearly I am no longer fit to rule this village." He said in a conciliatory tone, and a brief nod of the head.

Shikaku gave a look around his assembled clan heads, each of whom seemed to agree that this was out of character for the aging Kage. He _had_ to know what happened when a Kage was impeached, they had to be dealt with in such a way that the power that corrupted them could do so no longer. It was likely that he was hoping that his amiable nature would net him some pull on the sentencing half of the proceedings. Shikaku was willing to bet a lot of money that Danzo had some kind of plan formulated, but the question now was _what,_ and how bad would the outcome be?

Hibiki would have to copy the Hyuga bloodline next, if he'd want to keep a look out for whatever it is Danzo was going to cook up.

"Then..." Slowly said Shikaku, "you do realize that this will mean, from now until the day you die, T&amp;I will seal your chakra away. Your rank will be stripped and for all intents and purposes you will be a civilian. As per the tenets set by Hashirama Senju, the very first of the Hokage, you will have stationed upon you two Anbu assassins at all times. Should you ever attempt to undo the seals placed upon you or access any more chakra than is required for you to continue to live, they will kill you without a second's hesitation. The _only_ way you will ever regain your strength is by the order of the current Hokage, or by unanimous decision by the heads of clan and the Civilian Council." He'd actually stayed up all night to get this memorized, Hibiki _owed _him. "For now, until such a time as a new Hokage is chosen, Konohagakure will be placed under the rule of the conclave." He leaned up and back into his seat, a light sigh escaping from his lips. "Is there _anything_ you have to say?" Because he was certain beyond reason that this was not ending here, he had just declared war in Hibiki's name, and Danzo, instead of rising to the challenge, backed down.

To Shikaku's decreasing amazement, Danzo shook his head. "I understand why I am in this situation. I pushed one of my shinobi too far, but he was too loyal to me and to his people to bring it to me, intending to handle it on his own, like a good shinobi." He said, calmly. "His friends and allies, in a brilliant display of the Will of Fire which binds our village together, thought otherwise. I brought this upon myself, and I shall bear its burden." He took in a small breath, and let it go slowly. "I just pray you make the correct decision in regards to my successor. War is no longer looming, and no amount of pre-emptive attacks and lightning war blitzkriegs can stave it off any longer, it is _here. _As many of you may personally know, a war is not a clean thing, nor is it kind. Many more lives will be lost, many will be taken. Many of us in this very room may be there to take them." He looked around the room, "I am nothing if not loyal to my village. I always act in its best interests. _Always."_ He nodded once.

There was a pause, before an Anbu agent in a ghost mask appeared beside Danzo. He cast a brief glance up to Shikaku, as if the ringleader's word was the only one he would acknowledge. Shikaku nodded once, and Danzo was sent away. No part of Shikaku believed that that had just happened, that he was still alive and that the former Hokage hadn't thrown a fit over the whole ordeal, but he didn't need to believe it. He knew, now more than ever, that since Danzo _hadn't_ put up a fight, that some part of him had been prepared. The difficult part, it seemed, hadn't been dethroning him, but would instead prove to be anticipating just whatever it was Danzo did next.

The words that Wolf had said to him, about 'Roots', he would have to look into that.

But currently, there were more immediate, pressing matters:

Who would succeed Danzo?

* * *

Activating the Hiraishin took not a single handsign, it was more of a conscious decision and a pulse of chakra. The user was then snapped from wherever they were, to wherever they wanted to be, in an instant. Minato still had a small problem with momentum and recoil, but some modifications to the seal would fix that problem. In the grand scheme of things, the real chakra drain wasn't in using the technique, but in creating the seal for it. Touch-applied seals took a monstrous amount of chakra to generate, especially if one had no fire, wind, or water natured chakra. First the ground, or surface of whatever the shinobi was touching, was burned, then it was mixed with water chakra, and dried with wind chakra, all in a fraction of a second, to create and dry chakra-laced ink. Even if one had two of the three required natures, they had to burn a _lot_ to compensate for the missing third, and that meant more chakra spent. Minato had been trying to find a way around that by preparing seals ahead of time, but whenever the kunai he applied them to got wet, the paper they were printed on would be destroyed. He knew Hibiki had one hell of a network of seals he'd written over a good portion of his torso, maybe he knew what the secret was?

Regardless of future plans, Minato Namikaze hardly had a second to react before dozens of shinobi entered his area of operation. His little 'Hiraishin field' of discarded pistol slugs covered an area of about thirty kilometers squared, and even then, he had _thousands_ still locked away in the scroll Hibiki had given him. The Senju heir was nothing if not thorough.

With a snap and a bright yellow flash, Minato was right in the center of a small group of shinobi. Most of them were wearing chunin flak jackets, but his sudden appearance and Uchiha-like reaction time gave him just enough time to bury a kunai, one held in each hand, into two throats, before he vanished in another flash. The entire section of the forest he had peppered his seal with just lit up with the near constant flashes of his technique, and his hands quickly became covered in the thick, oily blood.

Some opponents would prove to be just a bit too fast for him, either they slipped by him while he focused on someone else, used a body flicker to just thunder on through before he could react or, in the case of one small little shinobi, literally flew over the entire field. Fortunately for him, there was someone waiting for these men, meaning Minato needed only to focus on ending as many lives as fast as he could.

_If I can average -_ Minato vanished from one spot and appeared in the next, spinning his upper body like a top, slitting multiple throats with one revolution, before he, on the down spin, vanished in another flash of yellow light. _\- two kills per second -_ He appeared in another spot and, after he gained his bearings, flashed away again, this time showing up behind multiple shinobi. _I can kill enough so Noboru doesn't feel the heat!_ He was pretty sure another hospital visit was in his future, since, _technically,_ he hadn't ever been cleared to leave by Hibiki's mother, having done so, so early, because Dai had asked him for his help.

But, hypothetical hospital visits would have to be dealt with when they were relevant: _Later._ Right now, he had to focus on keeping his chakra consumption to a minimum, and slashing as many throats as he could in as short a time as he could do it.

* * *

Ranged Jyuken, even though Noboru was, as its creator, technically a 'master' in the art, took quite the amount of chakra to pull off correctly. His first attempt, when he had 'done a Hibiki' and improvised it in the field in conjunction with his thunder technique, had taken a monstrous amount of chakra and left him winded after the attempt. Subsequent attempts had seen him drop the chakra cost by seventy five percent, by switching to chakra-sensitive metals and smaller mediums. The size difference between Hibiki's thunder techniques and a senbon was great, and the fact that a senbon could channel chakra, was even better.

Seeing the Tsuchikage blast off into the air, leaking killing intent and with a look in his eyes that would have frozen lesser men, had nearly made the Hyuga noble's heart skip a beat. When said Kage was joined by one of his shinobi, he knew he would be in for trouble, but fortunately for him, it wasn't something he was unprepared for. With a flick of the wrist, a senbon flew down his arm and into his hand.

_Distance, five kilometers and closing fast. Speed... Four hundred meters per second. Height... Fifteen hundred meters upward. _He spun the senbon around to get a proper grip and charged it with chakra. With a light scowl, he threw it high into the air.

The senbon whistled through the air as it charged through the forest's roof. The strength behind it and its small surface area meant it lost little velocity to wind resistance, and in just a few seconds it slammed into his target, piercing his sternum and closing more than a dozen tenketsu in a small burst of jyuken-needles. With a grunt, the Tsuchikage quickly began falling from the sky, and it only took him a second to break through the green roof of the forest. The moment the stout kage hit the ground, he joined by a heavily bandaged sandy-haired chunin.

There, in the middle of the woods, with dozens of trees separating them, stood the eight Iwa shinobi, and less than ten meters from them stood the Hyuga noble, his pale white combat robes billowing as the wind picked up. The Tsuchikage picked himself up, and the shift in position helped Noboru to notice a small, deformed hunk of metal buried in the Kage's spine.

_Likely, Hibiki hit him with his thunder technique. It is surprising he is not crippled... But he likely had more than a few medics burn their chakra to zero just to get him back into shape for this suicide run._ Noboru slowly withdrew his hands from within his baggy sleeves, his eyes briefly darting over to the chunin next to the kage. _I recognize him... He fought Hibiki during the Suna Chunin Exams... _Back to the Tsuchikage his eyes went, _I see. They needed to get him to Konoha as fast as possible, so they healed the Kage so he could use his flight technique. Even he didn't expect to survive this - he just wanted the Gelignite user to make it to Konoha, to cause as much damage as possible before his death._ A thought occured to him, _oh my... If he dies today, Hibiki will have destroyed the entire Gelignite clan._

The Tsuchikage, sweat rolling down his head, growled, a livid expression in his eyes as he stared down the Konoha chunin.

Noboru simply arced an eyebrow, "I am surprised a chunin made it farther than your Anbu, Tsuchikage-sama." He said, tauntingly.

The sandy-haired shinobi in question growled and took one step forward, but the Tsuchikage thrust his hand out, blocking him from moving. "No." He breathed, Noboru could hear the strain in his voice, could see the tensity in his muscles, and the altered flow of his chakra; whatever was lodged in his back likely was causing him great amounts of pain. "Go."

"You know I won't allow him." Noboru said, slowly raising his gaze, locking onto their eyes with his white Byakugan orbs.

The livid Kage scowled, "you say that as if you could stop me keeping you from him." His chakra began radiating around his body, Noboru noticed how parts of his back loosened up as he did so, almost as if the tissue and muscles were numbing from the chakra flow.

Noboru, in response, grinned. It seemed that Iwagakure's intelligence wasn't nearly as good as they thought it was. One advantage of having a Byakugan, and training with it the way Noboru did, meant that there were more moments when he could see everything than there were when he could only see that which was in front of him. This meant that he was constantly exposed to the sights of dozens of Hibiki clones training at all hours of the day. What had interested the Hyuga noble wasn't Hibiki's tireless effort or his constant use of his shadow clones, but the technique he had taken to trying to master, following Kiri.

Another advantage of the Byakugan? He could see _inside_ as well as he could see _outside._ Every single molecule and atom in his body was open to his eye. Every neuron in his brain, muscle in his body, tendon surrounding his bone. It wasn't as good at reading chakra flow as a Sharingan, but it _was_ able to, and that meant that Noboru had been able to follow Hibiki's training with a certain lightning-release chakra mode. All he had to do was train his second affinity; and because he could see the effects his lightning chakra had on his muscles and neurons, he could adjust the flow accordingly. This meant that he'd mastered the cloak _years_ faster than the Senju heir had, quite literally giving him the last piece of the puzzle he needed for the problem that had been hounding him ever since he'd tried to learn to balance monstrous physical power and blinding speed. If he hadn't taken to burning out his chakra stores _every single day_ in training his Byakugan, he likely wouldn't have had the stamina to keep this up for more than a few minutes.

Suboro had killing genjutsu, and the creativity to back it up. He could kill entire armies with his mind - and was indeed doing that _right now._

Hibiki had his bloodlines, shadow clones, and power augmentation techniques. He could go up against foes that _far_ outstripped him in raw power or experience.

Noboru, however, had his burst jyuken, and the lightning cloak. He could kill Kage.


	63. You Shall Not Pass

Chapter 62

* * *

A Hyuga streaming lightning stood in the middle of the thick woods of the Land of Fire, standing opposite the Tsuchikage and a sandy-haired chunin.

Out of context, it sounded like the setup to a bad suicide joke.

As Noboru Hyuga slid into his Jyuuken stance, his grin steeled itself, and lightning chakra began flowing around his body. One palm held in front of him, facing his opponent, one reared above him, facing the sky, his skin cackling with electricity, the veins around his eyes bulging dangerously. The Hyuga twisted his front palm around, and with a flex of his fingers, beckoned his two foes to approach him. The stout Kage and the sandy-haired chunin exchanged glances, silently communicating, before they turned back to Noboru.

All three of them launched through the air at the same moment; in Noboru's accelerated timeframe, they hardly moved fast enough to react to his augmented speed. He was inside of their defenses in an instant, and quickly buried his palms into both of their stomachs. Despite their hardly even being enough force behind his palmstrikes to indent even a pillow, both the Tsuchikage and the Chunin were sent flying as if they had been hit by a truck.

The Tsuchikage recovered first, and was able to use his earth techniques to increase his mass. Noboru's next strike didn't send him flying, but the stout kage still skidded back several feet. With his Byakugan, he saw the sandy-haired Chunin throw his arm forward, Noboru ducked his head down, dodging an explosive bolt. He thrust his left palm backwards, catching the Gelignite Chunin in the gut. Following a brief buildup of pressure, the jyuuken needles burst out of Noboru's palm with an almost explosive force. Gelignite was again sent flying backwards, several of his tenketsu closed as a byproduct of the jyuken 'shrapnel' bouncing around in his stomach. Gelignite slammed into a tree and hit the ground, unconscious.

Onoki quickly dashed towards Noboru, his right arm encased in thick rock. Noboru, however, dodged both of the man's blisteringly fast swings before he even turned his head back to face the stout Kage. He backhanded away the third punch and thrust his palm forward, envisioning an eight trigrams seal surrounding the two of them.

Onoki realized what was happening just as Noboru landed his first palm strike. On Noboru's second strike, however, he struck solid stone. It crumbled to dust the moment his palm touched it, but it gave Onoki the time he needed to lock his off hand onto Noboru's face. Noboru felt a draining feeling, as if he were suddenly losing weight and hovering in the air. The stunning effect it had gave Onoki the time he needed to whack the Hyuga in the side of the head, sending Noboru spinning through the air.

Noboru felt a bruise welting up on his cheek, as he landed on the ground, feet-first. He instantly snapped back to a defensive jyuuken stance. He knew from his clan's archives that Earth users, and especially the Tsuchikage, had techniques that could manipulate a person's weight, it must have some sort of disrupting effect on his lightning cloak.

There was only a second's pause before Noboru and Onoki lunged back at eachother. Noboru accelerated his perception and dodged two boulder-crushing swings, before he jabbed at the Kage's chest with both palms. The man's mass was so high, and his body so dense, that his ribs didn't even creak under the assault. He skidded back several feet, but Noboru closed the distance as fast as it was made, and followed the chest attacks with a strike to Onoki's nose. He intended to drive it up into the Kage's brains, but with his density so altered, his durability meant that little else happened but breaking the cartilage and drawing a lot of blood.

Onoki ducked under the next swing and swept Noboru's legs out from under him with a massive stone fist. Noboru hit the ground with a grunt, but before Onoki could try and disrupt his cloak again, he did what few Hyuga ever did, and _kicked_ him. The fact that Hyuga were so famed for using their hands meant that even if Onoki had been seen it coming, he wouldn't have been prepared for it. Channeling Jyuuken chakra through his feet was much more difficult than doing so with his hands, the product was much lesser than anything else he could make, but he was still able to burst his chakra and exponentially increase the force of impact. Compounded with the chakra needles created by his jyuuken being shot into Onoki's body and clogging up several tenketsu surrounding the one he hit directly, his every blow caused damage Onoki could not recover from.

Onoki flew away, digging a small groove in the ground as Noboru spun on one hand and hopped back to his feet. Livid, Onoki got back to his feet, but in that instant Noboru was already inside his defenses and with three more palm strikes, twelve more tenketsu points were shoved shut - one causing great and intense pain - and Noboru had managed to cause physical damage through the man's density.

Before he slid away this time, however, Onoki latched onto Noboru's leg and used his earth techniques to disrupt his cloak. His Byakugan eyes widened as he realized what the stout Kage was about to do, but just before hie hastily thrown palm could strike the Tsuchikage's forehead, the short man smashed his free hand into Noboru's shin.

Noboru yelled out in pain, just as he smashed his palm into Onoki's head and bounced it off of the ground. He hopped back several feet, his now useless leg dragging along behind him. Onoki had realized that, like Hibiki, Noboru relied on his speed to be able to dodge the Kage's attacks and debilitate him with quick, powerful strikes. Unlike Hibiki, however, Noboru had no accelerated healing abilities - and any damage done _stuck._

_He is a kage for a _\- Noboru blinked.

He _was_ a kage for a reason. The magnificent bastard had gained his full and undivided attention and focus by engaging him in battle, allowing him to slip up just enough such that anyone, be they close or far, could slip by even underneath his all-seeing eyes.

Gelignite was _gone!_

* * *

His entire body on fire with pain, every movement was accompanied by a loud, pained grunt.

_Again!_

He was latched onto the outer walls of Konohagakure by his hands and feet, crawling up it as if he were scaling a mountain.

He had no idea that this was the case, but if Don Shiro had tried this on any other day, he would have been found and killed instantly. But because an impeachment hearing was going on at this very moment, that meant most everyone was either inside watching, or outside waiting for new. This led to more than a few holes in Konoha under Danzo's usually ironclad security. One of these holes was found by the Gelignite user with several broken ribs.

_Again!_

Laboriously he climbed up the wall, throwing hand over hand, foot over foot, his chakra allowing him to cling to the surface. His chest was purple and blue, his ribs creaked and his lungs rattled with every pained rasp.

_Again!_

He made it to the top after five long minutes of climbing. When he stood to his feet, he stood hunched over, actually feeling some of his ribs digging into his lungs as a result.

Sprawled out before him was Konohagakure in all of its supposed glory. The village that had spawned the Thunder God. The village that condoned the complete obliteration of other enemy shinobi villages. Filled with trees, dirt roads, and oriental homes made of stone and of wood, to anyone else it would have inspired a feeling of warmth and perhaps even peace. But to Don, it inspired only hatred.

He raised his hand, an explosive orb gathering in it and growing in size and density with every passing second, until it was the size of a beachball, and denser than gold. If not the entire village, this explosive orb would destroy at least half of it. He would have let it fly, too - without a moment's hesitation.

Had he not heard that damned deep, rumbly, laid-back voice, spoken in a light tone, as if impressed.

"Damn, you just don't give up."

Hatred of the purest caliber flashed through his entire being, and he swung himself around in a wide arc, intent upon smashing the orb of explosive chakra into Hibiki Senju. The Senju heir, however, caught the orb with his right hand, capping the energy off and encapsulating it similarly to how he had done so during their fight mere days ago in the village.

Shiro was livid beyond measure that the Senju heir, clad in a longcoat that was zipped up only so far as to cover his chest, was still so casually able to overpower him. His arm shook and pale blue chakra began to radiate out of it as he pushed more and more into the orb, but Hibiki simply responded by calmly locking his onyx-eyed gaze onto Shiro's, and meeting him chakra for chakra. The size of the orb was now locked, but the density continued to grow; loose pebbles now began to levitate in the air.

The Senju twerked an eyebrow, and removed a hand from the outer pocket of his coat. Clenched in it was what Don soon recognized as a cigar and, as casually as if he were bending over to pick up a discarded Ryo, the Senju poked the end of it into their combined explosive orb. The end of the tobacco stick flashed briefly, and when he pulled it away, it was smoldering a thin stream of smoke. The Senju heir, his lips still pressed together, adopted a surprised expression, before he stuck the cold end in his mouth and took a quick puff.

He coughed twice before he pulled it away, "still not used to this." He commented, exhaling smoke with each syllable, "want a hit?" He offered it to Shiro.

Shiro growled, trying to rest control of his attack away from the Senju. Hibiki simply poured more chakra into his end, continuing their highly explosive arm-wrestling match.

"Didn't think so." Hibiki shrugged, and took another puff. "I gotta be honest... It's not at all what I hoped it would be." He groaned and shook his head, before he turned his gaze back to fully focused on the Gelignite user. "So here's how we're going to go forward with this..."

* * *

The Tuschikage knew Noboru had figured out, and he was _not_ allowing Noboru to try and escape.

So instead, Noboru grew angry, his eyes narrowed and his jaw clenched in rage.

His entire focus zeroed in on the small hunk of metal on Onoki's back, the most likely culprit for why Onoki wasn't nearly as powerful as Noboru had thought him to be.

Noboru dodged under several rapid swings and backhanded a straight right. He slammed his palm into the side of Onoki's chest-level head, and spun around him as the Kage recovered. He reared his right hand as high as it would go and, with a loud bellow, sent it soaring downwards. With a blast of chakra and a spark of electricity, Noboru buried his palm into Onoki's back, not even bothering with just giving him a small tap. He had smashed his palm into the Tsuchikage's back with all of his strength - the very strength that had been able to crack Dante's ribcage-like red chakra construct.

Onoki was buried into the ground, his spine shattered and his nerves pulverized so thoroughly that he couldn't move anything below his chest.

Onoki tried desperately to turn, but Noboru began streaming chakra out of his left hand. With a timely shape transformation, his Revolving Heaven Drill began humming, the air abuzz with its anger. The blue-white chakra rapidly spinning around his fist was wreathed with lightning, and he sent it down to bury into the very same point of Onoki's back that he had used to cripple him.

Even with his mass and density still so high, Noboru's drill cleaved through it with the sound of metal grinding against stone. Onoki roared out in pain as he felt himself get ground apart from the outside in, and it only took a few moments of struggle, pushing against his dense back, for Noboru to penetrate it. Blood began spinning through the air as Noboru ripped apart Onoki's insides, shredded what remained of his spine and spinal cord, ground apart his ribs, and obliterated his organs.

By the time Noboru felt the drill hit dirt, he was covered in Onoki's blood, and the kage was just a writhing, twitching mass of doomed, dying meat.

Noboru didn't even bother confirming the kill. With his lightning cloak still roaring, he dashed forward as fast as it and his crippled leg would allow.

With his Byakugan, he saw that Hibiki was there - his sense of timing _always_ seemed to coincide with when he could make the most dramatic entrance - but the Gelignite user was livid. It wasn't at all unlikely that he would just blow them both up, or destabilize the technique he and Hibiki were struggling over. With the sheer amount of chakra in it, _no one_ would survive.

* * *

"I really... _Really_ don't want to kill anyone today." Said Hibiki, plainly. "Well... If I can avoid it, at least." He added, after a quick sidewards nod of the head.

_"Fuck... You!"_ Shiro groaned, as he physically pushed against the explosive orb, briefly squeezing the beach ball into a less spherical and more ovular shape.

"I know." Hibiki sighed, before he took another puff of his cigar. "But even if you find a way to detonate this." His eyes turned red, their black pupils shrinking down and exploding outwards in thin vines, until they formed two separate spirographs in each eye, intersecting at the center to create sideways hourglasses. "I'm fast enough to figure out how to contain it. To save more lives than I ended." He said, locking his red, spirograph eyes onto his opponent. "But let's do a quick count of the facts here... Uh... Guy!" He said, with a brief nod, and a puff on his cigar.

Hibiki nodded out to the south, "Suboro is lopping off the heads of hundreds of your shinobi a second, with his mind. Minato is teleport spamming and ripping out the throats of several shinobi every second... And Noboru is kicking the living shit out of your kage - and let's not forget Dante is fighting upwards of ten thousand shinobi _and winning."_ He said, blowing out his smoke as the sandy-haired chunin gritted his teeth. "And _you,_ my friend, made it farther than any of them. I think that means you're stronger than your kage... Buuuut that's the same guy who has a bullet in his back, and I doubt your medics are good enough for that kind of invasive surgery." A pause, and then a shrug. "Forbidden medical techniques to un-fuck his spinal cord, perhaps, but remove a bullet without killing him? Doesn't seem like it. So, matter of perspective, but I digress.

"Now, you let this here -" He flicked the end of the cigar in the direction of the explosive orb, letting the ash drizzle onto its partially flattened surface. "- blow up, you'll die right next to all of them... But, you beat feet and run, right now, you'll not only survive, but you'll be able to take the other like-minded Rock shinobi with you... Maybe defect to a foreign country or one of the villages Katsuo allied with. Then because you've got your bloodline, they'll have you knock up a few dozen kunoichi and then send your ass out onto the battlefields." He took another puff, briefly interrupting it to say, "- and, you know, what with the whole 'breeding yourself a new clan' thing, that's not necessarily a bad deal." Hordes of naked and horny women, and initially his only goal would be solely to knock them up. The guy was a shinobi, he'd likely last as long as he needed to.

Shiro simply sneered, trying harder to trip up the Senju heir and blow them both up as their chakra orb grew brighter and denser.

Hibiki sighed, "seriously." He said, "think about this - I mean _really _think about it. Would you rather die alongside the rest of your village in a failed and _stupidly_ ill-thought out attack... Fighting against a grand total of four shinobi - and that's before I even showed up - and risk losing Iwa's pride and honor in the process? Or retreat alongside all of them that will listen, and live to fight another day?"

Shiro, in response, pressed harder, and in the distance, Hibiki heard the sound of lightning, approaching quickly.

_Looks like Noboru finally decided to try out his half-baked cloak in a fight._ The man hadn't mastered it to the sort of complete nervous system on and off control that Hibiki had - Noboru required the use of his byakugan in order to use and regulate it without dying - but he still could use it, apparently with enough effectiveness to kill a kage. _Kage killer Noboru..._ Thought Hibiki, _yeah. He gets a bingo book name, I'd sell my soul to make sure that sticks._ A beat, _fuck, I'd sell Suboro's soul. _Hibiki sighed, focused back on the task at hand, and switched tactics.

In an instant and a quick burst of Swift chakra, he tossed aside the cigar and slid his free hand right in between Shiro's and the explosive orb's. Now in his possession, he took one step back and, with the Gelignite user's rage turning to shock, he physically pressed down on the explosive orb, compressing it from its flattened orb shape further and further down, until it was the size of a baseball, and clenched tightly in his hands.

He let go of it with one hand, and raised it up to the former Iwa shinobi, "I've been working a long time how to compress chakra. This is nothing." He threw his hand upwards, and the explosive bolt, bolted into the sky. Hibiki had put enough of his own chakra into it that it would reach orbit before it detonated.

He hoped.

Regardless, it wasn't a threat anymore, and Hibiki now stuffed both hands into his longcoat, beseechingly looking at Shiro's eyes. "Do you want to kill me? Avenge your people?" He didn't even bother telling him that the destruction of Iwa was an accident, he wouldn't be believed.

Shiro turned his gaze from the sky, to the red-eyed Senju, and nodded once, firmly.

"Then _go."_ Hibiki said, as commandingly as he could. "You've got a _fuckload_ of potential, Shiro. Harness it. Nurture it. War isn't coming - it's _here._ Take your allies and go to one of Katsuo's allied villages. Breed yourself a new clan and then train... And I'll be waiting. I'll fight you, as many times and for as long as you want, until you kill me, or I kill you." He said, solemnly. "But your only chance to do this is if you leave right now. Else, you'll be killed." The Gelignite user was still injured from their fight in Iwa, for chrissakes, covered in blood, soot, and burns. That he was here and strong enough to try and blow up Konoha was only proof of what Hibiki was saying.

The clinical part of him was saying _just kill him_ and be over with it.

But the part that had spent more than fifty hours talking life and philosophy with a wild man, had said that enough people had died. He had a chance to spare one of these lives, he should take it. He just prayed he wouldn't come to regret it.

Shiro, breathing heavily, stared into Hibiki's sorrowful red eyes, before he finally huffed once, and squared his shoulders.

For a moment, Hibiki feared he was going to try something, but then Don turned around, facing the south.

"I will meet you again, one day, Senju. I _will_ kill you, that day."

Hibiki resisted the urge to let loose a thankful sigh, as he pulled out the box of cigars he'd stolen. Or, technically, looted. He pulled out another cigar and shoved it in his mouth. He held up his right hand and snapped his fingers a few times, channeling fire chakra and creating sparks before, after a moment, he created an open flame. He took two deep puffs, and nearly spat out the cigar when he coughed from the unfamiliar sensation.

He picked the tobacco stick out of his mouth, and as he exhaled the smoke he just nodded down to the south. "Go."

And Shiro went, leaping into the sky and detonating his chakra, in a very similar bastardization of Katsuo's flight abilities.

Hibiki twerked an eyebrow, as he watched Shiro fly away. _Great minds..._ Thought the Senju, as he took a deep puff on the cigar, feeling the tobacco course through his system.

_"Hibiki!"_

_That's one._ Hibiki turned to see Noboru, catching the tail end of lightning chakra fizzling through the air as Noboru leapt up to the top of the wall, and stumbled forward a step as he landed on his bad leg.

Hibiki briefly looked down, "do I want to know what happened to the other guy?"

"He's dead." Said the Hyuga, whose Byakugan still bulged. "Why did you let the Gelignite leave?"

Hibiki shrugged his shoulders and shook his head, as he flicked the ash off of the end of the cigar. "Dude, I blew up a village. If I can avoid killing anyone for... _A day..._ I will." He said, exasperatedly. "You got eyes on the others?"

Noboru blinked, before nodding. "Less than half of Iwa's forces are still standing..." Three thunder claps quickly blasted through the air, causing Noboru to pause. "They're all retreating, now."

"Probably a signal by Sparky Sparky Boom Lad." If Shiro ever got a Bingo Book page, Hibiki would _personally_ ensure that would be his Shinobi Name. "How are our guys doing?"

Noboru waited a moment, "Suboro is fine, if low on chakra. Minato just collapsed, it looks as if he is suffering from multiple torn muscles and... Other damage I cannot describe, but other than that he is fine." He paused, "Dante is down two clones, and very low on chakra, almost depleted... But with the shinobi retreating, he has stopped fighting."

Hibiki nodded, "get yourself to the hospital. Suboro will grab Dante and I'll go grab Minato." He stuffed the cigar in his mouth, and the end lit up orange before he vanished, a pale white contrail trailing behind him.

* * *

On his hands and knees, panting as if he had never before breathed in his life, Minato Namikaze felt as if his entire body was either on fire, being torn apart as slowly as possible, and then shaved, dry, against the grain, with an old razor. His very bones felt like they were in a vice grip and being poked and prodded with sharp needles, and muscles he didn't even know he could feel, felt like they were raw and on fire.

_Yup..._ He thought, hardly even able to put sound to the air passing through his lungs, in and out, as fast as he could make it. _I need to modify this seal. I'm pretty sure -_ He coughed, _\- this isn't supposed to be happening._

"One hell of a role reversal, eh?" Came a familiar voice, after the sound of a zipper being undone, and a brief gust of wind.

Of all things, Minato smelled smoke, too.

He turned his head to the side, seeing his closest friend standing above him, a lit cigar in his mouth, one hand in his coat, one hand held out in front of him. Minato let his head hang and chuckled, "that was... What, an hour?" He asked, "since they showed up?" His deepening voice was exhausted and breathy.

"Yeah." Hibiki seemed to figure out that Minato either wasn't ready to try and haul himself up, or wasn't physically able, and let his hand drop. "Kind of... Spectacular, actually - twenty thousand shinobi all attacking at once, and four of our guys are enough to hold 'em off."

Minato shook his head, "they were..." He nodded towards one of the throat-less bodies. "Not a lot of them were..." He gasped.

He heard Hibiki sigh, "oh." A beat passed, "fuck."

Minato hardly had the strength to nod, "I think Dante-sensei took out a lot of the jonin." He said, "and then Suboro took out more of them."

Hibiki nodded, "I understand." The ones that got past Suboro were either speed-specializing jonin, anbu, or chunin and under who were both very lucky, and very focused on moving as fast as they could. The problem was, to them, Minato was an unknown, and as a result they couldn't possibly have been prepared for him and his Hiraishin. He had engaged, killed, and moved on in the time it took them to blink. Looking around them, Hibiki noticed that most of the bodies they were surrounded by were hardly a few years above academy-age, and it seemed that for every adult Hibiki saw, there were at least a few scores of younger shinobi. The largest concentration of adults he could see just in this area alone was a squad of heavily bleeding Iwa Anbu-analogues. "Tell you one thing... You did pretty damn good, dude."

Minato laughed, and shook his head. "And you said... Teleporting wasn't... That good of a weapon." He gasped.

A moment later, he felt a cooling sensation on his back, and foreign chakra enter his system. "When it tears apart your muscles, dislocates your bones, puts pressure on your organs, and..." A pause, "feels like ligament damage - which is bad if you... You know... Want to keep walking - yeah, Minato. It's not that good of a weapon." Though as he spoke, he felt warm chakra begin replacing the cool feeling, and the pain began to go away. "Consider yourself lucky my mother's not here - you'd be deaf, dude." The tension in his body, and the fire, both began to melt away. "Now I won't be able to fix everything, but I'll at least make her think the damage wasn't as severe as it is."

Minato nodded, "I tell you what." He breathed, before swallowing through his dry throat. "You and I, we'll work on fixing this seal. Get it better, maybe drop some of the chakra requirements -"

"And I'll teach you gun safety, I remember." He said, before the warmth and the chakra vanished, and Hibiki clapped Minato on the back. "Alright, should be good. Got a clone heading out to tell Suboro to chill the fuck out, and grab him and Dante-sensei. Let's go home."

* * *

_"Jesus Christ!"_ If Minato's 'little' area of operations had been like a field of dead bodies, then what Hibiki stumbled into when he ran for Suboro. It looked almost like a plain after drillers struck oil - as much of the trees and ground was bare, as was covered in thick rivulets and dark splashes of blood.

Every body Hibiki stepped over had a severed head, and was leaking blood from the arteries and veins in the neck, like a water bottle laid out on its side. There were pools and puddles of blood so thick that Hibiki's boots actually sank down an inch or two in the sodden ground. The area around him had the appearance of these people having fought some sort of Lovecraftian monsters, there were signs of ninjutsu use on Iwa's side, yet the only signs of battle actually against them, was their injuries and the blood covering the area around them.

"Oh shut up, you've seen worse!" He heard Suboro's light voice call out, before he landed on a branch above the Senju heir, grabbed onto the branch, and swung down like an ape. "Hell, you've _looked_ worse!" He said, landing on the ground.

Hibiki noticed the adopted Kurama clansman breathing heavily, and pointed it out. "First real fight and you're already out of breath?" He grinned.

"Shut up!" Suboro snapped, pointing at Hibiki, "I didn't skip this one, now did I?!" He had a grin stretching across one half of his round face.

Hibiki shrugged, "I dunno... Did _you -_" Hibiki ducked down, dodging a swing from the chunin. He chuckled, "did good, at least." He said, looking around. "You stopped an army, that's impressive." A lot of people died, sure, at least in this situation they were defending the homeland, and a lot _more_ people would have died if they hadn't.

Suboro shook his head, "I'm actually a little worried, about that."

Hibiki turned to him, "oh?" He said, as he nodded, "come on. Dante's this way." He hopped onto the trees above, and he and Suboro took off in Dante's direction.

"Yeah." Suboro called out, as the wind began to howl in their ears. "See... You weren't even a part of this fight. So that's... Four guys, stopped an entire shinobi corps." He paused, as they each took another hop, clearing several dozen more meters. "And it didn't even take us more than an hour to do it... Granted, yes -" He waved his hand in a conciliatory fashion, "Dante-sensei had to have tried focusing on their jonin, and even if we limit ourselves to saying he was only good enough to distract half of them, that's still an army of chunin and genin, and half of their jonin - and we killed so many that they had to turn tail and run!" He paused, and turned to look at the Senju heir. "What does _that_ say?"

Hibiki shook his head, "that you've got an area-of-effect bloodline that can kill anyone who isn't ready for you, that Minato's fast enough to take out folks with Anbu level efficiency, and Noboru co-opted my training while I was figuring out the lightning cloak... And Dante-sensei's _Dante-sensei._ We're all kind of outside the norm, Suboro." He said, as they launched themselves through the forest, breaking the forest barrier and entering a small clearing.

At least three quarters of this clearing was on fire, and covered in singed corpses, some twitching from residual electrical charge, some smoldering from small black fire. In the center of this clearing stood Dante, staring down the last Iwa shinobi to stay behind, a large, blood red sword made of spectral chakra penetrating Iwa's chest, cleaving through half of his body. Dante was breathing heavily, bleeding from multiple injures and from both eyes, and when he let the chakra dissipate, and the body fall, he finally turned to his two students.

"Glad to see you're back." Breathed Dante, nodding to Hibiki, before he turned to Suboro, "glad to see you got out here in time." He straightened up as his two students approached, his height in these times of their rapid pubescent growth now only being a few inches taller than them all. "How bad was it?" He gasped, as he dropped a kunai from his hand, which landed on the ground with a soft 'thunk'.

Suboro shook his head, "not bad at all. Minato Namikaze came up with a plan pretty quickly - I stalled most of them, catching them with my genjutsu. He took out whoever made it past me, and Noboru dropped those few that remained."

Dante nodded, cracking his jaw and swiping a hand through his hair, before it got caught on a bloody knot. "You did good, Suboro."

Hibiki, however, couldn't resist a snide grin, as they reached their sensei and the smell of mints flooded his nose. "You know, sensei, all that blood and grime, I think you'll have to take a bath when we get home."

"You shut your mouth, Hibiki." Dante warned, a grin growing across his chiseled, blood-smeared face as he shook his head.

Suboro laughed, raising his hands and cupping the back of his head. "So... This is war, eh?"

Dante chuckled, "I guess it is." He sighed, "won't be long now until we get sent on border patrols. We don't know how thorough Katsuo's alliance is..." He took in a breath, as if he were about to say something, but petered off after his onyx eyes passed over his Senju student.

Hibiki, however, shook his head. "Sensei, at this point I think the only one of us that hasn't killed scores of people is _Noboru._ It happened, and I had..." He considered his choice of words, "enough time and spent effort in coming to terms with it." To say the least. "What I'm worried about more than anything is pretty much what you said - how many villages Katsuo has under his belt. Even with Iwa gone, his _name_ has influence alone, to say nothing of his subordinates, and the political pressure of his allies. Even if Kumo is the only remaining Big Five village that Katsuo has, I wouldn't doubt he'd try to get the smaller dots on the map." Which presented something of a problem for Konoha and its own allies - Suna as an avowed one, and Kiri as one through circumstance. If the entire organized world was pressing against three superpowers, it would be pretty damn difficult to resist that - Nazi Germany and Kaguya Otsutsuki's later years, came to mind.

Dante conceded Hibiki's point, and turned to face the two of them. "Still." He said, with a deep sigh as he tried to get his breathing back in check. "And we're losing our kage in the middle of this..." He shook his head and bade his chunin follow him.

Hibiki chuckled, "can never be easy, can it?" He asked, as Suboro and Dante took off.

He blinked.

"Wait, _what?"_

* * *

"You have got to be fucking kidding me - YOU DID _WHAT?!"_ Despite - apparently - being more or less the entire reason why the entire village's governmental structure had been upheaved in less than three hours, it had taken Hibiki four to get into the same room with Shikaku Nara - and another hour to get alone with him. Of course, by now, the news had already spread and Hibiki pretty much had the entire story, but he couldn't rest until he heard, from Shikaku, just why in the hell he decided to display the size of his testicles to a man who could literally kill him without a second thought, and _how he managed to win!_

Five hours, and he was still reeling from the fact that Shikaku had managed to impeach the most powerful person in the village.

"It isn't hard to comprehend, Hibiki. I gathered supporters and impeached the former Hokage." Shikaku said, from behind the desk of said former Hokage. There were bags beneath his eyes, showing Hibiki that, however temporarily it may be, assuming the duties of head of state wasn't necessarily in Shikaku's original plan, and taking on those duties was starting to weigh upon him.

Hibiki bent back and began laughing uproariously. "And -" He laughed, shaking his head as he straightened back up. "How the hell is that working out for you?" He waved his hand at the desk, upon which stood a mountain of paperwork.

Shikaku glared at Hibiki, before nodding his head to the side and acquiescing a grin. "Remarkably... This is but a fraction of the paperwork that is reported to flow through this office daily." He let out, "as it currently stands, the conclave is running the village until we decide upon a new kage, and the work is being spread about as evenly, and wisely, as possible."

Hibiki whistled, and pulled up a chair, giving the office a brief look around as he sat down, noting how some of the shadows, despite a lack of kage, still seemed to be much darker than should be natural. "Got any front runners?" He asked, turning his onyx eyes to Shikaku.

"A few." Said Shikaku, "but they each have a problem."

"Oh?"

"The sannin would each be obvious choices, but Jiraiya has Minato to instruct and during their offtime he has been spending more and more time out of the village. Tsunade would make a fine leader given time to adjust, but she's shown many signs that her sobriety is... Slippery at best. Orochimaru would certainly be powerful enough, but not many people..." Shikaku paused, trying to find the right word.

Hibiki, however, nodded. "Know him."

"Know him."

"So beyond them?"

"Well, there's you." Shikaku said, with a brief inclination of the head. "But one of the arguments made during Danzo's impeachment was that your sanity was in question, following Iwa." He said, "and while you may be the popular choice... Would you truly blame us for wanting to wait until time has passed?"

Hibiki shook his head, "Shikaku, even if you waited, I _do not want_ to play the political game. Nice as wearing the hat may be -" He pointed at the papers, "if that's a fraction of what I'd have to deal with... Even my shadow clones wouldn't sit through it for long. Besides, I prefer kicking ass, as opposed to telling others to go kick it." He waved the topic away, leaning back in his chair.

Shikaku nodded, "I hope you realize you likely will be first in many peoples' minds for years to come. My efforts in gathering support showed exactly how well known and regarded you are, by the village. We would merely need _hint_ that you could be selected, and people may very well demand it, and then what would you do?"

"Laugh." Said Hibiki, with a straight face. "And then pick Sensei instead."

Shikaku shook his head, "you..." He paused, "wait, who?" He looked up to Hibiki, head inclined.

"Dante-sensei." Said Hibiki, with a shrug. "Dude's strong, knows how to lead at least us three, and has war experience, invaluable in the coming days."

Shikaku, however, deflated after the word 'Dante'. "Hibiki, he's an Uchiha."

Hibiki blinked, wondering what the problem was. "Yeah?"

"You know they're not highly regarded, please don't play with me."

Hibiki maintained eye contact a moment, before he let his shoulders sag. "And here I thought I was putting up a good show."

"You are. But I've known you longer than Fugaku has. You may claim to not like the 'political game', but where it counts you are a skilled player." Shikaku responded, "Dante would be a good choice, but the Uchiha aren't very well regarded by the village. Not many people would agree with the decision and that would cause tension among the ranks - some may question his leadership and that could lead to hesitations, deaths."

Hibiki, however, shook his head. "Maybe. But you said it yourself - _I'm_ highly regarded... I just drop my support and people would probably be willing to give him a try." He leaned forward, adjusting his sleeves a bit as he leaned one elbow on his knees, resting his hand under his chin. "And think of it like this -" He pointed to Shikaku, "everyone knows the Uchiha aren't that highly regarded. Things might be fine, now - but in a decade or two? A generation from now? That tension will only keep growing. Do you _honestly_ think you can treat an entire people like trash for whole generations and not expect that teapot to boil over?"

Shikaku nodded his head in a conciliatory fashion, "let's ignore that for a second. Say I can convince the conclave to think your way and accept your nomination. Say that he rises to the occasion and does a good job - which I don't doubt, I've read some of his public war records. But do you think he'd actually accept it?"

Hibiki leaned back in his chair, exhaling as he thought Shikaku's question over. "Yeah." He said, nodding, and leaning back forward. "Let's look at it with complete objectivity, okay? Around forty years of age - the age Dante's reaching rapidly - the human body begins to deteriorate. It doesn't function as well as it used to, doesn't move as fast as it once did, doesn't heal as efficiently as it could a decade ago. Dante likely knows this - aaand you didn't see him after this battle, today. He was exhausted and had a small collection of injuries... Compare it to Kirigakure, five years ago. He fought about as hard as he did here, against opponents fewer in number but arguably greater in strength, and just five years ago he wasn't nearly as exhausted as he was now, and his injuries weren't as stacked as they were today.

"Now, he won years ago just as he won today, but he's getting up there, Shikaku. If the war is going to be anywhere near as long as we're thinking it will be, he could be in his fifties or sixties by the time it lets out. Put it in perspective for you, Hiruzen Sarutobi was in his forties when he died, and he hardly saw the battlefield after the _first_ war. Danzo's in his fifties now and he hasn't seen battle in about as long. Take the sannin - each hovering around thirty, these days - out of the war, and you take out their last chance to operate in an actual war in any reliable capacity. The older, Danzo-aged shinobi are all either retired, crippled, or too inexperienced to try and lead a military village, the other second war vets aren't nearly as powerful as we would want them to be to take up the hat, and the folks from my generation don't have anywhere near the experience required to lead the village - and again, we'd run into actively taking very powerful, influential shinobi _away from the battlefield._ Of the choices you've got, Dante's probably the best one." He ended, with a deep yawn. "Maybe if it were peace, it could be a different story. We could try someone younger, maybe even around my age, or a bit older. But it's war, and as such we need a warrior to lead us." He paused, "and to actually answer your question..." He chuckled, "Dante may not like the situation, but he'd think of it in terms kind of close to those. He'd end up just _manning_ up and do it... If only until the war's out, and we can swap someone who can win the war, for someone who can win the peace."

Shikaku was silent several seconds, as he abandoned the paperwork on his temporary desk and sat back, taking in Hibiki's words. He eventually nodded, "okay." He said, "but... You realize that, even with your word, some on the conclave may not necessarily agree with it."

"Well, there's a precedent for that." Hibiki said, waving his hand as he spoke. "When Hiruzen Sarutobi was chosen by Tobirama Senju, a large fraction of the folks on the conclave back then weren't too fond of the choice. I mean - a _non_ Senju leading Konohagakure? What was Tobirama thinking?" He voiced, "so, what they did was they picked one of the strongest serving shinobi at the time and had what essentially equated to a trial by combat. The winner wouldn't be declared until the loser either surrendered, or was rendered unable to fight, period."

Shikaku nodded, "I remember my grandfather telling me this story. The battle between Hiruzen and Danzo was fierce..." He leaned forward, "but you realize they'll choose _you_ to fight him."

Hibiki grinned, "_not_ if... Oh... I'm out patrolling the Cloud border, due to it being Katsuo's sole remaining ally among the Five Greats, and it being the best candidate for him retreating to. Send me out there for a deployment, I'll keep a look out, and while I'm tearing up anyone dumb enough to try and cross the border before we send a proper fighting force over there, you guys pick your fighters and - oh no! Hibiki seems to be out on an important -" He pretended to cough, _"A-ranked, please -"_ He grinned, "mission, looks like you'll have to pick someone else." A beat, _"anyone_ else." He stressed.

Shikaku shook his head, whistling. "Did you just come up with that?"

"Yes."

"You _really_ don't want to be Hokage."

"I'm _fif-fucking-teen!" _And he felt he really had no business leading a village anyways, so far he was five for five in villages he'd visited that he'd royally fucked up in some way or another. Konoha, his influence brought guns into the world and got Hiruzen Sarutobi killed. Suna, his actions may have averted a war, but he still critically injured a lot of their shinobi, blew up part of their arena, and scared the high holy hell out of a lot of people by beating up a jinchuriki in broad daylight. Kirigakure, he - and his friends! - blew up _twice,_ ransacked, and conquered, before forcibly impressing them into a three-nation alliance with Konoha as its head. Ame, he'd blown up, killed the Otsutsuki heir's two best friends, summoned the Jubi, to say _nothing_ of what happened to Hanzo and after the fact. Finally, Iwa - which he didn't just blow up, he _obliterated_, wiping off of the map almost completely. If one wanted to be technical, he'd screwed Konoha over _twice,_ what with him being the primary reason they had ousted Danzo as Hokage. Hibiki truly felt that Dante would man up, wash up, and take up the Hokage's hat with a begrudging aplomb, all that had to happen was him actually getting the job.

Shikaku shrugged, "Hashirama wasn't but five years older than you when he started the entire hidden village system. But I digress - I can get some strings pulled with the Jonin Commander, who can send the word down to the Chunin Corps, and get you sent off to one of the border outposts alongside Kumogakure. We'll be gathering the conclave here in about a week to discuss the next Hokage, so it will likely be in five days you get deployed."

Hibiki nodded, getting to his feet. "Alright."

Shikaku blinked, and raised an eyebrow. "You don't sound very... Actually you sound somewhat excited." He settled upon, after a moment's hesitation midway through.

Hibiki chuckled, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his overcoat. "I uh... Pissed off Dai with my last disappearing act. I'm... _Not_ looking forward to seeing what she's going to do to me. Add that to having promised to teach Minato my thunder technique, in exchange for his Hiraishin... Even with shadow clones I won't be getting much sleep this next week."

* * *

Unfortunately for Hibiki, searching for Dai would soon take second seat to perhaps the second most terrifying woman in his second life. Using her deductive reasoning skills - insomuch that she was all but certain the Alpha Hibiki wouldn't delegate figuring out what happened to Danzo to a clone - Tsunade Senju marched right up to the Hokage's building the very second Hibiki came strolling out of its doors, hands in his coat pockets.

_"You!"_ She shouted, gathering Hibiki's undivided attention.

Hibiki's head snapped towards the irate Senju's, his shoulders slumped and his onyx eyes widened as he breathed, in abject terror, "oh fuck."

_"Little -"_ Tsunade was now within feet of her heir.

_If I run, I can make it to America in a millisecond. Is that far enough?_ Hibiki was rooted to the ground, as Tsunade raised her right hand high.

As Hibiki prepared for an impact powerful enough to blast him through the entirety of the Hokage monument, front to back, Tsunade yelled out, _"Gaki!"_ And brought him into one of the most powerful, bone-crushing hugs he'd ever been in, made even worse due to the fact that the difference in their height was shrinking with every passing month.

Hibiki would have blinked if his head hadn't immediately been gripped by Tsunade's free hand, and his entire body pressed into hers. He felt her chest quivering as her arms locked him to her, as if, if she didn't let him go, then he would vanish. She held him so tightly that Hibiki could feel his superdense ribs creaking and groaning, and the air began to rush out of his lungs in a light croak.

"I swear to Kami, Hibiki -" Tsunade whispered in a shivering tone, into the ear of her heir, "- you scare me like that again and I will put you through a wall!" She threatened, tightening her hold.

"Uh..." Croaked Hibiki.

"I get a report that you destroyed an entire village and then the next day you're _gone!"_ She thrust him forward, now holding the teen's shoulders with an iron grip, at arm's length. _"What the fuck was I supposed to think?!"_ She demanded, loud enough to make Hibiki's ears ring. "You left us a kami-damned suicide note!"

"I did?" Hibiki would be the first to admit he probably should have been the slightest bit clearer in his 'I'll Be Back' letter, but he, if anyone, knew that shinobi were first and foremost a philosophical bunch, and had thusly figured they would think 'Home' to be some place where he could clear his head. Though apparently, Tsunade had taken it that 'home' meant the place where his head would _be_ cleared, most expeditiously with a bullet.

Oops.

"What the fuck was it supposed to be?!" Tsunade demanded, "how many people in the village know where _home_ is for _you?!"_

_Two, and none of them are over the age of twenty._ Though Tsunade seemed to under the impression that his 'home' was the afterlife. "I just needed to go clear my head." He said, earnestly. "You said it yourself - I blew up a village. People haven't done that in._.. _Hell, a long time." A part of him wondered if Hashirama Senju or Madara Uchiha had been that strong.

Tsunade flinched, and sighed, before she straightened up and brushed some of her blonde hair behind her ear. "But grandpa Hashirama didn't _run_ when he had to do those things, Hibiki. He had people there to help him - who would be scared if he _did_ run." Apparently Tsunade thought they were indeed, that powerful.

"He also didn't have villages to blow up, mom." Hibiki responded, before he shook his head. "It doesn't matter. I -"

"No, it damn well _does_ matter, Hibiki! If your friends hadn't put the pressure on, Danzo would have declared you missing nin! You _threatened _his _life!"_ She urged, "where did you _go?"_

Hibiki looked to the side, noticing a few instructors looking their way. He sighed, "c'mon. Let's get food." _And then there were three._

* * *

It took Hibiki six hours to give Tsunade the whole story, and in that time he'd had four clones scour the village for Dai, only to find nothing. Whether it was because she knew they were clones and was specifically avoiding them, or because she wasn't happy with him because of the stunt he'd pulled, he didn't know.

However, the pressing problem was the dumbfounded look the woman who had raised him was wearing. Given that she, perhaps more than anyone else in the village, the other two sannin and Dai included, knew more about the Kenichi side of Hibiki's situation, she had been somewhat prepared to be shocked beyond reason by whatever explanation he gave her; and it was because she had actually dedicated one and a half decades of her life to him, that Hibiki felt obligated to be a bit more thorough and forthcoming with her than he had been to Minato and Dai during their 'reveals'.

Seated in the corner of the fuinjutsu-covered teahouse, the Senju head's brown eyes were as wide as dinner plates before Hibiki had even gotten to how he had died the first time around. A world without chakra was as alien to her as it had been to Minato and Dai. He had mentioned in passing Terran medical advances, and ended up spending more than an hour on the circulatory and nervous systems, and then an hour more on penicillin and other medical drugs, before having to promise to translate a few textbooks for her so they could get back on topic. It was when he had described to her automobiles, how they worked, and what had happened when one had decided to try and give him a high-speed hug, that her jaw had begun to drop.

Then, when he'd started telling her about the life he'd led in this new world, she had had to set down her teacup, unable to keep it from shaking as the implications of his words began to settle upon her. Telling her about the remains of America, his encounters with Eglin Air Force Base, the true history of the Sage of Six Paths, and then the connection he shared with Katsuo and the other Undead, he could see it was nearly too much for her to process. For obvious reasons, he kept his activities in Amegakure a secret.

Finally, to finish the revelatory evening, Hibiki pulled from a storage seal inked on his right hip, a tablet he'd looted from NORAD. On it was books, movies, videos, pictures, many relics from his world, all held in a portable package. She spent two minutes just dragging her finger back and forth on the screen, staring in abject shock as the screen followed her commands.

"This is your people's technology?" She asked, placing it on the table and sliding it back towards him with one hand, as if it would bite her.

Hibiki took the tablet and sealed it back where it belonged, "just a taste of what we were able to do." He said, leaning back and taking a sip of his tea. "More than a half century before that was even invented, we had machines capable of bringing us into outer space. Our footprints are on the moon - and the technology we needed to do it hadn't even been invented before we promised to get it done in less than ten years." It really made Hibiki wonder what kind of marvels the Terrans would have been able to create, had Kaguya never shown up.

"And _you_ came from this world." Tsunade repeated as a fact, saying it aloud, as if keeping it silent would mean it wasn't real.

"My soul did." Hibiki said, "but don't ask me how or why I specifically came back. Even with shadow clones, I do not want to go rooting around on my soul seal." He said, tapping his left pectoral, "and Kenichi's notes on the seal itself are very... Very encrypted. They were written in the language he developed for the seal itself - which means without the seal's codex, I don't have the key required to decrypt them."

Tsunade nodded, slowly lowering her hand to the table as she thought everything over, her mouth pressed into a tight, thin line.

"And you said, years ago, that death was quiet, peaceful, even. Quicker than falling asleep." She said.

_Fuck._ Hibiki sighed, nodding. Tsunade was about to ask him to absolve her, he knew it.

She stared hard at the table a moment, before locking her brown eyes with Hibiki's onyx orbs. "Were you angry, when you died?"

Hibiki blinked, "you mean did I feel guilt."

Tsunade was still a moment, before nodding.

He shook his head, "like I said. It was like falling asleep, but quicker. And once you're there it's just..." Nothingness, a blank back void in which there is no sensory input - no body with which to record memories upon the soul. No nervous system to take in data, no brain to translate it, nothing at all. "Peace, and quiet." Maybe - _maybe! - _the reason he didn't remember anything was because, wherever souls went after they died, time wasn't linear, and like gravity, or tachyons, souls essentially existed at all points in time simultaneously, and could go back and forth at will. Maybe the reason he didn't remember anything was because the afterlife was like a dream - once one wakes up, they forget it. The only way for things to make coherent sense was to be there, experiencing it, at that very second, and as such, since Hibiki came back to life, he had forgotten everything.

But he couldn't tell Tsunade that, especially not as he saw her shoulders straighten and her head nod, as if a great, physical weight had been lifted from her.

There was another moment of silence, before she grinned. "So, wait a damn second - you mean to tell me you're as old as I am?!" She leaned forward and grabbed the collar of his coat, before physically lifting him up a few inches out of his booth seat. _"You owe me a lot of rent, gaki!"_ She growled, from behind a wide, playful grin.

Hibiki raised his hands in a placative gesture, a smile growing across his own face as well. "Hey, I'll tell you what - I'll get you those medical textbooks, same ones I used to help figure out the lightning cloak. Then you can use them, become an even _better_ medic." He said with a toothy grin.

She dropped him back into the chair, radiating a small amount of killing intent. "I guess that'll do. And since you're moving out I guess there isn't that much I can do to you, anymore... But you realize that whatever I _would_ have done will damn-near pale in comparison to whatever it is your girlfriend is going to do."

Hibiki leaned back and let out a long breath, shaking his head. "Oh, don't I know it." He was all but certain that she was literally waiting for him - the Alpha - to be done with whatever it was he was doing, before she revealed herself.

Tsunade shook her head, "so I assume she knows. Does anyone else?"

"Just Minato." Said Hibiki.

"Would you tell your uncles?"

"I'd rather avoid this becoming common knowledge." He responded, "I know they can keep secrets, but still."

Tsunade nodded, "so what do you plan to do about this Zetsu?"

"At the moment, I don't think there's much I _can_ do. I don't know how to track him down, for starters. The only thing I can do is remove Katsuo as a threat first, then focus on him." And since he'd killed and stolen Nagato Otsutsuki's Rinnegan, and Zetsu hadn't done anything in the five year interim, that meant he had to have some kind of backup option - another heir with another Rinnegan. But Zetsu wouldn't want to risk _another_ pair of Rinnegan eyes, so instead he was preparing and planning, and the heir was training, watching Hibiki and trying to find the best possible way to use his bloodline to counter all of Hibiki's; which meant Hibiki had to continue growing his strength.

Problem was, his brief encounter with the collective Undead hadn't gotten him any closer to figuring out how to use the other secrets hidden in his veins - he hadn't been using the Sharingan, after all.

"You do know how hard that's going to be, right?"

"Very."

"No, let me tell you why Jiraiya had to leave so suddenly - he got word through his spy network. When he failed to get Kirigakure, Katsuo turned his attention to the smaller villages."

Hibiki blinked, "oh... Shit." He said, as the implications settled upon his shoulders. "How many?"

"The last count we got was... Nearly everyone. Amegakure, the land of Iron, and Yukigakure are the only nations we know of that haven't been confirmed, one way or another."

_I highly doubt Amegakure would trust outsiders, these days._ "Yukigakure... Dai told me about them." Hibiki said, before he finished his tea. "They have that... Chakra armor. Aren't they _really_ isolationist?" He was also pretty certain they weren't too willing to ally with Katsuo, though Hibiki had never visited the country personally, he hadn't had the time.

Tsunade nodded, "but even with Rain, Snow, and the Samurai not in his Alliance... That's _every_ hidden village pitted against Sand, Leaf, and Mist. If Dante gets the hat, he's going to have a hell of a war on his hands."

Hibiki groaned, burying his head in his hands as he tried to find some way in which Konoha didn't burn at the end of this. At the very least, one or two theatres of war would all but _need_ extensive usage of his guns. _I wonder if the Eagles are ready, yet._ He thought, _I'll need some air power in this, and my clones aren't that good at flying and gunning._ He hadn't checked in on his running project with Kyo and Geoff in a few months, they'd told him to leave it to them, after all.

He was also pretty sure Washita was still a little pissed that Hibiki had been traipsing all around Amerigo for the last few years. Sure, it wasn't strictly _their_ lands he was running around in, but if one counted the entire country and not just what used to be Florida as _their_ lands, then he was probably committing more than a few sins against them every time he ran home. But, with the things he'd given to them to play with, he was pretty sure Washita would get over it soon enough. If not, Hibiki would just have to challenge him to another race, maybe lose, let the big boss get his pride back from the last time.

"You okay, gaki?" Tsunade asked.

"Heh. No." He sat up and rubbed his eyes, "I died, came back, got superpowers that eclipsed the _literal son of god_, and then blew up a village. I am the very definition of _not okay,_ but I will be." He stood up, "I just need to go find Dai." He and his adoptive mother exited the tea shop, but before leaving, he made sure to give the woman a quick hug, letting her know that regardless of what had happened and had been said, he still was, for all intents and purposes, her son. "Love you, Mom."

Tsunade sighed, "I love you too, you little shit." She said into his hair.


	64. King of the Wild

_A/N:  
_Figured I'd get this out of the way real fast, as folks have been pointing it out:  
George RR Martin said there are two types of writers. Architects and gardeners.  
The former plan out the whole house before they drive the first nail. They design the entire house, where the pipes go, how many rooms there will be, and how high the roof is. Gardeners, however, just dig a hole, plant the seed, and see what comes up.

I like to see myself as the latter... Only I at least plan out what field I'll dig the hole in, what kind of hole I'll want in the first place, and what seed to use.  
Then I let the story write itself.

I have a plan, make no mistake about it - I'd say we're about halfway through the story as of right now - but a lot of this comes as it's being written.  
Best example, ironically, being _**Dai.** _  
In the original plan, her role had started and ended at the Chunin exams. She was there to help Hibiki find the rifle that killed Sarutobi, and to help him out with finding who had a gun in the exams. After which, I figured she may show up a time or two to help continuity, but otherwise, her role wasn't that big. I'd had other ideas entirely for who I wanted Hibiki to eventually settle down with, and Dai wasn't it.

But as I wrote her, I decided to make her something of an antithesis to Hibiki - where Hibiki (usually) thinks long and hard before he speaks, and tends not to go too overboard with jokes and what-not, Dai on the other hand knows what clan she's from and has fun with it, teasing her friends relentlessly and then immediately putting the mask back on, so to speak, when in public. She's blunt, knows how to say what to say to push people's buttons, and can put the mask back on in an instant to make them think it was all in their head.

This translated into her being a very blunt individual, saying what was on her mind and adapting a smug, albeit grin when those around her reacted to it. Cue Hibiki, who by nature would either react by egging the person on, or react by not reacting in general. He's heard worse, after all - fire houses are some very... Vulgar, in a word, places when the important people aren't around. Helps sharpen the wit, for the people who care to step up to bat.  
So, during those initial interactions, I had the two build off of eachother, and before I realized what had happened, I was really enjoying writing their interactions, so I decided I'd keep her around, eventually leading to what we have today: A rare (in this fandom) peek at a relatively ignored clan, and perhaps the most caustic romantic relationship in the story. Those two love to hate eachother, and by this point practically exist just to tease and egg eachother on, but pretty much the whole thing hadn't been planned from the beginning.

And someone brought up the Clan Restoration Act... Which I can't find a hint of, in-canon.  
Regardless, I don't usually call folks out in Author's Notes, but I thought of a good joke, so I'll let Caesar answer that one.  
Caesar?  
youtube-dot-com/watch?v=mZAxO-za3KU  
Thank you, Caesar.

Anyways, that's the point of what I'm trying to say - the general plot, the whole Hibiki vs Katsuo and Hibiki vs Zetsu, that's all thought out and ready. Even Hibiki not being aware of the Sage of Six Paths being a good guy (in-canon, at least.)... That's all prepared and thought out. _Exactly_ what happens, how it happens, and when it happens, and the smaller sub-plots sprinkled throughout, I'd say about half of those have been prepared ahead of time, whereas the other half are thought up right before, or just as they're written.

Then of course you've got the fights - but those are a whole 'nother beast. The general rule of thumb is, if it's a foreshadowed encounter (Say, something like Minato fighting Yui the Viper, which has happened and has been interrupted twice now... Or, more easy to pick out, Hibiki vs Aojiroi... Or any of the Undead, really.), it's a likely encounter. If it hasn't been foreshadowed (Never once brought up the possibility of a meaningful fight between Hibiki and the Sannin, for instance.)... Well, it's still probably likely.  
Probably. I mean, Dai was unplanned, and Hibiki cut Nagato's god damn head off outta nowhere - so anything's possible.  
Regardless, I've got some doozies planned out.

As a matter of fact...

* * *

Chapter 63

* * *

A part of Hibiki wanted to go to bed after spilling his guts to his adoptive mother, but then another part of him knew that sending three shadow clones to do that very thing would achieve the same effect, and would free him up to go look for Dai personally. So, with the moon at its apex in the sky, Hibiki set to work. As it turned out, now as always, Dai seemed to know when he was looking for her, and now, as always, she seemed to know when it was actually him, and not a shadow clone.

His senses were the slightest bit dulled due to his Sharingan acting up and burning his eyes every time he tried turning it on, but he still was able to see the slightest flicker in the moonlight, as one of Dai's beetles fluttered into eyesight. Then, the hairs on the back of his neck began standing up, and Hibiki felt compelled to turn around.

He saw her stalking towards him in the middle of an empty street. Her hood was drawn tight over her head and her body didn't even twitch in the cold night air, and though she was still and every movement was purposeful, Hibiki had spent enough time with her to know when she was specifically calming her motions. She was _pissed,_ and was deliberately falling back on her Aburame stoicism to hide it.

For one of the few times in his second life, Hibiki actually feared for it.

Before he could make any kind of remark, however, she balled up her fist and a small cloud of beetles gathered up around it. He had only the time to blink before she reared her fist and threw it forward, and the cloud of beetles blasted forward like bullets from a gun, all in tight, single-file lines spiralling outwards. Hibiki recognized this formation, she liked to use it when distracting her opponents from the real attackers - the shokaichu earthworms tunneling right under their feet.

With a gulp, Hibiki launched into the air, his chakra thrusters pulsing out of his hands and feet. What he didn't expect, however, was Dai to make a pulling motion with the outstretched hand, and before he knew it, he felt something hit his shoulder. A quick glance to it made his heart sink, as the beetle on his shoulder latched onto one of his tenketsu, and upon absorbing his chakra, quickly began growing in size.

Silently, Hibiki cursed and blasted through the air; it only took him a few seconds to get out of the populated areas of the village and to one of the distant training grounds. He slammed into the dirt, shoulder-first, but in those few seconds the kidaichu had grown to the size of a soccer ball, its shell thick enough now to survive that impact. Hibiki ripped his pistol out of its seal and jammed it against the beetle's head, blasting it off with a loud thunderclap and a bright flash. In the time he took to focus on it, however, Dai had arrived in the training grounds in a plume of smoke.

Hibiki whipped his gun around to face Dai, but there was already another cloud of beetles hurtling straight towards him - this time in a bullet formation. The fist-sized cloud slammed into his chest with the force of a battering ram and sent him skidding back several feet, carving a small groove in the ground. Hibiki hardly had the time to toss his gun into the air, form a tiger sign, and belch out a small gout of flame to burn the beetles off of his chest.

When the gun fell back to him, Dai was just a few feet away, beetles surrounding her, spinning around her, forming a protective barrier from his weapon. The two stared at eachother for a few seconds, Dai from behind the deep shadows cast by her hood, Hibiki from behind two wide, onyx eyes and a small frown.

_Yep._ Hibiki thought, _she's pissed._ In a flurry of motion, he sealed the gun back in his wrist and the world slowed down, but Dai did something he didn't expect.

The very instant she saw him move, she flashed the body flicker handsign, and just as the world around him slowed down in response to his Swift-natured chakra, Dai _sped up._ The mere act of not freezing when he flashed his Hast bloodline was enough to stun Hibiki long enough for Dai to cover the distance between the two and kick downwards, trying to drive her heel into Hibiki's chest.

The Senju heir rolled to the side just in time, and as the dirt and debris froze in mid-air, he hopped to his feet. Dai's head snapped over to him and she launched herself in his direction with a brief pivot on her back leg. Hibiki parried one punch, but once his hand flared up into pain he realized that her knuckles were crawling with kikaichu of many varieties and breeds. Hibiki squeezed his hand and several bones sprouted outwards, briefly turning his fist into a spiked mace as the beetles were dealt with. Hibiki had to double over, and then bend over backwards to dodge Dai's next two swings, and then, as if a switch had been flipped, she slowed down to a halt.

Blinking, and still in his accelerated timeframe, Hibiki capitalized on the sudden weakness and buried his foot into Dai's stomach, sending her skidding backwards as time sped back up.

_Okay... That's fucking new!_ Thought Hibiki, as he settled into a defensive stance. He felt multiple beetles crawling around his body, settling wherever he had open wounds and keeping them open, ensuring they didn't heal and that he remained there, draining chakra to heal wounds that would not close. _What the hell was that? Did she just body-flicker to keep up with the Swift Release? Can she _do_ that?_ Hibiki didn't have much time to actually think on it, as Dai again flew through the handsign she needed to body flicker, and in an instant the world around the two slowed down.

Hibiki batted away a straight right, but before he could try and parry a wide left hook, he felt a sharp, stabbing pain in a cluster of nerves on the small of his back. The sudden pain made him crunch up to the left, bringing him right in range of Dai's right foot, which buried itself in his nose, drawing blood with a muted crunch. The blood froze in air as Hibiki stumbled backwards, sending a brief pulse of explosive chakra to the area on his back where he felt the beetles trying to eat him alive. He dodged two more swings and launched a spinning roundhouse into Dai's side, she latched onto his arm and a swarm of insects bolted out from underneath her baggy sleeves, enveloping Hibiki's leg and locking it in place, immobilizing it. At that moment, Dai's body flicker ran out, and she was frozen, but in the brief milliseconds she had before it ran out, she had thrust her right hand forward, several more kidaichu beetles flying straight for Hibiki's face, frozen in time, due to a lack of swift chakra from their chief breeder.

With a wide swing, Hibiki swatted all of the beetles and, in one smooth motion, slammed his open palm on his leg, and channeled a mass of lightning-natured chakra. Though he underestimated exactly how many beetles she had covered his leg with, the lightning still did its job and arced between them all, frying them and freeing his leg, from which he pulsed his chakra and sent him skidding back away from Dai. She, however, used what little time those beetles had bought her at her conventional speeds to form another body-flicker handsign. With it, she launched herself back forward and reached the Senju heir just as he skidded to a halt.

Hibiki ducked under a beetle-covered hand as Dai attempted to claw at his face, and hopped to the side as he correctly predicted a swarm of insects to follow the missed attack. He circled around Dai at their shared enhanced speed and tried to plant his foot on the small of her back, but a cloud of beetles shot out from her coat and caught his foot as if he were kicking sand. He yanked his foot backwards as Dai spun around and thrust a hand forward, both a bullet-cloud of beetles and the beetles that had caught his foot surged forwards, but just moments before they hit him, she and they ran out of their Swift chakra and their body flicker ceased. Hibiki let out a quick breath of air and backed up a few steps before dashing back in. He launched four light jabs on Dai's stomach and chest before he grabbed her extended arm and bodily hauled her over him, slamming her into the ground with the sound of a body hitting dirt.

Hibiki, however, had to slow down when he felt a stabbing pain on his foot, and suddenly his balance was stolen from him when a beetle began growing from it. Cursing, he leapt into the air and kicked the foot out, before detonating his chakra. He used the recoil to throw him back down to the ground, landing on his back with a loud grunt, before he rolled to the side on instinct, dodging a veritable column of insects crashing down upon him.

Hibiki hopped to his feet and thrust his hand to the side, pulsing chakra from it and anchoring his feet to the ground. The thrust from his chakra blasted outwards and scattered the cloud of kikaichu, but Dai used this distraction to both flash through another body flicker, and attempt to keep Hibiki anchored to the ground with the shokaichu earthworms. Hibiki felt them squirm around his feet and sink him into the ground as Dai closed in on him at relativistic speeds. Now on the receiving end of his own speed, in the few milliseconds it took him to call upon his own swift chakra, Dai had struck him twenty eight times and locked her hand onto his face. A sharp lance of pain followed as Hibiki felt dozens of beetles crawling over the left side of his face and biting down hard.

The Senju heir batted away Dai's hand and palm-striked her in the chest, before flicking his hand back and forth, coating it in electricity, and zapping the bugs on his face. They were doing a number on him, keeping wounds open and draining his chakra, but before he could think of a way to counter-attack, Dai was back in front of him, a hand reared. She threw her open hand around in a wide, predictable arc. Hibiki caught it before she could slap him, and just as the world sped up again, he caught her other hand. She, however, didn't necessarily need her hands to achieve the effect, and in the time it took Hibiki to blink, a beetle lazily flew out from underneath her hood, landed on his bloody face, and bit down hard. The same pain he would have felt if she had slapped him arced through his face, causing him to flinch.

_"Ow!"_ He grunted.

"You _bastard!"_ She cried out, trying to wrench her hands out of his iron grip.

Hibiki sighed, a pained, sorrowful expression settling on his face as he pulled the struggling Aburame in, and he felt a twinge of pain surge through his heart, having nothing to do with the beetles keeping his injuries open and throbbing.

"You _bastard!"_ She cried again, her voice now muffled by his partially bloodied coat. "I was so _worried!"_ She sobbed, as Hibiki felt the beetles retreating from his wounds, and too felt the crook of his neck begin to grow wet.

Hibiki numbly let her rip her wrists from his hands, and she used this freedom to weakly pound on his chest. A moment of pause was all that separated Hibiki from blind instinct before he wrapped his arms around Dai's back and held her close. This was a volume she had never spoken at before, not even during their training or in battle, just as these were emotions he had never heard her speak with before. The pain, terror and sorrow rattling through her lungs and shaking the air pushing through her throat latched itself onto Hibiki's heart like an ice cold vice, and with every sob he heard, the grip only grew tighter.

"I was so fucking scared, Hibiki!" She sobbed, still weakly pounding her fists on his chest. "I'd heard what had happened and rushed over to you, but you were already gone!" Her breaths were shaky, and it seemed that each time she inhaled it took all the energy in her body. "And I knew you were in pain, and I couldn't follow, I couldn't hold you!" She ceased her beating of his chest and now grabbed his coat, taking in the fabric with two large fist-fulls, using it to press her face deeper into his chest. "I couldn't help you!" She cried.

"I'm sorry." Hibiki whispered, out of a lack of anything else to say.

"And -" She gasped, "-and I knew you needed help! I knew you were tearing yourself apart over what Katsuo and Danzo had tricked you into doing, and I couldn't help you, and I'm sorry I had to get someone who could - and I knew Minato was the only one who could reach you!"

"Dai..."

"And I betrayed you! I gave away your secret by telling him to follow you, to not take no for an answer! But I didn't know what else to do and I'm _so sorry Hibiki!"_

"Dai."

"_I was so worried!"_ She sobbed.

"Dai!" Hibiki reached up and grabbed ahold of her hood, pulling it downwards and revealing her angular, rounded face and deep brown hair. She raised her head from the crook of his neck and looked up at him, eyes hidden by her thin sunglasses, but the wet streaks of tears reflecting the white moonlight perfectly. Hibiki plucked her glasses off, revealing her narrow, amber eyes, before he leaned in close and locked his lips to hers.

They stood there, locked to eachother, pressed so tightly together that from afar it would have looked like one body instead of two. Several moments passed before their lungs, already needing more oxygen than normal because of their brief spat begetting a higher heart-rate, began burning, begging for them to release eachother. When they finally did, Dai's legs gave out on her, she slid a few inches before Hibiki pressed tightly on the small of her back, keeping her upright. She pressed her head into his sternum, and let another sob rasp her body as she held onto his chest even tighter. Hibiki held her tight, the weight of her lithe frame proving nothing to him as he let her vent her sorrows in the middle of the training field, both of them bathed in the pale white moonlight. He was at a loss for anything to say to make her feel better, and as such he just remained silent, holding her just as she clung to him.

Finally, he heard her feet shuffle underneath them, and she began to support herself, but she merely traded her position against his chest for a position against his neck, her forehead buried in its crook as she wrapped her arms around his core. "I'm so sorry, Hibiki." She whispered.

Hibiki shook his head, burying his hand in her dark hair. "You made the right call, Dai. He helped a lot, and he knows how to keep the secrets that matter." He said softly, brushing his hand up and down, running it through her hair. "It's alright." He insisted.

She remained silent for several moments, just pressing her head closer to his neck as she calmed her breathing. "I was so worried." She finally whispered.

Hibiki nodded with a deep, regretful sigh. "I know." He said, "come on, let's sit down." In an unexpected display, Dai didn't let go or even slacken her grip, she instead held on tighter and wrapped one leg around Hibiki's waist. Though it was an awkward maneuver, Hibiki was able to walk backwards, and drag her to a tree at the edge of the clearing, next to which they sat, with Dai planted firmly in his lap, her locked onto him as if he would vanish if she let go.

Given his track record for running when he needed a clear head, Hibiki couldn't really fault her for it. "Where did you go?" Dai finally asked, her voice muffled by his shoulder. "No-Rad?"

Hibiki shook his head, gently stroking her own as he leaned up against the tree. "Well..." He nodded sidewards, "I brought Minato there. Gave him the quick version of the story." He said, "but no. I went home - despite all evidence that it should be impossible, my world is still mostly standing after X-thousand years... So I figured my childhood home may still be there."

"Was it?" Dai whispered.

"Mhm." Grunted the formerly displaced man, "place looked even shittier than I remembered." He tried.

For a moment he thought his attempt had failed, but he felt her quiver faintly, and try to hold a chuckle in her throat, letting him know that on some level, he _had_ at least gotten her to chuckle. Capitalizing on this brief moment of brevity, Hibiki reached down with his lower hand, not missing how Dai pressed tighter against him as he let go to root around in his scroll's pouch. It took him a few tries to find the correct one, and the pop and the plume of smoke that came from him pulling out the ancient, dried leather book made Dai flinch.

"Wanna see something cool?" Hibiki asked, as he deftly opened the ancient leatherbound book with one hand, and still stroking Dai's head with the other.

He felt Dai twist her head slightly to look at the object he held aloft, and then begin fully turning as the ancient thing caught her interest. After a moment of wriggling around, she now sat with her back pressed against Hibiki's chest, and after she wiped her eyes with the back of her sleeve, smearing some of the makeup Hibiki had never even noticed she wore, she leaned her head back against the tree, not even an inch away from his.

"What is it?" She whispered.

Hibiki grinned and reached forward with his now free second hand, and flipped the first page. There was a picture in its center, in which were three people. On the right was a squat man, mostly muscle but a little wide around the middle and barely five and a half feet tall, his face proudly covered in a thick, bushy beard. On the left was a plump woman with auburn hair and gray eyes, just as tall the squat man. Both of them were smiling wide, the plump woman showing her teeth, the round, bearded man simply crinkling up his beard, both of them with their arms around the shoulder of the teen in the center. Pale skinned, two inches taller than the people he had his arms wrapped around, thin and lanky, and with a stupid, obnoxious, open-mouthed smile that reached his wide blue eyes, masked slightly by a pair of thick, round glasses, his unkempt brown hair falling in waves over his shoulders and out of sight behind his back. The sky and environment around them was dark, but they were lit up by a bright white flash from their front.

Dai blinked, and leaned back forward, snatching the book from Hibiki's hands and bringing it close. Hibiki repressed a chuckle, but not the twitch of his chest, as he wrapped his hands around Dai's stomach and held her close as she stared at the picture. She seemed to know without him even saying anything what it was and, supporting the spine of the book with one hand, she raised the other and pointed a thin, dainty finger at the lanky teenager in the center of the picture.

"Is this you?" She asked, aghast.

"Mhm." Hibiki leaned forward, pressing his chest into her back and resting his chin on her shoulder. "Notice the resemblance?"

Dai blinked, tilting her head as she tried to lock onto what it was Hibiki was getting at. There was _no_ physical resemblance between the two - the boy was taller than the Senju heir by a good half foot, had much paler skin and rounder, bluer eyes. His hair was a dark brown as opposed to a deep raven black, his body was thin and lanky, as opposed to lean and muscular.

Not letting her get the chance to think any further, Hibiki grinned and said, "we got the same nostrils." as he wiggled his own.

_That_ got what he had been looking for, and Dai burst out into laughter, her free hand covering her face as she stared, wide-eyed at the several thousand year old picture in front of her. Her shoulders jumped up and down and her chest shook as she tried to contain her laughter, and Hibiki allthewhile just stayed there, leaning up against her, grinning widely.

"And -" Dai said, calming down, "I would assume these two to be your parents, back then?" She asked, tapping the other two individuals in the dark picture.

Hibiki nodded, "pretty much the entire reason why I don't call Tsunade 'mom' that often." Hibiki said, "don't get me wrong, I love her to death, but when I think 'Mom'... Tsunade's face has never been the one to enter my mind."

"She's beautiful..." Dai said, softly. "And your father... Was he a civilian?"

Hibiki barked out a quick chuckle, "you callin' my dad fat, Dai?"

"No, I -"

"Ha!" Hibiki squeezed Dai's gut a little tighter, "they met in the military. They were sailors - think, Shinobi on boats. Back _then_ he was thin, but then he met Mom, and - in his own words - that woman could _cook._ Once they got discharged and entered the civilian workforce, anything she cooked, he ate."

Dai nodded, "Akane says often that the way to a man's heart is through his stomach."

"Akane is wise, and every Akimichi ever born would agree."

Dai stared at the picture longer, Hibiki traced her eyes down to his older, less 'battle-worn' self. "You were very handsome." Dai finally said.

Hibiki grinned, "aw, thanks." He flushed, "not many women would've agreed with you, you know."

"I would have killed them."

Hibiki laughed, "wouldn't have changed the fact, Dai. Back then, where I came from, if you didn't have a big wallet, big muscles, or a big dick, they wouldn't have given you the time of day."

He saw Dai grow a mischievous grin, before he felt her grind her rear into his pelvis. "Well, not through lack of trying mind, I know you've at least _two_ of those things."

Hibiki laughed again, "_there_ she is!" He chuckled, "lady, that stuff only _recently_ started working. Reliably, at least. Be patient!" It seemed _he_ wore the pants in this relationship, which was ironic, given his one overarching goal in this world was to actually _find_ a pair of pants.

"Why were you so thin?" She asked, changing topics as quickly as she could, to keep Hibiki off balance.

"High metabolism, bad food, no physical activity, a lot of reading writing and video games."

"That bird thing you showed me?"

"Similar."

"And all three of you were very pale..."

"We were creatures of the north, Dai. We preferred cold weather and to stay out of the sun - I in particular would burn like a _lobster_ if I stayed out without any sun-screen."

"Kami, Hibiki, you were a wimp." Said Dai, as she leaned her head into Hibiki's.

"Turn the page, lady."

She did, and now found a second page filled with pictures. One was of Hibiki's Terran family seated in a restaurant, Hibiki had a wild look in his eyes and a mass of noodles hanging from his jaw, teeth bared. Another was of his Terran parents, sans Hibiki, hugging eachothers' sides and looking into the camera with wide smiles. In the center of the page was a picture of the Terran Hibiki, arms a bit thicker than the previous few pictures, wearing a dark blue uniform and standing on a wide wooden pier. He had in one hand a large sheet of paper with text Dai couldn't read, and the other was shaking the hand of a man in a blue and white uniform, with thickly framed sunglasses protecting his eyes from the bright, hot-looking sun.

"See _that_ shit? I bulked up when I had to." Hibiki defended.

"What was this?" Dai completely ignored the prominent photo and instead pointed at the picture of Hibiki with the noodles hanging from his mouth.

Hibiki chuckled, "I actually do _not_ remember that at all. I got up to a lot of shit, back then - here." He flipped over a few pages before he found a picture of him, a paintball gun in hand, barrel dug right into the temple of a dark-skinned individual just as tall as him. Hibiki and his friend wore thick masks and each were covered in bright red paint. "That was one of my old buddies, Rick." He said, pointing at the dark-skinned man.

"He looks like he's from Kumo."

"He does." Said Hibiki, "but he and I, we knew eachother since... The equivalent of the second Academy year." He said, "one day, we were out in an... Indoor bazaar, right? And, bored, I just hopped up on his back and screamed - Onwards, noble steed! - and he just bolted. So, with me on his back, we ran all the way through the bazaar until we got to the food stands. Then I hopped off and we got some food."

"What happened next?"

"We were detained for causing a public disturbance." Hibiki deadpanned. "Closest I've ever been to getting arrested."

"You remember _that_ but not why you looked like you were eating the entrails of a cow?"

"Well, while we were being held by the security officers, Rick there called the lot of them a bunch of uniformed felchers."

"I don't know what that is."

"And it should stay that way. I had to look it up, later, and I _still_ regret it." Though it would take years before he'd laugh quite as hard as he had, then.

Dai was silent a moment, "wait, I think I have heard that before, is that where, after Anal -"

"Who the flaming _fuck _would you have heard that from before me?! I _have_ to know!" Hibiki interjected.

Dai grinned smugly, "you don't think I just _know,_ Hibiki?" She let out a quick giggle at Hibiki's nonplussed expression, "Aoi's clan heiress. Tsume."

"Of course it would be an Inuzuka - moving on!" He said, raising a finger, before he flipped over a page.

The two spent another hour under the moonlight, looking through the old pictures Hibiki had reclaimed. Hibiki regaled her with several of the ancient stories he could remember, until they reached the end of the book, where they stopped cold at a picture of a gray headstone. Surrounded by flowers, the name carved into it blinded out by the flash of the camera taking the picture, Dai seemed to realize quickly what it was when Hibiki grew stiff and silent upon seeing it. She closed the book quickly enough, and leaned back into him.

"Is that all you did, those two days?" She asked, trying to figure out how it took him two days to find his home and search through it, when he could, while holding back for the benefit of his ally, cross an entire continent in less than three quarters that time.

Hibiki sighed, "no, actually. There was one other thing."

"Oh?"

"Mhm." Said Hibiki, "so... You remember, back when, when I told you about Kenichi's experiments?"

Dai felt her blood run cold, "you fought one?"

"Nah." Hibiki paused, "I spent those two days having some of the most intense and thought provoking philosophical discussions in both of my lives."

Dai was silent a moment, her mind having ground to a halt as she tried to process that statement. "_What?!"_

"Something Kenichi mentioned in his notes, was that before he got to work on Katsuo and ended up with me, he had _one_ success." Hibiki began, "but he called it a 'successful failure', because through that he figured out he could breathe life into lifeless bodies... But without souls, they weren't truly alive." He paused, curling his arms a little tighter around Dai as he chose his next words. "The way he wrote it in his notes, I thought he'd just killed it and moved onto figuring out how to get his hands on souls. As it turns out... He chased it out of his lab."

"The creature ended up running as far and as fast as his legs would carry him. Made landfall somewhere in China - that big mass on the right of the maps I'd shown you. Just to the left of where I said the elemental nations are, now." He explained, "around this time, the Creature didn't know how to talk, think, or do anything beyond instinct, really. He found his way into some city, but something was wrong, the whole place felt _off, _so he ran to the surrounding forests and woods. There, he subsisted on berries, mushrooms and plants - hunting an animal apparently never entered his mind. After about a year, he went back to the city and discovered that he had an intrinsic connection to the natural energy around them - discovering his ability to passively absorb Senjutsu chakra in the process. Here he figured out that, through this connection, he could sort through and _read_ the natural energy, as far back as when people used to walk its streets - something not even Katsuo can do.

"Experiencing these memories, he figured out how to talk, think, and so on. He began asking those important questions, and vowed to walk the earth until he got those answers. He experienced thousands, _hundreds_ of thousands of years through his various readings." Hibiki paused, "then one day, he sensed something different from the animals and such he'd been exposed to. A different kind of chakra - refined and ordered, as opposed to wild and free. He sought this chakra source out and found some random - and, may I say, suave - asshole rooting through a several thousand year old house."

Dai blinked, "you are kidding me."

Hibiki shook his head, "the guy was _buck, ass, naked,_ Dai. I wasn't imagining it. At first I thought it was Katsuo gone insane - they look almost exactly alike. Gray, dead, leathery skin, thick surgical scars, even got the golden eyes and scorched black hair. But what made me... Well, not try to kill him upon visual contact, was that he was the first human I'd seen on that continent, and that he didn't have a soul seal, like I or any of the other Undead had." Hibiki explained, "so, he and I talked. Swapped stories. I pieced together the missing parts of his, he listened to what I had to say... Theeen..." He drawled, "he started asking me that, if I've been around so long, if I knew whether or not he had a soul."

"Oh kami..." Dai breathed.

"Yeah." Said Hibiki, "but I didn't lie to him, I told him I didn't know. Before I knew it, we were on our way to a seed vault - a place where crops are frozen to be taken up in the event of a disaster. While I gave him a crash course in growing crops, and dropped a hell of a lot of reference material in a storage scroll for him, we pretty much spent the entire forty eight hours having non-stop philosophical discussions..." Hibiki yawned, "'why are we here'... 'What differentiates man and animal'... 'What does it mean to take a life'... 'Do I have a soul'... 'Do you?'... That kind of stuff." He paused, "oh, he didn't have a name. I named him Tarzan. King of the Wild." He grinned.

"You didn't bring him with you?" Dai asked.

Hibiki shook his head, "wasn't my place to take him from his journey, Dai. I couldn't answer his questions, but nor could I help him get those answers. So, best I could do was help him in his journey _to_ get them. I taught him how to use the land and not just live off of it... Taught him how to perform Something from Nothing... Gave him some _god damn clothes..._ And about the same time as Shikaku was comparing his dick size to Danzo's, Tarzan and I went our separate ways."

"Truly?" Dai asked, after a moment's silence.

Hibiki hummed, "yeah. As much as I think having him on our side would be a major boon..." He sighed, "that guy is _not_ a fighter. Compared to Katsuo's bonfire, his chakra is a few glowing embers. He doesn't even hunt animals to eat." Hibiki shook his head, "I'm sure I'll see him again, but... His journey isn't really mine to follow. I've got Katsuo and Zetsu to deal with." He paused, "but let's ignore that for a moment - I just remembered something." He took in a deep breath, "lady, how the _fuck_ did you keep up with my swift release?"

Dai grinned, "Minato, actually."

"Explain."

"Minato has been rather militant in bridging the gap between you two, Hibiki. Before he began work on his Hiraishin seals, last year, he came to me to try and find a way to keep up with you when you used your swift release. He said that you had went to him during your studies on it."

"Yeah." Said Hibiki, "he helped me figure out that the only difference between... Oh." Minato had never forgotten Hibiki's comparison between the swift release and regular body flickers - in so much that the only real difference between the two was longevity.

The body flicker was charging the muscles in the body with swift chakra and then moving at extreme high speeds for a few milliseconds at a time, whereas the Swift Release channeled the same chakra, but could do so functionally indefinitely. This was because, regular shinobi couldn't handle the strain of moving so fast for more than a few milliseconds at a time, but Hast blood adapted the body in such a way that it could handle the stress for much longer. The way Hibiki had gone about learning it had been grabbing Minato and having him execute a body flicker, at the same time that Hibiki pulled out the Swift Release. Hibiki _and_ Minato both approached speeds allowing for relativity to play a role, though with Minato, it had only been for a few milliseconds. Minato had compared trying to keep the body flicker going for longer than he usually did as an endurance test, like holding one's breath and running a mile. As it turned out, Minato hadn't been happy just to be a lab rat, but an active researcher.

Through Dai's one sentence, and compounded with what he had said about his speed ventures preceding his Hiraishin, Hibiki figured out that Minato had continued trying to master the Body Flicker. Doing so, and increasing the duration of usage, would allow Minato to keep up with Hibiki for brief snippets of time whenever they fought. Knowing Minato, he may be able to stampede his way straight to the highest known record for the longest body flicker, at half of a second. Better yet was, since Swift Chakra automatically adjusted the maximum speed based off of the user's reflexes, Minato's naturally uchiha-level reflexes would allow him to keep up with Hibiki even with his Sharingan. Thinking on it, Hibiki realized that, with his reflexes, whenever Minato dropped out of the body flicker, he could react fast enough to Hiraishin away before the still high-speed Hibiki could attack him. Then he could run through the body flicker handsigns again, and then jump right back in at high speed. All Minato needed then was to work on his physical strength, or get his hands on a decent ninjutsu or two, and Hibiki was actually willing to say Minato may be able to keep up with him.

_Maybe _he'll_ make Hokage, once Dante's done rocking the hat._ Thought Hibiki, though there was still one question on his mind. "Doesn't tell me where you factor into all of this, though."

Dai hummed, "he's waiting, Hibiki. He knows well and good that he still isn't even close to keeping up with you in a fair fight, but he doesn't want to tip his hand before he gets his chance to test himself against you. So he came to me, as he knew you and I have been training together, these last few years." She explained, "He used my experience fighting with you at... Well, _your_ speeds, to help further his body flicker mastery." She shook her head, and leaned back into Hibiki with a low sigh, "all I will tell you is that if you were stunned by how long _I_ was able to keep up with you, you have seen nothing, yet."

Hibiki chuckled, "damn it, lady. Now I _really_ want to go bug _his_ ass, figure out what all it is he's getting up to." Training like this under Jiraiya even, Hibiki was starting to look forward to the day Minato judged himself strong enough to challenge him.

The two were silent for several long minutes, simply enjoying eachothers' company, before Dai finally broke the silence. "So what do you intend to do before you deploy?"

"And how the hell -" Hibiki caught himself while he was ahead. He was willing to bet a lot of money that Dai always had a beetle crawling around on him, somewhere, and they had a hive mind. Two and two together, she already knew he had to head out and get deployed before they picked the next Kage. "Well... I've got a lot of clones in my future, I can say that much." He said with a sigh, "I've gotta help out Minato, look at his Hiraishin seal and then get him started on gun safety. Then I've got to get with Dante and get him to check my Sharingan. I'll most likely have to check in with Kushina before she thinks I hate her..."

"But?"

"But, one thing I'm most worried about is the one person that made it out of Iwa."

Dai thought a moment, before she nodded. "One of my beetles saw you bring her in. Was that Miu? From the Sunagakure chunin exams? She was a jinchuriki."

Hibiiki grunted in affirmative, "yup. And Katsuo tore the living shit out of her container seal, it's all mottled to hell and I'm pretty sure it'll break if she stresses it too much in a fight. I've got to check with her, probably with Uncle Oh, get a look at her seal and see what we can do to fix it. And she wasn't really my biggest fan, five-odd years ago." He said.

Dai blinked, "Hibiki are you actually _worried?"_

_"Hell yes_ I'm worried! I've fought a grand total of _one_ jinchuriki _once_ in my entire life. This _specific_ jinchuriki had a pretty decent mastery over its chakra, last time we saw eachother, and she spent the better part of five years being tortured by Katsuo and the Undead. Even if she hadn't had the time or freedom to train back then, I haven't really forgotten that she beat my ass in a straight up fight."

"But your clones took her down rather fast after that, as I recall, and you've only grown stronger since then." Dai pointed out.

"Yeah, but let's also remember that those seals are supposed to work both ways. Keep the biju chakra from leaking out, and keep human chakra from getting in. It limits the biju's output so as to not injure the jinchuriki, and simultaneously is supposed to limit whatever they can push _inwards_ with the goal of coaxing out that bijuu chakra. So her strength back then may very well have been just a fraction of what she's capable of without that filter." And Hibiki was well aware of the fact that Kushina's record, at three tails in her cloak - albeit at the cost of all of her controls - had proven a hefty challenge, and that had been with his lightning cloak evening the playing field, Mito Uzumaki's best sealwork forcibly keeping the balance of biju to human chakra at healthy levels, and with Kushina having little to no control over her actions. Emi, on the other hand, would likely be able to draw on _all_ of the Yonbi's power if she got pissed, which would lead to the Yonbi getting control over her body, and the mixed human/biju chakra therein, and Hibiki had already made something of an enemy of the damn dirty ape the last time they'd met.

"So you think she could prove a challenge to you?" Dai asked, concernedly.

"Yes and no." Hibiki admitted, "I've only ever seriously fought _one_ jinchuriki before, and that was her, and if I hadn't had the eight gates or my shadow clones, she would have _killed_ my ass. So even if I'm supposed to be strong enough to blow up hidden villages, and even if that's more than likely stronger than what the _nine_-tails can pump out, I don't want to underestimate those things." If it turned out he was leagues above even the best of them, then great! He had nothing to worry about! But he'd rather be paranoid with nothing to worry about, than to be relaxed and get his ass kicked.

Problem was, his admitted fears to Dai weren't doing anything to keep her calm.

He cleared his throat and leaned his head forward, pressing his temple against hers. "Besides, she was... Kinda broken when we took her out of Iwa. All of this could very well be boundless fears. We've got more pressing matters on our hands."

Dai blinked, "what on earth is more pressing than a ticking timebomb in the middle of the secure wing in one of Konoha's biggest hospitals?" She asked, leaning away from Hibiki and looking at him incredulously.

Hibiki grinned, "uh, we still haven't picked out our apartment, lady. I'd rather get that done _before_ I spend several months running around, patrolling our borders with a bunch of the Daimyo's samurai." He chuckled, leaning his head back and allowing the conversation to drift into silence, and his mind to drift elsewhere.

* * *

_Two Days Earlier_

* * *

Standing in the ancient home, two men - one with a gun, one with literally nothing but the hair on his head and the grime on his skin - stared at eachother. The clothed shinobi stared at the nude, heavily-scarred man, his jaw slack and his eyes wide, as opposed to the ear-to-ear grin worn by the nude man.

Hibiki's hand began to shake, as his eyes went from deep onyx to blood red, his pupils constricting in each eye before bursting outwards in two hourglass shaped spirographs. _Katsuo... _He thought, as he felt his heartrate begin to climb. _That... He..._ He began to grow a firm, livid frown as his eyes widened. He had the same scars, the same golden eyes, the same scorched black hair. Why was he nude? Was this actually him, or one of the other undead? Others had had similar graying skin and stitched together bodies. Maybe it -

_"I thought it was you!"_ The same raspy, deep voice, in the same language so very people in this world spoke.

Reason flew out the window - Minato's words flew out into orbit. Iwa was still new, and Hibiki was still more than willing to fight and kill any Undead to make up for it. Hibiki saw red, and bellowed so loudly that the windows in his childhood home shook and rattled. Before Katsuo could even blink, Hibiki's body was charged by Swift Chakra and he tackled the man viciously, wrapping his arms around the gray-skinned man's trunk. Narrowly avoiding damaging the ancient house, Hibiki and Katsuo barreled out of the front door, and into the air. Down they arced into the front lawn outside, which they hit with the sound of a muffled thunderclap, tearing a large groove into the ground.

"YOU!" Hibiki smashed his fist onto the man's leathery face, _"MOTHER!"_ His skin was instantly wreathed in black ink, and his fist impacted the face once again. _"**FUCKER!"**_ Black lightning wreathed his body and Hibiki smashed his fist into Katsuo's face once again, before he planted both feet in the ground and hauled the eight foot tall man into the air.

With a loud roar of chakra from his feet, Hibiki blasted into the sky. Grasped by the neck, the leathery-skinned man wheezed and grasped at Hibiki's hands desperately, trying to croak out any word at all in his defense, but Hibiki wouldn't hear any of it. With a livid bellow, tossed Katsuo lightly into the air, but when he swung his hand was when he briefly took his attention from the monstrous sage. Surrounding him and moving synchronously with his own arm, was an enormous skeletal arm constructed of pure chakra, partially opaque and a deep gray, almost black color, radiating raven fire. The massive skeletal fist slammed into Katsuo's upper body, sending him flying through the air with blood spraying from his mouth.

Floating in the air, Hibiki stared at his hand, and then raised his gaze to the skeletal fist floating above it. With every movement of his own arm, the chakra construct moved with it, locked and levitating a few feet beyond his own limb. A brief look showed him that the limb ended where its shoulder would be, but several inches above his neck. He clenched his hand and the skeletal limb did the same, and as he focused on it, his heart rate slowing down, he realized how much pain was emanating from his arm as he funneled chakra into this construct. It felt as if every cell in his arm was being dragged against the jagged edges of a cheese grater, against the grain, before being dipped in saltwater and set ablaze, somehow at the same time. Had he not had shinobi-levels of pain tolerance, he may not have been able to bear this pain. Hibiki unclenched his hand and the construct vanished, and for a brief moment he noticed his vision defocus, blurring to a degree he hadn't seen since he had worn glasses in his last life. He blinked heavily once, and his vision cleared upon opening his eyes again.

Hibiki stared at his hand a moment, thinking, _That construct... It looked similar to what Dante can do... But he said you need the Mangekyo to do it... Do I have it now?_ He turned his head back upwards, noticing now that he hadn't ever stopped channeling swift chakra - Katsuo was hardly even a few kilometers away. _Fuck it... I'll deal with that later._

Hibiki floated in the air, watching as Katsuo flew towards the horizon, his blood red, spirograph eyes narrow. Had Katsuo been weakened by Iwa? Or the brief Rinnegan fight afterwards? His surviving the explosion would explain the lack of clothes, but if he were injured and weakened by the explosion, why would he seek Hibiki out? Why not send Runner, Yui, or Aojiroi? Or, perhaps even more effective - try sending the youngest of the undead? It stood to reason that the second youngest after Hibiki would have most of, if not, the exact same bloodlines as him - meaning, given proper training, he should be as powerful as him on a statistical level. Perhaps even moreso, given he was surrounded by people who had similar bloodlines and could train him in the usage of all of them.

In the end, it didn't matter. Hibiki blasted forward, reaching the Undead just as he slammed into the ground just a few dozen miles from Atlanta - the city's ruined skyline could be seen in the distance. Katsuo slammed into a large stone cliff, overlooking a crater that Hibiki didn't recognize from his memories of the old world. Hibiki came in hard and smashed the balls of his feet into Katsuo's chest, burying him into the rock and sending stone and rubble flying into the air.

_"Wait -_" Katsuo cried out, before Hibiki smashed his palm into his throat and then pinned the man's massive meaty arms to the ground with his knees, before he began smashing his face with wide, thunderous haymakers. _"Please -"_ He tried again, before Hibiki again beat his face into the ground.

_"All of those people!"_ Hibiki roared in his native tongue, so he _knew_ Katsuo would understand him. Another punch sprayed blood all over the ground, Hibiki's fists were becoming stained with blood. _"That entire village!"_ The force of his blows was actually burying them deeper and deeper into the cliff. _"I am_ **DONE!"** Again he pounded Katsuo's face. _"With your **SHIT!"**_ He clenched Katsuo's hair and stood up, hauling the man as high up as he could._  
_

Before he could do anything, however, Katsuo - in an act born of sheer desperation - threw both of his hands forward and locked them onto Hibiki's head. An instant later, Hibiki felt a foreign presence take hold in his mind, and immediately everything went to hell. The moment the foreign chakra flooded into his own circulatory system, it was joined by the single loudest instance of the cries of the damned that Hibiki had ever heard. It felt as if he were closer to these tortured souls than ever before, and that they knew he was there - that they had learned from their previous attempts to gain his attention, and instead of quieting down, they joined forces in one massive, soul-shattering, deafening, tortured wail.

It felt like an eternity, the shrieks built and peaked, before finding new voices to join them and adding them to the eternal chorus. Hibiki didn't even realize that he had been dropped by the undead, or that it too had fallen to the ground, clutching its ears in pain and screaming so loud that Hibiki's chest shook. Hibiki pressed both of his hands to his ears in a desperate attempt to try and drown out the wails, but it didn't work. It only grew worse as outside stimuli grew more distant.

It was only after Hibiki began to unconsciously pour chakra out of his tenketsu, and his chakra took on an ugly black color, that the voices went away. The undead too began to leak this dead chakra, which didn't radiate into the sky like fire, but fell to the ground in plumes, like gas. As it began to dissipate into the air, the voices died down, and Hibiki finally realized that he too, along with the Undead, had been shouting. Hibiki planted his hands on the ground and laboriously raised his head to the Undead, who was thrashing about on the ground, black chakra leaking from his system.

With a pained grunt, Hibiki forced himself to his feet, and with a flick of the wrist, his gun appeared once again. It took three heavy steps to make it to the Undead, and with each one the voices grew more distant. Hibiki stomped his booted foot on the Undead's chest, bringing the creature out of his own tortured stupor, only to be greeted by the barrel of Hibiki's gun. The Senju heir knew that the man's chakra would be distorted and its flow ruined by this event - he personally had experienced it - so that meant the Undead was as weak to this gun as anyone else was.

So, Hibiki pulled the trigger. The bullet blasted out of the gun with a thunderclap and a bright lance of fire, burying into the Undead's head, drilling through its skin and its skull, pulverizing its brains, and blasting out the other side in a spray of blood. Another gunshot followed the first, and a third, and a fourth, and Hibiki continued firing constantly until the gun clicked on empty, and the slide locked into place. The final shell flew out of the gun and rattled to the ground with a light scrape of metal on stone.

The gun still held aloft, Hibiki stared down the barrel at the Undead's perforated face. Blood leaked from both the forward and rear ends, pooling around the former monster in a grotesque halo. Hibiki dropped his hand, feeling a great weight slide off of his shoulders as he fell back a step, and then fell to his rear.

_"Fucking... Dead."_ He breathed, dropping the gun and running his sweat-slick, bloodstained hand through his thick hair. He took in several deep breaths, his head going light as his brow furrowed. _"Okay..."_ Katsuo dead, and unless Hibiki was mistaken, he was the man holding all of the Undead together, leading them. There was about an equal chance that they would either fall apart without him, or try to struggle to stay together - but either way, without Katsuo's leadership and power, they wouldn't be nearly as capable as -

There was a deep, gasping breath, causing Hibiki's head to snap over to the Monster. The holes in his head were sealing themselves shut, and his chest was raising and lowering, causing Hibiki's shoulders to slump.

_"Oh... You've got to be kidding me."_ Breathed the Senju. _Well... Gun's out._ He thought, as he grabbed the weapon and sealed it back in his wrist. His eyes narrowed and flashed red as the Undead began coughing. _Let's try something a bit more permanent, then._ He hauled himself back to his feet and raised his hand straight up and down; he'd lose Atlanta, but if this actually killed Katsuo, he'd have to take that loss.

As his chakra flickered in and out, before a baseball sized orb of white, explosive chakra gathered in his hands. Hibiki kept silent as Katsuo's head turned to him, and creature's eyes widened and he threw his hands out in a begging, pleading manner.

_"I... Please!" _Hibiki blinked,_ "no more!"_ The voice was the same, but the tone, with a moment more to actually hear it, and without the blood thundering in his ears, Hibiki was able to actually listen to it. It wasn't nearly as confident as Katsuo's, and the way he spoke English didn't carry nearly as many nuances of someone as young as Hibiki assumed Katsuo to have been. And with this hesitance, plus his Sharingan eyes, Hibiki was able to notice one single, damningly important detail in his peripherals: The Undread didn't have a single Soul Seal, anywhere on his core.

Hibiki, however, knew that if he dropped his stance, made the creature feel as if he was becoming safe, before he got his answers, he may not get them period. And, of course, he was livid, and a part of him still felt as if this was some sort of elaborate trick.

_"Strike one."_ The chakra gathered in Hibiki's hand grew larger and more dense, and Hibiki pointed it right at the Undead's head. _"Now who the hell are you?! How did you find me? And WHY -"_ Hibiki indicated the creature's stomach with a rough jerk of the head, _"don't you have a soul seal?!"_ It had to be undead, like him - no one else but Katsuo, an undead, had gotten the cries of the damned to try and tear apart his eardrums.

_"Please!"_ Gasped the creature, _"I sensed you! I followed the flame, sought the light! I beg of you, I've no quarrel with anyone!"_

Hibiki growled, _"TALK!"_ He screamed so loud his voice echoed in the distance.

_"I -"_ The creature swallowed thickly through his dry throat, _"I sensed you from a great distance, I followed your light until I discovered you yourself!"_ He inhaled deeply, _"I was created! Cast out! Please, I swear to you I am not a threat to you or anyone!"_

Hibiki scowled at the man for a few seconds more, before he finally lowered his voice. _"What do you mean cast out?"_ He asked, keeping the explosive chakra pointed at his face.

_"I was created, but my creator, he deemed me a failure and ran me from his home!"_ The man spoke quickly, _"I was given not a name, or even anything beyond his words of anger and fear! I sensed you, and you seemed so familiar and yet so foreign... I promise you Da-"_

Hibiki's eyes widened and he cut the man off, "_you say that name and watch what happens."_ Hibiki warned, before he sighed, and lowered his hand, the explosive orb dissipating and shrinking.

The man blinked, _"but... You've three names - Hibiki, Teague, and_ -" He saw Hibiki's bloodstained fist clench, and caught himself, "_I saw you so closely cherish __ -"_

_"I know what you saw - I _felt_ you rooting around in there."_ Hibiki gesticulated at his head, it had been an incredibly odd feeling, what had run through his head, halfway between Noboru's chakra plugging up his system and a Yamanaka's mind-reading techniques. The biggest difference between this and that of the Yamanaka, however, being that all of the places this creature had thrashed about in, they were all jarred and brought to the surface, and Hibiki was well aware of what the man knew. _"But you didn't get the whole story."_ Hibiki fell to his rear on the ground, feeling more exhausted right now than he had in years. _"So... You tell me the truth, I'll give you an apology. You tell me why you followed me, I'll tell you why I remember the name but don't use it."_ It had been fifteen years, an entire lifetime, since he had ever heard the right letters be put in the right order to make up the name he had once gone by, in another life, and another world. _"Do _you_ have a name?"_

The big man shook his head, _"I was never given one."_ He said, in the dead language.

Hibiki eyed the wild man up and down, _"well, I'm not going to call you 'guy', and 'Bum' is too mean, even if I don't trust you too much. So from now on you're Tarzan."_ King of the wild, powerful, and - perhaps most pertinent - completely lacking in clothes. It fit. _"Now talk, Tarzan."_ He said, in a tone that still suggested he was more than willing to blow this bastard up.

The leathery-skinned man blinked his wide, golden eyes, and nodded once, itching a scratch underneath the big, bushy beard. _"As I told you, Sir... Hibiki - __I am afraid I know very little of from where I come, all I know is what little I have been able to glean." _He explained, _"I was... Created, a very long time ago. By a man in a place very far away from here. I think he is deceased, now. But he wished above all else to be able to breathe life into something without it."_

Hibiki nodded, his mind flashing back to Kenichi's notes. _Confirms it, he's an Undead... _ He scanned the man's fully bared body, _but without the soul seal..._

_"I heard him shout incessantly, mere days after my creation. It wasn't until after I learned of my abilities and gained a handle upon them that I discovered that I had been, in his word, a successful failure. I was created, and not born, and therefor I do not possess a soul." _The undead continued.

Hibiki's shoulders relaxed. He remembered this, Kenichi's notes had only mentioned it in passing, a 'failure' that had led the madman to discover that life could not exist, a body could not live, without a soul. He talking to an actual Frankenstein's Monster.

_"And he cast you out."_ Hibiki interrupted; this being wasn't affiliated with Katsuo, he and Katsuo had been 'born' _years_ apart, and if Tarzan here had run as far and as fast as it seemed he did after being cast out, Katsuo likely never even found him. Now he felt a bit bad for the seven bullet-shaped scars he had in his head.

Tarzan nodded enthusiastically, his hair bouncing up and down as he did so. _"Yes! He was... I was very scared, when he tried to force me to leave. He did so many spectacular things with his hands and his voice, he conjured fire from the air, turned the walls and floors against me, I ran away, and did not stop running until I passed over water, and hit land again, after many, many moons rose and fell."_

Likely meaning, depending on what direction this poor creature had run, he had either ended up in China or Canada, maybe even the US. Though Hibiki did note in the back of his mind that, if this guy was to be believed, he had run across an ocean anywhere between hours and days after he woke up. A newborn, admittedly with an adult body, displaying the skill with chakra needed to walk across water, for _days_ on end. Hibiki felt he was getting a picture of Kenichi's early methods, now - given the similarities between Tarzan and Katsuo, they both likely had Uzumaki blood, for its superior vitality, and the bloodline that allowed the natural absorption and creation of senjutsu chakra. The latter, Hibiki could only guess at why Kenichi eventually abandoned it, but Hibiki was willing to conclude that Kenichi had used it in the early days due to it likely being able to breathe life into bodies much easier.

_Maybe it's got something to do with bloodline mixtures. Uncle Oh said his curse mark was based off of the Envir clan, who absorb senjutsu naturally, but that most folks with the Envir bloodline turned into monsters, like Aojiroi, due to taking too much in. So, with Uzumaki vitality, you'd need half and half, else you get a bad mix and Hulk out. Half Uzumaki and half Envir means perfect enough mixture to produce constant Sage mode, but add anything else to the mix and it becomes too unstable. I wonder how many after Aojiroi had this unstable mixture, or if he was the last._ If this were the explanation, it would certainly explain why Katsuo seemed to only have Senjutsu chakra and _nothing else._

Hibiki cleared his throat, and decided that the threat had passed - if it had ever been there in the first place - and with a brief spin, he sealed up his gun. _"And the clothes?"_

Tarzan adjusted his posture and leaned back against the edge of his crater, "_it was many months before I found the ruins of the Uhn -"_

_"The _Uhn?!"

_"The... United Nations?"_ He said, his raspy, deep voice filled with a questioning, uncertain tone.

_"The UN."_ Hibiki corrected, holding back a chuckle. _"Sorry."_

_"No-" _He coughed, Hibiki saw him swallow some blood, and felt a brief pang of guilt, before he continued. "_I much prefer to know than to not. As I said, it was many months before I found the ruins of the UN. I was in what was once called China, but seeing the devastation wrought there, even in my ignorance I knew it was not natural. But... I sensed something, from those ruins. It would be some time before I could put a word to the feeling, but it was death. I sensed death, in those ruins."_

Hibiki wondered if what Tarzan was about to explain would be similar to what people said they'd heard out of Chernobyl's ruins, as he leaned forward and nodded.

_"I... It is difficult to explain, but I felt almost intimately the energy of the lives that had once lived out in that city."_ He locked his golden eyes onto Hibiki's onyx orbs, _"do you feel those same things?"_ He asked, his raspy, hoarse voice hopeful.

Unfortunately, Hibiki shook his head. _"No."_ He figured it had something to do with the senjutsu chakra running through his body, but given that Tarzan assumedly had no soul, and was just an animated sack of meat, there could be any explanation.

Tarzan dipped his head down, _"I see..."_ He whispered, pausing a moment, before he shook his head and looked back up to Hibiki. _"It felt as if I, personally, was able to experience the moments of the lives of everyone who had lived and died in that city. The feeling was strongest when I found their skeletons... But it was enough to scare me, as I had no earthly idea of what was happening to me, and I had no one else to turn to. So I ran, again, back to the wilderness."_ Hibiki had yet to figure out how this tied into Tarzan's lack of even a loincloth. _"I survived on little else but berries, mushrooms, and whatever else looked edible to my aching, ailing stomach. It never occured to me that I could eat the wildlife, though I am glad I never resorted to that..."_ He smiled fondly, _"I quite liked it when they approached me, curiously. It wasn't until, more than a year after I had been born, that I had run afoul of a pack of wolves. They thought I was prey and attacked, but their teeth shattered on my skin, their claws bounced off, and in minutes they were on the retreat. This was my first clue that I was different - because they bled, and I did not. _

_"I wanted to know what was different, from me to them, and I could sense in my heart that the answers laid in those terrifying ruins. So... I returned." _Tarzan cleared his throat, _"I apologize, I have never spoken, period... Let alone for this long."_ He paused, _"and... I hurt."_

_Play the guilt card, why don't you? _Hibiki reached down into his scrolls pouch, and pulled out a storage seal. _"You want some water?"_ He opened it up and, with a plume of smoke, retrieved his canteen, which he tossed to Tarzan.

Tarzan stared at it, wide eyed and thinking. _"How... How do I...?"_ He turned to Hibiki for help.

Hibiki blinked, but acquiesced. _"The lid, on top."_ He pointed to it, _"twist it off."_ Tarzan did so, his thick, dirt-encrusted fingers fumbling for a bit before they got purchase, and was able to twist it off.

Tarzan nearly dropped the canteen in surprise, _"I did it!"_ He said, with a wide smile on his face, before he upended the canteen into his free hand, ensuring that less than a quarter of it eventually made it into his mouth.

_What is your major malfunction, Tarzan? _Hibiki was willing to excuse the fact that he had likely never drank water from anywhere other than a lake or a waterfall before, and hadn't ever even operated a canteen, but the excitement was what threw Hibiki off. The way Tarzan spoke, so formally and reflectively, yet naively and innocently. What kind of creature was this?

Tarzan coughed, _"my thanks."_ He said, some strength in his voice, before he gave the emptied canteen back. Hibiki could actually see the streaks the water left on his skin, cleaning the layers of dirt from him. _"So... I returned to the city."_ He said, settling back into his deep, hoarse voice. "_And I discovered that I had the ability to... Sort, so to speak, the wild energies of the world around me. Order them up, and then I could read them. It was then that I lived through the memories and touched the souls of the dead. I experienced so much in so little time... Happiness, sorrow, anger and contentedness... It was overwhelming, I did not even know such things existed beyond satisfying hunger."_ Again, Hibiki couldn't tell where the guy's nudism came from, especially if he had a whole city to loot. _"From these experiences I learned to speak... But as I poured deeper, I did not just watch the memories, I _lived_ them. I truly did _experience_ them."_ Hibiki tilted his head curiously, nodding to bade him continue. _"And it was around then that I truly came to consider my different nature. These creatures were weak and frail, and yet I was strong. Why was I different? It wasn't until I came across memories of battle, and the war of the Rabbit Goddess, that I learned from whence my strength came."_

This sounded familiar - Katsuo had a similar ability, he said he could read chakra, but not natural energy. What was the difference between the two? Age? Or perhaps that Tarzan assumedly had no soul? Maybe there was another bloodline in the mix? Or maybe even he had more Envir blood than Uzumaki, and it gave him the power to read this energy? Regardless, Hibiki guided the topic back on point. _"So... Clothes?" _Hibiki was definitely interested in Tarzan's story, but he hadn't had his initial question answered.

Tarzan blinked, _"oh! Uh... As I said, I felt both the lives and deaths of those in this city. I felt it improper and immoral of me to steal from them. They were dead, and even the clothes in the ancient storing houses, they were mine to mine to be taken."_

He had a problem with grave-robbing. And stealing. Thousands of years after the society in which both of those things were outlawed collapsed. Hell, the first, Hibiki could understand, but the latter? If everything had burned down and Hibiki needed a pair of pants, damn it, he'd take that pair of pants! _He wanted a pair of pants!_

_Wait... _Hibiki straightened up, _"you're telling me you _found_ clothing warehouses? With pants?!"_

Tarzan blinked confusedly. _"Um... Yes?"_

Hibiki's goal was within sight.

Pants in his lifetime!

He could almost feel the denim, but shook his head, deciding now wasn't the time. _"Explain to me this feeling, of yours."_ Hibiki may not be an accomplished sensor, but if he focused hard enough he could get the job done, but he never felt anything even close to what Tarzan here was explaining; and even though Katsuo claimed to be able to 'read' chakra, he said reading natural energy was impossible, it 'recycled' itself too many times to go back too far.

_"Oh."_ Tarzan nodded, trying to think of the proper words. _"I... I can feel the lives of everything around me, for a great distance. There are animals feasting, there are hunters hunting, birds flying..." _He said, _"but... Underneath it all there is an order to things. A cold fire, that if I focus upon it, I can not just feel their energy, but the warmth of their lives. When I enter a city, the warmth is replaced by cold. I embrace this cold, and I experience wholly the memories and lifetimes of the individuals who had lived and died there. Even before the Rabbit Goddess walked the earth, people had an energy about them... Different to what exists now."_ Tarzan paused, looking pensive. _"Is that what you would call a soul?"_

Hibiki shrugged his shoulders, _"maybe? I couldn't tell you. It would fit the bill, but souls weren't something we knew existed, back then."_

Tarzan blinked, _"you were alive in the ancient world?"_

_"Ah... Um... Kind of." _Hibiki scratched at the back of his head, _"the man that made you, made my body, and took my soul from the afterlife and put it in it. I still have my memories from my first life, and it was in this era."_ He waved his hand around the cliff, stopping when it reached the direction Atlanta's ruins lied in.

Tarzan looked ecstatic, _"so souls do exist? Do you know if I have one?!"_ The smile on his face somehow lit up the room, literally - a subtle green glow emitted from him at his elation.

Hibiki, however, shook his head. _"I..." _If Katsuo's notes were to be believed, then Hibiki already knew this answer. But talking to this creature, calming down enough to think of it from Tarzan's point of view, he couldn't just outright say it, not if he didn't want to _break_ this poor man. "_I can't answer that, Tarzan."_ He said, _"until I read Kenichi's notes, I didn't even know empirically that souls existed. I had to take it on faith."_ He explained.

Tarzan tilted his head, _"faith?"_

_"You've experienced memories, but don't know what faith is?"_

_"Memories, yes... But not thoughts. Only that which was said and felt, personally... I have heard the word, many times, but it is something everyone knew, but never said explicitly. What is it?"_ He looked hopefully into Hibiki's eyes.

Hibiki whistled,_ "whew... Um..."_ How to describe faith? _"It's... Damn, er... It's _faith, _it's... Believing something, even if you don't know it's there."_ This was something of an intrinsic concept, no one ever really _needed_ it explained; they just believed in it. _"It's like... A... Flower of light."_ Hibiki gesticulated with his hands, _"in... A field of darkness."_ Someone would be rolling in their graves, but he saw comprehension dawning in Tarzan's golden eyes. _"It gives you the strength to carry on."_ Hibiki's hands returned to his lap.

Tarzan was speechless, his eyes wide and his jaw slack as he took in Hibiki's words. _"So... You have faith in something... Even if you do not know it is true?"_

_"Yeah."_

_"Do you think my creator was right? Or... Do you have faith that he was wrong?"_

Did Hal 9000 just ask him if he had a soul? _"Whoa..."_ Hibiki leaned back in his chair, eyes wide as he tried to think up an answer for the sponge of information sitting on the other side of the silent room. _"Tarzan... Man, I..."_ He shook his head, _"I really don't know."_ What was the dividing line between something with a soul and without it? Did nonsentient creatures, like animals and plants, have souls? Or was it unique to something with sentience? If that was the case, then did life made by man, which would therefor be intelligent, have a soul, or wouldn't it?

Hibiki could tell from the look in Tarzan's eyes that this had likely been the question that had driven him ever since he had gained the capacity for abstract thought.

_"I... I'm sorry, Tarzan, but I don't think I'm even remotely qualified to tell you that."_ He said, _"I... Shit."_ He breathed, running a hand through his thick raven hair, as Tarzan waited, anxiously leaned forward, for the yes or no. _"I do not know at all."_ Hibiki finally said, _"I'm really - I'm..."_ He sighed, _"I'm sorry."_ He had _not_ expected to be talking major philosophy with a man-made human today.

Tarzan lowered his gaze, _"I see..."_ He said, _"I have been wandering the world for many decades, trying to answer this question. I have experienced so many lives, I have seen the war of the Rabbit Goddess from its beginning to its end... But never have I gotten close to an answer. I cannot feel the warmth or coldness inside me, only... Nothing."_

Hibiki's heart went out for the creature before him, he felt obligated to say something. _"Listen... Do you know what drove my people?"_ He asked, getting Tarzan to lift his head. _"The pursuit of knowledge."_ Tarzen tilted his head, and straightened up. _"Back then, before chakra, before Kaguya Otsutsuki, before all of it, we were working purely within the physical laws of the universe. The more we knew, the less we understood, but our single, all consuming goal was to _learn._ What, why, the answer to any question we could ask, we voraciously sought out."_ He pointed upwards, _"our footprints are on the moon."_ Tarzan briefly looked at the sky, before his head snapped back to Hibiki. _"We were figuring out how the universe worked. We were working on leaving this earth - hell, we _knew _how, we just had to figure out how to _do it_." _He explained, _"neither matter nor energy can be created, or destroyed, they can only change forms. That means all of the information we had, all of the effects our presence had, they're all still there. All of our knowledge, waiting to be picked up. You have displayed the ability to essentially _read _the natural chakra of the earth, that which surrounds us. But more than that, you seem to be able to read the imprints left behind by departed _souls._"_ He explained, firmly. _"So, Tarzan, I can't tell you if you have a soul or not. I don't know. I can tell you what I believe, but that doesn't make it true."_ He pointed at him, _"but you can. You can learn it. You've walked the earth for decades now without speaking to a soul - er... A person. Poor choice of words."_ He smiled sheepishly, but Tarzan was enraptured. _"You're more determined than most folks I've met. You can learn it, you can answer that question."_ He finished.

Tarzan waited several moments, taking in Hibiki's words. _"I..."_ He tilted his head, _"sense great conflict within you."_ Hibiki blinked, not expecting such a topic change. _"You... You work so tirelessly to help."_

_"Tarzan..."_

_"But you do not know if it has any effect. You do not know if it is working."_ Tarzan narrowed his eyes, briefly gazing down to Hibiki's chest, right where his heart and his soul seal were. _"You doubt yourself."_

_"Tarzan."_ Hibiki said, with a bit more strength.

_"What is your name?"_

Hibiki pursed his lips, his brow furrowed. _"Hibiki Senju."_

Tarzan shook his head, _"no... Your true name."_

Hibiki was silent for several long moments, his shoulders slumped and his back arched as he leaned on his knees. He guessed it was his turn, wasn't it? _"That is my name, Tarzan."_ He said, firmly. _"The..."_ He sighed, _"the person I was died. _I _died. That name belongs to someone else, a different label for a different person."_ Or perhaps it was more close to a different label for a different body.

Tarzan said as much, _"but are you not the product of the memories imprinted upon your soul? Have your experiences in this life and the one passed not shaped you? Are you Hibiki Senju, or the person before?"_ He asked, genuine curiosity shining in his golden eyes. _"And what of this Teague I heard so thoroughly?"_

Hibiki shook his head, _"both, and neither. I _am,_ me. But my name, it's Hibiki. I had to struggle for a long time to cast off the old one... To bury that body."_ He explained, _"and Teague is... A secret. An experiment. A choice I both do and do not regret making. Five years running and I'm still not sure if it'll bear any positive fruit,_ _long-term."_ He shook his head, "_Tarzan,__ a name is... A label. A means of identification. And if you saw my old face, and put it next to my current one -"_ He waved his hand in front of his face as he explained, "_\- there would be no resemblance, whatsoever. My name was once what it was, but that was for a body and a person that died. Now, I am Hibiki Senju."_

_"But is your identity not that of Hibiki and who you once were? I believe the term I have experienced used is... John Doe?"_

_You are _not_ helping your 'Katsuo's Lackey' argument, Tarzan._ Blithely thought the Senju heir, as he sighed. _"Tarzan, I died. That is empirical. It's a fact. It happened."_ Hibiki's death record was in NORAD, along with billions of others. He'd even found his archived Facebook account; NORAD's 'historical records' were thorough, and in both lives there had never been a more surreal moment than reading his own death certificate. _"I have those memories, yes... But I am not that person anymore."_ He said, shaking his head.

_"Why?"_

Another heavy, aged sigh. _"That man... He saved people. He made them feel good. He comforted them. Twenty four hours a day, seven days a week. His job, his goal in life, was to ride ambulances, take people to the hospital. Maybe get a PhD and become a surgeon someday. He saved lives... But Hibiki... But me? I end them."_

Tarzan nodded, _"and therein lays the conflict I sense."_

_"I've killed a _lot_ of people, Tarzan. More than I once thought possible."  
_

_"But do you not help people anymore?"_

Hibiki blinked.

Tarzan continued, innocently. _"Do you no longer heal and help? Do you no longer entertain and make laugh? I sensed it within you, you did not trust me and were willing to kill me if I proved to be a threat, when I first contacted you. But not once have you hesitated to help me, as I have not shown any malice towards you or those you hold precious."_ He said, _"Hibiki, you are a powerful and proud man... But you are not a bad one."_ He nodded once, _"I can tell."_

Hibiki sighed, _"you..."_ He looked Tarzan over. _"Look to be about Dante's size, maybe a bit thicker."_

Tarzan blinked, and watched as Hibiki pulled out another storage scroll from the pockets on his pants. The Senju heir opened it up and in a plume of smoke, out came a set of clothes, from a shirt and coat, all the way down to a pair of boots and socks. Hibiki handed the small pile over to Tarzan, _"here."_ He paused, _"I'm getting really sick of staring at your penis."_ He grinned.

Tarzan, for the first time in his long life, laughed.

He climbed out of his crater a quarter of an hour later, wearing, for the first time in his life, clothes. The dark shirt was one size too small, and the khaki pants just a bit baggy around the shins, but they fit him. Hibiki donated a cloned overcoat to help the man out with the rain, covering up his arms, practically making him a bigger, grayer, version of the Senju heir. They felt odd to him, and Hibiki could tell from the way Tarzan fidgeted against the foreign feeling of cloth rubbing against his skin, and leather and rubber wrapping around his feet.

_"So... You know how to talk."_ Said Hibiki, as he got to his feet. _"Do you know how to read?" _Tarzan turned his golden-eyed gaze to him and nodded. _"How about farm?"_ Tarzan shook his head; to which, Hibiki understood. _"You don't eat meat, you live off of the green stuff."_ He pulled a map out of his back pocket, _"I figure, before I go home, I'll help set you up."_ He opened the map, and tapped on an island near Norway.

Tarzan looked up from the map, _"you're going home?"_

Hibiki smiled, and looked up to Atlanta, _"I _am_ home, Tarzan... But..."_ He shook his head, and waved his arm around him. _"This isn't it. I thought it was, but... Home is where the heart is."_ His eyes glazed over, as they locked onto Japan, which, on this map, looked nothing like it did currently. _"And... I've gotta go back."_ He leaned up and grasped Tarzan's thick, firm shoulder, giving him a playful tug. _"You helped me, so I'm going to help you."_

Tarzan blinked, _"but I hardly said but a word!"_

Hibiki chuckled, _"yeah... But sometimes you don't have to say much to say enough."_ He rumbled; Tarzan had, in just a few short minutes, given Hibiki an outsider's perspective on his life and, without a single detail offered up, basically told Hibiki that no matter what he thought, he was, by nature, a good man. Flawed, certainly, but good; and if the most innocent man in the world, with perhaps the best sensory skillset in the universe, thought he was good, then damn it, he may as well stop feeling sorry for himself and prove him right. _"So..."_ He tapped on Norway. _"I've been meaning to visit here anyways. Right around here is a place known as a seed vault, which is basically an underground bunker filled with genetic samples of crops of all kinds, and other types, too."_ If Hibiki were to be completely honest, a part of him wanted to see if there were any samples of the human genome, so he could take that, clone it, and go back to NORAD and start running tests and experiments.

Orochimaru would probably shit himself if Hibiki gave him blood with no chakra in it.

Tarzan, however, looked enraptured at the thought. _"Truly?"_

Hibiki nodded, shaking his head. _"What we're going to do, big guy, is head there. The place is kept under the permafrost, in low-oxygen conditions, in a very, very cold environment, so as to delay aging as best as possible. We're going to go in, get some samples for the both of us, and then head back here -"_ He dragged his finger to Colorado. _"Where I'm going to give you a book on farming. That way, as you're walking the earth, you won't have to rely on its kindness to feed you."_ And it would give Hibiki an excuse to check and see if the seed vault, or even NORAD - he had a logbook there of everything in the place - had any tobacco products, the Senju heir would _not_ have put it past the folks to store some ready-made samples of old products in the face of an oncoming apocalypse; and at the very least, Hibiki would be able to get some for himself and grow his own.

Two lifetimes of waiting was enough, if he had to set himself on fire from the inside out to stay even just the slightest bit calm in this screwed up, mostly empty world, then he would.

Tarzan nodded, _"thank you, Hibiki."_

Hibiki shook his head, _"thank _you,_ Tarzan."_ He said, _"and before you think I forgot... I'm sorry for shooting the shit out of you."_ Hibiki said, _"I thought you were someone else."_ His face fell briefly, as he wondered what hell Katsuo was planning to unleash now that Iwa was gone and war was here.

Tarzan, however, wore a big grin and shook his head. _"It is of no worry, Hibiki. I have seen many memories of past lives... Many friendships began with a misunderstanding such as the one we had."_ He grasped Hibiki's shoulder in a manner similar to that which Hibiki had done earlier, _"I am merely happy to have met another living human being."_


	65. Report

Chapter 64

* * *

_Hibiki 'Thunder God' Senju_

_Rank: Chunin, S_

_Age: 15_

_Tactics:_

_Prefers extreme close range taijutsu combat. Utilizes chakra extensively to augment strength, similar style to nintaijutsu.  
Uses multiple techniques to augment striking power - senjutsu chakra juinjutsu, lightning release chakra mode, eight gates released formation, various copied (?) bloodlines including but not limited to the Swift Release and the Explosion Release.  
Jinchuriki-level capacity for augmenting power. Upper limits constantly growing.  
Safe Assumption: Hibiki's power is never at its maximum, always has one more method of powering up and getting the edge over his opponent._

_Unparalleled master of the Shadow Clone technique. One solid hit is not good enough to disperse - must meet actual, physical conditions for death in order to disperse clone.  
Safe assumption: The Senju currently fighting is _never _the true, 'Alpha' Senju._

_Chunin (equivalent*) level mastery of Shikotsumyaku. Refined control over healing abilities leads to incredible difficulty in causing lasting, lethal injuries.  
*No true ranking system yet exists for Kaguya clan. Ranks are considered equivalent due to age the clan expects abilities mastered versus average promotion age of Konoha ranked shinobi.  
__Safe Assumption: So long as he has chakra, Senju is nigh-unkillable, and is never without weapons. _

_Kage-level mid/long range abilities. Senju's 'thunder' techniques have been shown to be applicable in all ranges from point blank to extreme long, and are capable of killing Genin-Kage level threats equally as easily. With enough surprise, Senju can kill from any range, invariably. Projectiles are known to hit before they can even be heard approaching. However: Cannot be operated without handsigns.  
Safe Assumption: If he sets his pride aside, or is otherwise uninterested or unwilling to engage in personal combat, Senju is capable of killing most anyone without warning._

_Kage-level taijutsu abilities.  
See: Combat preferences.  
Safe assumption: Hibiki is nigh untouchable in taijutsu by anyone of lesser skill or speed.  
_

_Chunin-level Genjutsu abilities. Due to mastery of sharingan, is capable of casting ocular genjutsu, but has shown a clear lack of any interest in the subject beyond academic. Dojutsu renders genjutsu defense absolute.  
Note: Kurama-brand genjutsu has been shown to possess ability to pierce (?) Sharingan-based immunity. Further research required due to lack of large focus group.  
Safe Assumption: High chance one will not require defenses against genjutsu when engaging. _

_Kage-level ninjutsu abilities. Due to preference for taijutsu, Senju by and large has been shown to set ninjutsu aside in favor of his thunder techniques. Regardless, intense and constant training compounded with field reports show great skill for ninjutsu beyond taijutsu-enhancing techniques. Lightning and Fire affinity, evidence to suggest working on further nature affinities. Sharingan allows ever-expanding ninjutsu list. Senju is also extremely proficient at examining, dissecting, and replicating newly observed nin/taijutsu in combat scenarios, and using the unmastered versions mid-battle, as well as studying and expanding their power when given the chance.  
**Has shown singular, heretofore unseen and unreplicated ability to recreate Bijuu-Dama.**  
Safe Assumption: Senju's arsenal is ever-expanding, and can potentially grow to innumerable heights. Destructive capacity enough to literally level an entire hidden village._

_Jinchuriki-level chakra stores. Constant and continued chakra growth exercises from age 6 onwards has led to chakra storage levels approaching that only seen in jinchuriki and previous-generation kage.  
Safe Assumption: ___Add mastery of shadow clone technique, eight gates techniques, and a chakra storage seal capable of refueling him mid-battle, _Senju can fight for as long as he must._

_Chunin-level leadership abilities. Only experience leading is leading his own team on combat missions when separated from their Jonin-sensei, during the Kirigakure invasion, and his un/sanctioned mission to Iwagakure. Loose, improvisational style, is capable of teamwork but is proficient in 1v1 combat.  
Safe Assumption: Senju is never seen with more than three in a combat situation, six in a non-combat situation._

_Overall Ranking:  
**S**_

_Hibiki Senju's feats, strength, and experience, rank him among Kage-level threats. Truly his lack of leadership is the only reason he himself is not ranked at Kage.  
As his strength grows, it may be prudent to create a new rank on the system to match his power.  
Other similarly 'X'-ranked threats would be Hashirama Senju, Madara Uchiha, Orochimaru of the Sannin, and Katsuo the Monster of Iwagakure._

_Reccomendation:  
If at all possible, do not engage directly.  
**Ever.**  
Instead pursue indirect warfare._

* * *

Three clones, plus the Alpha. If all went good, Hibiki would be able to get most of his business done in a day, and be able to spend the rest of his pre-deployment time securing an apartment for him and Dai.

First stop: Dante. Considering that his free time may be becoming a premium imminently, Hibiki felt it prudent to try and meet with him earliest.

If the unclean jonin expected to see his student at his doorstep at sunup, he didn't make any indication. He just turned his onyx eyes from the chunin, whose height disadvantage was shrinking with every passing month, to the sky, orange from the rising sun, and then back down to Hibiki, as he scratched at his oily hair. His visage was that of having literally just gotten out of bed, not surprising the chunin, who had grown accustomed to his less-than-average tendencies.

The Uchiha cleared his throat, "little early, isn't it?" He asked, before he dropped his hand down to itch at one of the scars on his bare chest.

Hibiki arced an eyebrow, "I suppose you've heard the news?"

"I was considering a bath to mark the occasion." Said Dante, before he flashed a handsign, and the smell of mints flooded the air. "Allow me to speak candidly, Hibiki. I _hate_ you." He said, a grin stretching across his dirt-encrusted face.

"Oh?"

"I mean, this works out, us Uchiha can't fall back on the whole 'everybody doesn't trust us' thing for us being assholes." Said the Jonin, "though I will thank you, if it does end up working out." He added. "Now what do you want?"

Hibiki let out a yawn, "my Sharingan's been acting up. I was hoping you could -"

Dante's smile fell and he interrupted Hibiki, "for how long? Pain? Describe it."

Hibiki blinked, though in the back of his mind he felt he already knew where this was going. "Burning." He said, "like opening my eyes in saltwater."

Dante cast a quick glance around the two, but saw little else but empty street and a few distant military policemen. He nodded the Senju inside, "come on." He said, before he snatched a baggy shirt from a hook off of the wall.

Hibiki followed Dante through his house, which oddly was much, much cleaner than Hibiki would have assumed on his own. There weren't piles of scrolls, or mountains of books leaning against the walls, he didn't see leftover foodstuffs sitting on the table, and there wasn't a streak of dirt anywhere on the floor or walls. In fact, it seemed as if it had been mopped just yesterday. Hibiki knew Dante wasn't married, so maybe this was just -

"D-ranked mission. Once a week, every week, I get little genin to come in and clean the place." Dante said, shooting a grin at Hibiki from over his shoulder, before he scratched some dirt from his scalp. "The yard, come on."

"Right..." Hibiki nodded.

In the backyard, which itself had as many square feet as Dante's small home, Dante turned around and placed his callused hands in his pockets. "Sharingan." He said, switching on his own. Hibiki obliged, and Dante leaned forward. "Well... You know what, blowing up a village, I'd understand it." He nodded.

"That manger thing."

Dante hummed, "it's not killing your best friend, but it's pretty close." He cleared his throat, "alright. It's automatically switching to its Mangekyo state as a way of showing you that it's changed. So what I want you to do is turn it off, and then back on - but with as little startup chakra as possible. That should trip it up and let you switch between the two with a minute pulse of chakra."

Hibiki frowned, nodding. It took a few tries before the burning sensation finally vanished upon reactivating the dojutsu, "so what happens now?" He asked, briefly scanning around in the familiar eagle-like vision.

_"Now..._ Is actually something of an unprecedented case. Kaguya healing abilities... Uchiha Mangekyo... You could very well circumvent the blindness." He paused, before his gaze snapped over to Hibiki's arms, covered by the baggy sleeves of his longcoat. "But I figure you've got it covered regardless."

Hibiki shrugged, "once I figured out how powerful my eyes were, I thought it prudent to keep a few backed up, just in case."

Dante shook his head and straightened up, "don't let many know that, Hibiki." He said with a tired tone. "I don't know the secrets of your... 'Something from Nothing' and I don't quite care to, either. Let you in on a secret - I'm partially blind already." He said, with a deep sigh, as he took a few steps back towards his porch and sat down.

Hands going to his pockets, Hibiki turned to Dante. "You're being rather candid, sensei." He said, "how bad is it?"

"Kid, you're stronger than me, and I doubt that'll ever change. I figure it would do us no good to keep things from you, especially if you'll find out on your own." Dante rubbed his eyes, "ever tried to look through corrective lenses? Whenever I'm not using the regular tomoe, world looks like that. Blurry."

Hibiki sat down next to his sensei, "if it just takes some bad emotional trauma, I'm surprised most Uchiha aren't walking around blind."

Dante shook his head, "oh, trust me, they are. At least, the ones who go shinobi as opposed to military police. Problem is, we're good at hiding it, and using the regular tomoe as opposed to the mangekyo helps mitigate the effects. Add that onto the general fear of over use and the stigma against trying for the Eternal Mangekyo Sharingan..." He sighed and gave Hibiki a sidewards glance, "of the thousand of us that are shinobi, but not police, I'd say a quarter of us have this power, and all of us are somewhat blind. We just don't talk about it, so the only one who everyone knows actually has them is Madara... And, well, me, but I've always been the black sheep, hn?" He grinned.

_How fucking tired _is_ he? _Thought the Senju heir. Though, looking at it, Hibiki realized that there was something of a cloudy film in Dante's onyx orbs. It painted the Uchiha in a new light, if he was still as deadly as he was with bad vision. "_Eternal_ Mangekyo?"

Dante nodded, "the way Madara grew so powerful. He killed his brother and took his mangekyo eyes. Given... Later attempts, we think it's got to do with the direct blood relationship _and_ the bond between them. Gaining an eternal Mangekyo allows them all of the power, but no encroaching blindness." He explained, "from what I understand, Madara was the _only_ one to actually get them. We've tried a little bit of everything since then... _My_ theory is that blood relation has nothing to do with it - otherwise anyone in the clan could take anyone else's eyes and be fine. We're all family, after all. No, I think it has something to do with him and his brother both having Mangekyo at the time."

Hibiki gave Dante a halfway mixture of a frown and a smile, "why, sensei, do I detect the 'Hibiki' method?" He leaned back, straightening his posture. "Is _everyone_ stealing my tricks?"

Dante grinned, "they're very good tricks, Hibiki. Asking 'why', and all that. Sometimes the questions are more important than the answers." He dug his hand through his hair.

The two were silent for several minutes, before a thought occured to Hibiki. "Back during the Chunin exams. You said about the Izanagi, that I didn't have the ability to use it, then."

"I did." Dante's tone was even.

"Do I now?"

"You may."

"And you used it."

"I did."

"But you still have both eyes."

"I..." Dante turned his head to look at his house, "had a very generous donor." He shook his head and straightened up, "sorry, I'm tired. Won't be getting much sleep soon, if all works like we think it was." He cleared his throat, "so here's what we'll do. You and I, we'll head to one of the more private training grounds, I'll show you how to properly use those new eyes of yours."

Hibiki grinned, "but _not_ the reality-warping super kinjutsu?"

Dante, however, shrugged his shoulders. "We'll play that one by ear."

Hibiki blinked, "wait, _what?"_

Dante grinned, "glad to know this old dog can still get one up on you, kid." Dante said, before he stood up. "Let's be realistic. This is a world that is rapidly losing its ability to be without you. And with Katsuo and his allies out there and angry... If you go and die on us, the war will be a lot longer and resource-intensive than it would be if we had you here. I have the opportunity to stop that from happening... And you, mister 'Prepared for anything', have backup eyes already waiting for when you do something stupid. So... We'll play it by ear." He stretched and popped his back, "I'll be there in an hour."

* * *

_Psych Profile:_

_Proud, protective, intelligent. _

_Whether he himself admits it or not, Hibiki Senju is a proud individual. As he has grown in power, so too has his desire for a satisfactory fight grown exponentially. It is likely this desire that has both pushed him to see his allies grow in strength, and pushed his allies to facilitate said growth. Without Senju's innate and insatiable lust for growth and combat, the current-generation's upper maximum limit of power may very well have been somewhere between the so-recently named 'Ghost', Suboro Kurama, and the 'Yellow Flash', Minato Namikaze.  
Senju doesn't see limits, he sees challenges. He doesn't see barriers, he sees goals. He doesn't see unbeatable opponents, he sees his next good fight. It is almost as if he has a clear memory of his early childhood, when he was powerless when compared even to the lowliest of genin, and that chakra is, to him, a new sensation and, comparable to giving sight to a blind man, he ceaselessly works to make use of this new sense, and is proud of each and every accomplishment it affords him.  
_

_It is this pride, this desire to grow constantly, this ceaseless drive to find the strength to defend those closest to him, that compels Senju to find the strongest opponents he can, and defeat them under his own power. Examples of this being Emi Miu, Katsuo the Monster, and Ay and Bee of Kumogakure.  
However, Senju has shown a remarkable ability to swallow this pride and go for the fast, less satisfactory option should the situation call for it. Examples being the Konoha invasion, the Kiri Blitzkrieg, and his attack on Iwagakure. In all situations, he 'went lethal' right from the beginning, and cared not for fights he could avoid. _

_Despite this ability, his pride is by and large his greatest weakness. Challenging him to a fight is perhaps the easiest way to get him _to_ fight, and presenting him with an opponent that can keep up with him is perhaps the **best** way to keep his attention away from anything else. So long as there is no clear and present threat to his allies, Senju has shown a high willingness to drop a shadow clone and fight whomever it is issuing the challenge. If there is a threat, however, this willingness can decrease by as much as %95, to the point where he will refuse and use any and all pragmatic methods to eliminate the combatant and work to remove the threat.  
_

_It is for this reason that the best method of engaging Senju is to both do so directly, but also indirectly. To goad him into a fight with an equal opponent, and simultaneously attack any allies not within his sensory range and not in direct contact with a shadow clone. This will succeed in both distracting Senju from whatever the true goal may be, and gaining an upper hand on him. _

_However, his protective instincts are in direct contrast to his pride, and are therefor one of his greatest non-physical strengths.  
As demonstrated by Iwagakure, there is quite literally nothing Senju will not do if he feels it will save or protect his close friends. Kage, Katsuo, Jonin, Anbu - Senju will kill each and every one of them without remorse if it is to protect his friends.  
As a result, the best way to hurt or injure him is less to openly attack him, or brazenly kill his friends, but put him in a position where his pride will get his friends hurt or killed. Or at least, as it will appear to him. An example: Embroiling Senju in a fight, assassinating an ally, and then triggering an Iwa-level detonation event, thus convincing him _he_ killed said friend. Or, embroiling him in a fight and incapacitating him temporarily, and leaking the location of a friend to one of his enemies, thus getting them grievously injured or even killed, while he was unable to help due to his desire to find a satisfactory fight.  
_

_In increasing levels of induced rage, prime targets include:  
Suboro Kurama, Noboru Hyuga, Minato Namikaze, Kushina Uzumaki, Dai Aburame.  
In order, squadmate, squadmate, childhood friend, fellow apprentice of Mito Uzumaki, lover._

_Convincing him that he is responsible, in any way possible, for injuries to these people are perfect ways to damage his already fragile psyche. Truly, the deaths of any one of these people could send him over the edge._

_Finally, his intelligence.  
From a young age, Senju has shown an intelligence far beyond even the most wise of elders. More than that, however, is his aptitude for understanding the 'why' of nearly anything, from chakra to physical realities.  
His pattern is thusly to first ask a question, then to develop a tentative answer, and possible conclusions stemming from said answer, which he then tests over, and over, and over, until he has eliminated every variable left up to chance and has successfully proven himself either right, or wrong. Following this, he then changes his initial, tentative answer, subsequently alters his prediction, and tests again, until he is right, and can then replicate his results in multiple different occurrences.  
All this, before he **ever** considers anything to be 'fact'. _

_This all has led Senju to be among the most knowledgeable in any field he applies himself in - from fuinjutsu to ninjutsu to even genjutsu. Whenever he is presented with something he does not know, he first develops a question, and then **does not stop** until he understands why he doesn't know it, and can confidently answer his initial question, and any questions stemming from it. This has led to a nearly exponential growth in power any time and every time he has added something new to his arsenal. Even the most basic of techniques can be expanded beyond anything the initial developer could have even dreamed of, using this method. _

_A clear example, being his dissection and expansion of the shadow clone technique. _

_If given time, there is nothing he cannot learn, and subsequently is nothing he cannot expand upon. _

_This intelligence, however, is arguably as much of a weakness as it is a strength.  
Senju thinks on everything, and subsequently overthinks everything. If he has even the tiniest sliver of doubt, he will torture himself mad over trying to figure out whether or not he could have 'done it better'. Outside of combat, Senju will hardly ever take a _step _forward without knowing every possible benefit and consequence of the act, and then will spend hours agonizing over whether or not it was the right choice. _

_As a result, the recommendation is as follows:  
To properly defeat Hibiki Senju, one must force him to fight himself. At most, this will cost ten agents of A rank or above.  
Bring a powerful opponent and challenge him to fight it. Cause him to think - whether it be true or not - that his actions or lackthereof caused the death or injury of a close ally. Give him time to think on his actions and watch as he withers himself down. Continue to put him in positions where he has no right choice, always has time to think on them, and never has access to his support structure. _

_Senju will subsequently run himself to the bone working to protect what he has left, will take more risks, fight harder, train longer. Inevitably, he will slip up, and due to his pride begetting him actually fighting his strong opponents, and not killing them outright, this slip up will cost him his life.  
Best of all: Deniably._

* * *

Next stop: Minato.

Ever since he had graduated and subsequently risen to Chunin rank, Minato, as a legal adult, wasn't necessarily allowed to stay in his childhood orphanage any longer, and thus, had actually been among the first of Hibiki's circle of friends to get his own apartment. It was a standard apartment, small and spartan, it had everything it needed and nothing more. The only personal items inside were Minato's ever-increasing stash of fuinjutsu material and a great deal of ninjutsu scrolls. There was also, Hibiki noticed upon entering the apartment, a sleeping bag stashed behind the chunin's couch, with more than a few stray strands of red hair. Hibiki repressed a grin.

"Minato, where the hell are you?" He called out, before he kicked the door shut with the back of his foot. "It's six in the morning!"

There was a loud crash, a groan, and then, _"Hibiki... A lot of us actually broke the habit of rising with the sun, you know."_ He heard called out from behind a wall.

"Really? I didn't." He knew that Genin during their initial training years were hounded like the Spartans, but it was usually after that first year, or their promotion, that they were trusted well enough to keep up their own pace and their own training schedules. Hibiki knew well and good that he was actually one of the few people in the village, of his rank, that woke up even _before_ the sun to get to training. Most others dedicated a few hours of the day, Hibiki dedicated the whole damn day.

_Probably because I've got shadow clones out the ass. Let me do more._ Hibiki arced an eyebrow as Minato came out of his room, his onyx eyes locked onto the chunin's shoulder, upon which was a strand of red hair. _What, is she shedding? Or is he that rough?_ This time he couldn't repress the grin, "good night?" He nodded to the couch, "what's the point of the sleeping bag, then?"

Minato flipped Hibiki the bird, and ran his hand through his wild blond hair. "She's not here, if that's what you're asking." Hibiki noted how stiffly Minato was moving, perhaps still feeling the after-effects of his stunt the day previous. Had he not had access to an ungodly amount of medical chakra through Hibiki, Tsunade, and the entire med-nin corps, he may have still been laid up in bed.

Hibiki chuckled, stuffing his hands in the pockets of his coat. "Mhm." He said, "then that means she's been over enough to leave stuff behind."

"Shut up." Minato ambled over to his small kitchen, "want food?"

"I always want food."

"Sure you don't have Akimichi blood too?" Minato grinned, as he grabbed a few slices of bread, and tossed the Senju heir the loaf.

"I actually am. If I had their metabolism I'd be fucking dead." Said Hibiki, who caught the loaf swiftly and pulled out a few slices for his own. "Thanks."

"Sure." Minato nodded as he threw some meat and cheese onto the sandwich. "So, you said back in No-Rad that you were made by someone. Have you thought about tracking him down? Maybe he'd know some stuff." He said, turning around and falling into a chair with practiced ease.

Hibiki slid his coat off and hung it on the back of his own chair, shrugging as he took a bite out of his bread. "Anbu killed him, took his notes. I've read everything twice, except the stuff on his soul seal." He tapped his chest, "that stuff's encrypted."

"How well?"

"It was written in the language he developed for his fuinjutsu."

Minato nodded, an impressed expression briefly stretching across his face. "That's pretty well." He said with a yawn. "And all of the other guys like you are with Katsuo?"

_All but one._ "Yeah." He said, "I'm pretty sure those guys that cornered us while we were running from Iwa were... All of them, actually."

"If they're all as strong as you or the Monster, that's pretty damn scary."

"Yeah, no shit." Hibiki leaned back on the legs of his chair.

Minato cleared his throat, halfway finished with his sandwich. "So, what was that thing you did? Right before we went to No-Rad." He asked, briefly setting down his sandwich and cupping his hands, before thrusting them forward. "That bijuu-dama thing." His bright blue eyes shone with interest.

Hibiki chuckled, and took another bite out of his bread. "It was my bargain-bin bijuu-dama. It doesn't cause nearly as much damage, but it's a lot more focused and can deal more damage to a tighter area. Like a kunai to an explosive tag." It was also one of the reasons it didn't work so well against Katsuo - it was focused enough to cause damage, but it wasn't nearly as powerful as it would have to be in order to really hurt, or even kill, him.

"How does it work, though?" Minato asked, "I remember seeing it once before, when Mito-sama did it right before she died, but it was really fast. I didn't see much."

Hibiki shrugged, "you know the concept of chakra density?" Minato nodded, as he finished up his breakfast sandwich. "Takes the same concept and turns it to eleven. Get a _lot_ of chakra, ad make it as dense as you can before you even let it out of your body. You trap the chakra in a container of some sort and continue pumping it in. It won't escape, and it'll just keep building up and densifying. Then you just break the seal and let it fly." He explained.

"It sounds simple..." Minato frowned.

Hibiki chuckled, "anything but. I wasn't even able to do it without the curse mark and the eight gates until I was fourteen." Hibiki said, shoving the last of the bread in his mouth. "Why so curious?" He asked through the full mouth, "you want to be blasting stuff apart?"

Minato grinned and waved the question away, "I've got your thunder technique for that." He said, "so, what's first? The gun, or the Hiraishin?"

"Both, blondie. You know the shadow clone technique, don't deny it." Hibiki stood up and grabbed the collar of his coat, before swinging it back around his shoulders. "C'mon, and bring your codex. I want to see the original seal, and what better way to work on your focus - and your aim! - than by sitting downrange?" Sure, Hibiki would put up a barrier seal, but it wasn't as if he would tell Minato that.

Minato blinked, his face paling. "What?"

* * *

_Noteworthy Relationships:_

_Dai Aburame_

_Previously only noteworthy as the sole (legitimate) daughter of Kuro Aburame, a Rinkaichu breeder, Dai Aburame has rapidly approached A-Ranked Jonin-track levels of skill through her exposure and activities with Senju. Is capable of engaging him on somewhat equal footings at his base form._

_To Senju, she is a confidant and lover. The two have interacted since the months preceding Senju's chunin promotion, and were noted to have begun their romantic relationship in the days and weeks following Kirigakure.  
Due to her disappearance coinciding with his, following Kirigakure, and the vast amount of time the two spend together as a couple, training partners, and infrequent mission partners, it is incredibly likely she is considered to be his closest confidant and his most most important relationship.  
Despite any precedence - as her shinobi role precludes her from most open combat - it is a safe assumption that Senju would be willing to do much worse than obliterate a village if it meant protecting Dai. However, failure to protect her from grievous harm would perhaps be the most effective attack Senju's psyche.  
Orchestrating her death - most realistically through Katsuo the Monster - would unequivocally be the best way send the Senju on a warpath. Should Katsuo be the murderer, given his psyche profile, it is inevitable that Senju would open all eight gates in an attempt to slaughter Katsuo, resulting in his death._

_Mission Accomplished._

_Minato Namikaze_

_Noteworthy due to his feats as a rookie, his apprenticeship under Jiraiya of the Sannin, and the defense of Konoha during the Impeachment hearing (Read: Yellow Flash), Namikaze has been one of, if not, the, closest friend Senju has had since his days in the Academy. Best friends and bitter rivals, Namikaze was - during their rookie years - Senju's only equal, but now appears to be hopelessly outclassed. It is important to note, however, the secrecy under which Jiraiya has been training him - to the point that Namikaze's possession of the Hiraishin was **unknown** by This Agent until Namikaze wrote his reports of Iwagakure.  
It is therefor very possible, however unlikely though it may seem to be, that Namikaze could be anywhere from outclassed to equals with Senju. Further observation is required. _

_As said, to Senju, Namikaze is both a close friend and a bitter rival. The two interacted frequently throughout their years in the academy, Namikaze was trusted by Senju to rescue Kushina Uzumaki, they both frequently collaborate on fuinjutsu-related matters, and Namikaze has been in possession of Senju's thunder technique for upwards of five years._

_Due to his combat-oriented nature, it is unlikely that him simply dying will garner any serious effect in Senju. However, where Senju and Namikaze differ greatly is in their sense of justice and morality. Not in the sense that they have differing ideals, but in the sense that Senju is willing to suspend those ideals in his efforts to do what he believes is right, whereas Namikaze has thus far shown himself to be unwilling to compromise.  
Given the proper push, perhaps by sending Senju on a warpath and placing Namikaze in the middle of said path, it would not be difficult to bring them to clash. Then, given Senju's pride and Namikaze's unwillingness to compromise, either Senju would kill Namikaze, or Namikaze would incapacitate or kill Senju. _

_Given the former, Senju would immediately be thrown into a state of extreme guilt, and wherever his warpath ends, he will go in exhausted, injured, and emotionally compromised, leading to his death.  
Given the latter, Senju would either be dead, or covered in such powerful fuinjutsu that he would be unable to fight anywhere approaching his maximum level, and a simple assassination would suffice to end his life. _

_Mission Accomplished._

_Kushina Uzumaki_

_Noteworthy as the sole (known) living heir to the entirety of the Uzumaki clan, approaching mastery of fuinjutsu, and her status as a jinchuriki. Alongside Senju, Uzumaki was the only student of fuinjutsu master, Mito Uzumaki. Given her power as jinchuriki - and observed instances of training in controlling said power - she is perhaps one of the few people in Konohagakure able to truly combat Senju at any level - base, juinjutsu, lighting release chakra, and/or eight gates. _

_To Senju, she is something of a younger sister and a close friend. Under their tutilage from Mito Uzumaki, the two forged a bond less romantic than that of Senju and Aburame, and less rivalrous than that of Senju and Namikaze. The two are often seen together working on expanding their collective mastery fuinjutsu, and it is noteworthy that Uzumaki has a greater mastery of general arts, whereas Senju is thusfar unparalleled in space/time storage seals.  
Truly, of his close circle, Uzumaki may be the only individual that matches the definition of 'friend'. Add on her romantic relationship with Namikaze making her important not just to him, but Namikaze as well. He cares for her as a sister, Namikaze cares for her as a lover - netting not just importance to Senju, but to one of his closest friends and allies. __It is likely these reasons that Senju was willing to go so far as he did during his supposed rescue mission._

_Unfortunately, due to her importance as both fuinjutsu master and jinchuriki, killing her is not possible. However, setting her off, causing her to lose control, and then orchestrating an encounter with Senju, would lead to a bitter and explosive battle. Due to Senju's care for her, it would inevitably lead to him holding back in some fashion, so as to 'rescue' her from the bijuu's influence.  
But, were one to manipulate Namikaze in this situation as well, convince him that Senju had set off Uzumaki and subsequently was set on ending her life, one could achieve a desirable outcome. Namikaze would arrive at the end of the fight, seeing an exhausted Senju standing over a comatose - but appearing to be dead - and heavily injured Uzumaki.  
Thus, a clash between Senju and Namikaze, where the former is weakened and the latter fresh-faced and ready to fight. _

_Senju's death or incapacitation would be assured._

_Mission accomplished._

_Suboro Kurama and Noboru Hyuga_

_Both members of Senju's genin team, two of the four currently living shinobi shock troopers, Kurama and Hyuga respectively are capable of creating reality-affecting genjutsu (See: Ghost), and utilizing the jyuuken to briefly but exponentially raise his striking power, rivaling that of Tsunade Senju's strength. Kurama's power with genjutsu has been rumored to even be able to pierce genjutsu-nullifying dojutsu, whereas Hyuga's abilities with his clan techniques, and his mastery of the lightning release chakra mode, both rank them among the few capable of actually fighting the Senju on equal terms.  
However, both would require the other to combat Senju, and without that assistance, their defeat is only a matter of time. _

_Having known Senju since the very beginning of all of their shinobi careers, each of the three trust the other implicitly and are willing to bleed for the other. They all know the others' fighting styles inside and out. However, where they differ is in their sense of duty. Senju clearly fights less for his village, and more for his own sense of right and wrong, his own morals, and his own ideals - all of which he has shown to be willing to suspend to further pursue the lattermost. Hyuga and Kurama, however, are first and foremost loyal to their village, and as such, if supplied with sufficient evidence and reason, would suspend their own loyalties and feelings towards Senju in an effort to bring him in or kill him.  
Perhaps a long game would be required - a series of murders resembling the causes of death from Senju's thunder technique, to place doubt. Then proof that it was Senju who killed them. Then perhaps a public confrontation between Senju and either a close ally, or a loyal, respected shinobi. _

_Alone, they are easily stoppable, as the Senju's skillset and power could overwhelm their own skillsets, and his knowledge of their weaknesses could be exploited. Together, however, they would be more than capable of killing him. Given their synergy and knowledge over his weaknesses, working together they could exploit these weaknesses and could just overcome his strengths, resulting in either his death or incapacitation. _

_Mission Accomplished. _

* * *

Hibiki didn't know what to expect from his third stop, but he knew well enough to not try and wake up Kushina at dawn, as he had done with Minato and Dante. He also knew that this required something of a delicate hand, and as such, she was the one that warranted a visit from the Alpha.

Standing in front of Kushina's door, hands in the pockets of his coat, Hibiki tried to predict what all would come of this. She would either, A, hug him so tightly she would break his ribs, B, reach that odd combination of pure rage and unending happiness that only the Uzumaki heiress seemed to be capable of, and attack him, or C, break out into tears. Given that all three had at some point happened to him from the women in his life, these last few days, a part of Hibiki also expected the fourth option: All of the above.

Deciding that nothing would come of him just standing there, Hibiki raised his hand and rapped his knuckles on Kushina's door. Not a second after his first knock, the door swung open, and in the time it took him to blink, Kushina had launched herself forward, wrapped both of her arms around his arms and torso, and tackled him to the railing behind him, causing a large physical indentation from the strength of impact. It only took Hibiki a second to realize that she may have sensed him standing there, and had been literally waiting for him to knock on the door.

_"I'm so sorry!"_ Kushina cried out, her monstrous strength locking Hibiki's arms to his side and causing his ribs to creak. _"I - I didn't mean -"_

Hibiki, however, didn't let her build up steam, and instead returned the hug with a light hush. "Shh..." He held the Uzumaki, "just listen, okay? Can you do that?" He asked softly.

He felt Kushina nod against his chest.

"Okay... First - please stop getting emotional... I don't want to have to deal with the furball." He said with a grin, he even felt her smile against his chest, and her chest stop quivering. "Secondly, I don't blame you for anything, okay?" He rubbed her upper back as he talked, "you remember how I warned you that Katsuo wanted the jinhcuriki? Well, that's happening - he already got two, but I took one back. What he was doing was sending me and Minato on some kind of big, wild goose chase, so he could operate with impunity."

_"But -"_

"But, nothing. I don't hate you, I don't resent you for what happened, my feelings for you haven't changed in the slightest. I still think you're the red hot habanero, just, you know - an emotional one at the moment." He chuckled, "I know what you're probably thinking." He felt her gulp, "and yes, my back does hurt. I'm kind of pinned onto a metal railing and it's digging into my spine."

Finally, that was what caused her to laugh, and she let him go, straightening up. Hibiki dug himself out of the metal railing, and with a friendly grin said, "let's get some ramen." She brightened up visibly at mention of the 'divine food', "I've got something cool to show you."

The respective heirs to some of the most powerful clans in the world quickly made their way through the lively village hidden in the leaves, making idle chit-chat as they weaved through the crowded streets. Finally they reached a quaint ramen stand, where they sat down at the bar and made their orders. With every passing moment, Kushina was visibly brightening, the sorrow she had built up in anticipating Hibiki's arrival seeming to wash away in the glow of his nonchalant, jovial attitude.

After half hour of eating - during which Hibiki had piled up three bowls of ramen, and Kushina had gone through three times that many - Hibiki finally leaned back, and dug into one of the inner pockets on his coat. "Alright, now, stop me if you've seen this one before." He pulled out a small scroll and set it on the table.

Kushina stared at it, her dull blue eyes uncomprehending. "It's... A scroll."

"You have _no_ sense for abstract thought, don't you?" Hibiki chuckled and poked at the scroll, rolling it over to her. "Open the damn thing, lady."

Kushina gave Hibiki a brief glance, before she turned back to the scroll and opened it up. Just a second later she gasped and dropped it back on the table, her hands jumping to cover her mouth as her eyes began watering. The scroll slowly began to roll itself out, showing multiple circles, within which were small pictures of various people, connected by lines to other circles, in which more people sat, connected by more lines. One thing that more people had than did not, was a shared shade of vibrant, lively red hair.

"I - I thought -" Kushina blubbered, as she stared at three pictures specifically, one labeled 'Had', one labeled 'Hana', and branching downwards and connected to the two, a very old picture of a very young woman labeled 'Kushina'. The jinchuriki turned to look at the Senju heir, on the verge of tears. "How?"

Hibiki grinned, "I made a pit stop before I came back." Fortunately for him, by sheer coincidence of the fact that he had a substantial amount of Uzumaki blood in him, a great deal of the defensive fuinjutsu they had set up during their extinction had recognized him as a family member, and let him go straight through. Where one may have expected volumes of text on fuinjutsu, perhaps even instruction on their legendary carving abilities, or even the ability to create adamantine sealing chains, instead Hibiki had found, in their deepest archives, a treasure trove of a different variety. "I knew the Uzumaki were _really_ big on family." He said, his voice low and rumbly, as Kushina numbly reached back for the scroll and began rolling it up further. "And I knew that you've never had a chance to pick through the ruins." Further up the family tree she went, tears now streaming down her face as she saw the progression of her clan's people play out in reverse, right in front of her eyes. "So I figured... You may want a memento." Because Hibiki, if anyone, knew how unreliable it was to simply rely on one's brain to remember the past; it was why he'd spent so much time in his younger years writing down everything he could remember about the Terrans: He knew eventually he would forget.

And from the looks of it, Kushina seemed to be realizing how much _she_ had forgotten, how much had drifted from her short term memory and into the deep recesses of her subconscious. She pointed at one jolly looking Uzumaki, with no hair on his head but a bushy red beard on his face, and a wide smile on his face. "I remember him." She whispered, "he introduced me to ramen." A wide smile grew across her face, before she nodded to the side, "and he ate a lot of it, too."

Hibiki decided now to drop the punchline. "Let's turn back the clock a bit, here." He said, reaching over and helping Kushina roll back the scroll. It had a large, fancy seal on its back that acted as a real-time storage seal, whenever they unrolled the top half of the scroll, more paper would spontaneously appear, and whenever they would roll up the bottom half, it would vanish, allowing them to store practically endless amounts of data on the one scroll.

"Who are we looking for?" Kushina asked, as she witnessed Hibiki going back generations.

"You'll see." Hibiki rolled up a moment, before he nodded. "There." It was a much older picture than Kushina's had been, and a much younger illustration of the woman, but the wise smile and narrow face were unmistakable. Kushina had known who it was before she even read the words 'Mito'.

She blinked once, "she looks so young." She said.

"Now here's the cool part." Hibiki tapped his finger on Mito's picture, and pulsed a small amount of chakra into it. A second later, all other Uzumakis vanished, and Mito's picture was center-frame. An equally old picture of Hashirama Senju appeared, the two linked, and then down came three children. Two of those children did not continue on to have their own, but one did, linking up with a civilian woman and bearing a very familiar blonde kunoichi labeled 'Tsunade'. The picture looked as if it had been taken right after her promotion to Chunin, because it was much younger than her special brand of transformation technique kept her at.

"And then..." Another picture appeared, this one of Dan Kato. He and Tsunade linked, and down came a new line, whereupon Kushina finally realized what Hibiki was getting at, as a picture of him, at the ripe young age of six, appeared. Hibiki set the scroll down and turned to Kushina, "figured out what I'm trying to say?" It may not be entirely true, or at least, not in the way he was implying, but the fact was he had Uzumaki blood in him, and thus: Kushina wasn't nearly alone as she thought. A few leaps of logic, distant relations, and a little diluting of the gene pool, maybe, but the end result was the same: Kushina still had family; and if Hibiki was known for anything, he was known for protecting and loving the people he considered family.

For the second time in as many hours, Hibiki was brought into a bone crushing hug by the jinchuriki.

* * *

_Abilities/Techniques  
Bloodline copying  
A trait unique to the Senju, he is capable of copying nearly all bloodlines he comes across, save ones that directly conflict with those he has already copied._

_Juinjutsu  
Capable of passively absorbing senjutsu chakra, filtering it to a correct, healthy mixture, and then adding it to the bloodstream. Magnifying his power tenfold and allowing him access to a much higher pool of chakra, at the cost of spending his own to keep it going. _

_Sharingan  
Mostly mastered, to the point of near-nil chakra consumption. Recently discovered Mangekyo, special abilities unknown beyond generalities shared between Uchiha. _

_Shikotsumyaku  
Is capable of healing him, densifying his skeleton, and giving him nearly instant access to weaponry of all kinds, be they blunt or sharp. Is capable of creating bladed instruments sharp enough to cut through solid steel. Word used: 'Monomolecular', apparently in reference to infinitesimally small building blocks that create all physical objects such as people, rocks, and animals. _

_Explosion Release  
Is capable of generating explosions as small as an explosive tag, or as large as a mountain-incinerating 'Big Bang Attack'. Strength of explosion varies proportionately to chakra levels used. _

_Swift Release  
Is capable of maintaining body-flicker speeds indefinitely, provided chakra. Has used word 'Relativistic' to describe speeds, apparently in reference to the speed at which light itself travels._

_Lighting Release Chakra Mode  
Makes him nigh-indestructible, massively amplifies striking power and speed. Combined with Juinjutsu to make an 'Onyx Cloak' that further amplifies power and speed. Combined with Swift Release to gain further enhancements to speed and marginal (?) enhancements to striking power. Combined with both, Senju claims to be able to go 'Faster' than light, to the point where even Sharingan are unable of keeping up with him._

_Turtle Devastation Wave  
Is capable of recreating a bijuu-dama and focusing the raw power to a fixed point. Not nearly as powerful as a true bijuu-dama, but the fixed point nature counter-balances it. _

_Eight Gates Released Formation  
Has historically been shown to open seven of the eight gates, with no indications against being able to open the eighth and final gate._

_Shadow Clone Technique  
Is capable of creating clones incapable of being dispersed except through lethal means.  
Is capable of creating clones with abysmal chakra for instant information purposes and shock-trooper uses.  
All clones known to be able to use all techniques. _

_Flight  
Self explanatory.  
Is capable of combining it with Swift Release, Lightning Cloak, and Juinjutsu, to further amplify speed. _

_Summoning Technique  
Summons eagles for aerial superiority against numerically superior foes. _

_Fuinjutsu  
Mastery of space/time storage seals, self inked onto body.  
Adequate mastery of other forms of fuinjutsu._

_Falcon Punch  
Gathers mass amounts of chakra in both hands, leeches chakra from one hand, catches it on another. This creates and explosive, exponential growth in striking power.  
Can combine with elemental-natured chakra. Thus far, only lightning has been seen, however efforts have been noted to attempt to create fire-based Falcon Punch._

_Thunder Technique  
Metal devices known as 'guns' and/or 'firearms' ignite an explosive and launch a projectile through a metal tube at near-body flicker speeds. Variable range._

_Sharingan-copied techniques, too numerable to count, too ill-used to record._

* * *

The final stop of the day.

Sitting in the middle of a darkened hospital room, with no windows and no fewer than three Anbu in the shadows and one standing guard right outside, an comatose jinchuriki with a heavily damaged demon container seal was being simultaneously examined by the hospital's head medic, the R&amp;D department's head, and one of the village's best and only fuinjutsu practitioners. She was covered from head to toe in bandages and blankets, with her stomach being bare for purposes of examination.

The blonde Senju shook her head, running her green-chakra coated hands over the woman's body. "Take your pick. Malnutrition, heavy bruising, internal bleeding, broken, healed, and rebroken bones, abnormally stressed chakra circulatory system... I'm pretty sure the only reason this girl's alive is because of the bijuu in her gut." She said, letting the chakra fade away as she turned to her son and his uncle.

Orochimaru stared intently at the mottled seal on the jinchuriki's bare stomach. "I cannot begin to imagine what they must have done to damage this seal so." He said in his snake-like tone. "It appears as if someone took a drying painting and threw a bucket of water on it."

Hibiki, however, was briefly placing the tips of his first two fingers on various points of the tender, bruised flesh, and pulsing minute amounts of chakra into the seal. It didn't even expand, fix itself, or resonate beyond briefly, visibly contracting, and then settling back to where it had been a moment earlier. "Katsuo's people all have Uzumaki blood, but I'm pretty sure they're all self taught. It looks like they expanded the seal and just started picking away at it. Trying to remove whatever it was keeping the Yonbi inside."

"That doesn't work?" Tsunade voiced.

Orochimaru shook his head, "to extract a bijuu, one would have to break the seal entirely, access its chakra and siphon it out into a new host, or convince the host to allow the bijuu to take it over." He said, "it appears as if they wanted to release it without losing control over it. They wanted its life force to remain tied to its jinchuriki."

Hibiki nodded, "would make sense. I doubt even Katsuo would want to fight a rampaging tailed beast. But catch a kunoichi off guard, and torture her until she breaks? Not as hard." Though what perplexed him was that Katsuo could 'read' chakra, so why didn't he just read the chakra that leaked out of the seal naturally? Was that not possible, or did he need access to the entire thing? And if they had sharingan, why didn't they just use them to try to talk to it, like Hibiki did?

"Can it be fixed?" Asked a voice, before Anbu Wolf materialized from the shadows.

Hibiki whistled, "tough call." He said, _"maybe._ But... It might be easier to just take apart whatever's left and start from scratch. Right now we're trying to build a support structure for a house on the edge of a cliff in the middle of an earthquake... When we could just build a new house further inland." He nodded his head to the side, "but that would kill Miu, and none of us want that." The new Hokage would want whatever information she had on Katsuo and what was left from Iwa, Hibiki didn't want to kill her needlessly, and he'd promised the Yonbi he'd personally fuck it over. He hadn't forgotten what it had said it had done to New York, after all.

_How the fuck do you use a building as a bo-staff?_ Hibiki wondered, as he tried pushing some chakra into the seal, and then pulling it back out. It cleared a small bit of the mess up, but once the Yonbi and Emi's chakra started to flow to the damaged area, the ink reappeared and her entire body had a brief spasm. "Well... Okay." He turned to Orochimaru, "what'd you see?"

"What just happened? Her chakra levels just tanked." Tsunade barked out.

"I think there is a hidden clause somewhere in the innermost depths of the container seal. Should the seal be damaged, all efforts are kept to keep the bijuu inside at all costs. Should it be improperly fixed, chakra from both sources will be used to bring it back to this mottled state." Orochimaru mused.

_Like an antivirus keeping things from being changed by a download._ Thought the Senju, "so plan A - fix the seal - is out. We _can't,_ because we don't know how it was or what it looked like or even what all it did before it was damaged. We get _one_ thing wrong and it resets... But this allows us opportunities."

Orochimaru nodded, "we can use our own codices and verbiage in the recreated seal."

Tsunade shook her head, "you two are losing me. How are you going to do this with_out_ killing her?"

Hibiki places his hands in his pockets, frowning as he thought. "You know how you can briefly nullify a primed explosive tag with a pulse of chakra? And then you stick a kunai under it to help you peel it off?"

Orochimaru recoiled his head, "Hibiki, what you're suggesting would take, bare minimum, as much chakra as both Miu and the Yonbi have together."

"What is he suggesting?" Tsunade demanded.

"We prepare a new seal with our own verbiage and using our own codices. Then we pump a _shitload_ of chakra into her system, right into and underneath the current container seal. This would provide a massive wall for both her chakra and the Yonbi's chakra to have to work through, and hopefully, time enough for us to remove the damaged seal and add on the new one." Hibiki nodded, "it would take a lot of chakra... But you forget, Uncle Oh." He grinned and turned to look at the snake-eyed sannin. "I've got that to _spare."_ He tapped on the side of his stomach, "this, the curse mark, the eight gates... Shadow clones. It's a non-issue."

"Uh, fuck you gaki, do you know how much damage you could cause to her, pumping that much foreign chakra into her system?!" Demanded the professional medic in the room.

"We would need an equal amount of medical chakra dampening her coils, keeping her body in stasis, and isolating the foreign chakra." Hibiki amended.

"You're _not_ that good, kid." Tsunade asserted. "I don't know if _I'd_ have that much chakra, even if I opened up my Strength of a Hundred seal."

Hibiki arced his eyebrow, "how good is Shizune?"

_"No."_

"Why not?" Hibiki asked, "of the two people you've actually shown your medical techniques, she's the only one that kept up the studying. I just learned what I needed to be useful in the field." He argued.

Orochimaru agreed, as he leaned down and dragged his fingers along Miu's seal, "having the both of you working on keeping her safe would half the effort required of you." He said, "and Hibiki could develop a seal similar in function to the one on your forehead. If given a month, you two could have enough stored up enough siphoned chakra to do the procedure ten times over." Miu's seal prickled as he pulsed his own chakra inside, he watched with interest as the swelling around it was briefly reduced, before red chakra rushed out to meet his purple, and the stomach went right back to being inflamed. The Yonbi, it seemed, was well aware of the weakened nature of the seal, and took every opportunity it could to rush its chakra out and take control of Miu, but Miu's own chakra and the seal both isolated it and then created a physical response to keep it where it was supposed to be.

Tsunade looked at all of them in turn, before settling her eyes on Miu's stomach. "Is there any other way?"

"Well, we already said we could build a new freakin' house." Hibiki said, "but we don't want one."

Tsunade sighed, "how long will it take?"

At that, Hibiki shrugged. "I have no damn idea, and since I'm getting deployed here soon... It depends on whether or not you want _me_ specifically, involved in the process. If you do, it'll be nine months until I get back and we can get to work. If you don't, you can grab Uncle Oh here, Minato, Kushina, and Uncle J and get to work by the end of the week. Probably have something whipped up by the end of the month, maybe two if they take their time."

Tsunade exchanged glances with Orochimaru, who remained still as he thought. "It may be a better product with Hibiki's help... But to wait for it would require keeping Miu in a medically induced coma... Which I believe would not be prudent, given the circumstances."

Tsunade shook her head, "fine. Do it."

* * *

_Final Recommendation: _

_The problem with Hibiki Senju is that while he is powerful, as evidenced by his blatant disregard for its laws and his frequent unsanctioned excursions outside the walls, his loyalties are less to Konohagakure no Sato, than they are to his close allies and himself. If prompted to, he may very well abandon the village and go missing-nin. Should this happen, likely nothing on earth could force him to come back._

_However, where his loyalties may be in question, the loyalties of any potential children he sires with Dai Aburame may be less questionable. **Especially** if it wasn't raised by him or its mother, but by the village itself.  
Therefor, my final recommendation would be to wait until a confirmed pregnancy. Following a succesful birth, plans must be initiated to assassinate Aburame and kill or remove Senju. Not only would this martyr Senju in the eyes of the village, and the mother and father in the eyes of the child, but we could remotely raise the child and hold the parents up to an ideal of strict loyalty.  
Following that, the village would then be in possession of all of Hibiki Senju's power, and none of the problems inherent. The only net loss would be in his mind and the unique way in which he thinks - but it would not be difficult to impress his thought processes upon a child._

_But to do this, Senju would first need a child, and then both he and Aburame would need to die. And as said, to properly combat Hibiki Senju, one must not fight him directly. _

_All possible solutions take time and effort, but the operative word is _possible.

_Powerful, he is. Immortal, he is **not**._

_Our first goal will be to infiltrate the Anbu. Our Root spreads far, and we've a member of the Rinha clan in our midst. _

_Give us your faith._

_Give us one year._

_They will suspect nothing._

* * *

Late that night, Hibiki Senju sat in the frigid air, at the edge of a building within a stone's throw of the village's tall, looming gates. The bottom half of his cloak billowed lightly in the wind, flapping up and down and slapping against the roof he sat upon, as he stared intently at the looming gates that led out of the village. So many parts of him were wrestling with eachother that even his face was a blank mask of conflict.

A single border patrol deployment lasted around nine months, and given that it was set that he couldn't have any clones in the village during that time, the best way to briefly leave the village would be during that time. The problem, however, was that the border patrols were the most popular option for deserters - just get assigned to a border post, and _run._ The way Konoha defended against this was multiple Uzumaki-brand fuinjutsu set to go off if more then seventy two hours went off without detecting a human chakra source and a konoha headband. The problem with that, however, was that this system had been made long before Hibiki had ever mastered the Shadow Clone technique - thus, he could take his leave and still fulfill his duties.

Better yet, was that if anyone expected him to take his leave, they would expect him to do so during his deployment. Therefor, the best way to hide this secret would be to shove it under everyone's nose, and leave literally the day after he got home from a two day AWOL stretch. The gate guards wouldn't even be a problem, not with his Swift Release. The moment he entered their field of view, he could just dash right past them, not even leaving a disturbance on the ground.

But there was a problem. To just up and leave the village, to try and kill as many Undead as he possibly could in as short amount of time, every single logical part of him knew that it was, perhaps, the best thing he could do. He had spent his entire life here in the Elemental Nations being reactionary, and look at what that had gotten him? Dai and perhaps his power - which was dubious at best when considering fifteen others were as strong as, or maybe even stronger than him - were the only two things he could pick out as 'good' coming from the way he acted. Everything else that had happened, it had -

Hibiki's thoughts were interrupted by a figure heralded by a brief yellow flash.

_"Hibiki!"_ Briefly called the blonde blur, causing the Senju heir to turn his head, an eyebrow arced. Minato was decked out in his full shinobi attire, headband secured tightly around his skull, in stark contrast to Hibiki's uncharacteristically blank forehead.

"I swear to kami, Minato, if something else happened to Kushina, we're going to get her a bell." Hibiki grinned under the dark sky, a new moon providing no pale white light.

Minato, however, was not grinning. "What are you doing?" He asked.

"Reflecting." Hibiki said, with a non-committal shrug.

"You don't deploy for a week, man." Minato said, "and... I checked with Kushina, after I got done training with you. The story she told..." His brow furrowed, "I don't know... Something seems off."

This finally prompted Hibiki's brow to drop and furrow, as Minato stayed approached behind him. "Oh?"

"Yeah." Minato continued approaching, "you made her happy, gave her a gift. Now, I'm not mad about that, but the nature of it... If I didn't know any better, I would have said it was a goodbye gift." He raised his gaze, locking onto Hibiki's onyx orbs. "Then I got a message from Tsunade-sama, requesting my help, along with Jiraiya-sensei's, Kushina-hime's, and Orochimaru-sama's, in assisting in fixing Miu's seal - without you. I stopped by the house to get more details and she and your shadow clone explained the deal to me... You specifically pushed such that the plan could be executed _without_ you..."

Hibiki blinked, his face neutral. _Well holy shit._

"So then I thought I'd check in with Dante-sensei, and Dai, too. What they told me about your interactions with them, today... And their stories were similar. You acted as if you were saying _goodbye."_

"I'm leaving for a border patrol in a week, Minato. I'm going to be gone for the better part of a _year."_

Minato finally stopped right next to the Senju heir, his face more serious than it had been when they had thought Kushina had been kidnapped. "Yeah... But I know you, Hibiki. You don't say goodbye, and you don't act like you're saying it either." He sat down on the edge of the building, right next to Hibiki, and lowered his voice, "even when you leave on long missions and can't leave behind shadow clones, you never act like you're _leaving..._ You just tell us you'll be back... And then, here I find you - clone or not - looking like you're about to leave the village. _So where are you going?"_

Hibiki remained silent, as he considered knocking Minato out and saving him the trouble. "Really..." He said, "I don't know." He turned his gaze back to the gate and nodded to it. "I'm trying to figure that out." He leaned forward, cupping his chin with one hand with a deep sigh. "What do you think would happen if I stopped?" He asked, "if I stopped reacting to things?"

Minato blinked, not having expected this answer, but having a feeling that he already knew where it was going. "Reacting to what specifically?"

"Katsuo. Zetsu." Hibiki said, "think about it - everything in my life thus far, it's happened _to_ me. I haven't _caused_ it. God-like potential power? Given. Three most badass parents in the world? Given. The Sandaime's death? Gun - which I, on some level, already knew existed. I could have warned them, done something. The Konoha invasion? Happened. I didn't see it coming, despite the pieces being there for me to fit together. Hell -" He leaned back and threw a hand out in front of him, "_Dai_ even just _happened_ to me." He said, "I never tried actively to prevent - or, in that last case, pursue - any of it. And look at how the world is now?" He sighed, "war's here. Entire known shinobi world allied against three of the four remaining great powers. I don't know the Undead staging ground anymore. One Hokage dead, the other impeached. Village wiped out. Jinchuriki a broken wreck. One more MIA - possibly dead, if it got to Iwa before we blew it up." He nodded up to the moon, "and then there's God, and his shadow, still fucking with us." He shook his head, "what would happen if I just... Tried to be proactive for a change? Instead of just letting things happen and reacting to them... Being presented with problems to fix as they spring up... What if I just went out and found the source?" He wondered, "what if..." He shrugged, "what if... I had an _entire village_ at my beck and call. I was literally its leader, and all of its resources and alliances were mine, yeah?" He turned his look to Minato, "and no one knew but me. And with those resources, I could find Katsuo and the other Undead. It would take time, but I've just been presented with _literally... That."_ He explained, "what if I took that time... Used those resources... And went hunting? If I just did what I'm best at - and _fought._ Shadow clone after shadow clone, endless chakra, ceaseless combat until either I ran out of resources or they ran out of bodies. What if I just _left_ and did not come back until Katsuo, Yui, Aojiroi, Runner - and all fifteen of them were dead?" He yawned, his breath leaving a pale cloud in the air. "Shouldn't I do that?" Another question to consider, but not one he could ask, was the fact that he had a bargaining chip with the devil himself. If the situation called for it, it wouldn't be impossible for him to try and sell the Rinnegan to Zetsu, though for what, Hibiki wasn't sure.

Minato blinked, and slowly straightened his gaze, as he realized how correct he had been, and the weight of what Hibiki was grappling with settled partially on his shoulders too. What Hibiki was saying was that he had No-Rad, and all the resources of his old world. He could use those - the 'ayer-planes' and 'sat-lites', the 'derones' and 'soe-das' - to find Katsuo, track down his allies, and be proactive, as opposed to reactive. Instead of being a prey, or even a predator, Hibiki could actively be a hunter. But to do it, Hibiki was implying, these nine months could very well be either his last alive, or his last as a Konoha shinobi. He would have to dedicate his everything to it, and that would mean abandoning his post - something even he, with his 'act and ask questions later' history couldn't be excused for; and he was saying he was considering dedicating everything - up to and including his own _life,_ to ensure that it worked.

Hibiki had been giving his partially disguised goodbyes because he honestly didn't know if he should go Missing Nin for the sake of the world.

Minato, after a moment's thought, shook his head. "Hibiki..." He paused, "if you did this, you'd die." He said, simply.

Hibiki pursed his lips, "I already died once." He breathed, raising his onyx eyes after a brief break in contact. "I'd trust you to be able to finish the job. Find Zetsu and kick his ass."

Minato grabbed Hibiki's shoulder, "no. Listen - this world? What we've got going? It's changing - it's becoming a place where if you aren't as strong as a kage, you aren't a player in the grand game. Hibiki, _no one_ in this village is as strong as you are." He said, "not me, not Jiraiya-sensei, not your mom or Orochimaru-sama... Not Dante-sensei, not Suboro or Noboru, I don't even think Kushina can compare to you, not without _everything_ she's got." He stressed, "yes." He nodded in a conciliatory fashion, "if you went out and killed Katsuo and the Undead, you'd solve that problem. But then you'd be dead, and sure - _maybe_ I could figure out how to bring the fight to Zetsu. _Maybe_ I could find a way to get strong enough. But you'd still be dead, and in the short term? Even if we ignore the pain here -" He waved around the village, "that's a power gap people won't miss. They'll rush in to try and fill it - the war we'll be fighting, they'll be putting their _all_ into it, because they won't have to worry about the Thunder God!" He sparked a grin at Hibiki's brief twitch of the corner of his lips. "But seriously. The entire world's supposed to be against us, right now." He tightened his grip on Hibiki's shoulder, "I understand what you're saying." A pause, "I feel guilty about Iwa too. I can still feel you grabbing me and Miu and getting us out of there, I remember seeing the flash and almost going blind." He explained, "I know you're asking yourself if you can't prevent that in the future, but Hibiki - going out and dying in battle? That's not the way." He said, firmly. "We need everything we have, to fight this war. There is no quick way out of this..." He whistled, let go of the Senju heir, and leaned back on his hands. "We might all be having kids before this war is out, man. Can you believe that?"

Hibiki cracked a grin, "you do realize that most of our clan heir friends are out ensuring that happens _right now_, right?" He said, "they'll be deployed once we know who all we're fighting. Can't let the clans go without an heir." A pause, "only reason Tsunade isn't hitching me is because our clan is all of two people." And there was, of course, the fact that he didn't have any Senju in him. Hibiki let out a breath of air, "_me,_ a father. Kid would kill me."

Minato grinned, and leaned back forward. "Just listen, man." He said, "I know what you're thinking. You want to go out, you want to try and solve the problem before it gets any bigger... And in any other situation, I think I'd tell you to go ahead and do it." He said, "but we're in _this_ situation, in _this_ world. And right now? I'm saying... You don't have to give up, you don't have to sit back and let the world come at you." A pause, "but you don't have to go out and get yourself _killed_ to try and fix it." He said, "when the next Hokage gets the seat, and you come back from your deployment, they'll have a war plan drawn up, and we'll likely already be getting pressed on a few fronts. All of _our_ resources will be getting poured into finding Katsuo _for_ you, so you can focus on doing what you do best."

Hibiki arced an eyerbow, "and what would that be?"

Minato grew a great smile, "kickin' ass, of course!" He said, boisterously, slapping his friend on the back. "Trust me, Hibiki. Things may suck, right now - but that's just because the wounds are still raw. You stick around, you keep talking to the people who care about you, things will get better." He let his smile fall to a grin, "it'll take some time, but we'll win this war Katsuo started. We'll take him down, and we'll take down Zetsu and the Sage of Six Paths, too. All of us. We'll be there to help you, man. Every step of the way. I _promise."_


	66. She's His Lobster

Chapter 65

* * *

"Hibiki, this is ridiculous."

"Shut up, you love it."

"I believe you are enjoying this more than I am."

"Correction: You _will_ love it, _so_ shut up."

Dai turned her head, her eyes covered by her tightly bound hitai-ate, to Hibiki, showing an uncanny awareness of his location despite her blindness. "You are bringing me to our apartment, why blind me?" She asked, as she kept pace with the Senju heir, who had his hand on her back to help guide her down the street and through crowds.

Hibiki gave the Aburame an exasperated look, his eyes wide and his face etched in a comically wide frown, "who the fuck told you?!" He demanded, as he lost his battle against himself and his frown turned into a wide grin.

"You gave me sixteen storage scrolls and told me to pack my things. I was curious." Calmly said the Aburame, her face still and unflinching as a beetle crawled up her cheek.

Hibiki narrowed his eyes, "your father threatened my life?"

"My mother threatened something far more valuable."

Hibiki snorted, "I don't want to know if that grows back." He breathed, as he took the hooded Aburame around a curve in the road.

"And you are leaving tomorrow morning, it was not difficult to..." A pause, "put two and two together."

Hibiki repressed a grin, "got some -"

"Stairs."

_"Stop cheating!"_ Hibiki laughed, as he and Dai began escalating a flight of stairs. The building they were climbing was a simple three-story building, uniform and square in design, Hibiki had chosen it for two reasons, the first being that he'd learned that the building was covered in faded fuinjutsu to help cancel out the white noise and keep blood from staining the foundations, to accommodate their certain tenants, and the second reason being that Kushina had shown him said fuinjutsu in the first place, leading this building to be a front-runner for Hibiki's apartment hunting.

"We are very high up." Dai commented, as they reached the third floor.

Hibiki shrugged, "I'll put it to you this way: I grew up in a raised house. Main level was the second story. That meant we always had a view for the fun stuff. Lightning storms, neighbors' fireworks shows... Pretty much never dropped it."

Dai hummed, nodding her blind head. "And the reason I am blinded?"

"At this point you're humoring me." Hibiki retorted, as they reached the corner of the building, and Hibiki dug in the inner pocket of his coat for a key. He sighed dramatically, as he fit the key in the lock, "alright fine, take the damn thing off."

Dai let out a smug grin as she pulled her hands out of her gray hoodie's pockets and pulled the hitai-ate down, hanging it from her neck. She blinked once and grabbed her thin sunglasses as Hibiki removed the key and swung open the door. As her amber eyes were covered by the dark spectacles, and Hibiki waved her inside with a big, dramatic wave of the hand, she beheld what would become the two's home. A respectably sized studio apartment, completely devoid of any furnishings, even the walls were a uniform gray color.

She stepped inside, her head turning on a swivel as she looked around, a small smile on her face. "It is wonderful, Hibiki."

Hibiki grinned as he stepped in behind her and shut the door. "Isn't that code for - I don't like it but I don't want to sound rude?"

"No, it's code for I expected something bigger." Dai deadpanned.

Hibiki chortled lightly, "well, we don't really need something bigger, do we?" Hibiki asked, dragging his hand along the bare white walls as he followed Dai's lead, aimlessly wandering about the apartment.

Dai looked at Hibiki over her shoulder, an eyebrow arced. Hibiki had to exercise his utmost power not to crack a grin. The dark-haired Aburame finally intoned with a simple, "I suppose not, at the moment." And turned her head back forward.

Hibiki let out a quick breath and placed his hand on his chest as Dai exited the main room, taking a left down a small hallway. After ensuring he still had a heartbeat, Hibiki straightened back up and made towards the hallway. He turned the corner and had only a second to throw his hand up and catch a scroll spiraling through the air, right at his head. A quick peak at the common-language label told Hibiki that it was the one he'd given to her to store her clothes. He failed to keep a straight face at this, and instead scrunched it up in a frown as he lowered the scroll and looked at Dai, who wore a neutral expression, her hood down, revealing her dark, tightly bound hair.

_Damn it, lady._ "Really?" He brandished the scroll.

Dai blinked innocently, turning on the spot and continuing down the hall. "Which is our room?" She asked, doggedly not answering Hibiki's question, as she passed by a few doors.

"What, your beetles aren't telling you that?"

"You told me to stop cheating." She responded, as she raised a small hand and opened a door at the end of the hall, revealing the small, spartan bathroom.

Hibiki grew a grin, and the world froze as he channeled a minute amount of Swift chakra. He used it to sidestep Dai's senses and open the door a few feet behind her, leading in to one of the two bedrooms. The door was opened and closed in a muted flash, and after a moment's consideration, Hibiki hopped up and planted his rear on the ceiling, sticking to it with his chakra, and keeping his coat still by pinning it beneath his legs.

He let the world catch up, and the grin deepened as his senses let him in on Dai's head whipping around at the telltale zipping noise. His victory was short lived, however, when he felt a sharp lance of pain on his scalp, no doubt from a beetle on his head. Dai summarily entered the room a moment later, and raised her gaze to meet Hibiki's, not even blinking if she were surprised by Hibiki being on the ceiling.

"I'm surprised you didn't prepare the room ahead of time." She said lightly, as she took a look around, idly making a full revolution around the room.

Hibiki shrugged, "had to make sure _you'd_ like the place first." He said, as-a-matter-of-factly.

"And yet you've already a key." He could almost hear Dai's teasing grin.

"Landlord knows me and Kushina have the hookup with the fuinjutsu. He's hoping if he'll let us look around and if he drops the rent a fair bit we'll stick around and update the seals." He finally gave up.

"So you're _not_ willing to spend on me what you think I am worth?" Dai turned her bare head towards Hibiki, a glint of light from the one window in the room reflecting off of her glasses, no doubt reflecting a teasing glint in the eyes behind them.

"Oh, of course not." Hibiki shot back, watching as Dai revolved about the room, stopping briefly at the window, which had a view of the village beyond the apartment building. "Just wait until you see what I get you for your birthday. Hope you like thousand year old clothes. Five finger discount, plus, you know - all of society fell apart. Kind of lowered the cost."

"If it wasn't expensive in its time, Hibiki, you would do well to throw it away." Dai continued, as she turned and leaned against the windowsill, looking up at Hibiki.

"You're going to bleed me dry." Hibiki held a hand up and cut the chakra flow, dropping to the floor and landing on his hand, where he deftly righted himself, and stood up.

Dai hummed, "I like the apartment, Hibiki." She finally let out. "It is small." She paused, as Hibiki leaned against the wall next to her, a distant look slowly filling her bespectacled eyes as she envisioned the room as it would look, fully furnished. "Comfortable." She turned her head and lowered it, looking at him over the rim of her sunglasses. "I have the strangest feeling, however." She said, her amber eyes locked onto Hibiki's onyx orbs.

"Oh god." Hibiki backed up, "whatever Kushina said, it's not true." He held up his hands in a surrendering gesture, his right hand still clenching Dai's scroll.

Dai grinned, but pressed on. "If you think it would be funny to leave me with the unpacking, Hibiki Senju, I will personally drain you dry and force you to work without chakra."

"Whatever _Minato_ said, it's not true!" Hibiki smiled, taking a step back in response to Dai's predatory advance.

"Hm." Dai hummed, clearly not impressed. "And yet you've not denied it." She said, backing the most powerful chunin in the village up against the wall.

"The day's still young?" Hibiki tried, a desperate look on his face.

The Aburame grinned, "of course it is." She said, before giving the Senju a quick peck on the cheek, and snatching her scroll from his hand. "Come, we've a great deal of work to do, and not much time to do it in." She revolved on her back foot and was out of the room just a second later, leaving the Senju to wonder if she put the sway in her hips on purpose.

* * *

Moving Back Home? It had been a long, drawn out process that took about a month to finish completely, including the time it took for Hibiki's then-father to pry the hands of his then-mother off of his back, so he could leave. Moving in the New Hotness? With storage scrolls letting him pack literally everything he owned into the same general area and mass as a small wooden box, and Tsunade letting out little more than a 'keep the sheets clean' as a means of goodbye, it had been a much easier experience. Granted, she had made him swear to stop by every now and again, very begrudgingly admitting that no matter how old his soul may be, he had grown on her and he would always be _her_ gaki.

And, of course, there was also the fact that he and Dai had chakra, which gave them super strength, and all of the furniture he had either bought, looted from his room, or the sturdier ones he'd looted from Back Home, were all in storage scrolls. It expedited the process a great deal.

"Explain the coat to me, why don't you." Said the Aburame, as the Senju dropped the fuinjutsu storage scrolls in a small pile in the main room, his hands first picking up the one labeled 'furniture'.

"Oh?" Hibiki looked over his shoulder at the Aburame, an eyebrow arced as he slid open the scroll. "What, don't like it?" He grinned, briefly glancing at the scroll before he pulsed a small bit of chakra into the seal he'd marked for, appropriately, a coat rack. He handed it to Dai, who dropped it a few feet from the door.

"I would not say that." Said Dai, as Hibiki heard the rustling of cloth, and looked over his shoulder again, to see Dai making use of the coat rack, prompting Hibiki to wonder, as he gave a brief look at her bare, highly porous arms, if this had been the first time he'd ever seen her without one of her hoodies. Appropriately, her arms were as pale as one would expect them to be, considering she hardly exposed them to the sun. "It is just few people would wear something so constrictive. I would not expect it to be maneuverable, in combat." She said.

She didn't even blink at the flying bundle of cloth, instead shooting her hand up to catch the overcoat Hibiki had bundled up and threw at her. She grinned for the moment he couldn't see her, before she flapped it out, unfurling it, and hanging it on the rack. Hibiki's grin, however, wasn't hidden at all, as he pulsed more chakra into the scroll, and out came a simple, wooden coffee table.

"Call it a habit I haven't broken." Said Hibiki, as he shoved the table out of the way, Dai caught it and slid it into position, as Hibiki used one arm to sweep the scrolls away, and the other to move the open scroll into position. "Back Home, when I went to the equivalent of the last academy years, they always kept the classrooms cold, so I wore a coat for the last few years of my academy. Same coat, every day." He pulsed more chakra into the scroll, and out popped a full sofa, made of aged, but still intact leather. "So I started joking - that coat got me my first date, got me my passing grades, the works. And it didn't help that, if I forgot the coat, I froze my ass off, and sometimes my luck would run out." He shrugged his shoulders, as Dai took up position on the other end of the couch. "So I started calling it my 'lucky coat'. Need to throw something on? Lucky coat." He and Dai bent down and hauled the couch into the air, the effort required far less than Hibiki had been expecting, even with chakra. "Need to go outside for a minute or two? Lucky coat. Too cold? Lucky coat. Got a stupid shirt someone might be offended if they see? Lucky coat." He and Dai straightened out the couch, pressing it against the wall, and lowering it back to the hardwood floor.

"I feel compelled to ask if you were wearing your coat when you died." Dai said slyly, as Hibiki dug under the couch and recovered the scroll they had buried beneath it.

Hibiki laughed, "well, miss smartass -" He got back to his feet, "I don't fuckin' remember." He said, with pursed lips and a deliberately unserious expression. "I was kind of focused on that crunching sound, and the lack of squealing tires." He set the scroll down on the coffee table.

"So, if I am to believe you, you remember nearly every insignificant detail about these moo-vees." She said, deliberately butchering the word just to watch Hibiki set his jaw. "But not what you were wearing the day you died."

"Are you surprised?" Hibiki asked, pulsing more chakra into the scroll, and pulling out the last item - a dining table, which immediately tipped over and clattered to the ground, sideways, with a loud wooden thump.

Dai managed to stop it from flipping over entirely, and with a light grunt, picked it up into the air, and began sidling over to the other end of the apartment, the strain so insignificant to the kunoichi that her bare, porous arms weren't even straining. "I am." She said, "I thought the sharingan gave perfect recall?" She teased.

The Senju heir shook his head, "yeah, yeah, yeah." He rolled up the scroll and tossed it onto the couch, before grabbing another, labeled for kitchen supplies, and followed Dai, who put down the table with a light huff. "You know, I think this is the -"

"It is." Dai said, giving Hibiki a sidewards glance, as the Senju heir blinked at the blatant attempt at reading his mind.

"You freak me out." He said, unrolling the scroll on the table, and pulsing chakra into three of the four seals, causing piles of utensils to pop out. "Surprised your folks are letting you just cut and run. Even _Tsunade_ sat my ass down for a few hours for one last breakfast." Said Hibiki, as he and Dai grabbed fistfulls of forks, spoons, and the like, picking out a drawer, and shoving them in in haphazardly organized piles.

He heard Dai hum, "you overestimate my clan, Hibiki." She said, "to us, a child leaving their parents is a celebratory event. It is akin to a queen leaving to start a new hive." She explained.

_Alright, I'm starting a counter. How many double-entendres Dai can fit into one day. Go!_ Hibiki was pretty sure she was trying to hint at something, but at this point him not reacting was as much out of spite as it was to see how far she'd go before she dropped the pretense.

"Uh-huh." Grunted Hibiki, as he pulled a refrigerator, that he'd had to buy from the market, out of hammerspace, and hefted it onto his shoulder. "Where's the outlet?" Knowing that Back Home existed actually did a lot to remove confusion as to how the Elemental Nations could have so many electrical inventions, despite their general lack of technological advancement.

"Over here." Said Dai, leading Hibiki to an opening between two countertops.

Hibiki let the fridge down slowly, sliding it down both hands before it thumped on the ground. Dai hopped ontop of the counter and leaned down to plug the machine in, before she gave Hibiki the go-ahead to push it against the wall. Hibiki wouldn't lie, he felt like superman, lifting all of these things with no real effort. He straightened up and saw Dai, still seated on the counter, hands firmly pressed against the countertop, her characteristic neutral expression on her face; the only real difference between now and any other moment being her lack of a jacket and sunglasses. Hibiki was surprised at how much just a few articles of clothing made the difference between having to try to read her, and not having to try at all.

Dai grinned a one-sided grin, and held her milky-white arms out. The Senju heir rolled his eyes and leaned in, grabbing around her waist as she placed her hands on his shoulders. He lifted her off of the countertop and placed her back on the ground.

"Was that necessary?"

In response, Dai leaned in and gave the Senju heir a peck on the nose. "Yes." She leaned back and let go of him, "which one of those has the kitchen chairs?" She asked.

Hibiki watched her approach the pile of scrolls, and for the first time actually saw the beetles vacating her body. He hadn't exactly been sure what he'd been expecting, small raised bumps crawling towards the dark pores in her arms, a bulge in her skin before a beetle popped out, or even a small film of chakra dilating the pores so the insects could leave, but he knew he hadn't expected what he got. They simply crawled out of the multiple dark, black pores in her arms, no fanfare, no warning, almost like ants crawling out of an anthill, or bees vacating a beehive.

Unexpectedly, his skin didn't crawl. The beetles collected in a small swarm and grabbed one of the scrolls at random, collecting at its bottom before flying it into the air, where they dropped it in Dai's hand. Hibiki arced an eyebrow, impressed - she'd gotten the right one, the kitchen furniture and the dishes. She revolved on one foot, and held the scroll up questioningly. Hibiki nodded, and Dai tossed it through the air.

He caught and unrolled the scroll, pressing chakra into one seal to pull out four simple wooden chairs. Dai approached him and assisted in upending the chairs and sliding them under the table, before the two pulled the dishes from the scroll and began placing them where they went.

"So -" Said the Senju, "rumor's going around that they're going to be promoting Jonin, soon." He said, "know what that means?"

"I am old enough to be placed on the available roster for teaching, yes." Dai said, with a nod and the sound of plates clacking against eachother. "I think it will be a while, yet."

"Oh?"

"As it stands, I am overall B-ranked, but with Aoi and Akane I am a part of an A-ranked tracking and information retrieval team." She explained, "they will want first for us to gain experience on the battlefields, and to be able to train up others with similar skill sets, before they take us off of the battlefield to instruct genin." Dai explained, before leaning her dark-haired head over and whispering, "I do not think that they will give you a squad until the war is out, Thunder God."

Hibiki pursed his lips, "hm." He said, "just you wait. I'll train up the kick-assiest squad ever. They'll totally beat up your squad."

Dai giggled, "I and my prospective squad look forward to it, Thunder God-sensei."

"Though that does make me wonder." Said the Senju, as they pulled the last pile of dishes from the scroll and set them in their place. "I don't see many Aburame out there, teaching genin squads."

"Well, Hibiki, I would have thought these five years would have helped you understand." Hibiki suddenly felt something crawling around on his face, and had to exercise a considerable amount of self control to not drop the dishes. "My clan aren't necessarily... How do you say it?"

"Friendly?"

"People-persons."

"My next guess was 'nice'." That one got him a nip on the cheek from his new friend, before it flew back to crawl under Dai's skin.

The next scroll had in it a bookshelf, which the two shoved in a corner and began to use to hold the spent scrolls. Dai then spoke up again, "not many of us are Jonin-level, too."

"I think you said something about that." Hibiki said, grabbing a few scrolls in each hand and nodding to the hallway. The two found the master bedroom and set the scrolls down on the windowsill. "Isn't your clan head still a chunin?"

Dai hummed, nodding her head. "His son is Jonin-track."

"I think I went to the academy, with him..." Hibiki mused aloud, as he grabbed another one-item scroll, and placed it in the center of the room. A large plume of smoke later, a mattress and bedframe appeared. "Different class, though." He and Dai began pulling sheets, comforters, and pillows from another scroll, and arranging the bed. "How many Aburame usually make Jonin?"

"Not many. I believe I told you, my father was the last. My mother may have, but she had to retire."

"How come?"

"In a battle during the second war, she had to use a very dangerous technique to kill an enemy she couldn't avoid." Dai explained, "I am not allowed to go into specifics, but it involves doing something many Aburame try to avoid at all costs."

"Well don't leave me in suspense, lady!" Chuckled the Senju, as he dropped a few pillows on the bed, and leaned forward, resting his head in his hands.

"Calling upon our queens."

Hibiki blinked, "wait, you can _do_ that?"

"Can you call your head Eagle?"

"Fair point, but still." Hibiki's eyes traveled down Dai's porous arms, and then to her stomach, before jumping back up to her narrow amber eyes. "Is that even safe?"

"No. To put it simply, the queens may be the strongest beetles in our bodies, but calling on that power carries with it increasing exponential risk. Calling upon one ends our shinobi careers. Calling upon _all_ of the queens kills us."

Hibiki nodded, "so - list of things not to do."

Dai smiled, "quite."

"And your mother did this?"

"Yes."

Hibiki nodded, and flopped down onto the bed, groaning into the thick comforter. "Sometimes..." Said his muffled voice, as he heard and felt Dai join him on the bed, "I forget that most folks don't cheat the system, like I do." He said, turning his head, to see the Aburame resting her head on her arms, one eye visible, and locked onto the Senju.

"Are you suggesting that perhaps I should learn _your_ method? Gain the Queens as a primary weapon, as opposed to a last resort?"

"No, actually. Have you noticed I've been weaning myself off of the eight gates these last few years? My memory may be off, but I'm pretty sure the only one I had to use it on in Iwa was on Katsuo. Even the Tsuchikage didn't need it." He explained, "it might not be bad to learn as a sort of... Primary, last resort, if you catch my drift. Everyone likes to say - it's a _very good_ party trick."

Dai hummed, "you are causing quite the stir, Hibiki." She agreed, "you may end up writing entries in the Hokage's forbidden scroll." She said, lightly.

Hibiki chuckled, "don't remind me." He said, "I get one of those squads I was talking about, whoever the Hokage is will probably stack the deck in my favor. Get me the highest-scoring graduates, tell me to teach 'em to think like I do."

"And that is a bad thing?" Dai said, scooting around on the bed such that her feet were resting on the headboard, and her head, on Hibiki's stomach.

"Well, _no."_ He conceded, "but it took Terrans sixteen hundred years to reach the age of enlightenment, start thinking about the 'Why' of things. They'll want me to do it in... Oh... Two. Maybe three." He said, resting one hand under his head and lightly swinging the other around, where it was caught by Dai's and held tight against her stomach. "And change, happening too fast, not historically a good thing."

Dai hummed lightly, "I am certain you'll do what is best." Her grip on his hands tightened, "you always do."

Hibiki chuckled, "oh really? Let me tell you about the time I almost set Kushina's hair on fire with a bad dehumidifying seal."

Dai laughed, "Akane nearly fed chocolate to Kyo-kun, Hibiki. As temperamental as Kushina-san is, you've never seen _Aoi_ get angry."

Hibiki arced an eyebrow, and raised his head, locking eyes with the kunoichi, "you trying to one-up me? 'Cause I've got _two_ lifetimes and forty plus years of stupid stories to draw from. I will win this, lady."

"No, you won't." Dai said, with an all-too-innocent smile.

Hibiki backed down, and laid his head back on his hand. "Okay." He said, quickly.

The two drifted off to silence for several moments, before Hibiki felt Dai's head twitch, as if a lightbulb had just gone off.

"Hibiki, there is only one bed in here." She pointed out.

"You can count to one?" Hibiki teased. "I'm surprised it took you so long, Dai."

"Hm." She adjusted her position, "taking big steps, are we?" Now straddling the Senju heir, her head hovering inches above his, her hands pinning his shoulders to the mattress.

Hibiki predicted he knew how this would turn out, and rolled with it. "Well, way I see it - five years is a long time, especially in this world, with its life expectancy." He explained, in an even tone. "You've been soldiering through this right alongside me, been patient with my slow ass for five years, waiting for me to get comfortable in my own skin." He briefly broke eye contact, "way I see it, the least I can give you is one night, before I drop your ass for a year. Give you a little something for your troubles."

Dai grinned, and gave the Senju a quick kiss, "Hibiki, I pray this 'something' isn't as little as you claim it to be, else you will have wasted both of our times, and I will be a _very_ frustrated kunoichi - and _that,_ historically, is not a good thing." She smiled, a genuine, wide smile, as she leaned in closer, her lips hovering a few inches from his ear. _"Thank you."_ She whispered, before she leaned back up and slapped his shoulders, "unfortunately, now you get to wait. Do not presume to think _I_ operate on _your_ schedule, Hibiki." She said, as she hopped off of him and slid off of the bed. "Come, we've an apartment to finish putting together."

Hibiki chuckled, rolled his eyes, and shook his head as he followed the Aburame out of the room.

* * *

It took them a few more hours to finish putting together everything where it went. It was just as the Senju heir was wondering what all the two should be doing for dinner, that someone knocked on the door. Dai exchanged a brief glance with him, but he was already leaning back on the weathered leather couch, well aware of who in the village knew he was moving today.

_"Go away, Red Hot Habanero!"_ Hibiki called out, cracking a wide grin as the previously kind knocks now turned to angry bangs. He got to his feet and made his way to the door.

Upon opening it, the red-haired Uzumaki was revealed, an angry look in her rabid-looking eyes, and two bags of ramen hanging from her arms. Hibiki blinked, before he noticed a light red welt on her forehead.

_"I brought ramen, you asshole!"_ Kushina growled.

"Did you knock on the door with your _head?"_ Hibiki deflected, staring at the welt a moment, before stepping aside, "come in, I suppose."

Kushina's face brightened up instantly, "no one should have to cook their own dinner, first night in a new home." She said as she strolled right in, Hibiki looked up and met eyes with Dai from across the room; the Aburame didn't try to make any indications that she disagreed with Kushina staying a while, though he did notice she'd drawn her hood and replaced her sunglasses in that brief instant between Hibiki standing up and Kushina entering.

"And who gave you that idea?" Hibiki could actually fondly remember his first mother gloriously cheering at the top of her lungs when she realized she hadn't had to cook for a teenager anymore, when he'd moved out Back Home.

"Lady Mito." Kushina called over her shoulder, "is this your dining room table?" She asked, stopping near a raised table and dropping the two sagging bags filled with ramen cups.

"Yes - allow me." Said Dai, in her monotone, as she assisted Kushina in settling the bags and removing the cups.

"Thanks, Dai-san!" Kushina said, brightly. "Now, I've never eaten ramen with you, you know? So I didn't know which kind you'd like -" Her head shot up, Dai blinked at the sheer energy this woman radiated. "- not that you could _not_ like any one ramen over the other, of course."

Hibiki reached the two women and dropped his two cents, "oh, so that was the excuse? Because you know you'll be eating whatever we don't." There had to at least be a dozen cups of ramen piled at the center of the wooden table.

Kushina shook her head, "well _someone_ has to, you know?!" She said, indignantly. "But save a cup for Minato - he'll be coming too."

"Oh?" Said Hibiki, as he pulled out a chair, hung his coat off of its back, and sat down, soon followed by the Aburame and the Uzumaki. "I've got some shadow clone memories that say he's pretty damn tired."

Kushina grabbed a cup and cracked open a pair of chopsticks, "oh, he is, you know? But once I told him you were moving, _and_ it was your last day before deployment - _aaaand_ -" She held up a finger, as Hibiki and Dai lazily grabbed a cup each, the former at random, the latter after attempting to differentiate one from the other. "- it's pretty likely we'll all be getting sent out on similar deployments, once the new Hokage gets chosen and war plans get drawn up. So we may not get another chance like this for a while!"

Hibiki stared at Kushina a moment, as she popped open the cup of ramen, innocently. "Mikoto's getting nailed, isn't she?"

Kushina nearly spit out the noodles she'd partially inhaled. "I - wha -"

Dai picked up on it immediately, "indeed, that would make sense." She said, as she calmly cracked open her own chopsticks and began gathering a small bit of pork ramen. "Considering war time, and such, and the rumors of our opposition. Many clans are pushing their heirs to breed before taking up the reins. Aoi-san mentioned Tsume-sama not being seen for the last few days... And Akane has been spending a great deal of time with Hiashi-sama." She said neutrally, before taking in her accumulated ramen.

"What about the Aburame head?" Hibiki asked, his mouth half full, as Kushina finally stopped sputtering.

He, and he alone, noticed Dai's lips tighten just a fraction, before she said, "he's been stirring up some trouble, in my clan. Has yet to even be seen courting a woman."

"Like Shikaku."

"Like Shikaku." Dai nodded.

"You two are terrible!" Kushina said, a big grin on her broth-covered face, and a shine in her bright blue eyes.

"Oh just wait, because I'm pretty sure that means Shibi is gay." Said Hibiki, after a swallowing a large clump of noodles.

Kushina leaned back in her chair, covering her mouth as she laughed. Hibiki noticed a light smile on Dai's face as she nodded her head to the side, "I certainly pray that wasn't _hope_ in your voice, Hibiki." She said, taking another bundle of ramen.

"What, worried I'll start swinging for him?" Hibiki's grin became wider.

"You'd be surprised."

Kushina leaned back forward, pointing at Dai, "you know, you and I need to spend more time together, Dai-san." She said, before taking up her abandoned chopsticks and inhaling another large mass of noodles.

"Lady, you get her comfortable around you, I guarantee you couldn't handle her." Hibiki said, as he munched on a bite of beef.

"I couldn't hear you, Hibiki." Said Dai, as a few beetles crawled out of her sleeve.

Kushina, starting on her second cup of ramen, smiled, and decided to do the Senju heir a favor. "So, how much did the landlord drop your rent, mister 'Thunder God'."

Hibiki reached forward for another pack of chopsticks, and flicked them at Kushina's head. The chunin dodged them with a grin, as the Senju responded, "a significant amount. Apparently having an S-ranked Chunin Sealsmaster from a major founding clan is pretty good for security reasons, and his wife is hoping she can use it as an excuse to buy another building, tie it into the two they've got over here." He nodded towards the door.

"Kushina-san." Said Dai, "I've heard that you are capable of fighting Hibiki. May I ask how?"

_Sneaky chick._ Hibiki remained silent, wondering how Kushina would dance around the little furry creature in her gut.

Kushina took it in stride, setting her cup down on the table and adopting a Rosie the Riveter pose, "I've got a few tricks up my sleeve, Dai-san!" She said, with a wide, toothy grin. "Remember - Hibiki just _copies_ bloodlines! I've got the real deal, the _actual_ Uzumaki blood!"

"And yet _Minato's_ space-time seals are better than the 'real deal's'..." Hibiki intoned, as he lifted the cup and drank the steaming broth.

"Pay no attention to the naysayer, Dai-san!" Kushina waved Hibiki's comment away, "that chakra storage seal he's got on his abdomen? Adapted from one of _my_ leach seals!" She straightened her posture, shoved out her chest, and pressed her fists against her hips in a macho-pose. "How else do you think I've won _ten_ of our fights?!"

Dai stared at the Uzumaki for a moment, "and how many times have you fought?"

The question immediately penetrated the bravado, and Kushina deflated instantly. _"Forty three..."_ She mumbled, dropping her hands to her sides.

"Kushina..." Hibiki warned.

_"Plus training matches..." _Was added in a whisper, her head sinking lower.

Dai broke the mask and grinned, briefly exchanging a glance and a grin with Hibiki, before Kushina popped back up and back came the neutral expression. A few minutes passed by with more eating and idle chat, before the apartment was filled with a yellow flash. Minato was revealed, standing just a foot behind Hibiki, in his casual clothing. Hibiki's right hand twitched, as he narrowly resisted the urge to pulse a little chakra into the storage seal on his wrist.

"Don't make a habit of that, Minato."

"Hey Minato!" Kushina brightened up, waving at the blonde.

"Good evening, Minato-san." Dai nodded her hooded head.

Minato, hair wet from what Hibiki suspected to have been a hastily finished shower, bowed lightly. "Hey, you guys!" He said, as he walked around the table, briefly patting one of Kushina's shoulders before he took up the final available seat. "Sorry Hibiki - but! You'll notice, no pain!" He grinned.

"Fixed that, didn't you?" Hibiki placed his cup back on the table.

"Well, kind of." Minato shrugged, "I had to Hiraishin to you this time around to remove the old seal and replace it with a new one. So, fine, a little pain - is that Shoyu?" He said, leaning forward and snatching up a cup of ramen before the Uzumaki in the room could steal it all.

"Nose healed up nice." Hibiki grinned.

As he'd hoped, Kushina's ear twitched, and she immediately gave him, and then Minato, a hard look. "Wait, what happened?"

"Please don't..." Minato begged, shrinking under Kushina's gaze.

"The 'Yellow Flash' over there is trying to figure out how to use my guns, but he was a little too overconfident, and..." Hibiki mimed the recoil of a gun, smacking him in the nose. "There's a lot of blood in a human head, you know."

Kushina was aghast, "you didn't tell me you were trying to learn his thunder technique!"

"Indeed, this is news to me as well." Dai added, breifly exchanging a glance with Hibiki, who just nodded once, causing her to drop the issue with a light shrug, before she gave in and grabbed another cup of ramen.

"It was kind of a new development! And we're trading - I learn how to use his technique, I show him how to use the Hiraishin!" Minato said, waving his hands rapidly, trying to stave off anything Kushina may be plotting.

Hibiki just grinned savagely, as he watched the ends of Kushina's bright red hair begin to levitate. He grabbed another cup of ramen and popped it open, and decided to save his buddy. "And in case you're wondering, yes, he is indeed hiding something else from you."

Kushina blinked, turning to Hibiki, "wait, what?" She lost the faux-anger from just a moment ago, replaced by confusion.

"He's helping me out. We're seeing if we can't pre-charge fuinjutsu seals with ninjutsu. If we can, we're hoping we can't put 'em on explosive tags, or thunder-technique projectiles. Kind of like a last-resort, no-chakra type deal." Hibiki said, after he gobbled down a small helping of ramen.

Hibiki saw Minato mouth 'thank you', before he too dug into his ramen, and Kushina leaned back in her chair, "I didn't think that was possible, you know?... What're you going about with it? A chakra storage seal?" She asked, her brow furrowed.

"Something the sort. To get a ninjutsu, chakra needs to flow a certain way - it's why we have handsigns, after all. But jonin and above can cut down on the number of handsigns needed, or, if you're like Minato or I, develop or master techniques that don't need 'em." Both he and Minato preferred quick-cast ninjutsu without handsigns, after all, it facilitated their fighting styles. "So, we're wondering if it isn't possible to set up a chakra storage seal, and link it with something that induces that the very same flow required to trigger that ninjutsu." He leaned forward and placed his cup on the table, "so, if a river, for instance, had to bank left in order to create a fireball technique, we're trying to set up a seal pre-filled with chakra, that links to a dry riverbed. Then we crack open the storage seal, it floods the river, banks left, and out pops a fireball." He explained, gesticulating with his hands as he did so.

Kushina nodded, "but, without doing it all by hand, that would require _exact_ knowledge of how the chakra for the technique flows. Inside _and_ out - and you don't have a Byakugan." She said, trying to put the pieces together.

Minato picked up at this one, "yup. So we figured, what was stopping us from trying contact seals? Same principle as a touch-applied Hiraishin, but instead what we do is perform all but one of the handsigns required for a ninjutsu, and then we channeled all of that chakra into a collapsing seal."

"Skip to the punchline - I blew myself up." Hibiki paused, "a lot." He was the one who could afford to tank injuries, after all.

Kushina turned her gaze back to him, _"buuuuuut?"_ She asked, giddily.

"We're starting to figure it out." Said Minato, "we'll be trying our own methods once Hibiki deploys. I think it has to do with physically writing down the last required handsign and making the chakra flow through it."

"I think you can cut out the middleman, finish that last handsign and just cap off the chakra before it leaks out of you as would the ninjutsu. Then just touch-apply the seal and Bob's your uncle."

Kushina's face dawned in understanding, "that's how you're getting around writing the whole thing down!"

Minato nodded, "the chakra you'd use in the touch-application would come from the same pool of the ninjutsu you canceled out, meaning it shouldn't explode when you're done. Then you can copy it down, add your personal touches and clauses, and -"

"Uh oh, we lost Dai." Hibiki chuckled.

"No, please." Said Dai, who was sat back against her chair, simply listening to the conversation.

Kushina took pity on the hooded Aburame, "basically, you know how highly skilled jonin can perform ninjutsu with one handsign? These two dolts are trying to do it with _fuinjutsu."_ She said. "If I had to guess..." She looked at Hibiki, then down to his inked wrists, "you want to add these seals onto that thunder technique of yours. Get all the benefits of ninjutsu, without even having to use the chakra to do it."

Hibiki nodded, "pretty much right on the money, but we're a long way from that." He snapped the fingers on his left hand, and a magazine for his pistol appeared. He popped out a bullet and displayed it to Kushina, "that seal on it right now? That's left over from Iwa, and is pretty much me compressing down the Hiraishin as much as I could, and half of the bullet is still black." He said, as Kushina took the slug and looked at it with a careful eye. "These pre-prepared ninjutsu seals we're trying to do? We'd either need bigger bullets, or much more efficient compression seals, because even if I dropped 'em down as tight as I could, the moment I fired that, I'd break half of the seal, and then all it would do is explode." It was only the small hunk of metal at the end that was actually the projectile, after all - the main bulk was the casing beneath it and the propellants in the casing, which would be covered completely black if Hibiki was right.

"You managed to put the Hiraishin on this?" Kushina looked a bit closer at the bullet, "that black _dot_ is the..." She squinted, "it _is!"_ She looked at Hibiki, wide-eyed, "I need to show you chakra chains, Hibiki." She handed him the bullet. "_I _can't get seals down that tight." She paused, "I'm pretty sure Lady Mito was the only one I ever knew, able to get them down that small."

"Ooh, fun." Hibiki had no idea what that was, but he took the bullet back and put everything back in his wrist, where it belonged.

Minato, now finished with his food, set down his cup, somehow having gone through two more during their conversation, though his pile was paltry when compared to Kushina's six, and counting. He rested his elbows on the table, "so Dai, Hibiki ever tell you how Jiraiya-sensei got him to buy his porn?"

"Shut up or I'll tell Kushina about how you broke your balls."

"What?!" Kushina looked enthralled by the prospect of more ammunition with which to tease Minato, her eyes as wide as the cup of ramen she was eating from.

"No, but has he told _you_ how Tsunade-sama nearly broke his spine when she figured out he'd recreated the bijuu-dama in her backyard?" Asked the neutral-faced Aburame.

Minato grew an enormous, child-like grin, looking like Christmas had come early. _"Nooooo!"_ He said, mouth wide open in a toothy smile. "Tell me!" He rested his head in his hands, clearly ready for story time.

"You _traitor!"_ Hibiki laughed, shaking his head.

* * *

Several hours after the sun had set and the moon had risen, many an old tale had been swapped between the four chunin. The apartment's first night was christened with near-ceaseless laughter of friends old and new as they each tried to outdo eachother with their best, most embarrassing stories. By the time they were finished, Kushina had wolfed down the rest of the ramen, Hibiki demonstrated to an interested Kushina what a taser was, by electrocuting Minato, and Dai had enthralled the Uzumaki heiress with how her insects worked, while Hibiki showed Minato the differences between his gun and Minato's revolver. Not a word was said nor a question spoken about the impending war and what all it meant, what their roles would be in the war, or anything the sort. They simply enjoyed their time together, two couples, four friends.

Finally, the visitors had to bid the new home-owners adieu, and they retreated to their respective homes, hand in hand. Hibiki had no sooner shut the door behind them and turned around than did he notice Dai had somehow shed her hood and her glasses again, only now adding a removal of the tight pony-tail that bound her dark hair, allowing it to freely flow down her back.

"They are good people." Dai finally said, as she approached the Senju and slid her arms around him, "I see why you trust him." She said, burying her head into the crook of his neck.

"Doesn't excuse the fact that you've totally been keeping your training with him a secret." Hibiki said into the woman's hair, noting its oily smell, but not really willing to try to identify it. "I was a good boy, by the way - didn't say a _damn_ thing."

He felt her roll her eyes, and the two disentangled for a moment, if only to sit down on the weathered, leather couch, whereupon Dai curled up and rested her head on his shoulder. She let out a deep sigh, as Hibiki leaned his head against hers and curled his arm around her waist, resting it on her hip.

"The entire world is against you on this, Hibiki." Dai finally let out, just barely above a whisper.

Now it was Hibiki's turn to let out a sigh, "he's got quite the army, yeah." He said, "more than twenty five hidden villages, any number of them could have signed on with him." And with his ability to 'read' chakra, and the sheer strength he alone has - to say nothing of his allies - a lot of them would have fallen in line just to avoid his wrath. Hibiki's only solace was in thinking that Rain, Snow, and Iron hadn't signed on, because he at least knew there was a precedent for all three. "We'll be fine." He rumbled. "It'll be tough, but... It's twenty five or so _minor_ villages... Not more than a few thousand shinobi, each."

Dai still held Hibiki a bit tighter, "it is a big world, Hibiki. Many villages are home to many people who can do many things."

Hibiki just grinned, "are you _doubting_ the fucking _Thunder God?"_

"Yes."

"Oh, well... Fine." Hibiki frowned, "I see how it is."

Dai huffed, "I suppose I'm just worried. Thinking I should have taken a more active combat specialization, such that I could at least help you, when the time comes."

Hibiki rolled his eyes, "we forgetting how you handed me my ass a few days ago, and you weren't even trying?"

"Just as we're forgetting you did nothing to augment your power in that encounter, yes." Dai said, "I see your point, but I still feel I must argue."

"Well, that's because you're my girlfriend. You literally _have_ to argue with me - comes with the territory, you see."

This caused Dai to smile a bit, and straighten enough such that she was no longer laying upon Hibiki, but more leaning up against him. "You speak as though you've a plan for all of this."

"You _heard_ my plan, lady - at dinner." He said, "guns, guns, guns. Us three countries, Konoha, Kiri, and Suna, all of our best, plus an army of me with guns that can fire ninjutsu?" He puffed out his chest, "if they ain't Jonin, I'm _not worried."_ He deflated a bit, "put it to you this way. If I told you not to worry, what would you do?"

Dai thought a moment, "worry anyways." She finally admitted, with a pout that was entirely too adorable to come from a stoic nineteen year old kunoichi.

Hibiki cracked a grin, "and if I said I was more worried about you, what would you say?"

"Good." The pout turned into a smug grin.

Hibiki laughed, "you get my point, though."

Dai hummed, "I do."

The two stayed silent for several long minutes, before Dai looked out the window over the sink on the other end of the apartment, seeing a pitch black sky. She sighed, and got to her feet, Hibiki noticed a sly grin on her face as she stood in front of him, stretching her back.

"You know, I don't think we ever addressed that -" Hibiki pointed to the bridge of her nose, "how the hell _do_ you get those glasses to stick?" He asked, partly to fill the sound of silence in the apartment, part because he knew she'd laugh.

He'd been right, as he saw one of her characteristically light smiles grow across her face. "Beetles." She said, with an unflinching lock on his eyes, "they secrete a weak acid, keeps the skin raw, and sticky." She held out her hand, "I think you've been putting something off, Hibiki."

"It ain't bedtime yet." He baited.

She took it, "we're not going to bed. If it's war, Hibiki, we are not going to waste any more time waiting."

Despite his every instinct either saying _bad idea_ on account of any technicalities in regards to his age, or on the other hand trying to urge him into making a snide remark, Hibiki remained silent, simply matching her light smile with one of his own. He took her hand and she all but dragged him through the apartment.

* * *

As always, Hibiki had failed to take into account a few variables in his master plan. In this case, the sheer size of a shinobi's sex drive. In hindsight, it made perfect sense - they were people who fought on the level of gods for a living. They killed, ran entire countries in days, and manipulated the fabric of the universe on a whim. Add in a whole host of related mental issues, Hibiki _really_ should have seen this coming. Of course, another thing he had failed to take into account was that, Back Home, people didn't have _nearly_ the same kind of stamina as they did here. Again, shinobi could run entire countries in days - or, in his and Minato's case, a continent in a quarter that time. As one climbed the ranks and skill, they tired less and less easy, which in turn meant they lasted a very, very long time in bed, should they so desire. Finally, Hibiki had certainly kept in mind that Dai had reached sexual maturity far sooner than he had - there was a physical age difference, after all - but he hadn't considered the fact that, since she had essentially been waiting for him, that meant she was probably rather pent up. Moreso if the only 'company', so to speak, she had was herself. Fortunately for him, whether she knew it on a conscious level or not, Dai knew all of these things and had taken them into account, likely resulting in their early bedtime, because the result? The result had been them decidedly not sleeping so long that, when they finally did collapse on top of eachother in a tangle of limbs, Hibiki didn't even know what day it was.

Even after fifteen years to get used to this new life, and five years to come to terms with his own morals on the whole dating-in-the-new-life subject, there was still a small but vocal part of Hibiki that wondered if there wasn't something wrong about all of this. All of the variables, all of the context, all of the thoughts and doubts clouding his mind, they kept him awake, kept him thinking.

Today, however, would be an exception, as he woke up after a full night's sleep. Well, maybe not a _full_ night's sleep, but a restful one all the same. The very first night since Ame, in which he slept all the way through, and wasn't kept awake by the myriad of thoughts and nightmares clouding his mind and keeping the neurons firing. Waking up in Dai's arms, with her body pressed up against his, it warmed his chest in a way he couldn't quite describe, and told him that perhaps, in this one instance, it would do him better to just _not_ think so much. To take the moment for what it was, and accept the reality for what it is. Fortunately for him, the sun wasn't even up, and as such he had time to try and do just that.

He watched Dai as she slept, sliding his hand over her bare back, and over the surprisingly smooth holes bored into the skin by the beetles deep in her body. He reflected on him and her, how they had met and how things had grown to this. He couldn't exactly pinpoint the specific moment where he knew she'd become interested in him, and if he were to be honest, he couldn't do the same for himself, either. NORAD had just gotten him to give in, but a part of him knew that that hadn't been the beginning, just him admitting he needed help, hers, specifically. Maybe one day he would be able to pinpoint it, but right now, his thoughts were elsewhere. What had he done, what kind of cosmic roll of the dice had he landed on, to walk out of the deal with _her?_ What about him had made her so doggedly refuse to give up, and try for a man _far_ better than him? What about him made her _want_ to try so hard?

_And perhaps just as important..._ Thought the Senju, as he felt Dai's grip around him tighten just a fraction in her sleep. _Can I protect her from this war?_ Because as much as he was afraid to admit it, the further into her arms he sank, the more and more afraid he was to learn what would happen if this world of gods turned its attention to her, when he wasn't looking. When this world, filled with people of such strength and such power that the universe itself bent to their will, focused on her, and he wasn't there, and something _bad_ happened, what would he do? He couldn't be there always, he knew, and she wasn't the type to become strong enough to fight the world and win, that just wasn't her style. She read people, and learned their secrets, he fought people, and beat them to their knees. It would happen eventually - sometime, somewhere, the very instant he wasn't looking, the very second he let his guard down, he'd get his reality check. Minato said not to worry, she said not to worry, but he couldn't. This was a hostile world filled with gods and monsters who bent the very fabric of reality, and his incredibly intelligent ass had gone and fallen in love. Cthulhu was literally _waiting_ for him to blink.

He blinked, suddenly aware that a pair of amber eyes were staring back into his onyx orbs. "Uh..." How long had she been awake?

"You know... There has only been one moment, the entire time I've known you, when I felt that you were completely out of your league." Dai whispered, her gaze lowering, her hand curling up on his chest. There was a pause, "besides when you crawled into my bed, that is." She said softly, "it was in Kirigakure, when you went to fight Katsuo. I was terrified for you. I knew that for all your power, you could not win against him." Her gaze raised back up, "do you remember what you did?"

Hibiki grunted, "no."_ Something stupid, I bet."_

Dai grinned, "I figured." She said, briefly closing her eyes, before she lifted her hand and, after a moment, pressed her finger into Hibiki's nose and made a honking noise.

Hibiki snorted, "oh kami, I didn't." He breathed, rolling his head to the side to hide the embarrassed shine in his eyes. A _Dogma_ joke; Dai had been terrified for his life, and he'd left her with a _Dogma_ joke. Again he found himself questioning what she saw in him.

"feel embarrassed if you wish, Hibiki, but in its own way it worked." Dai's voice was now just above a whisper, the lightest amount of strength to it, to match Hibiki's near-silent volume. "It was upon that day I figured out exactly how powerful and capable you were. You may not always know what you're doing, but you know how to do it anyways." She said, "after you left me, you went to fight the Monster, and what amazes me to this day is that despite losing, you _won._" She cupped his face, and turned it back to her. "So trust me, Hibiki, when I tell you to _stop _thinking so much. I'll always be here to help you when you need it... Now forgive me if I get this next part wrong."

Hibiki furrowed his eyebrows, as Dai leaned in close, her lips inches from his ear. Hibiki felt his heart stop just a moment later, when she spoke so quietly that any distance greater than this would have rendered her words unintelligible. Her emphasis was off, her accent came in so thick that it almost masked the words entirely, her pronunciation was so strange that it hadn't been until she had finished speaking that Hibiki had figured out what she had said. He had no idea how she learned it, where she got it from, or how she had been able to put it all together.

Despite that, hearing the dead language from the person he least expected, hearing her _English_ uttering of the words _"I love you, Hibiki."_ had been among the most beautiful things he'd ever heard.

It didn't take him long to figure out how this wonderful woman pieced together even this small portion of his native, dead tongue. Five years, they had been together - and more often than not, if he was reading something, she was staring at it hard, over his shoulder. If they watched something together, he practically translated it for her as they watched it. She'd been paying attention, the entire goddamn time, picking apart everything he said, learning - slowly, but surely, until she figured out what it was she had to say, what it meant, and how she had to say it. She figured out syntax, sentence structure, verbiage and grammar, all through exposure, and all through him. She'd learned English, right under his nose, and had kept it a secret from him the entire time.

He would only ever admit to her, and only ever in absolute privacy, that he'd started tearing up in those few stunned seconds of silence, before he kissed her and told her, _"I love you too, Dai."_ as the first rays of sunshine would turn the dark night a lighter blue.


	67. When He's Not Looking

Chapter 66

* * *

Hibiki's exodus from the village was a quiet affair. He was seen off by his sensei, who gave a few parting words of wisdom, his squadmates, who promised him to have a fight waiting when he got back, Minato and Kushina, who simply wished him well, and Dai, who threatened to kill him if he didn't come back alive. Following his goodbyes, Hibiki vanished with a zipping noise and a pale white contrail. Those who saw him off soon dispersed, leaving only Dai, standing meters away from the looming wooden gates that protected Konoha. A year without Hibiki, it wasn't an appealing thought, and not just because almost anything could happen during that time.

An even less appealing thought came when her queens warned her of a new presence, less than a meter behind her, standing unaffected by the frigid morning air. A blank expression on her face, she turned to face it, and was greeted by an Aburame, just a few inches shorter than her. His coat lacked a hood and instead had its collar popped, covering the lower half of his tan face. To anyone else, to receive a surprise, unwarranted visit from their clan heir would be cause for celebration. To Dai, it made her heart cool down more than a few degrees, and forced her to steel her face more than usual.

How many times had she dealt with this? How many times would she _have_ to deal with this? She steeled her resolve, taking faith and solace in the fact that it would all be over soon. The steps he had taken yesterday night, she all but knew it to be true. This problem of hers, so carefully kept secret, would no longer be.

"No." She stated, staring blankly at the other Aburame from beneath her thin hood. "I have told all of you time and time again I belong to Hibiki. No number of visits will change that." Her eyes, unseen from behind her dark glasses, were narrower than usual, a rare expression of an emotion few who knew her had ever seen her express.

"I would hope I could defy the odds." Said her future clan head. "You, as do I, come from a strong hive. A child -"

Were it anyone else, they would have snapped and launched an irate tirade. Dai, however, interrupted the chunin before her with a calm and even tone. "I have heard every possible way one could tell me how powerful a child made by us could be, Shibi-sama." Dai said coolly, "I have heard every possible way about how I could bring honor to my hive and yours by joining with you in union. I have spent countless hours being yelled at by my father and mother alike. My ears still yet ring from the most recent verbal sparring match, to which I believe you listened." She said, noting how subtly he stiffened, the almost imperceptible twitch of a small cluster of muscles above his right eyebrow. "You are not as stealthy as you would believe, Shibi-sama, and as I have told you countless times, I care not for betrothal agreements written on paper that only holds as much power as those alive to remember it would allow it to." Hibiki showing her the history and documents of his dead culture only proved to her how simple and meaningless such things were. He disagreed, of course, and she understood why he placed such faith in pieces of paper, but it didn't change the fact that documents only held power so long as there was someone to display said power, and someone else willing to submit to it. Shibi was not the former, not to her, and she was not the latter. "I care not for fifteen year old chunin who demand respect as opposed to commanding it. I care not for the child we could make, nor the gender you desire, nor the names your parents have pressured you into deciding." He was a proud man, but if there was one thing he could not do, it was make his own decisions. She knew Shibi perhaps as well as she knew Hibiki, and not necessarily because she wanted to. "I care not for _you."_

Shibi remained still during Dai's even-toned tirade, watching her body language with the kind of attention only Aburame and Hyuga were capable of paying. When she was finished, he spoke in just as even and calm a tone as her, the only difference being the depth to their voices. "Yet you have kept these things secrets from him. Your father does not respect him, your mother hates what he has done to your hive's future-lineage's prospects, and you've not once even mentioned the betrothal contract that has existed between our hives since before you, I, and he were conceived." He took a single step forward, an overt, threatening gesture that was not lost on her. "Using him as a delaying tactic will not change those writs. Not telling him, will not wipe your perceived problem away."

Dai stood her ground, she didn't feel that Shibi had the right to know why she kept these things from her Senju. Shibi knew not what kind of man Hibiki was, nor of the sheer weight of the things he dealt with on a daily basis; something as trivial as this tripe would be a needless addition to the stress that so clearly addled him every night. It would only add to the things that kept him awake, kept him tired and haggard, and as much as she didn't want that, he didn't need it. This was a problem that would solve itself - it literally only required the time to do so. So, instead of explaining herself to him, she glared daggers at her future clan head, briefly lowering her head and glaring at him from just above her glasses.

"And yet you, Shibi-sama, attempt to change my mind instead of going to him with this perceived slight. Because you and I both know that, should you attempt to force the matter in an official capacity. To call the rites of clan, of either ours or his," she lowered her voice, "he would destroy you." A beetle crawled up the side of her face, silently letting her know that help was on the way. She let out the breath caught in her chest, glad that she wouldn't have to be dealing with this for much longer. There was only one woman he couldn't say no to.

Shibi took another step forward, "Dai-san, I beg of you to not make this any harder than it has already been. Your ostracization from the clan does not have to be. I take my position as head in _months, _merely agree to honor the -"

"And what the _fuck_ are you doing?!" Suddenly barked out a loud, shrill voice, before an amazonian woman in a thick fur coat dropped out of the sky and slapped the Aburame heir on the back of the head, soon joined by a ninken half of her size, and two more women, who took up positions next to Dai.

Seeing Tsume put Shibi in his place was endlessly entertaining, and having her squad arrive just as timely never ceased to bring a pressure to her chest that few outside of Hibiki were able to recreate. Dai turned to Aoi, who was looking at her with wide, concerned eyes, and nodded once, briefly, just as Akane reached over and tenderly rubbed between her shoulders, the three of them shifting their focus to the fated Inuzuka Alpha, hands on her hips, verbally tearing apart her squadmate, friend, and best enemy.

"Tsume-san -" Though his face and tone were neutral, Dai knew well enough that the Inuzuka had, in seven words, thoroughly penetrated his defenses in the way only one of the wild clan could. It didn't hurt that she smelled like wet dog, having likely been woken up, or perhaps having been interrupted in the middle of a training session with her ninken.

_"_Don't you 'Tsume-san' _me!"_ The wild-haired Inuzuka roared, as her ninken circled around the Aburame heir. "I thought you would've learned by now - _I don't give a fuck!"_ She yelled, "about whether or not I make you look bad in front of your clan - let alone her!" She pointed at Dai with a thin finger, its nail sharpened to a claw-like point. "She's already got a bitch! A _strong_ one! A _hot_ one! Paper be damned!" She reared her hand again, but dropped it at the sight of more than a few kikaichu crawling out of Shibi's coat, ready to defend. "Now, she's too nice to say anything, but I'm not - _stop, fucking, harassing her!"_ She roared, "or need I remind you what that bitch's _name alone_ got to happen? He didn't even have a hand in it - his name alone got a fucking Kage impeached! He may be a bitch but you try to force yourself on his woman do you _really_ think he'll just take it? And before you put up that macho bravado - 'Oh, he wouldn't touch me' - he blew up a village!" The loud woman roared, her words echoing out for hundreds of meters in the early morning air. "A _village,_ Shibi!"

Shibi settled for simply staring at the wild woman, waiting for her to lose steam.

"I mean for Kami's sake - if what you want is a wet snatch I've _told_ you my bed is open!" She grinned in a feral fashion. "I can work the stress right out of you, believe you me!"

Shibi rolled his eyes and turned on his heel. "We will finish this la -"

"No the hell you won't!" Another slap, this one between his shoulders, "now save face and get out of here." The Aburame heeded her words and did just that. Tsume watched as he fled at a leisurely pace, before finally dropping her arms and slumping forward in a dramatic fashion. _"Fuck!"_ She yawned, turning to face Team Eiji, and itching at her scalp with her sharpened nails. "Seriously, lady." She said strolling over to Dai and her squad, "you just say the word, I can get my father to make this a clan issue. Bring it up to her, Tsunade-sama can shut his ass down in a second - and if that's not good enough, _I_ can march right the fuck up to your bitch and slap some sense into him. You _know_ that would solve the problem!"

Dai smiled lightly, and nodded politely. "Thank you, Tsume-san. I apologize for waking you with this triviality." She said, bowing her head.

"Hm?" The Inuzuka heiress blinked, "oh, that? No - that was Aoi." She waved it off, "I haven't been out of bed in days, nothing's sticking. I hope he didn't get to you. You know him - he means well, but he's... Overly narrow, is a kind way of putting it." She grinned in her feral fashion, the red marks on her face crinkling up with her grin.

Dai turned to Aoi with a characteristically blank look as Tsume spoke. The Inuzuka kunoichi simply shrugged, "I didn't want you to have to deal with him alone. Tsume-sama seemed the most expedient." She said, an innocent grin crinkling her clan markings in a way that said she was fully aware that she'd just embarrassed Shibi Aburame in a somewhat official sense.

Tsume, however, again waved it off. "You can make it up to me with food." And she turned to Akane, whose forehead was bare and unbandaged, due to the swiftness she had had to run with to arrive on time. "And _you_ can tell me what Hiashi's like in bed while we eat." The instant she saw the Hyuga woman's cheeks begin to redden to a shade nearly as deep as the Inuzuka's facial markings, she raised her voice, _"ha! Don't deny it!"_ She whirled around, "c'mon! I want steak!"

Dai's squad followed the Inuzuka from a distance of several paces, letting the prospective Alpha lead them at a march. Now that the trouble was done, and once she noticed Akane still blushing, with her head bowed down low, she removed her hitai-ate from its position hanging around her neck, and offered it to the Hyuga so she could cover her caged bird seal.

* * *

"Wait, you two did _WHAT?!"_

Seated next to her Hyuga squadmate, Dai stared silently at the Inuzuka heiress, a neutral, stoic expression painting her face. "I said not a word, Tsume-sama."

Tsume leaned heavily onto Aoi, who sat next to her in their booth, elbowing her arm. "'Said not a word' she says." She mocked, before straightening up and pointing at Dai with a fork, covered in blood courtesy of her rare steak. "It's the _way_ you didn't say shit! Don't you think I didn't see the way you were strutting your stuff, Dai! And you two just moved in together? I can do the math!" Her loud, feral voice managed to drown out the breakfast crowd in the mid-sized restaurant they'd found.

Aoi decided to back her heiress up with a brief nod, "indeed. Had I not known any better, I would have thought you were glowing because you were so angry at Shibi-sama, for cornering you not even an hour after Hibiki departed." She and her future head exchanged glances and shared a savage grin.

Akane, fortunately, proved to have more tact. "I am glad to hear you and Hibiki have moved in together, Dai-san." She said, her voice soft and, had she not waited for Tsume to stop her teasing laughter, would have been overshadowed entirely by her volume.

"Ha! Yeah!" Tsume piped in, after tearing a chunk of her steak off with nought but a dull knife and her fork. "I'm starting a betting pool - ten thousand Ryo says the bitch comes home with a ring. Fifteen if he's too cheap and makes it with that Kaguya thing he does."

Dai inclined her head, lightly glaring at Tsume, but swapping to Aoi when she grinned and said, "I'll get in on that." and turning this glare to a look of surprise when even Akane smiled and said, "I would not disbelieve it."

"I hope each of you three are sterilized." Said Dai, as she reached forward and took a sip of her tea. "Akane, I am ashamed of you. I thought your betrothed taught you better."

"Hiashi is not here, though." Akane smiled slyly, from over her own teacup, her smile almost completely masked by her long, flowing sleeves, and the cup pressed to her lips. Before Tsume could raise her voice, she added, "and Tsume-sama doesn't count."

Tsume's eyes nearly bulged out of her head, as she pressed into the back of her booth, covered her mouth with one hand, and pointed at Akane with the other, howling in laughter. "Did the Hyuga just insult me!?" She laughed, "holy shit, we're rubbing off on her!" She smacked the table in victory. "But enough of that -" Her gaze snapped onto Dai, who matched it with an iron intensity, as the former leaned almost all the way across the table, her chest pressing into it and nearly smearing her coat with steak juice. "How is the _Thunder God_ in bed?! I _have_ to fucking know!"

Dai simply arced an eyebrow, "is sex all you -"

"Yes! Now tell me!" Tsume grinned wildly. "Strong? Powerful? Big? Fast? Or is that his weakness? God on the battlefield, bitch in bed?" Without breaking eye contact, she pointed at Akane with a snap of her fingers, who shrunk away from the attention. "I pulled that shit out of _her,_ do _not_ think I can't get it out of you!" Her eyes widened and her grin turned savage, her teeth bared in a predatory fashion, as if _begging_ Dai to challenge her.

"You underestimate my will, Tsume-sama." Calmly said the Aburame, "I've fended off Shibi for seven years, and I waited patiently for Hibiki for five, at least."

The savage grin turned into a full on sneer, "I don't hear regret!"

Dai felt she had to take the bait, if only for the honor of her man. "That is because there is none." It took more effort than she cared to admit to keep her face straight.

The Inuzuka howled in glee, and leaned back to her side of the table, clapping her hands together. "Hahaha!" She laughed, "_fuck_ I shouldn't have avoided that bitch in the Academy!"

"You were too slow, Tsume-sama." Dai intoned.

Tsume rolled her eyes, "yeah, I doubt the bitch could handle me in bed anyways." She wiped steak sauce off of her jacket, before looking at her hands, and then Aoi, before wiping them off on _her_ coat.

"Hey!"

"I'm your Alpha, shut up."

"No you're not! Not yet!"

"That's why I said shut up." Tsume turned to Dai, who was silent as she accepted her breakfast from the waitress. When the civilian left, Tsume spoke up, "seriously, though. Why haven't you said anything to him? He may be a bitch but he's a _strong_ bitch! I don't care if he's my squadmate and I should be defending him, Hibiki could put down Shibi in a _heartbeat."_ She tore another chunk out of the steak.

Dai shook her head, calmly eating her food as she considered her words. "Simply, Tsume, it is nothing he needs to worry about. He's enough on his plate, and the only trouble this could cause would be in the short term." A pause, "I do not want to pressure him. One of the few things he has in this world is the time to make his own decisions. The least I can do is give him that time." She carefully explained, "your clan and mine are similar in betrothal agreements. If one party refuses to sign or honor it following genin promotion, it is possible to stave it off. Perhaps not indefinitely, but I think long enough in this case." She paused to swallow, "it will be less difficult now, that I'm living with him. Even when he takes control of the clan, if Shibi wants to force the matter, he will have to confront Hibiki directly and challenge him, and he will not do that, he is too smart."

"Yeah, but he's going to be your clan head before Hibiki will get the chance to pop the question. What do you intend to do about that?" Tsume asked, roughly.

"If he pushes, Dai-san, there is little you can do." Akane pressed. "The only reason Hiashi was able to select me over his intended was because he spent an inordinate amount of time fighting the contract... And there are still risks, if we fail to produce a powerful offspring."

Dai, however, shook her head. "If he presses the matter and I _still_ refuse, he has two options. Force me, or capitulate. He is too proud to do the latter, he desires any child we may sire too much. And if he tries the former and succeeds... He will face Hibiki, soon after." She nodded to Tsume, "and Tsume did a succinct job at throwing Hibiki's feats in his face."

Tsume conceded this point, "and once you wed into Hibiki's clan, you can wash your hands of this nonsense." She finished gnawing on her steak, "I'm just amazed the bitch never figured out you were shacking up with us in my compound, all these years!"

Dai smiled guiltily, "I actually have my father to thank for that. The one and only time Hibiki set foot in my compound, my father greeted him, and he has not again since." A pause to finish her breakfast, "and I've made it a point to hunt him down before he could try to do the same to me."

Tsume again leaned over to Aoi, _"and that's why he's her bitch!"_ She faux-whispered.

Aoi barked out a quick laugh, "alright, alright, alright. Enough about boys."

"You're just saying that because the only man in your life is Kyo-kun!" Tsume laughed.

Aoi rolled her eyes and leaned out to pet the ninken in question, who stood sentry at the foot of the booth. "He is all I need for now, Tsume-sama." She said, before leaning back up and shaking her head. "I have heard rumors about our new Hokage selection. _Dante_ _Uchiha._ They say the nominations will be coming within the next few days!"

Dai nodded, having known about the planned nomination through Hibiki. Tsume openly gaped, a bite of steak hanging from her mouth, Akane was the first to speak. "Truly?" She asked, her voice light, but her eyes wide and in shock. "I would never have thought... An Uchiha, making kage before a Hyuga, even." She said. "And Dante-sensei, no less."

"Have you ever seen that smelly bastard without his genjutsu?!" Tsume barked, "he smells like a barn! They want him to lead our village?!"

"I'm not necessarily saying I'm agreeing with it." Aoi shrugged her shoulders and inclined her head, "I know Dante-sensei is a powerful shinobi, and when he was alive, Eiji-sensei respected him a great deal from their service together, and he trained Hibiki-san, so he must at least be a good person... But he _is_ an Uchiha. They were a violent people, once."

"Weren't we all?" Countered Akane, "many of our clans killed many people not very long ago. Perhaps this is as much of a show of trust, as it is a genuine decision?"

Tsume shook her head, as she wiped her steak juice from her face. "I'll be completely fuckin' honest with you three - I don't care one way or another. I've met some asshole Uchiha in my time, and I've met some good ones, too. But I've also met some asshole Hyuga, Naara, Yamanaka, Akimichi..." She nodded with each name she dropped, before casting Dai a sly grin, "_Aburame..."_ Dai didn't change her expression. "And besides - if we want to talk about violence, let's be fucking honest here, Aoi-san. Our clan is more violent than most -" She pointed at Akane, "- and they can kill people by touching them..." Her finger shifted to Dai, "and they eat people alive!"

"We absorb chakra, Tsume-sama." Said Dai, slowly. "It is not the same thing."

"Functionally is. You should see me after training with Shibi - I look like I've been rubbed all over with sandpaper." She grinned, and looked over the wall of the booth at her ninken, "and Kuromaru over there only _recently_ got used to it and stopped itching." The dog cast her a brief, annoyed glance, but kept looking forward, playing the loyal sentry for its master. The wild woman chuckled, "the point is, if violence precludes the hat... Technically speaking, the Senju shouldn't have put it on in the first place. They were more powerful than the Uchiha during their hayday, they couldn't do that without being some pretty depraved assholes."

This got a cross look from Akane, "Hashirama would disagree, Tsume-sama."

"Hashirama was a rare case - his brother is proof enough of that. He was a very honorable man, but I've seen some of the lesser known stories. He would have thrown down with the Uchiha in a _second_ if he felt the need. And we _all_ fucking know how pleasant Tsunade-sama can be." Tsume argued, before she waved the issue aside.

Akane was silent a moment, before she piped in, "there are also the Kaguya..."

Tsume threw her hand out in her direction, "the _Kaguya!_ Those albino freaks are more violent than _us!"_ She indicated herself and Aoi, "seriously." She looked to the older Inuzuka, "your argument is invalid."

Dai, however, shook her head. "I would not necessarily say _invalid... _But I do believe that it will be an interesting term, with Dante-sensei wearing the hat."

Akane nodded, "one reason many fear the Uchiha is because of the legends of Madara. Another, because they are our Military Police. They are people who exist partially to keep unruly shinobi in line." She explained, "that means their function is, by and large, to be able to fight and disable our military elite at a moment's notice. Compound it with the fact that they must keep the image up when on duty. They mustn't seem as if they _wouldn't_ do their jobs, after all. Having that reputation doesn't do well for a public image... The reverse is actually one of the reasons my clan is so well respected. Our reputation is for being powerful, and loyal to the village. Thus, many young Hyuga, especially the Branch House, are often sent out on public service missions. Assist with finding missing or runaway children, lost items, or proof of stolen property." She explained, "it fosters an image of a powerful but humble home. Then add it to the noble air and pride which we project, we are seen as upholding the ideals upon which this village was founded, that we all are family."

Tsume leaned back into her booth, crossing her arms and nodding, impressed. "Well _damn,_ lady! Hiashi's been doing more than wrecking your cooch these last few days, hasn't he?" She paused, before leaning forward, "now how much of that last bit was bullshit, and how much real?"

Akane grinned, "regardless, Tsume-sama, I think fewer than you realize will openly object the idea. Many, like Aoi-san, may not agree with it... But this will be a test for the Uchiha. A show of faith and of trust - are they capable of leading the village they helped found? I believe, if it works, it may be a good thing in the end. If it doesn't... I would rather not think of it." Her implications were clear: Either the people, or the Uchiha, would be very, very angry.

* * *

Dai returned home after spending the rest of the morning with her squad and Tsume. A part of her would miss staying with the Inuzuka clan, but living under a roof with Hibiki would prove to be just as safe, if not, safer, from a political standpoint. She was certain that the only reason Shibi had tried contacting her now was because she was in a strange middlegrounds - not living in the Inuzuka compound, and not wrapped around Hibiki's arm. Shaking off those thoughts, she stuck her key into the door and entered the apartment with the sound of tumblers shifting. She had to gather her things for a training mission with her squad, they had reserved training grounds 44 for the last two days, and yesterday had simply been used to set loose a few Inuzuka ninken, to give it time to hide from them, so they could track it down. As usual, Tsume was simply glad that the ninken without owners were getting their exercise, and -

Inside, she found sitting on a coffee table, something she knew hadn't been there when she had left in the morning. It caused her to tilt her head, her eyebrows narrowed as she stared at the small box, wrapped in a multicolored paper. She recognized it for what it was, of course - even kunoichi children got presents for their birthday. But she hadn't gotten an actual, gift-wrapped present in years, it wasn't the Inuzuka style, and not many Aburame were willing to try and break ranks and be seen associating with her, since she had moved.

Curiously, she moved to the worn, weathered leather couch and sat down. She reached forward and grabbed the box, a card was affixed to the top. On one side was a strange script, it took her a moment to recognize it as Hibiki's native language, Inglish. She recognized the characters, but she couldn't put them together in ways she could understand; but on the other side of the card was words she _could_ read, written in simple Common Tongue.

_"Any sufficiently advanced technology is indistinguishable from magic."_ It wrote, _"and any technology distinguishable from magic is no longer sufficiently advanced. Say cheese!"_

It was written in Hibiki's fuinjutsu-forged immaculate hand, and while she could understand the words, they didn't necessarily make sense. Not until she opened the box and found inside, a picture frame, facedown. She picked it up and flipped the frame around, and blinked, her head slowly reeling backwards. Cameras, as Hibiki called them, did exist in this world - shinobi identification cards wouldn't exist without them - but the pictures taken were often, as described by Hibiki, 'grainy' and 'out of focus', as if looking at something through fogged glass. What she found in the picture frame, however, was as clear as day and of a stunningly precise quality, not a single blur on the two subjects. There was her at age eighteen, still wearing her flak jacket and in a thicker hoodie than the one she had adopted now. The camera was angled high enough to see over her sunglasses, but not so high that her drawn hood obscured her face, which lent to showing a bemused expression on the younger Aburame's face, a single eyebrow arced up and a twinkle in her amber eyes. Wrapped around her gray-clothed arms was Hibiki's hand, which led to his torso, pressed tight to Dai's side as he looked up, right into the camera's lens. His raven hair was hand-swept back and a large grin was painted across his face, as his other arm led up to the edge of the picture and out of frame.

Dai smiled, wondering if Hibiki had planned this. She vaguely remembered when Hibiki had taken this, actually - but only because the loud clicking and whirring noise the thin metal slab had made had caught her unexpected, making her jump with a brief fright. Hibiki had laughed at her, only telling her that this was a 'long project' of his. She hummed, and walked the picture down to their shared room. Before she grabbed her weapons and supplies, she placed the picture on a nightstand on the left side of the bed, deciding that, yes, Hibiki had to have planned this in some way.

* * *

There was a thunderclap, the sound of concrete being split in multiple pieces, and of a teenaged man howling out in pain. This was how Jiraiya of the Sannin found his apprentice, in the middle of a training field, punching a boulder. The blonde was whipping his hand back and forth, trying to shake off the pain as he glared at the rock, a firm frown set on his face as if he could will the rock to give him whatever it was he required. His hand was bruised and partially bloody, the rock, however, had multiple large gashes cut out of it, as if someone had cut at it with a chakra sword.

"So." He called out, approaching the chunin, and taking a small amount of pride in the fact that he was still able to startle the blonde blur. "_Yellow Flash,_ huh?"

Minato turned to face his sensei, a sheepish grin on his face as he hid his injured hand behind his head. "At least it's better than Thunder God." He said, scratching the back of his head.

"Don't let him hear you say that." Jiraiya's grin matched Minato's, as he stepped forward and grabbed at the hand he was trying to hide. "What're you doin', kiddo?"

"Oh!" Minato sputtered, "well, you see -"

"Looks like chakra lashes, but I thought you and your girlfriend figured out you couldn't replicate her chain techniques?" Jiraiya examined the thin lesions in Minato's hand, almost looking like it had been inside of a drill. He dropped the hand and leaned down, "you know, if _that's_ what you're going for, I've got more than a few things I can drop for you." His grin turned lecherous.

Minato blanched, never one to drop a challenge from his sensei. Originally it had simply been because he had been young and naiive to it all, now it was mostly out of tradition, and because the white-haired sannin just kept going. "No! Sensei, it - that's not -"

"Oh! So things are good in bed, then?" Jiraiya leaned back up with the sound of the giant scroll on his back, bouncing up and down as he placed his hands on his hips.

"That's not what I mean and you know it, sensei!" Minato finally forced out, "no, I've just been trying to work something out." He turned to the boulder, "so, Hibiki's got all these moves he's made himself, yeah? The falcon punch, the kikoho and the big bang attacks... I know I just signed the toad contract, so hopefully soon I'll start being able to get somewhere close to his levels of chakra, but I think I should be able to make something." His hand twitched, "my _own_ attack."

Jiraiya nodded, "most of the best shinobi have at least one or two of their own attacks. Hell, even I've got some, though it's been a while since I've had to use 'em."

"Your transparency jutsu don't count, sensei." Minato deadpanned.

Jiraiya took it like a champ, "why of course it does!" He boasted, "stealth is an important skill to hone! And there is no better place to hone it than when under the threat of castration, no matter how beautiful the woman doing it may be!" He shook his head, "what're you thinking?" He turned to examine the boulder, and the deep gashes carved into it.

"Well, first things first, I don't want to have to memorize any hand seals. It has to be close range, so I can use it with the Hiraishin, and I want it to be adaptable, too. So it can fit any situation, any fight." He placed his hand on the center of the boulder, lashing outwards were the multiple gashes he'd carved into it.

"You mean so you can use it to beat Hibiki, no matter what he uses."

"I haven't _said_ that!" The blonde blur defended. "But... Yeah. The thing I'm most scared about is his bijuu-dama thing. The turtle... Something or another."

"He calls it the 'Turtle Destruction Wave'." Jiraiya said, "and you're trying to tell me that your first attempt at a self-made ninjutsu, is specifically to one-up a replicated _bijuu-dama?_ Damn, kid. You're somethin' else." He leaned on the boulder and looked down at the chunin.

Minato grinned, but continued. "Well, he said that the thing about his technique is that it requires _super_ dense chakra. Like, if you took Kushina and added... Well, nine." He briefly made contact with his sensei, who nodded, understanding the allusion. "And I think the only reason _he_ can is because of those bloodlines he's copied."

"Right." Jiraiya nodded, "all of those would fortify his chakra levels something fierce. Add in his Senju and Uzumaki heritage already making his chakra naturally denser than usual, he's practically a tailless tailed beast, and he's only just starting to get beaten by puberty."

Minato hummed, "exactly. Even with the chakra exercises you've had me doing, and my _own_ puberty growing my stores, I don't think my chakra will be anywhere _near_ as dense as his, to try and replicate his techniques in the same way, but it was about something he said that got me thinking."

"Oh?" True, Hibiki was a prodigy when it came to ninjutsu development and dissection, but a great deal of his explanations had to first be fed to Orochimaru, and then explained again in less scientific terms to him and Tsunade. If Minato was able to understand him, Jiraiya would be thoroughly impressed.

"Yeah. He said that the way he was able to do it was he trapped the chakra in his hands." Minato backed up and demonstrated, cupping his hands near his hip and locking his fingers together, making a cage. "With nowhere to go, the chakra would just collapse inwards."

Jiraiya nodded, "and density is how much of something there is in a given space. So his chakra is already naturally dense, and he's just forcing it to become even moreso."

Minato hummed, "then, after he judges the right chakra volume, he lets it out." He thrust his hands forward. "I was thinking that might be the important part. The whole, trapping thing." He braced one foot behind him and cupped his hands again, pouring his chakra into the cage, and prompting Jiraiya to step away from the boulder. "But like I said... I can't make it dense enough." There was a pale blue orb in his hands that had coalesced from the chakra unable to escape, he thrust his hands forward and smacked them onto the boulder, where the chakra lashed out in a weak explosion, tearing gashes out of the rock and cutting up Minato's top hand, causing him to wince again, as blood seeped out of the wounds.

Jiraiya thought a moment, as his protege shook his hand, frowning. "Maybe your issue isn't in the ability to trap it, but _how_ you trap it. You ever hear him talk about relativity?"

Minato shrugged, "when I was helping him out with the Swift Release, he said it had something to do with one person's perception at one speed, versus another person's perception at another speed." He turned to Jiraiya, eyebrows furrowed. "What about it?"

"Well, he explained it to me a different way. You know how, back before you had the body flicker down pat, I'd pick you up and run whenever we had to get the hell out of dodge? You'd feel like you were heavier as I picked up speed, and get pressed up against me until I slowed down."

Minato nodded, "yeah, I guess."

"Well, that's how Hibiki explained it to me. He said that gravity, is because of how massive the planet is, it weighs so much that it generates a pull that pulls us back down to the ground. But, like when I run fast and you get pressed into me instead of falling to the ground, if you pick up speed and maintain it, your _relative_ mass, or weight, or whatever, increases."

Minato began to nod more, "okay, okay, that makes sense - that's why he got so freaked out when he said he went faster than light. I wasn't really paying attention, but he said that his speed combined with the altered mass would create a very big impact, if he wasn't careful. Like, bijuu-dama, big."

Jiraiya snapped his fingers, "exactly. Way he says it, the faster you move, the more relative mass you have."

Minato looked down to his bloodied hand, "you think I just have to speed up the process? Get the chakra moving faster?" He paused, his eyes narrowing. "What if I used shape transformation?" He looked up to Jiraiya, who had an arced eyebrow and an impressed expression.

"Now, who showed you about that, I wonder?"

"Who else?" Minato grinned, "one of his squadmates, Noboru-san, created this technique that works on a similar principle to the Revolving Heavens technique, but instead of defense, it generates chakra and rotates it around the arm, collapsing on a fixed point and creating a drill." He explained, "what if I did both? I mean, the Revolving Heavens technique is just chakra spinning around real fast, and my chakra is more dense than most Hyuugas. So they way they must be doing it is like you said - messing with relativity to get the mass of the barrier up, such that it can protect against anything." Minato's grin widened, a fire in his eyes.

_Never thought of it like that..._ "Pretty good observation, kiddo, but one problem - Hyuga have to pour chakra out of all of their tenketsu to do something like that, and do the same to their feet to remove any friction between them and the ground, so they can get spinning like that."

Minato grinned, "but Noboru-san doesn't have to do that to get the drill going - and I'd be willing to bet that the reason it's so good is because of how fast it rotates!" He took a step back, clenching his bloodied hand in front of his chest. "So that's what I've gotta do! I've gotta get it moving and contain it, and then I can add more chakra to it, practically adding to its density - a million times over!" He threw his hands out wide, "then I doubt I'd even need too much chakra to get it going!"

Jiraiya chuckled and shook his head, "slow down there, kiddo. Don't forget you've got to keep up with your training, and build up your relationship with the Toads." He said.

This got Minato's grin to turn smug, "sensei, you have no faith in me!" And with that, he vanished in a plume of smoke.

* * *

Stepping into the Hokage's office used to be a somber, quiet affair. It felt like walking into a dark cave, filled with creatures waiting for an excuse to sink their teeth into you. Under Danzo, it wasn't a warm place filled with hope, as it had been under Hiruzen, but rather a cold place filled with barely contained fear. Now, however, as Shikaku Naara briefly took up the paperwork that flooded the office daily, some of the light seemed to have returned to the place.

Jiraiya entered with little fanfare, and got little more than a nod from Shikaku in greeting. "Well, kiddo. Looks like you're loving the temporary hat, aren't you?"

"I've begun to hate Hibiki with a passion, Jiraiya-sama." Dully said the Naara heir, as he leaned back in the large leather chair. "Please, distract me for an hour. Then I will only have forty seven before I can leave this troublesome work behind."

Jiraiya let his characteristic grin stretch across his face. "Maybe you should take a leaf out of Hibiki and Minato's books. Figure out the shadow clone technique, split up the work."

Shikaku shook his tanned head, "I've not the chakra to try and figure out how he does that." He said, running his hand through his pony-tailed hair. "I pray you've good news?" He looked almost hopeful.

Too bad Jiraiya had to crush his dreams, "unfortunately, no. Pretty much everyone is saying the same thing - the only countries that haven't been bullied into this enormous alliance of his are Iron, Rain, and Snow." He said, pulling out a scroll from his satchel, and placing it on Shikaku's desk.

"Iron I can understand, but Snow and Rain?" Shikaku asked, sliding open the scroll and skimming through it. "What did you figure out?"

Jiraiya shook his head, "not as much as I would like, I'm afraid. I used to have a few contacts in Amegakure, but there was an attack a few years back, attributed to a bijuu, they didn't survive." His voice sounded somber as he spoke.

Shikaku caught onto the fact, "I'm sorry to hear that."

Jiraiya let out a forced laugh, "actually, you'd be surprised. I couldn't spend much time in the area before I had to move onto Yukigakure, but the story I got was that the bijuu came and attacked. Killed a lot of people. Hanzo subdued it and killed the man that summoned it into the village, and after they found the people buried in the rubble, he sent his shinobi out to earn money and make it seem business as usual."

Shikaku nodded, "he was always an image and security first man, from my father's stories."

Jiraiya affirmed it, "yeah. Problem is, this wasn't anything like the post-Katsuo invasion over here. We had the manpower to project business as usual, _and_ rebuild the homefront. Over there? Not so much, _half_ of their shinobi got buried, and the rest, he sent out. It was chaos, for a while."

Shikaku arced an eyebrow, "a while?"

"Week after the shinobi leave to project business as usual, and earn money to support the rebuilding efforts, this new guy shows up. White hair, thin build, a lot of chakra, name of Teague Hast."

Shikaku's eyes narrowed. As he was transitioning into becoming head for his clan, he was being told the less scrupulous parts of their history, including the part they had played in planning the Hast Clan's destruction with Dante Uchiha. There shouldn't have been any survivors, Dante had confirmed as much. "I wasn't aware that any had _survived_ our prospective Kage's attack." He said.

Jiraiya hummed, "me neither, but he's there, and he's definitely got the blood. They say he can move so fast he stops time." He explained, "anyways. He shows up about a week after this whole thing goes down, takes one look at Ame, and pretty much refuses to think that that's the best it's got. I never thought they could be put together in a sentence, but he's a shinobi philanthropist. To hear them tell the stories, he literally never slept. No one was too small, he helped 'em all."

"I can't imagine Hanzo would appreciate that as much as one would think." Shikaku said, as he leaned back in his chair. "How did he respond?"

Jiraiya chuckled, "please, the Salamander just kept his Anbu watching him. It wasn't until a while later that they say things started getting interesting." Jiraiya pulled up a chair and sat down, pointing at the scroll. "As Hast started helping more and more people, and Hanzo kept turning a blinder and blinder eye, more and more folks started thinking he wasn't too fit to lead their village. One thing led to another, and before Hast knew it, he had a political party behind him. _All_ of the civilians, including the ones with kids in the academy, which meant he had pull in the rising rookies and Genin. Before you know it, three or four years passed since the attack, and Hast had pull with the civilians, the genin and chunin, and a significant portion of the Jonin."

Shikaku realized where this was going, "who won?"

_"Teague."_ Said Jiraiya, "battle didn't even last five minutes. Hanzo never kept up with his training, whereas Teague had Hibiki-levels of dedication to it. He 'abhors' violence, but isn't above it. The old Salamander had more than his fair share of tricks up his sleeves, but his body couldn't keep up as long as he needed it to, and Teague's whole fighting style relies on moving fast and striking vital spots. When Hanzo never gave up, he put the Salamander down, and now Ame's his."

"Can we use this?" Shikaku asked, "how is the village under his rule?"

"Flourishing, actually. He's change incarnate. He pulled back all of the shinobi except for the ones on border patrol. Didn't take more than a year to rebuild the village, and now he's focusing on improving their quality of life. I couldn't tell you everything he's doing - for more reason than one I couldn't stick around to get more information - but the biggest things I heard were that apparently he tracked down a few Uzumaki survivors orbiting Rain Country, he's offering asylum in exchange for their fuinjutsu expertise, and he's created a civilian military force."

Shikaku recoiled his head, _"how?_ Samurai aren't even remotely capable of standing up to shinobi. Unless they're from Iron..."

Jiraiya shook his head, "I've no clue on that part. But it was around the time that got dropped that I had to get out, or risk exposure. I went to Snow country next, and it took me an entire day to track down their village. They're integrated with their Daimyo's capitol, Kazahana's his name. So he runs both the country, and the shinobi. Used to be, they were just as isolationist as the Samurai in Iron, but then I heard a familiar name pop up a few times in the same sentence as 'Alliance'."

Shikaku sighed, "Katsuo?"

_"_Teague Hast." Jiraiya refuted, "I had to sneak past Kazahana's Anbu and into his room to get the whole story. But Teague's trying to create something of a neutral state of allied countries. He's already gotten a non-aggression pact signed with the Samurai, and as little as six months ago he was in Yukigakure working on an actual Alliance between the two. The way Kazahana spins it, Snow has the infrastructure, but no resources. Ame, however, has the resources, but no infrastructure. What he's wanting to do is foster a relationship between the two villages, donating Ame resources in exchange for Yuki infrastructure." He paused, "but perhaps that's a bad word for it, because that's not all they have. Hibiki coined the term to describe his thunder technique, and the equipment in the hospitals - he called them machines. That's closer to it, I would think." He said.

"What do they have that Ame wants?" Shikaku looked down at the scroll, skipping to where it mentioned Yuki.

"I couldn't even describe the things I saw there, Naara. Gigantic, floating fortresses of metal. Enormous metal carriages that traveled whistled louder than an explosion and ran faster than horses. Both of them could get across the country in hours, the former by air, the latter by using iron rails. I even managed to see some thugs and bandits try and attack one of the... I dunno, Iron Horses." He said, "its middle compartment opened up and there were these catapult things that shot thousands of kunai a second, just as fast as a shinobi could throw them. The only one that survived was a missing-nin, and he got destroyed by an eight year old wearing a strange set of armor, that enhanced his chakra abilities."

Shikaku didn't even bother trying to wrap his head around what it was Jiraiya was saying, it was far too troublesome to deal with when he'd be dropping this desk in a few days. All he had to do was ensure that Dante read his report first, before anything else. "And you think Teague wants this alliance to get their machines?"

"The way Kazahana explains it, he wants the fortresses and the iron horses more than anything else. He didn't even know the armor existed until one of the Yuki jonin requested a sparring match between the two." A pause, "Kazahana said that Teague won, but took some hits to do it. Hast showed clear interest in the armor, but not for his shinobi, his civilians. Apparently he was able to work out the basic principles around which it worked just by fighting the shinobi - and he out and said that's why he won. Yuki shinobi are a hearty bunch, but they _rely_ on that armor to make them strong. Hast thinks they would be better used by civilians, to put them on an equal playing grounds, so to speak." But Jiraiya shook his head, "but that was six months ago, and they've only traded letters since. It's looking like an alliance is in the books, but I don't know if Hast is getting the armor, and I doubt he'll be willing to join us against Katsuo. He seems more dedicated to protecting his people than seeking out any wars."

Shikaku hummed, "how long do we have? Do you know?"

Jiraiya took this as his leave to get ready to make his exit. He planted his hands on his lap and stood up, "a week, if we're lucky. Kumo's most likely going to be making the first move, but who they're sending is anyone's guess. Could be Ay and Bee, could be a cadre of jonin." At least Hibiki was watching that front, that corner of the map was his for the next year, the enemy wouldn't be taking it. Of that, Jiraiya had no doubt.


	68. Dante Uchiha

Chapter 67

* * *

It had been a quiet sunday, when he had been taken in by Anbu. A ten year old Dante Uchiha was eating dinner alone, after having fought off several thugs trying to take what scrap change he had away, and then managing to incapacitate a military policeman who had thought he'd started the whole fight. The Anbu who had come to him wore a white Rat's mask, with two black lines running from the ears to its mouth, and seemed to reflect no light, despite standing right out in the middle of the sun. The young Dante had been so wet behind the ears that he hadn't even realized Rat was there until the Anbu had coughed, some five minutes later.

She then explained to him that she had been watching him for some time. His demeanor had initially been thought perfect for a posting as an Anbu assassin, but then she corrected herself by explaining an experiment the second Hokage wished to run, in the hopes that it could change the tide of the war. She called it the Anbu Shocktrooper program, of which only one would graduate, the man who was promoted to the posting would wear a Ghost's mask. She explained that only one could graduate at the moment, due to the unknown nature of the whole program in general. If it worked, perhaps more would be trained at a later date, but for now, it was Dante, and four others - one Hyuga, one of the surviving Senju, and two other clanless rookies.

"If you accept..." Said Rat, in a dull, emotionless voice. "You will not graduate the academy in any official sense, until you are age thirteen." Her implications had been clear: It could adversely affect Dante Uchiha's reputation, but if the prize was becoming Ghost, the shock trooper, an invaluable Anbu agent and cog in the war machine? What kind of loyal Konoha shinobi - in training or not - would say no?

Not even a second after he had said yes, was the young Uchiha in a fight for his life. His only goal was to land one clean, solid hit on his sponsor, but the problem was that Rat had no restrictions upon herself. She could use all of the skills at her disposal to actually attempt to kill him, including her jutsu, stealth abilities, weapons, and _backup._ He had to fight an entire Anbu assassin squad, at age ten, with little but his family's combat style and one combat ninjutsu to his name. He had nearly died, but not before he realized that Rat hadn't set any rules on him, either, so his solution had been to run to the closest training grounds, bait all of the Anbu into attacking him, and then setting the forest on fire.

He was admitted to the hospital for any combination of injuries, chakra depletion, exhaustion, blood loss, and a near severing of his spine, but it had worked. The doctors had nearly died from shock at the state he was an, and due to the secrecy of the whole operation, more than one Jonin and a T&amp;I specialist had come to 'speak' with the young Uchiha, to try and find out what had happened and if there were enemy shinobi in the Leaf. He simply said he'd been training with new friends, and was told by a doctor not to even think about moving for a week.

So his new friends pulled him out of the hospital an hour after he had been left alone, and put him to work training. He nearly died again the second day, and a third time just a few hours after the second. His first test had been a month after being brought into the program, and the criteria for passing was killing forty six enemy chunin in half as many hours, with no backup, and to leave one survivor, to see the Ghost's mask. He almost ran out of time, and had lost so much blood that his skin had been ashen and gray, but after an explosion that had scorched his Ghost's mask black, he had managed to pass. He would later learn that the Senju Ghost had died in his attempt, but had at least succeeded. Dante had been the one to set fire to the Senju's body.

He had earned eight hours of rest for these successes, and had also learned that over sleeping meant having to fight three more assassins, who had learned from his forest fire attempt and therefor weren't going to fall for it again. He also had to land _two_ solid hits on Rat, and every time he hit one of the other Anbu, it counted as a negative, meaning if he hit one Anbu three times, he had to hit Rat _five_ times to pass, and failure still meant dying. He managed to pass by taking a sword through his foot and roundhousing one Anbu, into Rat, and then kicking the blade through his foot to stab Rat. Fortunately, they had given him actual medical attention after that one.

A year after entering what had to be the actual definition of hell on earth, Dante had the chakra stores of a chunin, and skill enough to fight all three of the assassins on equal enough grounds. His next test had been to work alongside the three remaining Ghosts in a trial similar to the first. One Ghost would destroy one fighting force and vanish, signalling for the next Ghost to attack the next fighting force, before it vanished, and so on, until Dante. The point was to establish Ghost clearly as one person, but to make it seem as if he were everywhere, and wherever he was, a mountain of corpses followed. One Ghost, one of the clanless ones, had to phase out after opening the eight gates during a fight with a particularly hardy Jonin. He won, but was so depleted of chakra afterwards that he retired for medical leave, leaving three remaining. An Uchiha, a Hyuga, and a clanless. He would later learn their names to be Serizawa Hyuga, and Eiji Nil - his future squadmates, once he was added to Konoha's ranks in an official capacity.

For the second year, Dante was drilled day in and day out until he manifested his bloodline, and then was pitted against three assassin squads - the rules now to land a hit on Rat, and the two sponsors whose Ghosts had phased out. He hadn't been told that their objective, aside from the usual, was to go specifically for his eyes. It had been here that he picked up his habit of a not bathing, as the fight took eight days to complete, and he only won by masking his scent with the surrounding environment, and using a genjutsu to throw his normal scent elsewhere, and then electrocuting the sponsors with ninja wire and a lot of chakra he didn't know he had.

When the Sandaime took office was when he got his third test: He had to destroy an enemy outpost by himself. More than six hundred shinobi fell to his blade that day, and he'd had to recreate several large-scale earth techniques from memory. He'd had his first encounter with a Hast that day, and had survived by hiding amongst the corpses of the dead shinobi. His Sharingan proved invaluable, allowing him to track the Hast even at its high speed. The Hast and several other Jonin held Dante off for an hour, before he used an earth technique to immobilize the Hast and set him on fire. The other shinobi abandoned the Hast without a second's hesitation, which gave Dante the time he needed to create an even bigger explosion that incinerated the remaining jonin.

This test had claimed Serizawa's eyes, thus proving the beginning of his monicker, Serizawa the Blind. Fortunately, it impeded him little, as he, like Dante, had taken to constantly using his Dojutsu during his waking hours, all but forcing his changing body to adapt to it, or die. It was him and Eiji remaining.

The final year was the most difficult, as all of the Anbu training them had now only two Ghosts to focus on. Every day was another battle, followed by intense training. They did not stop until the remaining Ghosts were at Jonin-levels. What did them in, however, was that they were no longer fed - they had to find the time to get food, or fight the Anbu to get to the fridge. The final Ghost did not make it to his test, having nearly wasted away, unable to find the time nor the ability to gather his own food, especially with Dante too busy surviving to shave off even the most meager portions of his rations to help him. In the end, Eiji nearly died, but the Anbu allowed him his life, by dropping him off at the hospital in the middle of the night. To hear Eiji speak of it, it had been Tsunade Senju herself who had found him, but Dante always thought he had been exxagerating a bit - especially considering she was supposed to be out fighting Hanzo around that time.

Regardless, Dante had proven himself worthy of being the one true Ghost. He was given the blank white Ghost's mask, the first and the original - the one he kept hidden away in his home even today. After that, he graduated from the academy alongside Eiji and Serizawa. Whenever he didn't operate as Anbu Ghost, he operated with them, and it would be those two lives he led that would eventually inspire him to form Konoha's first-ever shocktrooper team.

Despire Anbu Ghost only being given a four year lifespan after being allowed to get to the 'real' - read:suicidal - work, he had survived seven long and hard years, and killed enough people to fill many a mass grave, before perhaps his greatest challenge yet. Her name was Kame, and he could still, after more than a decade and a half, still vividly remembered the first day he had seen her. He had just come home after his second major encounter with the Hast clan - nearly dying in his Mask before he led the eight of them all to a great body of water and electrocuted them all - and he was taking one of his bimonthly baths, if only because the flies were getting annoying, swarming around the blood smeared on his body, having soaked through his Anbu uniform. He had just finished buying one of the smallest bottles of scentless three-in-one body/hair wash and conditioners, and was walking out of the store when he happened to flip on his Sharingan, if only out of habit. It was as if Kami himself had conspired to make the moment what it was, because the crowded street had just _happened_ to part at that moment, revealing a dark-haired Uchiha MP at the end of the street. She had been bent down to help some kid who had gotten lost and couldn't find his parents, and the gentlemen in Dante may be somewhat ashamed to admit it, but what he had seen first was her _ass._

No, it wasn't chivalrous at all, but he at least had the tact to try and notice something better afterwards. If anyone else asked, he saw her big, beautiful, round _eyes,_ but the reality was a bit stranger than fiction, in this case. Besides, he was twenty, and he literally killed armies for a living - tide, child-bearing hips, and a full bottom that demanded attention all on its own, pretty much _did_. As a matter of fact, it demanded so much attention that Dante had found himself approaching her without even being consciously aware of what he was doing. He had only figured out he may have made a mistake when the child looked above Kame's shoulder, took one look at him - his hair oily and stuck to his head in one disheveled clump, his face, hands, and arms covered in blood, and a dull look in his eyes - before she turned, screamed, and ran. As it turned out, she was an orphan and had been trying to pickpocket Kame - thinking an MP the perfect target, as no one would ever try to steal off of a ninja - and had thought Dante had seen what she was doing, dropped the few thousand Ryo she'd nicked, and ran. Dante smelled urine, trailing after her.

Kame slapped him so hard she'd bruised his face and managed to wipe off most of the blood, leaving a literal handprint on his face. Her round, kind eyes had narrowed to knife-edge sharpness and were locked right onto his own dull onyx orbs. Of course she had been aware, she said - she was trying to see how long the kid would go before he either slipped up, ran out of sob stories, or just tried to cut and run. Then she would have bought him a warm meal and tried to see whether or not the ninja academy would have been right for him. Good, he wasn't, but talent, he definitely had. Dante's incredible response to the entire ordeal had been to ask Kame out to dinner that very night. She stared him up and down, blinked once, and gave him a smile - one of _those_ smiles, the ones he always remembered her by - and told him that if he wanted to try and court her, he better shower for their first date.

He turned right around and went back to buy the first scented three-in-one they had. It was mint scented. She loved it. He did too. It turned out, she, like him, was an Uchiha in name - she didn't enjoy the whole stoic battleborn image they had forged, and worked in the military police as a way of showing that not all Uchiha were firm, angry people. Some could be kind, happy, even, and that was what she was - every time she smiled, she lit up the room. Every time she looked at him, he felt his heart stop. Every time she laughed, his ears rang with the sound of a choir of angels. She had even convinced him to bathe, regularly. The two years they had together were perfect, but as with all things, it didn't last. They only got so far as to moving in with eachother, before the war effort become so desperate that veteran MP's were being called to the battlefield.

He wouldn't see her for more than days at a time, for another year. During this time, he as Ghost resided over a poison attack that infected several hundred Konoha genin, only one over the age of eleven. It had been the only surviving Ghost beyond Serizawa and Eiji - he had recovered the chakra in those gates, and had been deemed strong enough to assist in the war effort in a limited capacity, and as a Chunin. Ghost's orders had been to kill them as Dante Uchiha, to remove the possibility of them tracing any infections back to Konoha. Including the former Ghost trainee. This had been the event to awaken his Mangekyo Sharingan, and give him the name, Black Rose: The flower of death.

Two weeks after this, and during a deployment not as Ghost, but as Dante Uchiha, he'd learned of a planned attack by the Hast, with the goal of driving Konoha out of Ame, hopefully meaning the other people fighting the war would leave them alone as well. Dante realized he'd only hours before the attack was to occur, and as such he'd rounded up every available Naara, Hyuga, and Aburame closest to him to track them and predict their route, as he tried to come up with a plan of attack. He'd made it with only minutes to spare, and in one of his more desperate acts, he pulled no punches. He fought several thousand Hast for eight days, and had used his Susanoo so extensively that he had temporarily gone blind from its use, and numb from the pain of using it. Tsunade Senju had actually been the one to find him amidst the field of former speedsters, and he attributed his continued eyesight to her and her alone.

Coupled with the three Sannin having fought their leader to a standstill barely a decade earlier, losing their most powerful clan had forced Amegakure to drop out of the war and pray the other villages did not attempt to annex, or conquer, them. Dante spent three months in recovery, and only managed to recover eighty percent of his eyesight. Kame nearly killed him when she put it together, she had been so sad and so scared that Dante was worried _she_ might awaken her Mangekyo through sheer grief.

One year later, whilst fighting on the Iwagakure front, he would not only be known as the Black Rose, but as the man who survived opening all eight gates. He had been fighting as Ghost alongside Kame and Dan Kato, when their Jinchuriki entered the battlefield. The man was a force of nature Dante would not see again until he started teaching. Everything they threw at him, he threw right back, his armor making a horrendous whistling noise as it let its steam out and he grew in power. Even Anbu Ghost, breaking the rules and openly using his unique kekkei genkai abilities, could do nothing but slow him down. It hadn't been until Kame had been mortally wounded, and Dan close to it, that he decided his continued existence was not worth Kame's end. He had to buy time for Dan to save her. So one gate after another, he crashed straight through until he felt that kind of raw, unbridled power that only came with each and every single gate's opening.

The best he could do was break the jinchuriki's armor and force him to retreat. During the process, Ghost's mask had been destroyed and his identity revealed, the Black Rose was given an S-rank in the Bingo Book. If he had to answer, he would say that which came next would be the single moment in his life he regretted the most, because in a moment of weakness, with chakra dwindling to absolute zero and his body frying itself from the inside out, he activated Izanagi - the most forbidden technique in the entirety of the Uchiha clan - and used it to undo his death. That godlike power was intoxicating, but fleeting - he'd only the time to shut all eight gates tight, and heal his injuries.

Kame was not so lucky, her injuries were too severe. But she, the kind woman she was, knew that Dante may recover - no one had survived opening the eight gates before, dojutsu or not. So if anyone could bounce _back,_ it would be Anbu Ghost. So, to that end, she left Dante with one final gift before passing in his arms.

Her eye was in his right socket.

The only reason he hadn't had his chakra sealed up completely, his name blacklisted from the clan's archives, and his hitai-ate torn from his head, was the shape he was in upon returning to Konoha. He was almost literally out of chakra - his eight gates were bone dry, and his personal reserves were only being bolstered by what little chakra remained in Kame's eye. An unintended gift from the greatest woman in the world. He was in a coma for three months before his body had finally recovered enough chakra to wake him up. He was in a wheel chair and practically invalid before he'd had enough therapy sessions to be able to walk and talk on his own. He was an unprecedented case - surviving the eight gates simply hadn't happened before. Tsunade herself had studied him. It was probably why she had accepted so readily, and simultaneously fought so vehemently, against him training her son.

It had to be a slow process, slow enough that the war had ended while he was still a civilian. Adding too much chakra to his system, in the state it was in, could put him in shock and kill him. The best they could do was, four times a week, insert a neutral, medical chakra into his system, to flex his coils and keep them from atrophying, and to induce his body to generate chakra just the slightest bit faster. It had taken nearly a decade before his body had generated enough chakra, compounded with the therapy sessions, to fill his gates and then himself back up. Another year to train himself back up to even half of what he had been before. By the time he was thirty and somewhat approaching his old power, his old friend, Serizawa the blind, now a teacher, had come to him with a simple request. He had three students specifically, that he felt a man such as Dante could be useful in teaching. One was a Hyuga who showed aptitude for speed and power. One was an orphan, whose skill with genjutsu was so vast that Serizawa believed some of his blood may have been donated from the Kurama clan. A third was an eight year old child - the child of a sannin, Hibiki Senju, who had already blown past anything the Academy could offer him at that point, and staying there any longer, the only benefits he would gain would be in the connections with his generation. A child who was also not, who possessed within him the potential to activate most, if not, all, known bloodlines in the shinobi world.

The problem, however, was that even if he hadn't graduated, Serizawa had been a candidate for the Ghost's mask. He, Eiji, and Dante kept their ears to the ground. Konoha had known Kenichi, and had known of Katsuo and his Undead before they had even assassinated the Sandaime. They knew of the alliances Katsuo was building and of his dogged hunt for jinchuriki. The prediction had rightly been that he would inevitably start a war, and that it may be prudent to create a genin team with the same goal in mind as the original Anbu Ghost.

Of course, Dante accepted - after all, his mask had come off during his fight with the jinchuriki, so he couldn't resume his old line of work, and teaching a Senju would be a nice 'screw you' to his elders, who still liked to periodically poke him for having used the Izanagi. Of course, the fun part had been convincing his mother to both graduate him early, and to allow him to teach the boy. Fortunately, old habits died hard, and during training for the mask, he had always found that the best solution was the easiest solution, and tricking Tsunade into using a second ninjutsu with a simple loophole abuse had been among the easiest around. Using a summons to try to get around it had been something he hadn't planned for, but the result had been the same: He won, and his squad had been formed.

He would not be afraid to say that he viewed those three as the children he and Kame never got to have, sometimes even entertaining the idea that her spirit was watching all of this play out, through the eye in his right socket. Those three had changed him, had instilled within him something he had never felt before, a warmth in his chest that he couldn't describe. When Suboro manifested his bloodline, he felt personally obligated to both protect him from it, and get him trained up in its use. When Noboru developed his revolving heavens techniques, Dante dropped more war stories and went on more tangents than he thought possible, to help him understand the theory he was grappling with. And Hibiki, trying so diligently to master his bloodlines on his own, with his 'scientific method', it humbled Dante, reminding him of him, when he was at a similar age.

Then came the Chunin exams, and after that, the Konoha invasion. This invasion had prompted the new Hokage, Danzo, to approach him to assist in training a new Anbu Ghost. Dante never discovered the identity of the one who made it through the grueling five year process, but he was certain that the only man capable of killing on such a scale as this new Anbu Ghost was probably Hibiki himself. This new Ghost used Shadow Clones in a way similar to Hibiki, and compounded it with a genjutsu mastery, and mastery of fear, to immobilize his enemies and allow him to kill with practically no resistance. More than once, Dante had been ready to swear to the Hokage himself that the Ghost had figured out a way to inject his chakra into Dante's eyes and temporarily nullify his dojutsu, rendering him weak to the genjutsu he used.

After the Chunin exams had come Hibiki's first titanic battle against Katsuo, and the revelation to the boy that the world was far larger than he realized. Sometimes Dante found himself wondering exactly what went on in the Senju heir's mind, how much the weight on his shoulders weighed down upon him. He was glad Hibiki had been able to find his own Kame, even if it had taken the blind fool _years_ to finally take the hint. Dante counted himself lucky that neither he nor Kame had been ones to beat around the bush, in that regard.

After Hibiki's fight with Katsuo and his assistance in integrating the Kaguya into Konoha had been the five years of relative peace. He had spent these years training his team and the new Ghost; it had only been within the last few months that the new Ghost had even been selected, after all.

Iwa changed everything, from Hibiki having obliterated the entire village, to he, his two boys, and Minato all ripping apart what remained before it could get back to Konoha, to _Danzo_ becoming the first Hokage to be impeached, it had been an eventful month. And now, sitting in his living room, silently leaned back on his couch and staring into an ancient and faded picture of him and Kame, he reflected on the most recent turn of events. The very same chain that had gotten him, in short order, visits from all of the elders, his current clan head, his future clan head, and even Danzo, after the old man had gotten his chakra sealed away. They all had had different things to say, but it had basically boiled down to _don't fuck up._ His clan wanted him to make the Uchiha look good, and Danzo had none-too-subtly threatened his life if he messed up, in any fashion.

Poor old bastard probably thought he didn't know about Root. Well, first act as Hokage? Disbanding that damned organization. See how Danzo reacted to that.

But, that was for later. He'd actually showered, today - the Council had hastily picked a candidate they would have rather had leading the village, but it wasn't a popular decision. Hibiki's name was gold in this village, and he'd thrown it behind Dante. Even if Uchiha weren't _really_ well liked, if Hibiki was willing to say they were good, they must have been. After all, the Kaguya had come in and settled down, and they were working out so far!

A part of him, as the sun crested over the horizon and marked that he should head to the arena, wondered if Hibiki wouldn't sneak over a shadow clone to watch the fight.

* * *

Their opponent for him had been some kenjutsu specialist, whose name Dante had never heard before. Hatake. Apparently he had a great deal of leadership experience, and had survived a battle with Katsuo himself. He was at least aware on some level why they chose him and not someone like, perhaps, Tsunade Senju. While she had improved over recent years, her gambling and drinking tendencies were still fresh in many minds. If she could succumb once before, what would happen when the pressures of office began piling on? Perhaps if it had been an emergency, she would have been considered more heavily. Perhaps, instead of a peaceful impeachment it had been another violent assassination, they may have been willing to choose her instead of some swordsman he had never heard of before today.

Regardless, Dante knew before he had even started the fight, that the man before him knew the whole thing was a sham. The only reason he had decided to fight for the hat was - well, it was an honor to be chosen, but more realistically, because he knew he couldn't necessarily say _no_ without some serious social stigma attached. Especially not with a silver-haired kid and what was likely a wife behind him, cheering from the sidelines.

Besides, the look in his eyes told Dante that he knew well and good which of the two of them was stronger. Before the fight had even begun, before they had even spoken a single word to eachother, they both knew that, by this point, it was less a decision match, than it was a show. Dante was showing the village he was powerful enough to lead his village, and Hatake was more showing off for his wife and son than fighting for the hat. A Dad had to show off at least _once_ in his life, right?

So Dante held back, let Hatake get in a few hits with that strange tanto of his. Made a show of using his sharingan, let off a few flashy lightning and fire attacks. He let the whole thing drag on for a good ten minutes before he decided it was time to let things go with a bang, and clashed Hatake's white tanto with his Susanoo's chakra blade. A large struggle, sparks flying from where the blades connected, his red construct flaming with energy, his eyes wide and rabid. He let Hatake win the contest of strength by throwing off his superiorly sized blade, but followed it up with a right hook that buried him into the arena's wall, out cold.

Dante would freely admit hearing the cheers of his village - _his_ village! - would be a memory he would cherish, likely for as long as he cherished that first night with Kame. The partly blind, no longer unclean, no longer jonin, smiled and leaned his head back, letting the cheers of his people wash over him like a wave, as the village elders stood up and announced, to the whole village, their fifth Hokage. What he took a special kind of pride in, however, was the cheers of two specific young men, managing to be heard just over those of the rest of the attendees. Suboro and Noboru were on the arena's roof, cheering, whooping, and hollering for their sensei - their _Hokage._

_Fine._ He breathed, as the Clan Heads dropped to the ground, and the Naara who had been running the office in his absence approached him with the diamond hat. _I'll actually have to start bathing regularly, won't I?_ He smiled humbly, as he accepted the white and red hat.

With a brief twist and a flourish, he secured the hat to his head, and was, formally, inducted into the office of the Fire Shadow. The first Uchiha, the fifth Hokage. If only Kame could see him now.

* * *

Three hours later, and with less than twelve hours to go before he took his seat at the desk, Dante sat down in a quaint tea shop and, as he waited for his guest, he ordered three drinks. The first cup, he began to sip at, the second, he placed in front of him in preparation for his guest, and the third, to the side, under a napkin with the number '13' scrawled on it. The Fifth Hokage leaned back in his chair, a contemplative smile on his face as he felt the fiery liquid slide down his throat. He sat in this silence for several long minutes, before he sensed the door to the shop open. A moment later, with the calm, respectful gait befitting of his clan and of his previous training, a Hyuga with bandages around his sunken eyelids sat down at the table. The two shared a brief smile, the latter nodded.

"I was wondering if you'd make it." Dante said, neutrally.

Serizawa merely inclined his head, "grading papers." He offered as a form of explanation, "but I would have hoped you would know that I would not have missed this for the world." His voice, deep and rumbly, would have filled the entire silent teashop, had it not been for the privacy seals inked over every flat surface. The Hyuga instructor reached forward and grabbed his drink, "to those who came before." He held it aloft.

Dante touched his glass to his old friend's, "and the one who came after." The two took a drink.

Serizawa, despite not having drank anything the like in years, took it in stride, not even flinching as the alcohol specifically brewed to be able to inebriate shinobi, slid down his throat and burned everything it touched. "I had heard." He said, calmly. "I suppose I should not be surprised, though you can color me curious. Who survived? Who took up the mask?" He asked, "I very much doubt it to be the Senju heir. As powerful as he is... I knew even back when he was in my class, he would never take to the life." He said.

Dante nodded, "there were only five candidates, this go-round. One I immediately pegged as a Root plant. He made it pretty far, but not far enough." He explained, "this time around it was one Hyuga child, an Uchiha, two clanless, and..." He paused, swirling his swill around in its cup, "a Kurama." He said, slyly, and with a grin that was halfway between proud and guilty, before finishing his drink, and pouring another.

Serizawa's eyebrow didn't even twitch, "that cannot have even been fair, then." He rumbled.

"Far from it as one can get. He's a better Ghost than either of us could have ever dreamed to be." He nodded to the untouched cup, "every one of us nearly died, every time we were tested. But him? He's a natural. First field exam. Four hundred bandits and missing nin, average of B-rank. Three hundred and ninety nine dead, in fifteen seconds."

Serizawa nodded, slowly. "And the other candidates?"

"Uchiha made it farthest. Had a mangekyo we didn't know about. Gave him a hell of a run for his money, but Suboro's something else." He nodded to Serizawa's sunken eyes, "dojutsu don't stop him, anymore, only slow him down. If he wills it, he'll ensnare whoever it is he wants. He has decidedly been holding back against his squadmates for the last three years."

Serizawa nodded, "a finer ghost could not have existed." He said, with a smug grin.

Dante flipped the man off, "I'm your Kage, I'll have you executed for that."

Serizawa snorted lightly, "I never thought I would see the day, old friend. When my generation took the hat." He leaned back into the booth, "time is coming when soon, none alive will remember the warring states era of our parents and grandparents." He said, "have you a plan for that eventuality?"

Dante nodded, "I think, with the resources and allies we have, I can win this war. Winning the peace, however, is a story in and of itself." He let out a light sigh, "I'm thinking someone young. Far younger, to take up the hat." His light voice floated through the air.

Serizawa took another sip of his drink, "it sounds as if you've already names in mind, Hokage-sama."

"Do _not."_ Dante warned, a grin on his face matching that of his friend. "And... Yes, I've a few ideas. I will serve this village faithfully, but..." He sighed, "people like you, and I? People like Danzo? We aren't meant to take the reins during peace. Ghosts, angry children of the former warring states... Our will would dim the fire. We would need someone more idealistic than us."

The Hyuga nodded his eyeless head, "I am rapidly coming to two specific names in your mind."

"Nice try, but I was there when you started to try to read minds. Yamanaka, you are not, no matter how good your Byakugan is." Dante grinned, and finished his next drink. "Yeah, it would be down to those two, I'm sure. Neither would want the job, though."

"It is usually those who do not, that demonstrate why they would be best for it." Serizawa pointed out, with a nod. "Hibiki may very well refuse you, if he is the name you decide upon."

Dante shrugged, "the only reason he avoided it this time was because of the current climate surrounding his name and his record. But in five years? Six? He'd have to be in the deepest coma this world has ever seen, to avoid the hat then." He said, pouring him and his legally blind friend another drink. "Namikaze, on the other hand... He's not quite the same reputation as Hibiki, but give him about the same amount of time as one nice little world-wide war, and he could grow into the role perfectly."

Serizawa chuckled, and took a sip. "How long do you think it will last?" He asked.

Dante shook his head, "a decade. Maybe more, maybe less. It all depends on the strength of the minor villages. My squad, the new Ghost, and likely even Minato will be integral in the way this war if fought. But it will all be for absolute nought if we cannot find and eliminate Katsuo and his Undead." He explained, setting the drink down and interlacing his fingers. "Without Iwagakure as his staging grounds, we know not where he operates from. Cloud would be a good guess, but it is for that reason it is as likely as it isn't." He explained, "my first act will have to be to send out our scouts and our Anbu. They'll have to infiltrate enemy countries and search for any sign of where he could be. The question then will be exactly where I put who. Do I keep Hibiki and my squad in reserve, and only deploy them upon Undead sighting? Or do I deploy them extensively, in conjunction with our little Yellow Flash, to try and eliminate the enemy nations first?" He said, staring down at the table, his dull, onyx eyes glazed over in thought.

"I would suggest keeping the Ghost for as long as possible. Sending him out, as well as Suboro Kurama, could break him."

To which, Dante shook his head. "He kept up both his regular life and his Anbu training at the same time, old friend. Spending nearly a decade next to Hibiki means he'll pick up on his 'party trick'." He explained.

The former Ghost trainee arced an eyebrow, "I've been seeing a marked increase in students requesting information on that technique, since Hibiki popularized its use. I should have concluded such an idea would become an adapted one."

To which, the Hokage simply shrugged, "it's a very good party trick."

Serizawa nodded, "I shall drink to that." And he finished his drink. "And what of Emi Miu?"

Dante shook his head, "that could go either way. She was once a loyal Iwa shinobi, but then they gave her to Katsuo - or, failing that, never found her after Katsuo took her. She could either be ready to fight for us... Or could just be so broken that we'll have a new, permanent member of the psyche ward. I've already got plans to get a Yamanaka working with her, once Namikaze, Uzumaki, and Jiraiya fix her seal." He said, "the real question is what to do about her _and_ our jinchuriki. Deploying them is exactly what the Monster and the Undead want, but keeping even the one we know works hidden, could have drastic consequences."

The bandaged Hyuga nodded, "tantamount to telling Hibiki to stay behind during an assault on Kumogakure."

The Hokage hummed in agreement. "It may not be a bad way to lure out, if not Katsuo, then some undead. But that trick would only work once, and I would risk the loyalties of the jinchuriki and their allies in so doing." He glanced up to his old teammate, "my hair will be going gray by the time I take off this hat." He said with a wry grin.

"Look at my head, Hokage-sama." He waved a hand at the gray and brown hair flowing down his head. "I have been dealing with children for far longer than you have, and will continue to do so until my dying day." He let a genuine smile crinkle his wrappings, "if you go gray before I, I may have to demonstrate to the village why I was once considered powerful in my own right."

Dante chuckled, "and for that, I do apologize. Benching you was criminal, but I was still recovering at the time." He said, with a guilty grin and a sidewards shrug of the head. "I couldn't vouch for your previous training."

Serizawa waved it away, "think nothing of it, Hokage-sama." He grinned as Dante gritted his teeth, "while children may not have been my first choice... Or even my tenth, I do enjoy my job. That I taught the Thunder God and the Yellow Flash both before they got their names has given me quite the prestige in the office." A pause, before he leaned forward conspiratorially. _"Kill me."_ He faux-whispered.

Dante laughed, loud and long, running his hand through his raven hair. "Damn, Serizawa. I missed this." He sighed, "this will be a long war."

Serizawa, meanwhile, shook his head. "Perhaps not. Katsuo is strong, but even I doubt many of those villages joined him willingly. The more we conquer, the more we liberate... And the more we may find fighting with us, and not against us."

Dante nodded, and let the conversation drift to silence for several moments. Finally, however, he knew that their time had drawn short, so he felt it his duty as the man's leader to end on a higher note. Not at all to one-up his own high note, of course. He was a Hokage. He was better than that. "Do you remember, during the second war? There was that one Hast, before I took them down. He was a _shit_ fighter, but he made up for that with pure speed." He said, "remember?"

Serizawa tilted his head, "yes!" He said, eyebrows shooting up, "I remember him! Kami, I haven't thought about him in years." He leaned back, sunken eyes faced towards the ceiling as he thought back to the past.

"He knew he couldn't fight any of us, but that couldn't stop him from messing with us. He had to have stolen Eiji's clothes so many times, that he finally just waltzed into his next battle stark naked." Dante's grin turned into a fond smile, he remembered Eiji sprinting out to meet Ame forces, his non-shinobi equipment swinging freely in the rain.

"He only had to attempt to steal my wrappings once, before realizing that an eyeless Hyuga slaughtering everyone in his path was worse than one with bandages covering his eyes." Serizawa nodded enthusiastically.

"He had to have had a much higher effect on morale than damn near anyone else, before or after. I remember thinking that if this was one of their weaker fighters, how the hell would we fight the whole clan?" His tan face furled up as he thought back to the times. "Then the dumb bastard made the mistake of trying to raid Tsunade's stores, when she came to bolster our forces. She was younger, then. Hibiki hadn't come around, she was a lot less tame."

Serizawa laughed, "she made a canyon so large that we had to move our camp or be swallowed by the earth - but it worked. I remember seeing her chucking rocks down into the ravine to keep the shinobi pinned, while her slugs filled it with acid. He either could come up to meet her and answer for his attempted thievery of her undergarments, or stay down there and melt."

Dante picked up, "that dumb bastard looked right at Tsunade, called out her cup size so loud that everyone around could hear it, and then _dived_ into the fucking acid. I swear I thought she would have killed us, just to keep it from spreading." Dante shook his head, "I think he knew he wouldn't be making it, you know? But instead of trying to kill everyone... He just focused on getting a rise out of her, and a laugh out of all of us. And the rest of the Hast were no different - with how fast they lived, they experienced time faster than anyone else. Minutes turned to hours, hours to days, days to weeks, and so on. They did anything they could to make the time go by faster, and their best method was making themselves and anyone in the vicinity laugh their asses off." He grinned, "I almost _died,_ and I mean actually _died,_ when a group of them started throwing high-speed puns at me during our fight. They did not stop, and more than a few got me to chuckle just long enough for them to get an attack in."

Serizawa leaned back, head inclined. "Is _that_ where you got those kami-awful jokes?"

Dante, however, ignored him. "Point I'm trying to make, pal, is that those folks knew that, strong as they were, they might not make it. But they tried anyways, and still found the lighter side in everything. So... Yeah, it'll be a long war. But we'll make it, one war or another, we'll see tomorrow." He chuckled, "the Will of Fire cannot be dimmed, and all that. Gotta start being Hokage sometime, right?"

Serizawa shook his head and sighed. "Cheers to that, old friend." He said, pouring himself and Dante one last drink.

They each clicked glasses, and then clicked again to the untouched third, before downing them in one go.


	69. The Next Generation

_A/N_

_A plot bunny bitch-slapped me about a week ago, for an S/OC/I involving a man who ends up adopting a combat style that revolves around fuinjutsu inked onto cards. Explosions, healing chakra, pre-primed ninjutsu, so long as he's got an hour or two to spare he'd be able to prepare for an entire fight just by grabbing a stamp and smacking a bunch of cards with it.  
He'd by and large be a mix of canon's Konan, and Gambit from X-men. _

_Dunno what I'll do with the concept, or if I'll even do anything with it, but it's been something I've been running a lot of thought experiments for, this last week. I'd love to play with it, and see where it could go.  
_

_Anyways, on with the show. Tell me if you recognize someone, this chapter.  
_

* * *

Chapter 68

* * *

At nearly twenty years of age, Suboro Kurama was in deep shit, and of course, the only adult in his life had just taken up a desk job that had broken up the team, and the smartest man he knew was on the other side of the country. The third man on his list wasn't necessarily the lowest on the list, but in a situation like this, he was all but certain either Dante or Hibiki would know what they were doing better than Noboru. Unfortunately, desperate times called for desperate measures, and a part of him was literally fearing for his life. Such fear made him nearly charge straight into the Hyuga compound without checking in with the gate guards first.

They weren't very accommodating, especially considering the wild look in his eyes and the desperate demeanor with which he carried himself. They kept him standing there an entire ten minutes longer than he knew he had to be, before finally letting him into the compound, whereupon he vanished in a plume of smoke, bee-lining it for Noboru's quaint home. He skidded to a halt in front of Noboru's main sliding door, and started beating his fist on it. The Hyuga noble must have been using his Byakugan at the time as a part of his training, because he had opened the door hardly a second after Suboro had started knocking on it, and an iron look was in his pale eyes.

"Suboro, what is - " Noboru's voice was serious, but he was cut off by the Kurama.

_"I'm a father!"_

Noboru blinked, his Byakugan slowly fading away as he stared at the bald chuunin in abject shock. The two were silently staring at eachother for several seconds, before Noboru steeled his features and folded his arms in the sleeves of his combat robes. "Come with me." He said, stepping deeper into his home. "You need something stronger than tea."

Suboro followed his squadmate with the kind of crushing silence that followed a man who knew he was _far_ out of his league. Noboru led him through his home, to an office in its back, and before Suboro could ask what room this was, Noboru said, "I took over for my branch two years ago. This was my father's study, now mine." He explained, as he pulled out a chair for his ally, and sat down behind his desk. He reached down and pulled open a loose floorboard, "my mother told me that he had been saving this..." Out came a bottle of an expensive-looking alcohol with a label Suboro couldn't read, "specifically for when either of us - myself or my sister - came home with a child in tow." A few glasses followed the bottle. "Unfortunately, my sister is a traditional woman and has sworn off alcohol. I, meanwhile, have only recently begun courting, and as such have had no reason to drink from it." He filled up the two glasses, "but I consider you family. Now drink this, and calm down, friend." He said, passing a filled glass to the practically shaking Kurama.

Suboro took the glass and downed it in one go, coughing and sputtering as the fiery liquid traveled down his throat, his brown eyes watering up as he slid the cup back along Noboru's desk.

"Are you better?" Noboru asked, as he sipped at his own drink, and graciously poured the terrified Kurama another.

Suboro took this one slower, "yeah..." He nodded, "yeah."

"Now start from the beginning. Is she pregnant, or has it already been born?" While it was clear Noboru hadn't been expecting the news, he was taking it with aplomb.

"It was, uh, a year ago, just about. She was just born." Kurama said, rubbing at his bald head, absent of its hitai-ate.

"You sound as surprised about it as I am, Suboro-san." Said the deep-voiced Hyuga.

"Noboru, I'm not like you or Hibiki - I never thought waiting would be for me. I just... _Looked,_ you know?" Suboro said, earnestly.

Noboru nodded, "I am aware, Suboro-san." Given his experiences first as an orphan, and then as the prodigal son of the Kurama clan, Noboru had somewhat expected Suboro to date through relationships, seeking comfort in the moment until he could find the acceptance and family he had been denied for nearly a decade and a half. He and Hibiki hadn't ever found any real problem with it - it was perfectly natural, after all, for someone to need a bit more time to find whomever it was they were destined to reside with for their lives; Suboro choosing to try whomever struck his fancy was just as natural. How did he expect to find someone special if he didn't actively _look?_ "Please, continue." Noboru's brow furrowed, "is the baby okay?" He pressed, after examining Suboro's continually worried expression.

Suboro nodded, "yeah, yeah she's fine - she's _beautiful,_ man! Her name's Kurenai." A smile grew across his face as his eyes briefly glazed over, before he shook his head. "But, it's her mother - she didn't make it. Her mother's dad pieced together who the father was and tracked me down - he literally dropped the baby on my doorstep and I _do not know what to do!"_

Noboru blinked, "wait, then where is the child now?"

"A shadow clone is watching her. He's kind of freaking out..." He adopted an ashamed expression, "I don't know how to change diapers." He said, dropping his voice to a low tone.

Noboru nodded, "I believe you may be worrying over nothing, Suboro-san." He said, "will the grandfather not take her?"

_"No!_ Not with the risk of my bloodline manifesting!" Suboro went right back to panicking, "he literally dropped her on my doorstep! I'm not kidding - I almost didn't catch her!"

"Suboro-san, calm down, take a drink." Noboru pressed, before demonstrating for his friend. "Now, what exactly is worrying you? If it is merely the prospect of fatherhood, I assure you, you will be fine. You clearly lack forethought, but I've faith you will figure it out."

"Well..." Suboro sighed, leaning back in his chair. "It's not that - I think I could do it, but... The war..." He looked down and furrowed his brow, searching for the right words.

Noboru, however, nodded, "oh." What Suboro was having a problem with wasn't the prospect of fatherhood, however sudden it may have been. What he was struggling with was the prospect of raising the child, and then dying on her in the war - or, perhaps worse, making her a target. Working alongside Hibiki, and especially with Suboro's unique bloodline, both he and Noboru were making names for themselves. If someone learned Suboro had a child, they could use her against him, and it appeared as if he didn't want to risk that danger to her. "You don't know what to do with her." This was more common an issue than one would think, with shinobi, but the problem in this specific instance was that there was an established doctrine for war orphans or single parents in the Hyuga clan, anyone in need of children or willing to adopt would. There was no such thing as a Hyuga orphan, thus this was slightly outside of his realm of expertise. "Does the Kurama clan not have some way of assisting you?"

Suboro waved his hand back and forth in a 'so-so' fashion, "well... Kind of." He said, "the problem with that is..." He frowned, "if I die, and I give her to my clan... If she manifests the bloodline, I don't know what they would do with her." He explained.

Noboru blinked, "oh?"

"Many, _many_ times I've had to hide out at Hibiki's place. They're trying to drop the clan restoration act on me, they think I can get more bloodlines manifested in the clan. Get fresh genes into the... Gene pool." He explained.

Noboru nodded, "I remember you speaking of the inbreeding problem... But I did not know they intended to give you concubines."

Suboro lowered his head, "I asked Hibiki to keep it quiet. He promised not to say a word." He said, "but, still. I may have had more than a few - well, _friends,_ these last few years, but I'm not really interested in siring... Like... Fifty eight children, and beyond that I don't want a breeder, I want a _wife._ Someone I can love, like Hibiki and Dai do. Kurenai had been an accident, and a unique situation in that - it had happened after I got promoted." He explained.

Noboru nodded, a small, sly grin playing at the corners of his lips. "I had wondered where you had run off to, that night." He said, before raising his hand in a conciliatory fashion, at seeing Suboro's expression. "Relax. So you fear, in the event of your death, your daughter could be turned into a broodmare for your clan."

Suboro silently nodded, not able to put to words any of his thoughts.

"You do know Hibiki and I would not allow that to happen." Said Noboru, "you named the both of us and Dante-sensei as next of kin. And since you were an orphan, Dante-sensei is legally your acting guardian. Changing your last name and joining a clan didn't change that. So even if you, I, and Hibiki all died in one night, Sensei could take the child." He decided not to mention that if the three of them were all killed in one fell swoop, the child probably wouldn't survive very long either.

Suboro shook his head, "it's clan laws, Noboru. You know how those are. You're just _listed_ as next of kin - they're actual blood relatives. They could fight it, if they wanted, and they were noble once - with me climbing through the ranks, they're getting closer to being noble _again!_ They might be able to win!"

Noboru could understand Suboro's fears, but he felt the man was being hysterical for no reason. "Against... The fifth Hokage..." He listed, "the soon-to-be head of the Senju Clan, a noble of the Hyuga clan... And all of our connections."

Suboro finished his drink, "still." He said, "I'm worried they'll try something. That's why I haven't gone to them for help, yet."

"You do not trust your clan that much?"

"No, Noboru... I trust them, but... I also _know_ them. They're all nice and flowery as long as you're on their good side, but if you set so much as a foot out of line..." He shook his head and sighed. "I'm just scared what they might do if I'm not there to protect her."

Noboru nodded, "I believe I understand." He said, "you think that revealing her to them, before you've a plan, could give them time to plan themselves." Suboro's distrust of the Kurama may, in Noboru's eyes, look misplaced, and it may boil down to him being hysterical, but if he was so worried, then Noboru felt obligated to help him, right or wrong. He silently vowed to start looking into the clan. He leaned back, "my suggestion may not be one you are willing to hear."

Suboro looked up, frowning. "What?"

"In previous wars, shinobi expecting, or with, children and no spouses or family to take care of them would temporarily put their children up in orphanages." Said Noboru, "this would protect the child from their reputation, allow them to be raised in safe, stable environments without constantly missing parents, and would ensure the child's safety until such a time as the parent could come back to raise them." Noboru paused, "a good example would be Minato-san, though he rarely talks about it. His parents put him up during the second war, but both perished before they could come back for him."

Suboro straightened his back, "but, then I wouldn't..." He drawled, trying to come to terms with Noboru's words.

Noboru shrugged, "I am not saying you would be abandoning your child, in doing this. You could still maintain a relationship with her, should you so wish, but few shinobi do, beyond allowing their foster parents to reveal the identities of their parents." He explained, "this is because, as I said, you frequenting her during this war could place her in danger. And if you are worried about your clan in the interim, spending your every waking moment with her when not on duty could be counter productive."

Suboro looked into his empty glass, and silently put it on the desk to be filled. "Are those really my only options?"

"Of course not, Suboro-san." Noboru stressed, "that is merely what comes to mind, considering your desires. Should you wish to raise her yourself, I guarantee you myself, Hibiki, or any of our mutual friends would be willing to take her in when you are not present." He slid Suboro his drink back, and took one himself. "But it seems to me that, no matter how much you may love and respect your clan, you, like any parent, want what is best for your child, and until she is old enough to protect herself - or until such a time that the war does not rage and you yourself can protect her - you know your clan is not best for her. That is not wrong of you, Suboro-san, it is respectable. Honorable." He nodded with each word, "so I tell you this option because it would keep her a secret from them. It would give us the time to fight and win this war so you could come back and raise her. But know that no matter what decision you make, my support, Hibiki's support, and Dante's support too, we will behind you every step of the way." He finished.

Suboro leaned back in his chair, sighing as he tried to think on his options. "Would it be _best_ for her?" He asked, looking back down to Noboru.

Noboru, however, shook his head. "I cannot answer that, Suboro. She is _your_ daughter."

"Then what would _you_ do, Noboru?"

Noboru sighed, "I would be honest with you, Suboro... If it were me?" He finished his drink, and ran his hand through his dark hair. "If I was as afraid of my clan's treatment of it, as you are of yours, there wouldn't be a single thing I wouldn't do to protect any child of mine. The problem, however, is in our blood." He said, slowly. "A child of mine, or a child of yours, is not unrecognizable. My child could be recognized through their eyes and their appearance. Yours, through its bloodline. If your daughter, Kurenai, manifested it at any point, that would be the ruse ruined. You would likely even be denounced by your clan, if they saw fit."

"So what should I do, then?"

Noboru stood up, "which orphanage were you raised in?" He asked, nodding to the door.

Suboro blinked, but followed his ally nonetheless. "Er... Goson's home. Why?"

The two exited Noboru's home, "from what you have told me, Kurama seldom manifest a bloodline after age five. I think your clan has been looking at your bloodline manifestation from the wrong direction."

"Okay? What does this have to do with her?"

"Perhaps someone at Goson's may remember you as you were a baby. May be able to help us understand how you delayed the onset of your bloodline. If we can figure out how to delay, or cease entirely, the manifestation of her bloodline, we can remove all risk." He paused at the entrance to the Hyuga compound, before giving Suboro a stern look into his eyes. "But this is if you wish to put her up, Suboro. Sensei has been wearing the hat nearly a week, now. It will not be long until we are deployed. I would think we've only time enough to pursue one avenue of approach: Temporary orphanage, or assisted care. Hiding her, or placing your trust in your allies."

Suboro frowned, looking down at the ground in thought. Nearly ten years in this clan of his, he knew them from both an insider's perspective, and an outsider's perspective. He knew what it was like to live amongst them, but also what it was like to watch them. He knew what they were like - they valued power, his and theirs. They hated that they had lost their nobility and hated even more that their bloodline was so rare, after years of being any combination of unwilling or unable to breed outside of the clan and bring in fresh blood. It was one of the reasons he was accepted so openly - despite being, by all accounts, an illegitimate birth from outside of the clan, he had manifested their bloodline and had done so safely. By rights, he was just as, if not, more, lethal than even Hibiki Senju, and they wanted that power back in the clan, so they brought him in, showered him with status and acceptance, whilst also testing him, time and again. Blood, skin, muscle, even bone marrow, it was all taken and examined for anything they could use to safely manifest the bloodline. He knew that they all just wanted what was best for the whole, and he respected that, but that didn't necessarily translate into him trusting them with his child.

No matter how sudden and unexpected she was, Kurenai was his. If he kept the child, he risked dying on the battlefield, and having his clan take possession of her. If they took her in before she was a genin, or before she could grow into herself, he risked them conditioning her, just like the Hyuga conditioned their own young. Only instead of raising a respectable, noble, if albeit slightly arrogant little girl, they would be training up a kunoichi who could kill with her mind, and raising her with the singular expectation that her one and only purpose in life was to breed more Kurama, who would in effect manifest their bloodline.

Suboro hadn't wanted that for himself, and wouldn't wish that on any woman, let alone his daughter. He could try to write it in his will to disallow his clan to raise her in the event of his death, but it would take a lot of paperwork to ensure the thoroughness required to do such a thing, and him filing that paperwork would gain their attention. It would cause trouble that, with the war, he would be unable to deal with - and every delay in his venture would cost him and give them time to prepare themselves to fight him in this. If he hid her, however, she would be safe from them in the event he died, and be ready for him if the war ended and he yet lived.

The biggest problem he had, however, was the lack of contact he would subsequently have to have with her. Sure, he could _try_ to maintain contact with her whenever he wasn't on the battlefield, but like Noboru said - him spending every waking hour with her would be bound to draw up some kind of suspicion.

_At least..._ Suboro blinked, _it would if it was _just_ me..._ Thinking on the situation made him remember how Hibiki was able to do so much in so little time: Shadow Clones. He _knew_ the technique, after all, and Hibiki used the technique so extensively that even those looking for him had a hard time tracking down everything it was he did. If he could make as much use of the shadow clone technique as Hibiki did - or even just a limited use of it - he could throw the Kurama off his trail, keep the attention on the clone in their field of awareness, and away from the clone spending time with Kurenai; and if that didn't work, he'd just have to improvise.

He sighed, deeply. "Let's check Goson's." He finally said, wondering if the sinking, crushing feeling he had in his chest was of his soul rotting away as he prepared to give away his child.

* * *

"Wait, Suboro-kun?" The wrinkled old man spoke slowly, leaning forward and squinting his eyes as he looked at the buzz-cut chunin. "Little Suboro-kun?" He stood up from his rocking chair on the porch of his large home, as the two shinobi approached him.

The bald chunin in question nodded, with a large grin on his face. "Goson-san!" He said, looking down at the bent old man, the caretaker having shrunk to nearly a foot shorter than him.

"My lord!" The old man hobbled forward and took Suboro in a big hug, "I haven't seen you in ages, child!" He squeezed Suboro, and Suboro reciprocated, with Noboru standing a respectable distance away, on the other side of the stairs, his arms folded in his baggy sleeves. "How are you?" He stepped back and looked up at the chunin, "I've heard so much about you from the children!"

Suboro chuckled airily, "oh?"

"Yes! Come in! Your friend, too!" He waved the two inside, "yes, most of our genin and rookie children. They all come with many stories, you graduating the academy caused quite the stir here, child!" The old man hobbled inside, after Suboro opened the door for him. "So many children, so many aspiring shinobi." He chuckled in a weary, elderly voice. "'Suboro-sama!' they say! 'Goson's Genjutsu Master!' I hear!" He looked back behind over his shoulder, as the two shinobi followed him inside. "Not a week goes by that I don't hear of one of them spotting you in the bazaar." He entered the kitchen, where a few small children, no older than five, scattered away at the sight of him, leaving the grown ups to do grown-up business.

Noboru pulled a chair out for the old man, and the three sat down. "I didn't know I was so popular here." Suboro said, a small amount of awe in his voice.

The white-haired wrinkled old man nodded once, "yes. You should visit more often, the children would love it!" He voiced, a wide smile on his face. "So, Suboro-kun, why have you decided to grace this old man today?" He asked, a wide smile on his wrinkled face.

Suboro nodded, slowly settling into business. "Right... Eh, I..." He frowned, trying to bring the right words to mind.

Thankfully, Noboru decided to help him. "Goson-san, Suboro is a father, now. His daughter was just born, days ago." He supplied.

To say Goson was surprised at the news would be an understatement. His entire face brightened up, his eyes wide and a smile growing from ear to ear as he leaned back in his face and covered his mouth with his withered hands. "Truly? Suboro-kun, you're a father now? Kami, are you truly that old?" He gave Suboro a look over, before lowering his hands. "A daughter? What is her name?" He asked, as gleefully as his quiet voice would allow.

Suboro smiled too, "Kurenai. She's beautiful, Goson-san." He explained, "but uh... She's the reason why I'm here." He said slowly, as if having to force the words out.

Goson seemed to lock onto his thoughts already, "the war is here, is it not?" He asked, sinking into his own business mode. "Now, myself and Nora are old, but Misa - do you remember her? - she is more than willing to keep the house from falling down when we leave. We've already six shinobi this week." He leaned forward, resting his elbows on the table. "The mother is no longer with us?"

Suboro shook his head. "But... I graciously appreciate the offer, Goson-san, but I don't know if I'm going to put her up, yet. What I'm worried about is a potential bloodline."

Goson blinked, seeming to age decades before them. "Oh..." He nodded lightly, "I had worried this day would come, but I am glad to see you are still healthy."

Noboru and Suboro exchanged glances, before the former turned his gaze back to the elder. "You are aware of Suboro's bloodline?"

"Indeed... I suppose it's time I offer an explanation." Said the old man, as he ran a hand over his balding, thin white hair. "If you're worried about it, then I would think you know of what blood you possess, yes?"

Suboro nodded, "I've been brought into the Kurama clan because of it."

"You've a family now? Good, good." Goson nodded, a faint smile crossing his thin lips. "I suppose I should preface this by saying... If you've manifested, this isn't the first time."

Suboro blinked, leaning forward. "What do you mean?"

"It is a... Complicated story. I still do not fully understand it, myself. But the short version is, you manifested your bloodline when you were but three years old. There was so much blood, if it hadn't been for a passing MP with a Sharingan, we may not have been able to stop it from happening." He rambled, "so, we took you to the hospital. They explained to us what was happening and that there was only a small chance that you could make it through to see your teens, and only then, if you were raised in isolation, around skilled genjutsu users. Nora and I... We were younger, then, we thought then and still do think that every child deserves a chance to live, but we didn't want to isolate you, especially since we had never been able to track down your parents."

Clearly, Suboro thought, they hadn't raised him in isolation. "So, what did you do?"

"A medic approached us. She couldn't have been older than twenty. She told us that there could be a way to save you, to stave off the bloodline, but it risked your life." He explained, "I... I still do not understand the words she used. Plasticity... Neuro... She was an educated one, and I... Well, I still remember the days of Hashirama Senju, so I would hope that would explain my intellect." He shrugged, and straightened back up. "She told us that what she would do would be to perform a surgery upon your brain. To carve out, or at least partially sever, the parts that were causing your problems."

Suboro blinked, paling as he realized what his old caretaker was explaining to him. Noboru, however, wasn't silent. "He was lobotomized?" He asked, in a rare display of non-stoic emotion.

Goson nodded, "yes! That is the word she used!" He said, "she told us that, because you were a child, you may develop slower, but your mind could... Heal itself, better than adult minds. And with medics at the hospital, most of the damage could be undone. She said that it was either that, or raise you in isolation."

"What was the doctor's name?" Noboru asked.

"Er..." Goson squinted hard, "Aki, something... Akira? I am not sure." He explained, "I do not think she has left us, if you wish to find her." He said. "We thought very long about it, Suboro-kun." He said, to the pale chunin. "It was not a decision we made lightly."

"No, I... I understand. It's just a lot to take in." Hibiki had once explained lobotomies to him, he vividly remembered not liking what he'd heard. The fact that he had survived and continued on to live a normal life had been, if Hibiki's explanation had been any indication, a minor miracle. "So... A medic named Akira? What did she look like?" He asked.

"Eh... I do not remember. She was about your height and age... Brown hair, it was a very long time ago." He explained, "I apologize, Suboro-kun."

"It's okay." Said Suboro, leaning back in his chair.

Noboru gave him a look, "Suboro?"

"Come on." Suboro stood up, "thank you, Goson-san. I apologize for cutting this short. I'm really happy to have seen you, again."

Goson brightened up a bit, "any time, Suboro. I'm so sorry I couldn't have had better news, for you. Please, bring your child over some day, I would love to see her!"

* * *

"I do not think this is a good idea, Suboro."

"If anyone, she would know!"

"She may not have been head of the hospital at the time, but consider what you know of Tsunade-sama. Do you truly think she would react well to learning one of her medics lobotomized an infant and, if her lack of reactions to you are to indicate, never told her?" Noboru asked, as they stood in front of Konoha's main hospital, which was bustling with activity.

"Well -" Suboro huffed, his eyes darting between the multitude of windows lining the hospital's outer walls, as if he could will into existence the doctor they were looking for, and would subsequently spot her. "- Fine, I'll give you that. But she's the only person I can think of that could track this medic down!" He turned his tan head to his squadmate.

"Allow me, for a moment, to play devil's advocate, Suboro-san." Said the Hyuga, as he followed his friend into the hospital. "Assume we find this medic and whatever she does works as intended and as described. Your daughter is a half-blood, and your bloodline doesn't manifest regularly to begin with... Inbreeding in the clan notwithstanding." He said, "so it is very likely she could manifest her bloodline at a much later age." He and Suboro entered the hospital, quickly locating a directory and narrowing down where they could begin their search for the current head of the Senju clan. "Perhaps as late as you manifested it, the second time. She would be a teenager, Suboro. Twelve, thirteen years of development. If this is the method you nail down, in this scenario not only would you wipe out any chance she has as a kunoichi, but you would be obliterating her entire life. The daughter you would know at the time, would not be the one who wakes up from the operation."

Suboro sighed, "I..." He said, his shoulders slumping as they maneuvered through the hospital, and up a small flight of stairs. "I know." He finally said, in a dead, rumbly voice. "But..." There were so many thoughts clouding his mind that none were able to make the journey down to his throat. "I just... Want all my bases covered." He finally settled upon, as they rose to middle-most floor, the administration wing. "I don't know what I'm going to do, man. I really don't. This is all just so... Sudden."

"I understand, Suboro-san." Said Noboru, "I do not fault you for looking into this as doggedly as you are. Nor do I fault you for considering it. I am merely ensuring you are looking at it from all angles." He explained, as they exited the stairwell and began scanning walls for Tsunade's office.

After a few minutes of wandering the wide halls, they ran not into the Senju they were looking for, but her apprentice. Shizune had hardly spent the time with the two of them as she had with Hibiki during his younger years, but merely being exposed to the two of them meant that, after a double take, she recognized the two.

Unfortunately, seeing two shinobi, neither in battle gear, approaching a known associate of the parent of their squadmate didn't necessarily carry the greatest of implications, and the dark-haired woman paled as the two chunin approached. "Suboro-san, Noboru-san..." She said cautiously, "what is the matter? Is everything okay?" Her eyes took on an analytical edge as she looked over the two, but upon finding no obvious ailments, they took on the concerned reflective glow.

Noboru nodded his head, "of course, Shizune-san." He said, "we were merely hoping to converse with Tsunade-sama. We've a medic we are trying to locate, and are hoping she could assist us."

"Oh, of course!" Shizune brightened up at the lack of any bad news, "follow me, she's just out of a meeting with the Jonin Commander." She explained, bading the two follow her with a wave of her hand. "Despite her constant work to get it introduced to academy curriculum, the only shinobi with medical training beyond basic first aid are iryo-nin, and she is furious."

Noboru nodded, "I would assume so. A severe lack of combat medics could be a bad situation for us all."

Suboro blinked, "but doesn't Hibiki know some of her tricks? Or... A lot? He could use his shadow clones and play the role, right?"

"That's exactly what the Naara said, but Tsunade argued that Hibiki can't be everywhere, and overtaxing his system with extensive shadow clone usage isn't healthy." Shizune responded. "She's going to try to shove this medic-training down our new Hokage's throat, if she keeps going the way she is." She drifted off.

"Do we think that anything will come of it?" Noboru prodded, as the trio turned a corner.

"Maybe?" Shizune shrugged, "at best, biology classes, and a basic mystic-palms technique get added onto the Academy Two. But with the chakra control required even just to speed up personal cellular division... I don't think it will work out, long-run." She shook her head as the three approached an office with a door propped open, she looked over her shoulder and held a hand up, "please, just a moment." Before she reached forward and knocked on the door. "Tsunade-sama?" She asked, peering into the office.

"Oh kami, Shizune if that Naara bastard wants another round tell him to send his son - _he's_ the smart one!" Came the irate voice of the Senju head, from inside the office.

"Oh, no..." Shizune entered the room and left earshot, her voice becoming muffled, likely by a suite of privacy seals inked onto the room's walls. There were a few moments of silence, as Suboro and Noboru stood against the wall opposite the office, unable to see through the windows inside as the blinds were drawn tight. Finally, however, the dark-haired medic exited the office and waved the two in, "she has a moment." She said, with a nod and a smile.

The two entered, with Noboru kindly offering his thanks. The door was shut behind them, leaving them alone with the frustrated Senju. "Care to tell me why you two are doctor searching?" She asked, bluntly. "You two, the Uchiha, and the Namikaze are pretty much the only reason he keeps up with his medic training." Her eyes had a sharp edge to them, as they bore into Noboru's, and then Suboro's.

Suboro choked under the strength of her glare, but Noboru noticed the brief silence and took effort to break it. "Tsunade-sama, I believe we've recently discovered how Suboro-san survived so long with his bloodline." He explained.

Tsunade's brow furrowed, "sit down. You have my attention." She waved to the chairs lining the wall.

The two retrieved a chair each and sat down in front of Tsunade's cramped and cluttered desk. Noboru leaned forward, "to start it off with, Noboru is a father." The only response Tsunade had was to give Suboro a slightly disappointed glare from under the rims of her eyes, before turning her gaze back to Noboru with a nod. "And for various reasons he is concerned for his daughter's safety in this war-charged climate. He is considering temporary fosterhood, but the greatest risk comes if she manifests a bloodline."

"I assume 'various reasons' includes why he doesn't want his clan in on this?" Tsunade ascertained, remarkably quickly; Noboru nodded. "So what does this have to do with one of my medics?"

"We believe that he manifested his bloodline once before, when he was younger. A catastrophe was mostly avoided, but to make a long story short, he was lobotomized in an attempt to cease the bloodline's further growth and also give him a chance at a normal life."

"That's a very serious claim, and a very serious procedure, Noboru. It was outlawed before I was even born." Tsunade drawled, "you're saying they actually lobotomized him?" She turned her brown eyes to Suboro's gray orbs, looking deeply at him with the analyzing eye of a life-trained medic. "Risky move. I'm amazed he wasn't developmentally scarred... They did it young, you said?" She turned back to Noboru, "it might make a bit of sense. Brains are a bit more capable of adapting to damage at a young age, add in chakra it might work, but it's still risky." She leaned back and pulled out a file from a storage scroll in her desk. "What was the medic's name?"

"Akira. She was twenty at the time, and had brown hair." Noboru supplied.

Suboro cleared his throat, "uh... For curiosity's sake, what could have gone wrong?" He asked.

"Take your pick." Tsunade opened up the files that had appeared on her desk, and looked for the year they had specified, "death is the easiest one. You could have been developmentally hindered, possibly for the rest of your life... Could have been made a vegetable... This chick better pray I was out fighting when she pulled this stunt, else we're going to have more than a few problems." She growled.

"And... The chances of me actually surviving?"

"Very small, even with a good medic. I wouldn't have done it." Tsunade said dully, her focus on files in front of her. "And if she went and did it, I'm willing to bet it was something of a fluke, else she would have kept getting better and I would have heard of her." There was a pause, as she frowned at the files. "Consider yourself lucky, Suboro-san." She drawled, "I pulled up old reports of the Kurama's bloodline, when Hibiki told me you were working with him. It wasn't often, even back then, that they survived long enough to get the mental faculties they would need to overcome the hallucinations and genjutsu they made."

Suboro nodded, "yes. I've seen some of our young with the bloodline... It isn't pretty."

"Here." She tapped on a page, removed it from the folder, and held it out to the two. "This her?"

Suboro shrugged and took the paper, "I... I wouldn't know." He looked at the woman on the picture; she had a narrow, angular face and tough, squinted eyes behind a pair of thin glasses. Her dark brown hair was done up in a bun, and her lips were pressed tight in a decidedly-not-smile. "Were there any other Akiras back then?"

"Not in the timeframe you described." Tsunade shook her head, rubbing at her eyelids. "I specify her because it says she was reprimanded for an unorthodox procedure without informed consent. She didn't explain it in less technical terms, to whoever it was she was speaking to." She explained, leaning back in her large leather office chair. "You'll notice the problem there at the bottom of the page."

"Killed in action." Noboru leaned back in his chair as well, eyes settling on the ceiling, as he sunk into his thoughts.

"Oh no..." Suboro nearly crushed the paper he gripped it so hard.

Tsunade let out the breath in her lungs. "Listen, it's entirely possible that we got the wrong woman. Take this paper back to whoever you got the information from, see if they recognize her. If they don't, you two still have a chance and we can spend more time on it." She explained, "but I'm telling you right now, you're only looking for academic reasons. Even if we were wrong, she is alive, what she did, did empirically work, and she can replicate it, I won't let her as chief medic."

Suboro's head snapped up, "but -"

"No." Tsunade said firmly, cutting off any protest. "I'm not going to authorize a lobotomization on an infant, on the off chance it'll take from its lesser half and activate a bloodline that no one understands and may or may not even work like it did for her father. I'll have you know, most known Kurama half-bloods didn't manifest a bloodline anywhere close to as powerful as you have. Before the Kurama started inbreeding, the average half-blood had only been able to just affect reality, but only on a small scale. Less than a few meters, and not nearly to the extent you can.

"You guys aren't medics, so I won't even bother trying to explain to you all of the things that could go wrong. Instead I'll give you a number: _Ten._ Just off the top of my head, I would put her survival rate at _ten percent_ if you went through with this, and I'm not talking about her surviving the surgery." She explained, "say she develops early. Five years old. We perform the operation and cut open her brain. The problem with that is that a lot of the body's unconscious control of chakra happens where? The brain. Even a millimeter off and we could damage something vital, and that's assuming we don't accidentally open Kaimon or Kyumon either, because that _has_ happened before in brain surgery. Slightest mistake, and we open a gate or two that can never shut again. Lifespan drops to five years if they're strong enough to survive the night." She explained, her face settling into a firm frown. "But if we assume we don't slice those open, we still run the risk of severing any number of unconscious activators for her chakra flow. We may alter her breathing rate, shut down or increase her metabolism. We could cause her immune system to start attacking itself or let everything through." She shook her head, "and so much more it would be easier to say that she would either die, or be an invalid, if _one_ thing goes wrong. There's a reason those surgeries were outlawed, and I as a medic will not condone such a risk." She paused, studying the pensive, partially terrified look on Suboro's nearly paper-white face. "And even if that's not what you want to hear, just think of it like a parent. Would you rather have a high risk of killing or crippling her just to delay a problem, or a low risk of just hurting her if she does, kami-forbid, get a bloodline as strong as yours?" She asked. "You have at your disposal, a Hyuga who, by reputation, has his Byakugan on more often than he doesn't, and as such is always watching. A Senju who has made not dying a hat trick, another Senju who has made medical miracles a_nother_ hat trick, at least one sealsmaster, and all of the connections they have. If she does manifest, it will not be a worst case scenario, and it will not be impossible for us to fight it." She finished. "Just sleep on it before you make any rash decisions. Consider that my recommendation, now, I'm sorry, but I've got things to do." She said, not a second before Shizune knocked on the door.

* * *

"Oh thank _kami_ you're back!" Came the distant voice of Suboro's shadow clone, as they entered his quaint home. "I was running out of chakra!" He called out.

Noboru narrowed his eyes and turned his gaze to the Alpha Suboro, who got a brief flash of memories, following a loud pop and a plume of smoke. He nodded once, "he was keeping her quiet." He explained, as the two ventured deeper into the house and into the living room. "Turns out, best way to do it is some minor genjutsu."

The two entered the living room, a wide room with multiple big pieces of furniture surrounding a single coffee table. On the couch was a baby, hardly as big as the forearms of either of the two chunin entering the room. The tiny, tired creature babbled incoherently, locking its wide, ringed red eyes onto the two men entering the room, not at all concerned as to where the previous occupant had gone and why he had made such a loud noise upon leaving. The child's father slid onto the couch next to her and scooped her up into his arms, as his squadmate took up position on a chair a few feet away.

"I do not detect the resemblance, Suboro-san." Noboru finally teased, with a light grin, as he looked from the infant in his squadmate's arms, to the buzz-cut chunin himself.

Suboro brushed some of the baby's black hair out of her face and gave Noboru an exasperated look, "I'm kind of hoping that's significant. Like, she's got more of her mom, than me." He cradled the infant, "but I'm pretty sure she is. Eh - mine, that is." He sputtered.

Noboru activated his Byakugan, nodding lightly. "I would have to agree. She has your blood type, and if you ever grew it out, her hair would be the same color as yours."

Suboro blinked, "wait, how can you tell what color my hair is?" He rubbed the buzz cut.

"There is just the slighest amount residing in the skin, Suboro-san. I can tell what color it is." Noboru let the Byakugan fall. "She is beautiful, as you said." He nodded, with a light smile. "She must have gotten it from her mother."

"You know... I wouldn't doubt it. She wasn't hurting in the looks department... But we wouldn't have worked out." Suboro explained, "she was... Clingy? I guess that works. She did not like it whenever I left, for training for for missions. And if I was ever in the village, and not with her, she got worried and thought I was with someone else." He said lowly, as the baby's eyes began to droop, its hands, once lively trying to grasp at Suboro's baggy shirt, now starting to fall to her sides.

Noboru hummed, "and you thought the way to solve that would be to lay with her?" He asked, an eyebrow arced.

"Like I said, it happened the night I got promoted. I'd had a little to drink, you remember."

"I actually do not. I asked Hibiki about the night when I awoke, but he simply told me he found Doug and got the tiger back before anyone noticed it was missing."

"It sounds like your night was crazier than mind, and I conceived." Said Suboro, with a grin. "A tiger?"

"Hibiki refused to explain, and a part of me was too scared to even ask." Noboru admitted.

Suboro gave a noncommittal jerk of the head, "regardless. At the time I'd been under the impression that she thought those things because, I dunno - I was a clan-affiliated shinobi, she was a civilian, probably thought she was dating over her station and I'd figure out I could do better."

"And you thought sleeping with her would calm her down."

"And I thought sleeping with her would calm her down." Suboro's voice had a slightly defeated tone to it, as his head sank. "I was very drunk."

"I assume it didn't work out."

"Not in the slightest." Suboro responded, "one thing led to another, and about a month later I finally just cut things off. She hadn't even been developing, yet, I had no idea the condom had broke."

Noboru grinned, "perhaps she sabotaged it." He suggested.

"Shut up, I _really_ don't want to think about that." Suboro said, his voice shaking. A moment passed by before his child now sound asleep, was gently lowered into its basket. Suboro sighed, "man... I do not -" But before he could finish his sentence, someone knocked on the door.

Suboro's head snapped back up, and Noboru's eyes bulged as he activated his byakugan. "Male, hitai-ate, five feet six inches, wiry build... Red ringed eyes."

Suboro blinked, "uh..." He turned back to the sleeping Kurenai, then towards the direction of the door. "Well this will be interesting..." He muttered, before hauling himself to his feet.

"He doesn't appear old enough to be the grandfather. Given the resemblence, I would say he is the baby's uncle, from her mother's side." Quietly said Noboru, as he followed Suboro through his house and to the front door.

Suboro opened it, revealing a dark-haired shinobi with eyes almost exactly like the baby's. He had a wiry build, less favorable towards ninjutsu or taijutsu than it was to genutsu. The look in his eyes was what got Suboro's defenses raised - an iron look, of anger and determination, but also one of sympathy, and perhaps resignation.

Suboro cleared his throat, "I think I remember you -"

"Kurei." The man grunted. "Kurei Yuhi. Mako was my sister."

"Right..." Suboro frowned, "I'm sorry, I really am. I had no idea, and -"

"I know your reputation. I believe you. That is not why I am here." Kurei grunted, "can I come in? I would rather not draw a crowd."

"Sure -" Suboro stepped back, "this is -"

"Kage Killer Noboru Hyuga. I am aware." He nodded once to the Hyuga.

"I was unaware I'd a reputation." Noboru said, a light frown on his face.

"You fought and killed the Tsuchikage. That news does not stay on the ground." Kurei said, "where is she?" He asked, after entering the home.

"My living room..." Suboro drawled, giving Noboru a quick pat on the back and a brief exchange of glances, before he guided Kurei inside. "She just fell asleep." He added, after getting a nod from Noboru. He didn't like the way Kurei was talking, the tensity in his muscles, the perpetual frown on his face. It was becoming increasingly likely that he may try fighting, and if that were the case, Suboro wanted Noboru ready. Hibiki had a phrase, come hell or high water, he wouldn't let Kurei do whatever it was he wanted, to Kurenai.

The trio returned to the living room, and Kurei walked to the basket at the edge of the couch, in which Kurenai slept soundly. "She is sleeping quiet." He noted, "and has her mother's pallor." He found an empty spot on the chair next to her and sat down. "What do you intend to do with her?" He asked, as his intense red eyes followed Noboru and Suboro as they sat, Suboro inches from the basket, Noboru directly across from Kurei, his pale white eyes locked directly onto his.

Suboro frowned, "whatever's best." He said, "why did you say you had come here, again?"

"I didn't."

"Then enlighten us, please." Suboro pressed.

Kurei looked from the Kurama, to the Hyuga, and then to the baby, before going back to Suboro. "As I said earlier, I am aware of you two and your third squadmate by reputation. I am also aware of Kusa-nin and Yuga-nin pressing at the borders. It will not be long at all before our scouts are sent out to locate potential footholds from which to operate in enemy territory, and not long after that that shinobi are sent to establish these footholds. Combat specialists will likely be the first to be sent, and there are no better combat specialists than from our new Hokage's personal Genin team. This means, of every shinobi in the village, you, you, and Hibiki Senju will likely see the most combat, leaving her -" He pointed at the sleeping babe, " without caretakers for far longer periods than a border deployment. Depending on the skill and power of the villages we fight, it could be anywhere from nine months to a year before you return."

Noboru, however, shook his head. "I see where you are going, Yuhi-san, and you fail to consider the value of A and S-ranked shinobi such as us." He said, "in past wars, deployments of shinobi such as sannin in the second war, or Hiruzen Sarutobi and Danzo Shimura in the first, were limited to major battles or great pushes, such as the first war's push to Kiri, or the second's battle with Hanzo. This is to facilitate the continued health and wellbeing of the major fighters, and is why genin and chunin are known more for the day-to-day battles, whereas Jonin are saved for home defense, genin instruction, or, as said, major battles."

"And you two are chunin, your point is moot."

"Not for long." Suboro commented, before he sent a brief glance to his child, having worried he'd spoken too loud for her tastes. "Even before Dante-sensei took up the hat, Jonin trials were scheduled soon. Our entire squad and several other shinobi we know were slated to take these trials." He had to repress a grin at the vivid memory of his realization that Hibiki would be gone for the trials. Given he and Noboru passed, they would outrank the _Thunder God._ "Why do you bring this up?" He asked.

Noboru answered before Kurei could, "he intends to inquire if you are going to give the child up, temporarily or otherwise." He said, looking deeply into Kurei's red ringed eyes. "And ask if he could take his sister's daughter."

"Correct on all accounts, Hyuga-san, save one. Temporarily."

Suboro leaned back, eyes widening as he caught onto his guest's thought process. _"No -"_

"Look at this logically, Kurama-san." Kurei cut him off, "even if you have the Jonin-length deployments, you will still be leaving her for months at a time, and I more than most am aware of your clan's reputation. As a genjutsu specialist, I all but have to be." He said. "I will not force you into any decision, as you are her father and therefor have the first and last say. But I would think what is best for her is to have a far more stable father-figure in her beginning years. One who does not leave, at least until she is old enough to have some semblance of independence in the short term." He explained, "I soon will be taking on a Genin team, meaning -"

"Wait, you're a Jonin?" Suboro interjected.

"Yes."

"How old are you?"

"Twenty eight."

"You look my age..." Suboro leaned back, aghast. "And wait, if you're a Jonin, then you should've known about Jonin deployment times, so what was the point of -"

"Can I continue?" Kurei grunted.

"Hey!" Noboru growled, "this is Suboro-san's home, and he is hosting you. As such both he and I expect you to treat him with the respect he deserves. So if you interrupt him again, we will ensure a very rapid and painful departure." He warned.

Kurei glared at the Hyuga, before he shook his head. "I soon will be taking on a Genin team. As such, for at least the first six months I will operate solely in Konoha. Considering the talent I have been given, it will likely be a year after that before we can take missions out of the village. Then finally another six to eight months before we are deployed to battles. That nets two years before I can expect my first extended absence from Kurenai-chan." He said, "time _just_ enough to ensure she is capable of sustaining herself with assistance, be it civilian, contracted genin, or friends of the family."

"You haven't once mentioned me in this."

"Because if you give her to me, I would expect you to give her to me. Period." Said Kurei, "a child needs a stable home life. Being raised by an uncle with a father who only appears infrequently and during a war in which he is expected to die any day is not even approaching such a thing." He explained, "were she under the impression I was her father, and I raised her as such, stability would be achieved."

"You want to take her from me and refuse me a role in her life." Suboro summarized, a frown deepening on his face.

"Think of it, Kurama-san." Said Kurei, "you yourself were running around the village just today attempting to gain information in regards to temporary fosterhood. And then consider your clan, which, given your pursuits at the hospital, I feel you have. If you die, your Kurama child will be raised then by the clan and likely used as a broodmare should she manifest a bloodline. However, if I took her in, and I died, my Yuhi child would be ignored by the clan as inconsequential. If I am alive, by the time she becomes old enough to manifest the bloodline, I would be able to control it. If I am dead, by the time she manifests it, she will either be academy age or, Kami-willing, a genin, and in both circumstances she would be able to make her own choice as to whether or not she wishes to be taken in by the clan." He leaned back and folded his hands on his lap. "To complete the ruse, you could not be a part of raising her. Else, your clan would begin to suspect, and everything would fall apart. As I said -" He raised his hands in a conciliatory fashion, "I shall not force you into any decision. She is your child and no matter how much I may wish to take care of my sister's blood, you hold her life in your hands. So I ask you to think on this. I am schedule to take in my Genin team in a week... I will accept your answer then."


	70. Hot Water: The Hunt -I-

_A/N:_

_Sorry for the delay. I had a subplot I wanted to introduce and totally blanked on while drafting this chapter, so I had to sprinkle it in; and I've got a major arc coming up that's taking a lot of planning out, to the point of proving so complex and Goku Black-like confusing that I've considered nixing it more than once, or just going full Iwagakure and having Hibiki just blow it up when the time comes, as opposed to actually taking the bait and setting off the arc.  
_

* * *

Chapter 69

* * *

Waking up in a bed that was well and truly her own was a novelty that had not yet worn off on Dai Aburame. Waking up alone, on the other hand, was an experience she had a lifetime to get used to, and had been thoroughly ruined by one night. It had been two months since Hibiki had left the village, and while her friends, and new neighbor in the form of the red-headed ball of energy Kusina, had helped keep her company and keep her focused on anything but Hibiki's absence, being alone was not something she ever wanted to be used to, again.

However, waking her this morning was something she had actually gotten used to, with her time spent living in the Inuzuka compound: Loud noises. However, where one would expect this to mean she would be awoken by yelling, temperamental voices, or the sounds of dogs howling, instead what she was woken by was the sound of an explosion, muffled by a thick wall, and a curse loud enough to bleed through the walls and be heard clearly by the Aburame.

She blinked heavily, and rose to a seated position, hand rubbing her tired head as she heard muffled cursing from the other side of the wall. A quick mental command sent a small swarm of beetles flying out of the room and towards Kushina's apartment, as she slid out of bed and threw on a shirt. Her stomach growled a bit loudly for her tastes, and made its dissatisfaction with the lack of food inside of it clear by sending more than a few queasy signals to her brain. The Aburame kunoichi pushed through the feeling and went to the kitchen, grabbing whatever looked appetizing. As she made herself a quick morning meal, her beetles began communicating with her queens began communicating to her what it was they were seeing: A red-headed sealsmistress, with a blanket in hand, beating at a desk enshrouded in fire.

Dai twerked an eyebrow, eating mechanically as she watched Kushina beating at the flames to try and undo the mistake in her fuinjutsu experiments. Clearly, the woman's method and Hibiki's method differed, though Dai noted that Hibiki's mistakes tended to just explode, instead of catching fire. He also tended to stare at it a moment before he laughed, and then went back to work. Kushina, meanwhile, freaked out and desperately tried to undo whatever the damage had been done, and now, was trying to put out the flames - and seemed to be unaware of the fact that the blanket she was using had also caught flame. Dai wondered if this was because of Kushina's fire-natured chakra.

By the time the Aburame kunoichi had finished eating and her stomach settled down, Kushina had given up and just blasted the fire with a water technique. Many fuinjutsu seals inked onto the floor absorbed the water, a utility Dai hadn't even been aware of. She shrugged and bade the beetles return as she put on more proper attire. Reports had come in of Kumo shinobi blasting away at Konoha outposts on the border between Fire and Hot Water. Since more than a few Jonin scout squads had been sent out to try and establish a foothold in the River country, such that they could attempt to defeat Tanigakure and establish a line to Suna, Dai's squad was likely to be tapped for the scouting missions in the land of Hot Water.

Dante's plan seemed to revolve around securing the Land of Fire's borders first and foremost, then getting a solid line of communications and infrastructure running between Konoha, Suna, and Kiri, and then focusing a great deal on holding down Kumogakure. This would keep the final remaining Great Village from interfering too much with Konoha's efforts at combating the minor villages, but such an effort would be impossible with Yuga in between them and Kumo. So, clearly, the idea was to scout out Yugakure and defeat it as fast as possible, most likely by sending in Hibiki and his squad, once Dai's squad's efforts bore fruit.

Until then, she knew that he and many shinobi's actions were largely just biding time until they had an actual plan of action. Hibiki had sent a letter via courier-shinobi, by and large telling her that his orders, and likely those of the other border posts, were simply to hold the line until it was time to make a push. Her Senju specifically mentioned how he'd been doing so by bringing in some 'presents from home' in his attempts to hold the line, though hadn't elaborated beyond saying that the Cloud and Hot Water shinobi hadn't tried testing this method often, since their first major push had resulted in 'a metric shitton' of losses. His defensive efforts had also been the major reason more than four platoons of chunin and a handful of jonin squads had summarily been redeployed from the Hot Water border, and sent elsewhere. Whatever he was doing was working, and well, at that.

The Aburame expected nothing else, of course. As she slipped on her shinobi attire and hung her hitai-ate from her neck, she thought to herself of how Hibiki hadn't just a few decades of war history to draw from, but centuries of it, and war the likes of which most these days would be completely unprepared for. A part of her, as she strapped on her weapons and supply pouches, wondered what it could have been he'd brought - and an even smaller part hoped it would have been the vehicles he had shown her. Plaguing the motion pictures the two loved were the loud metallic chariots of thunder and smoke, she remembered being aghast the first time he had shown her footage of a functioning war-vehicle, the one he called a tank, and the sheer punishment it could take and return. She hoped he had somehow acquired and brought a tank.

_Or maybe..._ Thought Dai, as the beetles she had resting on the front door warned her of new arrivals. _He brought some new weapon with him._ Akane and Aoi had seen fit to meet here here, it seemed. She patted herself down and made for the door. _He said he was working on those fuinjutsu projectiles, perhaps he got them to work?_ She opened the door, revealing her two squadmates.

"Are we ready?" She asked, in her usual, neutral voice.

The two nodded, "we've already our summons. Hokage-sama wishes to speak with us directly." Said Aoi, as Kyo nuzzled Dai's stomach, and the Aburame gave him the pets he was clearly after.

* * *

"Good, there have been developments." Said the fifth Hokage, as Team Eiji entered his mint-smelling office. The raven-haired Uchiha still looked unnaturally clean, especially under his brightly colored clothes, but if he was uncomfortable with it, he showed no signs.

Dai and her squad bowed briefly in respect, before straightening up in front of his desk. "Developments, Hokage-sama?"

She noticed a twerk of the Uchiha's eyebrow at the honorific, but he said nothing about it. "On the border between Hot Water and Fire. None of Katsuo's group have been seen yet, but a contingent of Kumo shinobi, one identified as Ay, have been pressing at separate sectors of the border with massive amounts of Yuga reinforcements. Hibiki's reports have stated that the Yuga shinobi are, in his words, literally impossible to kill."

Akane tilted her head, "like the Kaguya?" She asked.

"Similar, but not quite the same. The Kaguya's healing abilities rely on the manifestation of a bloodline, and a supply of chakra." Dante explained, "these Yuga shinobi, however, Hibiki reports no drop in chakra when they heal, and people clearly from different families posses the same abilities. He suspects some sort of shared body-modification ninjutsu, taught to their shinobi. Considering what little we know of Yuga, that's the best theory we can get." He leaned back in his chair, "what we do know, however, is that before Katsuo went to their village, they were actively abolishing their shinobi force and were working to transition from a hidden village, to an open, peaceful one. Katsuo's arrival changed this, and then reports came in that the average shinobi contracts accepted were A rank and above."

"Quality, not quantity." Dai surmised, with a nod from beneath her hood. "Your orders, sir?"

"Hibiki is holding the line, but nothing he does can kill the Yugakure shinobi, and Ay and the Kumo-nin retreat before any major damage against them can be done. His latest report said that at least one portion of his defensive line has been fighting for sixty hours straight, he had to send the Daimyo's samurai elsewhere after he lost half of them in an hour. He's said he's tried everything just short of intentionally repeating Iwagakure, and nothing works. He's blown them apart, burned them, poisoned them, electrocuted them, they just get up again and charge. He won't be able to hold this line indefinitely, especially once they wise up and search for the Alpha and engage him, instead of fighting his shadow clones.

"So my orders for you are find Yugakure and discover the source of this immortality technique. Link up with Hibiki at the command post, he'll point you in the direction the Yuga-nin have been coming from, to assist you in narrowing your search. Given the nature of the mission, and of the enemies we are expecting you to run across, make all attempts to avoid combat if possible. If not, fight defensively and retreat to the border, I don't want to be throwing bodies at this situation until we have a method of killing the Yuga-nin. Am I understood?"

The team nodded, "yes, Hokage-sama." They said in unison.

"You leave in two hours."

* * *

It took them a week to make it to the border, and it wasn't difficult to find Hibiki's command post. It was the very same border post marked on all of Konoha's maps, but what made it so readily apparent wasn't the main road leading from Fire country to Hot Water, but the multiple-kilometer long trench stretching out from both sides. The scout trio found themselves staring at it in equal parts awe and confusion, as they approached the border post. The trench stretched so long that it went to the horizon and beyond it, and practically crawling over every inch were multiple Hibiki clones, carrying various instances of his thunder technique. There were massive coils of razor wire and bunker-like constructs made of bone, from which enormous multi-barrel thunder techniques stuck out, pointing out to Hot Water country, constantly scanning the horizon.

The trio entered the Quonset hut style building that served as the main border post between Fire and Hot Water country. Inside the deceptively large building were dozens of injured samurai, being treated by Hibiki clones wearing white coats instead of his black one, and were without their haitai-ate. Many of them had major wounds covering large portions of their body, some were missing limbs, others eyes or even portions of their face, as if they had been struck by weapons whose intention was to wound first, and kill second. Beyond the injured samurai was, in the center of the, a large table, at which a Hibiki, a heavily armored Samurai with a bandaged arm, and a person-sized eagle with scars on its face, goggles on its head, and some sort of metallic pack affixed to its flak jacket, pointed at a map and spoke heatedly.

Beyond the table was the rear entrance and exit to the building, which looked to spill right out into the trenches. A smaller table, piled high with storage scrolls, was to the side of the door, and two Hibiki clones were seated at it, dealing with a small line of samurai. Neither of the three could hear over the general din of the building, but they each had a method of understanding what was being spoken about. Akane briefly flashed her Byakugan and read their lips, able to discern that they were questioning the samurai and trying to ascertain what sort of weapon, likely a specific instance of his thunder technique, they would be best suited for. Aoi and Kyo both smelled the black powder from his thunder techniques. Dai had a few beetles lazily float over, and was able to recognize the scrolls for what they were: storage seals. All together, they were able to piece together that the clones must be giving the samurai access to the thunder techniques, before sending them off to some point deeper in the trenches, where they would be given hasty instruction in their operation. A word oft-repeated by the clone dolling out the weapons was 'red' and 'dead'.

One of the Hibiki clones treating the wounded noticed the new arrivals approaching the center, he nodded to the trio once and turned to the center of the command post. He whistled loudly and then called out, _"Konoha!"_, before turning back to treating his patient, who had hunks of skin hanging off of a particularly mangled arm.

It wasn't often, Dai realized, as she approached the center table, that she got to see Hibiki take up his mother's craft. It wasn't a look she was particularly against seeing, but she knew she wouldn't be getting used to it - he was a fighter first, and a healer second. The commander Hibiki, whether or not he was the Alpha, popped his head up briefly at the call out. He straightened up and let his hands rest in the pockets of his overcoat, as the trio arrived.

"Hibiki-san." Akane greeted.

Hibiki nodded, "not the Alpha. He's elsewhere." Dai picked up on the term the clone used, but kept her face still. "This is Ren, commander of the local samurai." He pointed to the heavily armored samurai in question, who cradled one arm in a freshly changed sling, and gave a salute with the other. "This is Geoff, a scouting eagle." He nodded to the Eagle, itself a foot taller than Hibiki. The eagle gave his own salute and nodded his head emphatically. "You two, these are information retrieval specialists from Konoha. Dai Aburame, Aoi Inuzuka and her ninken Kyo, and Akane Hyuga." He nodded to each one in question.

"An honor." Said Ren.

"Nice to see you three again! You've grown!" Said the nasally eagle, with his own version of a smile. He gave each of the three of them a look, tilting his head when he looked at Dai, before snapping his gaze back to Hibiki, a conspiratorial glint in his animal eyes.

"Geoff, you have as well." Considering the way Hibiki fought, he didn't summon the eagles nearly as often as he once had, but Dai knew he still trained extensively with them and called them forth on his minor missions. That one was here, now, made her wonder if there wouldn't be others out wherever fighting was.

"I am honored to be in the presence of the Daimyo's commander." Warmly intoned Akane, with a polite bow of her head to the Samurai.

Aoi simply shrugged, "Hibiki, what's with the trench outside?"

"Trench warfare." Said Hibiki, "three men can hold off thirty if they've got a fortified position and a wide field of view. So a few thousand men along hundreds of kilometers can hold off armies." He leaned forward and pointed at one section of the map, circled multiple times in red ink. "But here's where we're having problems. The Yuga shinobi have been pressing here for over a week, now. By this point it's downgraded from keeping them at range to having to physically engage each and every one, with support from the trench being the deciding factor. But the problem is they're using their regeneration abilities to take hits the clones can't, and then gang up on them. Nothing the clones can do can kill them, which means it's become a battle of attrition." His head twitched, likely from a burst of memory. "The clones run out of chakra before the Yuga-nin. Eight gates and chakra storage seals just buys time, it doesn't gather victory. The best I've been able to do is get them to retreat, but -" He dragged his finger down the line, towards the spot on the map where the command post was. "They're getting pissy. They're probing the rest of the line, trying to find the Alpha. Someone tipped them off that he may be hiding amongst the masses, as opposed to fortified positions."

"And then there's the western portion, over here." Ren picked up, tapping a blue portion of the line. "Far less Yuga shinobi, but they make up for it with Ay of Kumogakure, and his men."

"What about Katsuo's people? Have any of them been here?"

Hibiki shook his head, "no. I haven't seen any of them since Iwa. All it is is Ay and his shinobi, and it took one frontal assault on my trenches for him to figure out gunning right to my guns, when he's the only one with lightning armor, is a bad idea. So instead they use the Yuga-nin to try and break the line or attract my clones to come out.

"Again, I've got shadow clones there, but they're getting wise to my act, and above all else they refuse to be separated from eachother. One clone, two, ten, it doesn't matter how hard I try to separate the two and get them to one on one fights, they know their advantage is in numbers. The Yuga-nin push the clones to Ay and his men, and all of them converge, and if I counter the problem with raw numbers, they retreat every time, using the Yuga-nin to cover them." Hibiki explained. "Fortunately, we do have some good news. Geoff." He nodded to the map, "show 'em what you've got."

Geoff cawed to clear out his throat, "myself and several other scout eagles have noticed that the Yuga-nin all carry within them a corrupted form of senjutsu chakra, which flows from a fixed point. We traced this flow back and found that every time the shinobi retreat, they retreat here to re-up the ninjutsu that gives them their abilities." Said the nasally eagle, "they do so in a ritualistic fashion. What little we have been able to safely gather, it revolves around a person known as Jashin, likely the man giving them these abilities." He pointed at the map with his beak, a single black 'X' several hundred kilometers past the trench. "They all come from here, and every time, before and after battle, they return here to perform the ritual. We've tried tracking the messengers, but it proves difficult the further into Hot Water we go. The messages change hands, couriers multiply, and they use the local terrain for cover. We can't get low enough to visually track them without risking detection, and their strange chakra only has a signature of a few hundred meters, after which it bleeds out into the surrounding area and we can't track them through chakra sensing.

"What we've at least been able to determine is that they all have a similar direction, northeast from the ritual site." The eagle indicated an area on the map circled with green ink.

"There are at least six minor villages in this area." Ren reported, tapping small symbols on the map. "The Daimyo's capitol falls outside this area and is more to the west, but we are aware of at least one major road leading from there, and into this zone of interest." He dragged his hand along the map. "We believe Yugakure to be within this general area, with a primary suspect being this area here." There was another red ring in the center of the larger one.

The scouting trio nodded and listened intently as the commanders spoke. Aoi spoke up, "what sort of wild life are we to expect?"

"No clue." Hibiki shrugged, "saw some ferocious looking chipmunks start fleeing once we started dropping bombs, and every now and then I get clones to go out and grab some fish for the Samurai, but other than that, we haven't cared to look."

"Look at the terrain, Aoi. We are likely to see small predators and pray." Dai said, pointing at the country on the map. "Hot Water is filled with smaller trees than Fire. The largest we could suspect would be a bear, or perhaps an ape. I suggest we begin by searching for hunting zones, find bodies, track the hunters back to their homes and learn where it is they sell."

Akane spoke up, "which of the villages here are trading villages?"

"We see a lot of merchants claiming to be from these two." Said Ren, pointing to two orbiting the smaller red ring.

"And local farming communities?"

"Unknown." Ren grunted.

Akane hummed, "we should start in the forests surrounding these merchant villages, then." She said, her pale eyes locked onto the map.

"I'm thinking major game here would probably be deer." Aoi said, pointing at a few spots on the map around the indicated villages. "Likely somewhere around here would be a good place to start."

Ren looked from the squad, to Hibiki, before looking back and forth again, and leaning in close to the Senju. "Senju-sama... It appears as if they're having two conversations at once." He breathed lowly.

"They know what they're doing." Hibiki responded, following along with what they were saying, watching the portions of the map they pointed at. "Identify the game, find the hunters, locate the merchant villages, trace the trade routes."

"What does the wildlife -" Ren was interrupted by Aoi.

"Shinobi villages can only breed so much livestock, Commander Ren. Even Konoha has to import much of its processed meat. So, we find the most prolifically hunted animals in the area and trace the hunting patterns back to the hunters themselves, who would know who specifically in the merchant villages to bring the meat to. These merchants will either themselves know how to bring the meat to the village, or will have employees that make the route." She explained, reaching down to absently pet Kyo behind the ears.

"Er - oh." The Commander shrank away, despite Aoi not having even looked at him as she spoke.

"You guys have a plan, then?"

Akane nodded, "considering the terrain and the expected opposition, it will take time to maneuver. We cannot therefor bring with us any reinforcements, or -" She nodded to Geoff, "- allow the eagles to follow us. This terrain is not conducive to aerial creatures, especially not of his size. It is humid and filled with low trees, and there are no major lakes from which to hunt. Not when the ocean is so close." She explained.

Hibiki nodded, "so no news fast, then?"

Akane nodded, "unfortunately not."

"How long can we expect to be waiting for?" Ren asked, "we've Samurai reinforcements coming in about a week, but these are shinobi we're fighting, and we're not Iron Country samurai."

"A month, at the earliest." Dai intoned, neutrally. "Likely longer, considering we will not want to be engaging in combat, be it direct or indirect."

"How long should we wait before sending in recovery teams?" The Senju clone asked.

Dai, Aoi, and Akane exchanged glances, silently judging their squad, before they each nodded. The Aburame turned back to face the Senju, "four weeks. We have methods of sending messages, if you do not receive any form of update in four weeks, it is likely we've been captured or are in trouble."

Hibiki nodded, "that'll be a fun day." He muttered, "how long do you need before you'll leave?"

"We will rest until nightfall. Can you provide us cover?"

Hibiki grinned, "you haven't seen my eagles' new tricks." As he spoke, Geoff pulsed chakra into the metal construct on his back, and the fuinjutsu inked onto its surface glowed bright for a moment, before it began whirring. Plates separated and expanded out like a bubble, and two twin barrels extended outwards from its top, quickly orienting to the eagle's head, and following it wherever he looked. "The better question is how much cover do you want?"

Dai managed to reign in her surprise at the fact that Hibiki had strapped guns to his summons. A part of her considered she shouldn't be, but then again, what had she expected? He couldn't be expected to fight on the ground and in the air at the same time, even to him, that kind of an information overload would be a nightmare. So clearly, if he wanted air power, the answer was to grant it to his summons, who _lived_ in the air.

She turned back to Hibiki, "is there combat right now, on the Yuga front?"

Hibiki nodded, "they made a push early this morning, but it's a probing effort. I'm getting updates that they're moving back, but it won't be long until they make their next major attack, and I'm concerned that it'll be a big one."

"I understand. Would it be possible for you to lead a strike at the ritual site?"

The Senju clone nodded, "give me a few hours, I can get some eagles and some gunners ready. How long do you want me to keep the pressure on?"

"It looks to only be a few hundred kilometers away, so eight hours should be sufficient for us to slip past in the chaos."

"Alright." He nodded to a medic clone as it approached, "he'll show you to some empty beds." He said, before turning back to Geoff. "Geoff, I'll need you to..."

Dai and the trio tuned the clone out as they turned to the approaching one. He nodded once, and guided them towards the rear of the building, where there was a set of stairs leading underground. Inside was another room, about as large as the one above it, lit by bright lightbulbs and lined with dozens of thin mattresses. Save for a few samurai here and there, it was deathly silent and completely void of people.

"The Samurai refuse to not fight." The clone explained, as he patted down a bed and waved at it, "these should be good."

"Why would they refuse?" Aoi asked.

Akane answered for him, "the samurai of the various Daimyo are among the only civilian fighting forces in the world, Aoi. Truly, a force large enough can fight a respectable number of shinobi, and they take pride in this. The Land of Fire is as much their country as it is ours, so it would make sense they would not want to leave its defense solely to Hibiki-san."

"That, and they saw how big my guns were and want to try them for themselves." The clone responded, "I'm putting them through a crash-course in marksmanship and gun safety... Mostly to shut them up, but..." He shrugged, watching as the trio set themselves up on the beds, dropping their equipment and pulling bedding from storage scrolls. "If you need something, just grab a clone. He'll find it for you." The clone turned to walk away, but Dai stopped him.

"I certainly hope that isn't all you intend to leave with, Hibiki." She warned, glaring up at him from over the rim of her glasses.

The Senju clone grinned, but exchanged it for a somewhat innocent look when he turned back to face the Aburame. "Did you find my present?" He asked, eyes briefly dropping down to her hands, and then back to her eyes.

Dai noticed the clone's grin droop just a brief moment, but otherwise, nothing changed. She nodded, "it was wonderful."

"How the _hell_ did you get such a high quality picture, Hibiki-san?" Aoi asked, seated atop a bed, her legs swinging freely. Kyo yipped in agreement, "I've seen the Daimyo's pictures, _they_ don't even look that good."

Hibiki chuckled, "I have my ways... Unfortunately, I think Dai missed the better part of my little present, so I want you two to tease her endlessly over it."

Dai's brow didn't even furrow, "do you want to lose a clone, Hibiki?" She asked dully.

Akane piped in, "I wouldn't test her, Hibiki. You were _all_ she could talk about, after you left. She's missed you greatly."

"Akane." Dai warned, but Hibiki burst out into laughter, attracting the eyes of the few samurai that dotted the room. Dai sighed, "I see subtlety means little to you, Hibiki."

The Senju clone, however, shook his head. "Oh, you'd be surprised, lady." He approached and drooped his hands over her shoulder, "don't take the black coat's actions personally. He's been trying to take one of the Yuga-nin alive the last week, hasn't had much luck."

Despite her seeming annoyance with her Senju, Dai did place one hand over his, as she continued setting up her bed. "If they are as durable as you say, what good would torture do?"

"Well, aside from the fact that I've picked up a few tricks with my Sharingan, I've got another little ace up my sleeve in regards to information retrieval. But I need access to their chakra to do it, and it's a little time intensive at the moment." He gave her hand a squeeze, and straightened up. "We'll see you tonight?"

Dai nodded, but turned to sit on the bed. "Before you go." Hibiki arced an eyebrow. "Send a message to Hibiki for me." She waved her hand in a 'come here' fashion, intending to say whatever it was to his ear.

The Senju clone grinned, "this'll be good." He leaned in, "yes?"

Akane and Aoi watched with hardly concealed grins as Dai spoke softly into Hibiki's ear. A moment later, she gave him a peck on the cheek and pushed him away, the stupidly grinning Senju clone laughed and turned back to the stairs. He waved over his shoulder and called out, "I'll be sure he gets it." As he went back to ground level.

Dai turned to lay down on the bed, but before she could do so, she felt the eyes of her squadmates on her back. She turned her head and stared blankly at them from behind her glasses. Their smiles turned to sneers, causing her neutral expression to droop to a frown.

"You should be lucky the Uchiha's way isn't that by which we operate, Dai-san." Said Akane, as she laid down on her bed, "else you wouldn't be able to tease your boyfriend during open war."

"Thank you, Akane." Dai deadpanned, as she shook her head; she reached up to move her hitai-ate to her eyes. She tied it tight and buried her head into her pillow.

"Also, he will kill Shibi when he gets home. I've got money riding on it with Tsume-sama."

"Shut up, Aoi."

* * *

Several hours passed, and after a meal consisting of roasted fish, and once the sun had drooped below the sky, Dai and her team ascended to ground level. The barracks had filled up with the samurai returning for the night, drinks and food were being exchanged and the general din of the place had risen to a dull roar. Dai and her squad quickly located the Hibiki clone that the medic had referred to as 'the black coat', and he seemed to be aware that they were coming.

"You guys ready?" He asked, staring intently at the map with his red, Sharingan eyes.

"Have there been any updates?"

"Front lines moved." Hibiki dragged his finger down, closer to the command post than had been that morning. "They're probably going to devote more time and energy to taking down the command post, if this is the pattern they're going with." He straightened up, one hand going to rest in the pocket of his coat. "I might've mentioned this earlier, but I've been trying to take one prisoner. I've got something of an idea as to how I can get information fast. This fight here at the ritual site will suffice."

Dai frowned, "how so?"

"Difficult to explain, but the short version, long as I have a few seconds to minutes to spare, I can steal memories." He cast a brief glance to Dai, allowing her to conclude that, at some point, he must have either discovered a new bloodline, or perhaps, as the medic clone had suggested earlier, discovered an information retrieval method with his sharingan. She would have to ask about it when she got the time.

"Will this help us?"

"Maybe." Hibiki's hand came from outside of his jacket, in it was a small plastic card. "Here." He spread his fingers, splitting the card into three. "Take one." All three of them did so.

The blank white surface on both sides of the card was marred by two different fuinjutsu seals. Dai knew Hibiki wrote most of his seals in English, but her skill with the language wasn't much beyond what she had displayed, despite her boasting to Hibiki. She could recognize it, read the text, and assign meaning to the characters and symbols, but could not transcribe and define the words they created once assembled whole. Beyond some random odds and ends, and the one sentence she could well and truly understand and repeat, she didn't know his language. Hopefully this would be a problem she could correct now that she didn't have to tiptoe around it, and see that smile on Hibiki's face again, but this would be a pipe-dream for another day, and not mere minutes from work.

"What is it?" She asked, briefly inspecting both sides, before raising her gaze to the black coat's.

"That week I was home I was working with Minato to get down his Hiraishin seal. Last few months, I've been adapting it for my own use. What I'm trying to make is an emergency contact seal, I call it a Nine-One-One seal. Basically -" He pointed to the seal on the top of the card, "you pump chakra into that." He pulled another trio of cards out of his coat. "It'll resonate into the receiver seal. It'll glow and warm up so I don't miss it. Then, I use the seal on the other side of the card." He flipped it over, "and teleport right to you with Hiraishin." He placed his two forefingers on his head.

Aoi placed the card in her scrolls pouch. "If this were as perfect a method as you imply it to be you wouldn't have been concerned earlier today, about response time if we were in trouble."

"That's because creating new fuinjutsu isn't a fast process to begin with, even when I've got Minato's base to work with, and my specialty is storage seals. Not the space-time stuff. I've only ever really put the time and effort into new methods of storing things." He rolled up his sleeve, revealing the sparse webs of seals lining his arm, stretching up to his bicep like tattoos. "These Nine-One-One seals here are literally two space-time seals on one surface, and they're not perfect yet. They're one-use only, after which, both the caller and receiver cards burn up, which is why I haven't inked them onto my body yet." He let his sleeve fall back and placed his card back in his coat. "_And_ I've got more than one experiment I'm running with fuinjutsu. So I sacrifice quick progress in one thing, for moderate progress in all things. Slows the process down but gets the whole thing unloaded faster, like pushing fifteen boulders to the edge of a cliff and then sending them over, as opposed to pushing one over at a time, and going back for the next one."

Aoi shrugged, satisfied with the answer.

Akane placed her own card where it belonged, "are your forces assembled, Hibiki-san?"

He nodded, "got a few hundred clones and a few squadrons of eagles ready and rearing, just say the word."

"Have they been supplied with chakra? If they've only thunder techniques, they may not last as long as we need."

Before Hibiki could answer, Dai did for him. "He solved that awhile ago, Akane-san. He has a seal on his abdomen that stores chakra. The seal stays full between clones, allowing them to refill their stores without resorting to the eight gates."

"Something from nothing. Couldn't have said it better myself." After a moment's pause, he shook his head, likely deciding against voicing whatever it was he'd thought of. He turned back to the map, "so, explain to me what you guys are going to do..."

* * *

An hour later, Team Eiji was just a few kilometers from the ritual site. Akane had it in view of her Byakugan, and was describing it as a series of pillbox buildings made from earth techniques, with the local forest having been by and large demolished to make the room. The Yuga-nin had no room for subtlety, it seemed, though if they were as immortal as they appeared, they needed no such frivolity. Akane explained how, in the central building, there were massive, room-filling networks of fuinjutsu, which seemed to take in green chakra from the surrounding air and corrupt it, turning to an ugly, inky-black color, whereupon it dropped to the ground like a gas and was absorbed by the seals. There was also enough blood covering the floor to have drained eighty people dry.

A handful of minutes after they had assembled in the trees orbiting the ritual site, the squad got the signal they had been waiting for. Several dozen eagles soared by overhead, cawing loudly as the metal packs on their backs expanded to their devastating forms, and a moment later, a cacophony of thunderclaps filled the air, followed swiftly by hundreds of Hibiki clones charging the ritual site, their guns roaring just as loud as those of the eagles.

"The Yuga-nin are responding..." Akane spoke lowly, her Byakugan bulging. "It is odd... Their skin is as dark as the sky, and leaking that gaseous chakra. It reminds me of the way Hibiki-san's cursed seal functions."

Dai nodded, "it's likely the source of their power, then, but he will deal with it. Our goal is to find Yugakure. Pincer formation."

The three leapt from tree to tree with no less than a three meter spread, suppressing their chakra as much as they could without sacrificing speed. It took them an hour to get far enough that they didn't hear anything but the loudest of explosions, and another hour before they heard nothing at all but the local wildlife. They slowed down at this point to regroup, taking cover at the top of one of Hot Water's small trees, hiding in the leaves.

"Akane, are the villages Commander Ren indicated within your line of sight?" Dai asked.

The Hyuga shook her head, "no. But from the maps we were shown, we will likely reach them by sunrise." She whispered, her voice barely reaching over the night air.

"Aoi?" Dai turned to face the Inuzuka, whose dog was perched on a lower branch.

"We've got what smells like deer, rabbits, and..." She inhaled deeply through her nose, before grimacing. "What I think are sloths, strangely."

"Any hunting sites?"

The two shook their heads, "negative." Said Akane, "our best bet is to continue approaching the merchant villages. Keep stopping every few hundred kilometers to check the surroundings."

Dai nodded, and drew her hood tighter against her head. "Let's keep going." She whispered lowly.

It took three days to reach an area with signs of having been frequently hunted in. After the first day, Dai began to wonder if perhaps she hadn't cooked her fish all the way through, as she could feel it trying and failing to settle down and digest, but she pushed through it. Some of the more mundane utilities of the kikaichu were quick and easy solutions to these kinds of problems, and it wasn't often that she ever vomited. After the third day, they found their area. There were scratches on the trees from retrieved arrows, flattened patches of ground too small to be animal tracks, and the nail in the coffin was the one hunter's nest they had found. They dropped through the late-winter air to the ground, with each of them using their respective bloodlines to speed up the tracking process. Kyo instantly picked up on the most recent kill, which Dai's beetles quickly concluded was less than a week old. The Aburame and the Inuzuka found the blood trail left from the dead animal, and, using its direction, instructed Akane where to focus her Byakugan's search.

An hour later, they were outside the hunter's cabin. They waited until nightfall, so the huntress inside would be sleeping; it didn't take more than a few kikaichu to ensure she wouldn't be waking up while they searched. With practiced hands and still feet, the tracker trio entered the home and swiftly searched cabinets, desks, and drawers, putting back everything they touched, exactly the way they had left it. Little more than a whisper could be heard as they combed the log cabin, even Kyo's padded feet barely made noise as he sniffed around. It was him that finally found something useful, detecting the scent of fresh ink on paper, and sitting straight next to the pantry he had found it in.

Aoi was by his side in an instant and soundlessly opened the pantry. The hunter was hiding her papers at the back of the pantry, behind her bait bottles and traps. She pulsed her chakra faintly, attracting the attention of her squad as she pulled out the letter at the top of the stack. The three each scanned it individually, only needing a few moments before they had what they needed. In Kalel village, it said, was a merchant who had left a hefty order for as much raw meat as the hunter could provide for Yugakure. Vin was the merchant's name, and it was clear through his verbiage that he didn't know why they wanted raw, unsmoked, unsalted, refrigerated meat - all he saw were Ryo signs, and he knew the hunter could get them; likely he had contacted her because she had the greatest skill to price ratio. Considering the number of traps that had soap residue, indicative of recent washing, she must have done well.

The trio left the house exactly as they had entered it, headed north to Kalel village. Unfortunately for them, that night, the fish decided to make their ill-fated return. Dai had food poisoning, and it slammed into her like a truck, causing her to forcibly expel most of what was in her stomach, despite the efforts of her bloodline to waylay the effects. She woke up the next morning still feeling sick, and cursed Hot Water's sea life, but only allowed a half day's delay to recover before she picked herself up and convinced her squad she was well enough to move on. Their tree-assisted travel was as silent as an approaching dawn, and four days after the hunter's cabin, a kilometer out of the village, and with the sun having cleared the sky of its darkness, they decided to briefly rest.

"It's been days." Akane commented, "do you think Hibik-san got what he was looking for?"

Dai shrugged, her heart thudding against her chest, her stomach silently gurgling, and the acrid feeling of stomach acid still lingering in the back of her throat. "I am not sure." Knowing him, she doubted he would have stopped until he did, but the way he acted, it seemed as if the skill he was planning to use was either very new, and therefore unmastered, or one he hadn't had much chance to use. Another option could have been that, with the strange, gaseous chakra they leaked, it could interfere with whatever it was he intended to do, but it was neither here nor there.

As the wind began blowing, Kyo's head snapped up, pointing to the direction the wind came in from, eyes wide and ears stiff. Aoi followed his gaze, and Akane and Dai gave her a look. Her brow furrowed, "I smell the strange powder Hibiki uses for his thunder techniques." She explained, "coming from the northeast."

Dai frowned, "Hibiki is to our south." Her eyes snapped to Akane, who already was searching with her Byakugan.

"The mountains." She said, "over the horizon. The map named it Sotei. At its peak, I can see two shinobi... With Ame headbands."

"Ame? What are they doing here?" Dai asked.

"They are looking through a telescope, it appears as if they are scouting out Kalel and its surroundings. But I see no one else, and it is strange, they've little chakra. Barely more than a civilian's." She frowned, focusing. "Their weapons do not look like what was used during the invasion. They appear more like Hibiki-san's."

"How so?"

"The ones used against us did not have the strange spiralling grooves in their main tubes. Hibiki's does, and so do these." She blinked her pale white eyes, "they are speaking to eachother... 'I see three individuals and an animal.'..."

Dai straightened up, "they know we're _here?!"_ She whispered, her defenses instantly jumping up.

"... 'Are they Konoha or Ame?'... 'I cannot see. They are far away, about three kilometers.'..." Akane's frown deepened, "I can see through their telescope. It shows the world in strange colors, like a false-color painting. We three appear as pale white against a deep black surrounding, but they cannot see us clearly."

"What should we do? Will they blow our cover?" Aoi growled, her muscles tensing.

"'They're resting, likely intent upon scouting the village. If it is Konoha, they are probably searching for Yuga through Kalel. The Jashinists are likely giving them more trouble than they had expected.'..."

Dai closed her eyes, taking a deep breath. "I'll send a few beetles to tag them, but outside of telling Hibiki and Hokage-sama, there is little we can do. Most likely, Hanzo the Salamander discovered Earth Country had these weapons, and made it his priority to steal them and manufacture them on his own, to further protect and maintain his neutrality." She theorized aloud, "if they are here, it is likely less as aggressors, and more as a means of keeping appraised of the war."

Akane nodded, "the one without the thunder technique, who only has a telescope and not the whole thing, just said not to attack us unless we approach them."

Dai let out a light breath of air, "okay. As long as we don't attack them, they won't attack us. We'll note this in our report, and when next I see him, I'll warn Hibiki." She idly wondered what he intended to do about this. Not just Ame's posession of his thunder techniques, but the Earth Daimyo's too. That was two countries with access to tools that could kill most shinobi with ease, the only exception being people like Arjuna Kaguya, who could heal fast, or Hibiki, who had a multitude of techniques capable of enhancing his durability. Hibiki liked to say how they worked on 'everyone but those he needed them to', but Dai digressed. "Drop your Byakugan, Akane, there is no point in burning excess chakra. Take an hour to rest, as my beetles make for the Ame shinobi and Kalel, I'll try to expedite the search." She said, as a small cloud of beetles dispersed from within her sleeves, and she leaned her heavy head against the tree trunk, idly wondering what snide remark her Senju would come up with when she would tell him that, on her first deployment in the third great war, she got bad food poisoning.


	71. Hot Water: Village of the Dead -II-

Chapter 70

* * *

After the sun dropped below the horizon, Team Eiji made for Kalel. Their scouting runs earlier in the day had narrowed down Vin's building to just two candidates, and it had only taken twenty minutes to search the two and find what they were looking for. Here was where they got a bit of background on the goings on in a post-Katsuo Yugakure, and it was, in summation, not pretty. As little as six years ago, Yuga had been actively trying to abolish its shinobi force and change from a hidden village to an open one. Their reasoning was cited as wanting to move past a 'beyond bloody' past tied to some death-cult known as the Jashinists. It hadn't progressed to all out civil war, due to the cult's dwindling numbers during the peacetime era, but Katsuo's arrival had changed that.

Katsuo, upon arriving and attempting to force through his alliance, Yuga's village head outright refused. He wanted to be the village without war, and actively entering one would, obviously, not be conducive to that. Katsuo's response had been to turn to the Jashinists and offer them the village, if they gave him their loyalty and alliance. The merchant's ties to this were then explicitly revealed to be tied to the Jashinists themselves: He shipped them their monthly ritual sacrifices. The Jashinists had approached him after Katsuo's arrival, stating 'wealth beyond imagination' if he provided them with enough bodies to sustain their ritual long enough to take over the village. He hired a posse of A-ranked shinobi to gather the people they wanted, and all he said after that was 'Yuga was theirs'. Then the listed human trafficking skyrocketed as all Yuga shinobi were forcibly converted or executed, and the merchant was one of the few willing to suspend his conscience to sell them whatever they wanted. Food, people, metals, if he could get it, and they could pay for it, he would.

Of course, a civil war had raged, but it had only done so for a period of two weeks. Katsuo and the Undead's power, augmented by the by-and-large invulnerability of the Jashinists, meant that anyone without comparable power, or the sheer artillery Hibiki was able to bring to the table, was unable to resist them for more than a few minutes. Any shinobi who hadn't outright defected and gone missing-nin, were forcibly converted or executed. The war had gone ice cold ever since, and Yuga was now known in the surrounding country as the village of sacrifice.

Dai put down the letters and journal entries in favor of the caravan routes handed to her by Akane. She had seen things in her career, and knew that as this war went on, she could only see worse, but a part of her was well aware that whatever it was she saw in Yuga would stay with her, possibly for the rest of her life. Even just reading this, made her sick to her stomach. Regardless, the caravan routes put the village just on the outlier of where Hibiki, Ren, and Geoff had indicated on their map. The trio retreated from the village and fell back to their rendezvous spot.

"It will take us four days to reach Yuga." Akane whispered, as the three settled down and secured their perimeter.

Dai nodded, "leaving us a week and a half to discover whatever it is we can about the Jashinist Yuga-nin." She leaned back against the trunk of the tree, her face cast in deep shadow as she thought on the timeframe they had to operate in.

Aoi idly pet her ninken, "would it be worth attempting to locate the loyalist Yuga-nin?" She whispered, "they may know more about the Jashinists than we can discover in ten days."

Dai nodded once, "perhaps." She said, resting her hands in the pocket of her hoodie. "But we've limited time in which to work. It would be more prudent to focus primarily on the Jashinists and the source of their power. If it is possible to disrupt or destroy it, that is something we will need desperately." She knew well and good that Hibiki had considered that which he called the 'nuclear option' by the expression the Black Coat had worn whilst staring at his map, just as she knew he desperately did not want to repeat Iwagakure if he could avoid it. Considering how immortal these people were reputed to be, Dai wondered if such an option would even work in the first place.

"And if we cannot find such a thing?"

"Then we question the nature of immortality and find a way. We do not want Konoha to be known as the village that destroys others when convenient." And she didn't want Hibiki to become known as a Village Slayer. She much preferred Thunder God, if only because he hated it and she could tease him. She tried to think like Hibiki, as she considered the Jashinists. How could one kill a person who could not die? The only way she could come up with would be complete obliteration, or absolute immobilization. Stealing their chakra might work, but all roads pointed to this immortality having a source, and that meant there had to be a way to disrupt it.

"Should we send a message, Dai-san? Give us more time?"

It was an option she was considering. They were about halfway through the time they had given themselves to complete the mission, but what she was worried about was, if they sent Kyo to Hibiki, not only would they be reducing the effectiveness of their team, but they would have to wait at least two more weeks before they could move on. All of the extra time spent would be turned to extra time the Jashinist forces could be pressing on Hibiki's defensive lines, and the Black Coat seemed stressed about their general integrity. Four weeks was already pushing it, but extending that to two months? Perhaps longer? With a non-stop string of attacks from enemies who learned with every encounter and could not be killed whatsoever, it would be inevitable that they broke through, and Hibiki would either have to do something he would regret, or they would escape to wreak havoc in Fire Country. And, if she wanted to be perhaps a little selfish, a part of her wanted to be done as soon as was possible, so she could go home and sleep off the cursed fish.

She shook her head, "we cannot waste that time." She explained, "is everyone still rested?" There were two nods and a yip, "then we should move now."

* * *

Kyo smelled the blood first. Then Dai's beetles warned her of iron in the air. When they were within a few kilometers of the village, they stopped, as both of the kunoichi had to calm their respective allies. Akane made the mistake of activating her Byakugan, and in those few seconds in which she searched the distant village, her eyes went from neutral and attentive, to wide and terrified. The three of them had failed to consider exactly what a village run by a death cult would look like after five years of being run by these people, if one could even call them that.

The short version was that there was no one alive in this village, that did not wear a Yuga headband.

The long version was that the smell of blood was palpable, even kilometers away from the village. Kyo had buried his nose in the dirt to get away from it, and Dai's beetles could smell little else but it. The village's streets actually were running red with the blood of the Jashinists' victims, gore was spread on walls and people were left to rot where they died. Vulgar fuinjutsu covered every vaguely straight surface, and the entire village pulsed with a dark, gaseous chakra. There were bodies both big and small, old and young, and from her position Akane, with a voice that shook so much she was almost unintelligible, reported that she could even see bodies too small to even be considered people. There were women of child-bearing age, chained up and with obvious signs of having been force-fed and assaulted in a sexual manner. Many had their stomachs torn open and their intestines and uteri ripped out. The Jashinists, in their mad lust to create death, had chained up women with the sole purpose of impregnating them, just so they could kill the mother and the child the moment the latter could be considered truly alive.

Perhaps the most terrifying part, however, was that this had all been a cursory glance. Just a few seconds of looking at the village with the all-seeing Byakugan. There was so much more that had entered her vision but had been torn away too fast for her to process it. Akane cut her Byakugan off and physically pressed the palms of her hands into her pale white eyes, muscles tense and arms shaking, as if she could push the sights of the dead village from her brain if only she pressed hard enough. Aoi had her hands full trying to soothe Kyo, as even though he had killed and smelled blood before, what was here was of a different kind entirely, so comforting the Hyuga fell to Dai, who pulled her into a tight embrace, calmly stroking her dark brown hair as Akane described the horrors which she had seen.

Worse still, however, was what she ended with. "I think it powers them." She whispered, shakily. "The death, the violence - it... I cannot explain it. The gaseous chakra was thicker above the portions of land covered in blood, and less dense where the land ran any color but red."

Dai nodded, "it's okay." She said, allowing Akane the time she needed to recover herself. True, she was a kunoichi - they _all_ were kunoichi, and as such they had all become intimate with death - but this kind of death, and on this kind of a scale, it wasn't something anyone was prepared for. "How many were there?" She asked, "how many shinobi?"

"Thousands..." Akane breathed, "I couldn't count them all." She swallowed thickly through her throat, trying to fall back on anything she could to calm herself and still her hammering heart.

Dai pressed her hand to Akane's robed back, "you did well, Akane-san." She said, eyebrows furrowed as she tried to come up with a plan. Considering the state they had found the village in, it was becoming increasingly unlikely that the Jashinists were concerned at all with recording their methods. Beyond any obscure religious tomes, which may or may not even be legible, if their temple was as bloody as their village, the Jashinists didn't seem to be the type to care to write down what it is they did, or how they did it. Why waste time writing, when they could kill?

This led to a concerning thought. Were they gaining power from slaughtering Hibiki's shadow clones? Was he hurting himself by fighting them? Was that why they hadn't made any concerted effort to actually break his lines, as opposed to just pushing them? The Aburame shuddered. How long did they have, before the endless supply of blood, bought by Hibiki's clones and his absolute refusal to back down, bought the Jashinists power enough to actually be able to fight him, as Katsuo could? As the Kage, as Ay or Bee could? As Emi Miu had once been able? Perhaps worse, what if they learned exactly how it was they were gaining this power, and instead put their implacable army's strength not to killing Hibiki, but capturing the Alpha, and forcing him, day in and day out, to create an endless amount of clones for them to slaughter? Even Hibiki couldn't fight forever - they just had to keep coming at him, eventually he would run out of chakra, would lose his stamina, and would be unable to continue to fight them.

Dai wouldn't allow that. They _needed_ to find at least something - a hint, a reference, something they could use to counter their abilities. It had to be there, somewhere in that bloody village, and if it was there, they would find it. Information retrieval was their job in life, it was the one skill Eiji-sensei had been able to hammer into them so well that they were better than some Jonin teams. The problem lay in the fact that they knew not where to start, and they couldn't just launch some kind of distraction - every body they made, according to Akane, just made them stronger.

As Akane's breathing stilled and she straightened up, Dai gave her a look. She nodded once, in control of her faculties enough to get her mind back on straight. She cleared her throat, "I apologize, Dai-san... I was overwhelmed."

Dai shook her head, "don't." She said, "none of us could have been prepared for that. It is not something even shinobi see." She gave Aoi a look, and despite her general lack of a facial expression, and the eyes hidden behind her thick sunglasses, Aoi was able to pick up on her silent words.

The Inuzuka chuckled, "yeah. Think of it this way - at least Tsume-sama isn't here. She doesn't discriminate, she'd be trying to eat it all. Though Dai seems to prefer her meat on the raw side, if her most recent venture is any indication." She tried.

Despite the nature of the joke, it did get a small smile out of the shaken Hyuga. "What will we do?" She asked.

"We are in a tight spot." Dai said slowly, as she rested against the trunk of the tree the three were seated under.

Aoi twerked an eyebrow as she ran a hand through Kyo's thick fur. "Tighter than Tsume-sama likes to think she is?"

"Far more." Dai said without hesitation, noticing through the corner of her eyes that Akane was now openly grinning, despite the distant look in her pale white eyes. "I am weighing our -" Kyo's ears snapped up, and his head turned to the south. Her senses, and the beetles she had stationed around them, warned her of a chakra source coming in fast.

Before they could snap up to their defenses, however, Akane threw her hand out. "No, wait." She had her Byakugan active again. "I... It is an ally."

Barely a second later, in a swirl of leaves and a light plume of smoke, arrived a Hyuga in combat robes. His Byakugan receded as he took in the three of them, towering above their sitting forms. It took Dai not but a second to recognize Noboru's typical ramrod-straight posture, but she was still on her feet, fists clenched. Noboru was the Kage Killer, his name was spreading as far as Hibiki's and Suboro's. It was not difficult for someone to take on his form.

"In what building did we first meet?" She asked, as Aoi and Akane hopped to their feet, all three of them adopting defensive postures, in spite of Akane's earlier word.

Noboru blinked, "a teashop with more fuinjutsu than on Hibiki-san's body." He said, with a polite inclination of his head. "Orochimaru-sama and I were just deployed to reinforce Hibiki's front. He kept his uncle and sent me to find you." He explained, his pale white eyes briefly dropping a few inches, before snapping back up to lock back to Dai's own.

Something still felt off to Dai, but Noboru had answered the question correctly. Slowly, she straightened her posture, dropping her defensive stance. "Is the situation that poor?"

"The Yuga-nin press at Hibiki's trenches daily. Had we not arrived he said he was a day away from 'nuking' them." Noboru explained, "as it stands, several of his combat clones and Orochimaru-sama's snakes forced them back, long enough for his clones to reload their weapons. Ay hasn't been seen in days, believed to have moved or returned to Kumo, replaced by more Yuga-nin, now pressing at the entire defensive line."

Dai sighed. She wouldn't look a gift horse in the mouth - having _any_ of Hibiki's squad here was a major boon - but, if she'd had the choice, either Hibiki or Suboro could have been more useful than Noboru. Hibiki could summon the clones required to keep all of the Jashinists at bay, and Suboro could ensnare them in a genjutsu that kept them in a state of near death, at least long enough for her squad to retrieve the information and retreat. But, for what it was worth, the Hyuga chunin knew the lightning cloak, instantly making him about as durable as Hibiki on his best day. He could potentially buy time for Dai and her squad, without risking making them more powerful in so doing.

To this end, she explained to Noboru what it was they had learned these past few weeks. She spoke of Yuga's brief civil war, of the human trafficking and Katsuo's involvement in the regime change. She stated their collective theories about the Jashinists and mentioned how death seemed to hold some source of power for them; she even mentioned the Ame shinobi they had run across. She ended with a description of the village, as they had seen it. Noboru confirmed as such with his own dojutsu, his head visibly recoiling at the sight.

"Dear Kami..." He breathed, covering his slack jaw with the pale white sleeve of his combat robe. "How repulsive..." He let the Byakugan fade away, "I assume you've a place from which to begin your search?"

At this, Dai shook her head. "We've only been here a few minutes." She said, "and we were greeted with a village of the dead."

Aoi piped in, "considering the cult status, however, I would assume their most important information to be kept stored in a religious building of some sort. A temple, or a church."

Noboru decided to spare Akane having to look upon the village again, and with a nod, he activated his Byakugan. "It appears... The village's west edge. I see a building with the same sort of fuinjutsu that covered the village proper, but far older and more onset. There are many of the black-skinned Jashinists within, they appear to be praying."

Akane swallowed through her dry throat, "I would think that to be where we start, then. Can you buy us time?"

"How long would you need?"

"An hour to search the temple."

"Are you going to try to find the loyalist Yuga-nin?" Noboru asked, earnestly.

Dai shook her head, "it would be too little too late, and I very much doubt whatever they have could help us with this." She nodded once, "are you ready to go now?"

* * *

Noboru had experience with getting an entire village's attention. The tracker trio waited ten minutes, after the sounds of his Byakugan-assisted lightning cloak began filling the air, and bodies began flying and combat filled the bloody streets of Yuga. Akane confirmed that, as if they could smell Noboru and his very life, the entire village was converging upon him. All of the Jashinists were charging him, each with a blood-lust in their eyes, all practically salivating at the chance to be able to kill something, and so close to home, too.

Fortunately, Noboru's lightning cloak precluded him from injury, and so long as he could keep it up, they would be unable to kill him. As such, Dai and her squad waited the ten minutes before finally dashing for the cult's temple. Inside was perhaps worse than outside - at least, in the sense that there was twice as much blood and gore caked onto every surface, and that it was all long since dried and browned, clearly far older than the blood outside. It seemed as if the Jashinists, once able to use the entire village as their slaughter house, had just left their temple for only the most important of murders.

Each of the three had to take multiple precautions to deaden their senses to the horrid, rotten smell that pervaded the very walls of the temple. Aoi even took to wrapping a cloth around Kyo's nose. Akane had to restrict her Byakugan to just a few dozen meters to spare her the sight of the village surrounding them, and the rotten bodies in the temple's other rooms. Dai's beetles retreated to the depths of her body and all but sealed themselves away from the outside, only leaving if she specifically called them, and she herself nearly emptied her stomach again, having to fight the urge through sheer will.

It took them a quarter of an hour to find the temple's center, in which was a raised dais, a jashinist older than even Danzo Shimura, and an infant bawling its eyes out. The elderly Jashinist had to his right a book on a raised stand, and he stared at it intently as he flew through handsigns at a blur. The ninjutsu he was preparing was among the most complex the trio had ever seen - dozens of handsigns every few seconds, followed by a powerful blast of chakra focused directly upon the infant. The infant screamed in pain, its wails echoing through the cavernous main room and only growing worse as time passed on.

Each of the three kunoichi exchanged glances with eachother, they knew that the book the elder cultist had was likely what it was they needed. The problem, however, was that he looked as all Jashinists did - his skin as black as night. He was as immortal as the rest of them, and if they took the book, they would inevitably have to fight him. Likely, considering the nature of the text which they were taking, they would end up having to fight all of them. The Jashinists would ignore Noboru entirely and focus solely on them.

They retreated behind the wall leading into the central room and made best to ignore the infant's screaming wails.

_How should we go about this?_ Dai signed with her hands.

_We cannot take it without alerting the old man._ Aoi contributed.

_What of the infant?_ Akane signed, _we cannot leave it._ To contribute to her silent words, there was another pulse of gaseous chakra and the infant's cries picked up again.

Aoi frowned, _taking the infant and the book would put us at much greater risk than just one or the other._ She noted. _But I'm not saying no._ She added, with a firm chop of her hands.

Dai lowered her gaze to the blood-stained ground. Their mission was only to take the book, to get the information that could help them defeat the Jashinists. But this infant changed things, and if the sheer effort and focus the old man was putting into him was any indication, it had to be important to them. They were clearly doing something to it, likely important to their cult. If Dai had to guess, the infant could be the culmination of their years of control of Yuga, but what exactly they were doing to it, and why, she couldn't even try to ascertain. Not without it, and not without the book. So the question became less of what and why, and more of how. How could they take the baby, and the book, and how could they survive doing both?

Dai raised her pale hand, watching as a few beetles idly crawled across her palm and back into her sleeve. A trick she had used once, a long time ago, came to mind. Perhaps with what she knew now, she could make it effective enough to apply to the situation.

She felt a poke on her shoulder, and raised her gaze to her squadmates. Akane signed, _Dai-san, do you have an idea?_

She nodded, _something of one. _ She signed, as a dense cloud of beetles began vacating her coat. The cloud quickly began forming into an exact replica of the kunoichi. _Be ready to move the moment he attacks it. _She pointed at Aoi, _you take the book and give it to Kyo. Above all else, he and it must escape._ She looked to Akane, _you grab the infant._ _We only have one chance, so when we take the book, we must run straight for the trenches, with no delay. Noboru-san knows how long he must buy time and will know when he can_ _flee. _Her squadmates nodded, and upon finishing, the clone gave the trio a quick nod, before dashing into the room.

Instantly there was a change in the atmosphere, as the Jashinist heard the beetle clone stamping across the ground. He whipped around, a look of unfiltered fury on his face, instantly locked onto the kunoichi charging him. With a savage roar, he launched himself at the beetle-clone, sending his fist flying towards its face as Dai and her squad rushed into the room. The clone's head burst into a cloud of beetles, surprising the elderly Jashinist as the beetles swarmed his arm and enveloped it. He threw his arm to the side, briefly making eye contact with the trio as they reached the dais. He called out in rage, trying to sprint to them, but found the headless beetle-clone bear hugging him. The beetles dispersed and covered his entire body as the clone's rapidly thinning form slammed him into the ground. He found himself immobilized and the thousands of beetles absorbing his chakra. He was forced to watch as Akane, with the baby, and the dog, with the book in its mouth, sprinted from the room.

Exiting the temple, Dai and her squad were briefly held up by a Yuga-nin whose black skin absorbed the light of the sun above. It took one look at the gray-haired infant in Akane's arms, and at the book clenched in Kyo's jaw, and his face was enveloped in such fury that, had he a Sharingan, he may have killed them through eyesight alone. Aoi, however, took advantage of that brief moment of stunned fury and launched forward, chakra streaming from her body as she spun through the air, hands outstretched and nails extended like claws.

_"Fang over fang!"_ She cried, as she slammed into the Jashinist and pinned him to the ground. Blood flew from his bare chest as she drilled into him, and the moment she sensed Dai, Akane, and Kyo pass over her, she canceled the technique and followed closely behind them.

They left Yugakure behind them, leaving its bloodsoaked streets and gore-caked buildings for the cleaner trees and forests of the Land of Hot Water. They hopped from tree to tree, pulsing chakra with each leap to catapult them further and further away from Yuga. Unfortunately, Akane's Byakugan warned them to exactly what they had feared: They were being chased. The first shinobi they had found outside of the temple had warned others, and now dozens had left the fight with Noboru to pursue them. In the few seconds she had before she was out of range, she saw that Noboru seemed aware, but was bogged down by keeping the main force of Yuga-nin busy.

Dai, her heart hammering in her chest, tagged each tree with a small hive of beetles. Every time the Jashinists passed by them, the hive would explode and immobilize them, whilst simultaneously marking those left free with female beetles, which constant clouds of male beetles streaming from her sleeves tracked down and attacked.

"Dai, they are gaining on us!" Akane warned, as the wind whistled in their ears and they snapped twigs and branches alike in their mad dash for safety. Unfortunately for them, even with the small size of the Hot Water country, and the speed at which they ran, it would still take them hours to reach Hibiki. This was, of course, time they did not have, and even liberal usage of the body flicker technique would not save them.

As she ran through the list of options they had, her beetles warned her of someone approaching. It didn't take them but a moment to identify the person, she had marked them with a female the moment they had met. Noboru, defying the odds, had used the speed granted to him by the lightning cloak to vanish from Yugakure at top speed, and trail after Dai and her squad. It was just as a Yuga-nin reached them that the Hyuga noble came flying in, palm outstretched. With a pulse of chakra and a heavy impact, he obliterated the Jashinist's torso in a spray of blood and the sound of bones snapping like twigs. His lightning died down and he and Dai's squad skidded to a halt.

The long-haired Hyuga whipped around to Dai, his hand outstretched. "Quick, give me the book!" He called out, breathing heavily. "I'm faster than you. I'll attract their attention and divert them, you retreat to Hibiki and Orochimaru-sama, I'll meet you there!"

Dai squared her jaw and nodded, whipping around to Aoi, who wrenched the book from Kyo's jaw and gave it to Dai. The kunoichi barely had time to look at its cover, seeing the name 'Kenichi' in big, bold letters, before she threw it to Noboru like a frisbee. He caught it deftly and shoved it under his arm, _"run!"_ He yelled.

The trio did just that, vanishing in thick plumes of smoke.

It took the tracker trio two hours to retreat back to Hibiki's trenches, but what they found was not at all what they had expected. Instead of battle, explosions, and thunder techniques, instead of skies filled with eagles and a ground crawling with enormous snakes, they found silence and stillness. There was smoke from fires lining the trenches, and the battlefield in front of them, leading into Hot Water, was devoid of bodies.

The unnerving sight set Dai's senses on edge, "Akane, did -"

"No..." She said, her eyebrows furrowed. "He is still here. The Black Coat is writing a message for a hawk." She said, "I cannot see the ritual site, but there aren't any bodies, or traces of their chakra."

Her chest heaving, Dai nodded. "Let's report in, he will explain it to us."

"And pray Noboru-san will get here soon."

* * *

Entering the command post through the rear entrance, Dai and the tracker trio found the Hibiki clone, standing at the table he had been weeks ago, fervently writing a message for a waiting messenger hawk. The medics were still working on the most recently injured, but there were far fewer, and there was a much greater din coming from the barracks downstairs. They couldn't see Orochimaru anywhere, with Dai soon surmising he must be elsewhere in the trenches. Dai and her squad approached him, the Senju clone's ear twitched as they grew closer.

"You guys are back." He turned to face them, leaning against the table. "Man, have I got some good news for you."

Aoi nodded, "the war is over and you're sending us home."

"You're proposing to Dai-san?" Asked Akane, whose infant instantly attracted the Senju clone's attention, until Dai stole it from him with her quip.

"You confessed to Minato."

Hibiki's red eyes stared at the gray-haired infant for a moment, before he shook his head. "Yup." He turned back to Dai, "you can finally stop being my show-girlfriend. I'm out of the closet now. I hear Kushina's heartbroken, but you may like that. Rebound sex is supposed to be pretty good, and Uzumaki are supposed to last long." He grinned.

"I would stop right there, Hibiki-san." Aoi said, "that would be a losing ba-"

"Is that permission, Hibiki? Because if it is a choice between you and Kushina-san, I may be tempted to choose her." Dai patted her chest, "I was always fond of some of her assets." It felt good to be slipping back into something familiar, and not to be thinking of the gore-covered village.

"Oh shit, batting for both sides, Dai? I might have to set something up with Minato, then."

"Do not let Tsume-sama hear you proposing such things, Hibiki-san." Akane intoned in her light voice, "the last we heard, she would relish the chance."

Hibiki blinked, "wait, _Tsume?_ As in -" He pointed at Aoi, "her clan head? Actually, no -" He shifted his finger to the baby, "you were gone a month. _A month!_ How did you get pregnant and have a baby in that time?"

The conversation having shifted back to work, Dai decided to answer for the Hyuga. "We found him in Yuga." She explained, "Noboru-san took the book, we took him."

Hibiki's head recoiled, "wait, Noboru's here? Since when?" His eyes were wide with confusion.

Dai frowned, "he said he was deployed recently, with Orochimaru-sama. They checked in with you... Did they not?"

"Uh, _no._ Who do you think this hawk's for? I took some cell and tissue samples... And a whole lot of limbs... From the Yuga-nin, I want to know what he wants done with them." Hibiki shoved a thumb over his shoulder, "you're saying Noboru's in Hot Water? Where? What happened?"

Dai frowned, she turned to Aoi and Akane and nodded to them, bading them go down to the barracks to feed the child and get some rest. When they left, she locked eyes with Hibiki, and explained to him the events of the last month. Their search for Kalel and the discoveries there and in Yuga. She explained to him how and when Noboru entered the picture, and everything he had said, with some light teasing about Hibiki's attempts to poison her with a particularly bad fish, considering how she still felt it. Though her jokes fell on deaf ears, if his serious expression was anything to go by.

"He answered my question correctly." She finished with, "and had his bloodline, and his techniques. After we fled Yuga, he used his lightning armor to catch up with us. He took the Jashinists' book, attracted their attention, and fled."

"Dai, I haven't seen him since I was last in Konoha." Hibiki said, a deep frown on his face, his red eyes locked onto the amber orbs shaded by sunglasses. "And Orochimaru is cutting his way through Grass country right now. I figured out how to kill the Yuga shinobi a few days after you three left." He leaned back up against the table, "they were pressing up against my trenches, and one of my clones just got pissed off and annoyed. He grabbed one of the Jashinists, and flew." He pointed a finger at the ceiling, "straight up. He hit FTL - eh, faster than light - once he was out of the atmosphere, and chucked the poor bastard at the sun."

Dai's frown lightened to one of confused awe. "You can do that?"

"Well, the clone went blind, cooked, asphyxiated, and died, but... It seems so. Turns out, my healing factor can't really do anything about hypoxia; it doesn't let me survive in space, though it hardly had enough chakra to turn on its sharingan, let alone use its healing abilities, or turn around and fly back to Earth." Hibiki said, waving his hand. "But that's not the matter. After that I just started flying them out into space, so even if they're immortal, they won't be causing us trouble anymore. It was time consuming, but it worked - and if Noboru had shown up, I would have told him such." He explained. "Now, was there anything off about him? Anything at all?"

Dai shook her head, "no. He acted exactly as the real Noboru-san does, and answered my question correctly. He had Noboru's techniques, even down to his burst-jyuken. I had no reason -"

"To think he was a fake..." Hibiki's gaze dropped to the ground, as his frown deepened. "Fuck." He looked back up, "and the name on the book. You said it was Kenichi? You're sure?"

Dai nodded, "I hadn't had time to read the book itself, but I saw the name on its cover. It said Kenichi."

Hibiki looked back to the ground, eyes twitching back and forth, before he turned around and pulled a larger map from the scrolls piled underneath the stone table. This one was of the elemental nations as a whole, and Hibiki's eyes went from Hot Water, to Rain country. "Fuck." He said again.

"What is it? You do not think it is the graverobber's, do you?"

"It's not impossible. A lot of folks felt slighted by his work in the last war, and I'm certain his lab was looted to hell and back once he died." He nodded to Yuga, "from what you've told me of the Jashinists, I'm willing to bet they wanted, more than anything, his ability to grow human bodies. They'd have an endless supply of blood, if so."

"But Noboru? Why did he turn traitor?"

Hibiki shook his head, "he didn't." And as he spoke, his skin began to bubble and his clothes began to shift and churn like clay. Dai watched, amber eyes wide as, by thought alone and without a single handsign, Hibiki turned from his own form to that of a mirror image of Noboru's. Even his posture and clothes had changed to match the Hyuga's, and his weapon pouches grew out of his pants. "I found this bloodline a few years ago." He explained, in Noboru's voice. "It's much more inclusive than a transformation technique. As long as you sample a person's chakra, you can take on their appearance, steal their memories and bloodlines, even get their weapons - the whole nine yards. It's why I made those identification seals - for this exact reason." His skin began to bubble again, the combat robes darkened, the top lengthened back to Hibiki's overcoat and he lost half of a foot in height as he resumed his own form.

"Problem is, you take on their form, you lose any bloodlines you may have. So I get his byakugan, for instance, but I lose... Everything else. As an aside, I know I've got another bloodline somewhere in me, that lets me absorb chakra. Zetsu used it, and so did Runner, and any chakra attacks I used against them, were converted back to chakra and made their own. I've got a theory that I might be able to use it and this to try and put some truth to the story I've been telling everyone, actually copy bloodlines, but I don't have a clue how to access the chakra absorption one." He waved his hand, "anyways." The Senju heir pointed at the map, "I think Katsuo and his people figured out Yuga had a copy of Kenichi's notes... Or at least some section of them. He wants it, but didn't want to risk Yuga's alliance to get it." Hibiki explained.

Dai leaned back on her feet, head recoiling as everything fell into place. "So he sent one of the Undead with this transformation bloodline and waited."

"I'm willing to bet a couple powerful eyes that if I sent a message to Noboru, he'd send one back reporting he was on the receiving end of an ass-kicking of epic proportions." If he was alive, that is. "The guy with the Polyjuice bloodline most likely fought him, absorbed his chakra, and then came here to convince you three to give him the book... _Christ,_ I hope he's not dead." Hibiki's eyes narrowed, and he hummed.

"What are you thinking?" Dai asked, tenderly placing her hand in between his shoulder blades.

"Years ago, when Konoha was invaded. I remember that Katsuo's people kidnapped Kushina, but that was before she was the jinchuriki. Katsuo himself didn't even focus on her, he focused on Miss Mito." He explained, "and then compound it with just a few months ago, when they tried taking her again, despite not even knowing if she was a jinchuriki." He frowned, "I never thought about it until now, but why her specifically?" He nodded to the map. "I'm starting to wonder if it doesn't have something to do with this book."

"But they got the book long after their attempts to take Kushina-san."

"This book was probably just a side objective. What if they wanted Kushina because she was an Uzumaki? Even without much training, they know fuinjutsu like the back of their hand." Hibiki mused, "take their desire for the book into consideration and I'm starting to wonder... What if they're trying to figure out how to make someone, like Kenichi did?" He looked at Dai sideways, as she continued rubbing between his shoulders.

"Why would they want that?" Dai asked.

"Maybe to replicate the conditions that made me? Get someone with _all_ of my bloodlines, and not missing just one or two. Then maybe find a way to advance the aging, or something... I've got no _god_ damn idea, Dai." Hibiki was pretty sure adding to the family wasn't on Katsuo's priority list, not when his overall goal was to go home.

Dai was silent a moment, "what was that word?"

Hibiki blinked, "hm?" He turned to look at her fully.

"I think you said something in your language."

"Oh." A small smile stretched across his face, "'_god'._ Basically means kami." He said, straightening up and running his hand through his hair. "This all doesn't bode well." He finally said.

"What are you thinking?"

"I'm thinking the biggest problem here is when Kenichi got his hands on the Polyjuice bloodline. If it was an early acquisition, then we're in deep shit, because most of them will have it. If it's a late acquisition, we may be... Less worse off, because only a few of them will have it. What I'm trying to figure out is how on earth I can go about trying to defend against this. I cant' put identity seals on everyone, that would ruin the effect and make it easier for them to copy or work around them. And I can't send shadow clones to every single war front, it would tip them off that not only do I know, but I also have manifested the bloodline myself." He drifted off to silence with a sigh. "At the very least, I've got to deal with Yuga. A village full of immortals... Isn't a pretty thought." He paused, "and then there's that baby. I very much doubt I'll be able to pawn off an immortal demon baby on Tsunade." He said, with a grin.

Dai smirked, "Hibiki, I bring you a child and you reject it? I thought you had more honor than that."

"It ain't my kid, lady." Hibiki retorted, leaning back and yawning. "I don't have to deal with it." He let his arms fall back to his sides, "kind of curious as to whether or not it'll pick up its village's habits, or ours, when it's older."

"I certainly hope it is the latter." Dai whispered. "What are you thinking?" She asked, taking his hand.

Hibiki cleared his throat, "I give it good odds that they won't surrender... So I'm going to have to send a message to Dante-sensei. Get clearance to kill them all, if I have to. Hopefully I'll be able to find more information on the Jashinists once all is said and done. Figure out that kid, maybe even locate the loyalist Yuga-nin, give them their village back and get an ally out of the deal." He mused, "then I move on to Kumo, set up a perimeter, dig more trenches. Kumo won't have any of these Jashinist guys to constantly press my lines, so, kami-willing, we'll be able to keep them by and large out of the fight, at least until we've secured routes to Kiri and Suna. Then... Well, we know the plan then. The wild card is Katsuo, the Undead, and whatever it is he wants from that book."

* * *

They stayed with Hibiki at his command post for another week. When Hibiki received his orders to send his forces through to attack Yugakure, was when the trio of kunoichi received orders to return to Konoha with the baby. It took them ten days to return, the extra time devoted to ensuring it was safe enough for the infant. The Land of Fire's dry air proved to be a reprieve from Hot Water's near-constant humidity, and Hashirama's towering Ironwood trees were a much better sight than the stout trees from the smaller country. And, of course, Konoha's towering walls and clean streets were much more inviting than Yuga's lack of the former, and complete opposite latter.

After a lengthy process with the border guards, they were granted entry into the village. They were greeted by Tsunade, who explained that she was to take the child and examine it, medically. Try to find out what all the Yuga shinobi had done to it and if it would affect its health in any way. In the back of her mind, Dai remembered her conversations with Hibiki about the Polyjuice Bloodline, but realized why he so quickly cast it off as an issue they coudn't readily deal with. She couldn't be running around, paranoid about every person she encountered, wondering if this person was a Katsuo infiltrator, or if it were that little old lady, or perhaps the genin running circles around the village.

After a few seconds hesitation, she eventually reached the same conclusion as Hibiki: There was, in short, just no reliable way of telling, beyond his identification seals. She just had to hope for the best, and subsequently handed over the child before making for the Hokage's office. There, they gave him a report on what all they had seen in Hot Water and its hidden village. As they got to their exploits in Kalel, Dai realized that she had forgotten to tell Hibiki of Ame's shinobi, and made a mental note to do so when he returned.

The Uchiha under the hat seemed concerned about Ame's presence in the area, but didn't elaborate too heavily. After they finished their report, he congratulated them on a job well done and sent them off. Dai narrowly avoided another encounter with Shibi by body-flickering back home. The food poisoning had begun to wear off, and she wanted to do two things: Eat anything that wasn't a protein bar or an antibiotic pill, and to sleep in her own bed. It was a novelty that had not yet worn off.

* * *

Firmly within the titanic walls of Konohagakure, atop a building several hundred meters away from the apartment in which the Aburame woman slept, two figures stood. One was a lanky individual, hardly older than twenty, with raven hair and onyx eyes. Her skin had a healthy tan and a smooth appearance, and her dense, wiry muscles were as steel cables underneath her skin. The other was a sickly man with no hair on his head, sunken eyes and pale, ashen skin. He stood a full foot taller than the wiry woman, and was thinner to the point of being unhealthily skinny.

It was the sickly man who spoke, _"you're absolutely certain?"_ He asked, in a language none in the village spoke.

_"Yes."_ Grunted the wiry woman, from hes crouching position on the edge of the roof. _"I sampled all three of them to find the correct form to take. The former two were nothing special, but her..."_ She nodded in the direction of the apartment building. _"She is different. Important."_ She drawled.

_"Important how?"_ Asked the raspy-voiced pale man.

The onyx-eyed individual's warm, womanly tone provided a dark contrast to the pale one's. _"She is his lover." S_he said simply.

_"And what do you think?"  
_

_"Lord Katsuo has said time and time again that the biggest threat to us, is him. John. Hibiki. The 'Magnum Opus'."_ She sighed through her nose. _"The problem is that Katsuo alone cannot defeat him, just as he alone cannot defeat Katsuo. We would need all of us to have a chance. His strength is his mind, but ours, is that he barely even has access to a percentage of his blood-born power."_ She drawled, eyes narrow. _"Since only five of us are out of the caves, we can draw him into conflict with all of us, and allow lord Katsuo and Dorian the time they need to gather other Jinchuriki unmolested, and for Yui, you, and myself to search for the Ryumyaku that was described to us by the Ichibi."_

_"How do we intend to do that, Facsim? Fighting an entire village is not a wise move. We are powerful, but even Lord Katsuo had to retreat from these grounds."_

_"We do not have to fight the village, Aojiroi. You need only buy me time enough to kill her." _There was a pause_. "Now."_ And she launched herself from the building, just as the pale man's skin took on an ashen gray color, and his raspy voice deepened to a thunderous level.


	72. Veidt Was Right: The Heart, Osborn -I-

Chapter 71

* * *

Its ape-like roar filled the village before anything else did. How it got past the sensors and barrier-nin, Dante Uchiha had no idea, but he had even less of an inclination to find out as his head snapped around. The force of its loud roar shook his windows, and his blazing red Sharingan eyes quickly locked onto the hulking gray monster several kilometers away. It launched itself from the rooftop with the sound of stone crumbling beneath its feet, and with chakra blasting from strange protrusions on its back, it soared straight for the Hokage's office.

Collecting in its reared hand, Dante saw explosive chakra, augmented by the natural energy its blood was drawing in. This caused Dante's face to settle into a deep frown, and he shot up from his desk, hand outstretched. When Aojiroi thrust his hand forward to release the explosive orb, the fifth Hokage was surrounded by an enormous red spectral ribcage, out from which sprouted a hand that smashed through the window to his office and caught the explosive orb as if it were a baseball.

Dante skidded back several feet, nearly to the other side of his office as he formed a second spectral hand and brought it around to encapsulate the explosive orb in its entirety. With nowhere to go, the explosion detonated within his Susanoo's hands, damaging nothing but the construct. He narrowed his bleeding eyes and tracked the rapidly approaching Hulk, before backhanding it away from him with the hand of his construct. The hulk was sent flying back through the village, as his construct vanished.

"Wolf, order the civilians to evacuate to the shelters." He wouldn't have time to recall Ghost, or his squad, and two of the three sannin were on the warfront. "Get Tsunade and have her assist me with him." He saw Aojiroi slam into the ground like a cannonball, crashing through a building and skipping across Konoha's main road on his way down. "Then gather all sensor-nin and Hyuga, Chunin and above. He can't be alone. Find whoever else came with him, and be wary, Dai Aburame and Hibiki Senju mentioned usage of the Rinha bloodline in their reports." Aojiroi smashed his way out of his crater, throwing his hands to his sides and roaring in his bestial way, civilians screaming in fear and sprinting to and fro.

"Yes, Hokage-sama." Came Wolf's voice, before there was a crack, and he vanished from the shadows.

Dante, followed by the rest of the Anbu in his office, launched himself from it and hopped from rooftop to rooftop, hurtling straight for Aojiroi, who had been engaged by a few MP's, far out of their league. The Hokage had been prepared for this outcome - Katsuo knew where the village was, after all. It didn't take much guess work to assume that he may attempt to attack it while Hibiki was gone. The only question now was how many there were, and if they would stay and die, or run once they had had their fill of death and destruction.

Before the Hulk could snap the neck of the hapless Military Policeman who had tried fighting him, Dante and his Anbu arrived on the scene, with the former blasting the undead monster with a weak lightning technique. Aojiroi grunted in pain and threw the MP to the side, whipping its enormous frame around to face the comparatively tiny Hokage and his Anbu entourage. Tantos and kunai were drawn, a Sharingan blazed, and the Hulk let loose its chest-shaking roar, its own muted gold eyes shifting to their red tomoed forms.

Dante predicted its next move and was able to dodge its Swift Release-assisted spinning backhand by bending over backwards. The massive meaty fist swung right over where his head would have been, and Dante had just enough time to swung back up and smash his fist into the back of the spinning Undead's head. With a pulse of lightning on impact, the muscles in the Hulk's neck convulsed painfully, giving the Anbu time enough to launch ninjutsu, bury kunai into his body, and slice it open with their tanto. They left the smaller pointed blades lodged inside his body so the wounds would stay open and it would spend unnecessary chakra to try in vain to heal them, while they sliced him open with their poison-coated tantos.

Dante's Susanoo caught an elbow from the Hulk, and in return elbowed him, burying him deep into the ground before it vanished and Dante clenched his hands in a tiger seal. His chest bulged out as he gathered fire in his lungs. He leapt up into the air, high above the Hulk, and blasted it with a fireball the size of a head on the Hokage monument. The explosion was comparable to the one the Undead had tried to unleash upon him, but it wasn't Dante's main attack. What came next was when the Hokage, both fists streaming lightning chakra, came falling back down to the ground.

The Anbu recognized what technique he was using and quickly dashed several meters away, just as he clapped both fists and slammed his reared one into Aojiroi's chest. Shamelessly stolen from his student, the Lightning Falcon Punch zoomed outwards, drawing in all of the errant electrical energy from the surrounding air for meters around, before zooming back to the point of contact and exploding in a bright flash. Aojiroi's chest was burned black and his ribs were showing, but before Dante could try and attack his partially exposed vitals, an application of Swift chakra allowed the Undead to clench Dante's head in one massive hand and bury him into the side of the crater, with the sound of stone rending and breaking apart.

It raised its enormous fist with an earth-shaking blow, but before it could try to pummel the downed Kage, a person of - if it were possible - equal strength grabbed ahold of it and halted it wholesale.

The Hulking Undead grunted in confusion, struggling against the strength of the unknown combatant, feeling one thin limb wrapped around the crook of his elbow. He heard a light chuckle and then a feminine voice speak out, "please." And a moment later, a blow almost as powerful as Katsuo on an angry day smashed right into the center of his back. The uppercut launched him into the air, whereupon the Anbu intercepted him, burying kunai into his body and blasting him with ninjutsu of all kinds of elements and types.

Dante was hauled out of the crater with a pained groan and the feeling of medical chakra coursing through his veins. Tsunade dusted the Hokage off and kept her green glowing hand pressed between his shoulder blades. "Kami, Uchiha-san. You let _that_ smack you around? What have you been teaching my gaki these last seven years?"

Dante grinned a bloody grin, "I had him on the ropes." He said, spitting out a wad of blood as the Hulk came falling back to the ground, where Wolf's white chakra saber split its skin open a dozen times before retreating. "Pretty much everything he has is put into his strength." He said, as he felt something slither down Tsunade's arm and onto his shoulder.

"I've fought an Envir or two, I know the drill." Tsunade said, as she and the Kage climbed out of the crater, meeting Aojiroi, who hauled himself to his feet with a feral, monstrous grin, its wounds healing and dark purple chakra radiating off of its gray body. "What else does it have?"

"Confirmed Kaguya, Hast, Uchiha, and Gelignite blood. Anything else is unknown." Said Dante, as he took on a defensive stance, and Anbu took up positions beside the Sannin and the Kage, each with a plume of smoke, turning the two fighters into a dozen.

The monster roared loudly, throwing both hands to its sides, before charging the two.

* * *

Had Aojiroi not roared that first time, Dai would not have been prepared for the steel-skinned woman who came crashing through the roof of her new apartment, hand outstretched and the strange diamond markings upon it glowing bright. Facsim missed Dai and her steel body collided with the bed Dai rolled out of, but she did manage to get her second target: Dai's scrolls pouch. From behind her sunglasses, Dai's eyes widened. This woman knew about Hibiki's 911 card, and worse, she threw it through the hole in the building so hard that the air whirled with the force.

The Aburame frowned, and fell into a defensive stance. She didn't have her coat on, and as such the sight of clouds of beetles leaving her arms and flying clockwise around them like a shield was left completely open for the Undead to see. Facsim straightened up, a grin on her dark, metal skin. She was thin, about as thin as Dai, and with baggy clothes like Hibiki, but no coat or weapons pouches. Before the woman could speak however, the wall to the apartment exploded inwards, revealing Dai's Uzumaki neighbor, who thrust her off-hand forward, and out from it exploded multiple thick chains.

The Undead, however, simply let her grin stretch into a sneer, and in the blink of an eye, she vanished, appearing behind Kushina with her fist reared. Dai tried to call out, but Facsim moved too fast and buried it into Kushina's back, sending her flying to Dai. The two collided and crashed through the door and into the hallway in a shower of wood. They skidded across the ground and slammed into the wall.

_"Don't do anything drastic..."_ Whispered Dai, in the precious moments she was so close to Kushina. _"She's with Katsuo."_

Kushina got the message, and Dai saw her red eyes go black to blue as the two scrambled back to their feet. In an instant, however, Facsim was in between both of them, and grasped the backs of their heads and buried them into the floorboards. But then, in a bright flash of yellow, something slammed into Facsim's back and buried her into the ground right alongside the two kunoichi, and in another flash, the Kunoichi suddenly found themselves outside, in the middle of a training grounds.

Kushina was on her feet first, followed swiftly by Dai, who both were beheld by Minato, hopping up and down and shaking his bleeding hand. "Damn it, damn it, damn it!"

"Really Minato? You haven't even gotten it working and you tried using it?!" Kushina shrieked at the sight of the lashes on the Yellow Flash's hand.

"Well it works when Hibiki does it!" Minato retorted, "are you okay?" He checked Kushina for any injuries.

Dai shook her head, "Hibiki has healing abilities, Minato-san. He can afford to use ill-tested techniques." She said, pushing her sunglasses back up the bridge of her nose. "We need to get to Aoi, or Akane, they have -" But before she could finish, the sound of a zipper being pulled graced all of their ears.

It was a literal blink-and-you-miss-it moment. The only one among them who had the reaction time fast enough to even have a hope of moving fast enough was Minato, and he wasn't fast enough to cast a body flicker to push Dai out of the way entirely. Instead, the shikotsumyaku blade that would have gone straight through Dai's back and into her heart, was instead embedded in her shoulder. Minato then bounded forward at his enhanced speed and buried his elbow into the tan woman's face. The woman had clearly not been prepared for someone to be moving at her speed, and as such hadn't yet covered herself in her metal bloodline. Minato used this brief moment to follow his elbow up with a punch to her gut that sent her flying.

He knew where she was going and was able to teleport to the Hiraishin seal closest to it. He braced his feet on the stump of the tree and launched forward, clothes-lining the woman in the neck as she soared straight towards him. This, however, was when she reacted, and with the both of them still moving so fast that Dai had barely even budged a centimeter, she latched onto Minato's arm and swung her legs upwards. She grappled the Yellow Flash and locked her legs around his neck, rearing her hand, out from which a long bone blade burst, before being turned to metal by her steel bloodline.

Minato, however, vanished in a Yellow flash before she could bury her blade in his neck. A second later he reappeared, a three-pronged kunai in hand. He threw his hand upwards and buried the blade in her stomach, but she used his proximity to elbow him across the face. The blade she had prepared dragged across his cheek as she did so, drawing blood in addition to cracking bone, and it was here that she figured out exactly how he was keeping up with her, as his body flicker ran out of time.

Her next blade, sprouted from underneath her wrist, was mere centimeters from his eye before Minato had managed to Hiraishin away. Now traveling at normal speed, the world caught up with the two of them - Dai fell to the side from the force of Minato pushing her, and spun around from the force of Facsim stabbing her. Kushina's head snapped over to Facsim, as she slowed down too, to look at her three opponents, a wide, toothy grin spreading across her face.

She nodded her head upwards, as her bright red Sharingan eyes locked onto Minato's. "What else you got?" She asked.

In response, Minato pulsed another body flicker and teleported right in front of her. With both her Sharingan and her Swift Release, she was more than fast enough to counter him, but she quickly realized that the punch he had thrown with his left hand had been meant for her to catch - because a smaller, but no less bright, yellow flash appeared in his right hand, as it swung around to right in front of her face. In it was a revolver, big and sleek, and pointed right in front of her nose.

_"Boom!"_ Minato pulled the trigger, and teleported away with a bright flash.

The bullet tore through her head and blasted out the other side in a spray of gore. She stumbled backwards and fell to the ground, Minato's head snapped over to Kushina and Dai. "Quick, what were you saying?!"

"I can get Hibiki here but we need to get my squad! Either of them!" Dai called out.

In response, Minato wiped some blood from his cheek and slammed his palm onto the ground. _"Summoning jutsu!"_ And in a bright plume of smoke, a small messenger toad appeared.

"Yo, Minato-san -"

"No time!" He said, pointing at Dai with his free hand, as he stuffed his gun back where it belonged. "There are two people in this village likely imprinted upon by her chakra, find them and ask them how to get Hibiki here, and whatever they give you, bring back!"

The toad, catching onto the gravity of the situation, nodded, with a determined expression. "Right!" And he leapt away.

It was now that Facsim raised to her feet like a marrionette, cackling lightly as she did so. _"That_ was surprising!" She called out, in her deep, womanly tone, as Minato teleported back to Kushina and Dai.

_"I have a bad plan..."_ He whispered.

"I had no idea he had given a gun to someone else." Facsim continued, "so now I'm _really_ curious..." She turned to glare at the trio sideways. "What _else_ do you have?" And she bolted forward.

Before any of the three could blink, she was in front of them and with a grunt, she thrust her arm forward, and a blade half as long as he was tall, was buried into the center of Minato's forehead. Kushina had hardly the time to process the information before Minato vanished in a plume of smoke, replaced with a log. The next the trio heard of him was his voice shouting from the treeline.

_"Summoning Jutsu!"_ And another plume of smoke appeared, this one several times larger than the last, and about twice as big as Minato.

Facsim's head snapped around just in time to see a toad in a dark blue overcoat flying in and slamming its rubbery legs into her back. She was buried into the ground as Minato appeared in another bright yellow flash. Dai now ripped the metal blade from her shoulder and tossed it aside as Kushina shook her head and, with Dai and Minato, hopped away from the toad doing battle with Facsim.

"This was your plan?!" Kushina shrieked.

"Bunta's a badass!" Was all Minato had to respond with, as a long metal blade penetrated Gamabunta's foot.

The toad, in response, ripped a tanto from its sheathe on his wart-covered back and jammed it downwards, "now, kid!" He called out, prompting Minato to swap out with him in a bright flash.

As Minato savagely punched at the woman's face, Dai turned to Kushina. "Could she break those chains?"

"No, nothing can." Kushina responded.

That was all she would get to say, however, as Facsim buried both feet into Minato's chest and sent him flying upwards. Bunta came charging in, however, his blade buried into and tearing apart the ground. He swung it upwards, green chakra trailing behind it as he did so. In a feat of dexterity, Facsim flexed both legs and dodged the blade, but they still split open and began spraying blood, causing her to flinch in pain and vanish with a zipping sound.

"Everyone back to back!" Minato called out, as he and the adult-sized toad rushed towards the two kunoichi. They all pressed their backs together, leaving only the smallest space in the center open. "Bunta-san, do you sense her?"

"Nay!" The deep-voiced toad called out, "she ran away. Woman knows I've got natural energy runnin' through me!"

"Okay, so -"

Dai's eyes widened, "no! She's going for Akane and Aoi!"

_"You're all wrong!"_ And Facsim was in between all four of them of them, a savage grin on her face as she latched her hand onto Kushina's red head, the diamond markings glowing brightly. _"I'm -"_ But before she could finish, her red eyes widened and shot to her hand, which exploded in a violent pulse of red chakra, sending her back, colliding with Dai and sending the both of them skidding across the ground.

Dai used the opportunity afforded to her to cast a body-flicker, and the world slowed down. She elbowed the woman in the gut and latched her hand onto her throat, but just as her best beetles sprayed out of her arm like high-pressure water, the woman sped up to meet her, and buried her steel fist into Dai's jaw. Dai flew backwards just as Minato joined the two with his own body flicker. The Aburame hit the ground as the Namikaze dashed forward, his strange kunai in hand.

Dai's beetles latched onto the still fleshy parts of Facsim's body and began absorbing as much chakra as they could, growing quickly in size as the woman's naturally dense chakra fed them. Before Facsim could do something about it, Minato arrived and drove his kunai into her throat. He managed to get it in just as it turned to steel, getting it stuck fast and hard, blood flowing freely around the open wound. The raven-haired woman gagged around the blade as Dai came dashing in, knowing her time in this speed was drawing shorter and shorter. She managed to send a small population of beetles across the battlefield and towards the woman's wounds, they latched onto the avulsed flaps of skin and held on tight, keeping the wound on her throat open no matter what the woman did.

Of course, then was when the woman exploded.

* * *

The impact of the Hulk's fist on Tsunade's own caused a shockwave to blast outwards and cause anything that wasn't actively nailed down to go flying. Dante had to anchor his feet to the ground with chakra, and Tsunade's feet were actually buried a few inches into the ground by the grey goliath's monstrous strength. The undead roared out loud as he tried to win out against the Senju's equally monstrous strength, but the Senju head met his bellow with one of her own, and her lurid blue chakra began flailing outwards to match his dark purple chakra, and in the few seconds they struggled, the ground began to shake and the air began to shriek and howl.

Dante proved to be the deciding factor in their contest of strength, as he came in with his arms streaking lightning. He shoved both into the gray beast's flank and zapped him for all he was worth. This caused his muscles to contract and his focus to wane - leading to Tsunade winning their contest and her fist flying forward, straight into the hulk's gray face. The sound of bone crackling and breaking underneath skin spread through the air in the brief instant before Aojiori was sent skipping across the ground like a stone.

Tsunade flicked her hand back and forth, "he's different. Stronger than the ones I've fought before." she noted.

"Angrier, too." Dante piped in. "I've got an idea."

"Lay it on me."

"Have you ever tried to heal Hibiki, after he got his healing abilities?"

"No, I was - oh." Tsunade grinned. He wasn't necessarily talking about Hibiki, but using his abilities as a springboard for Tsunade to come to a conclusion. Speeding up cellular division, in a person whose cellular division was already sped up, or in someone who had no wounds to begin with, was a recipe for disaster. Healing wounds that weren't there just led to cancerous, explosive growths, like forcing more air into a balloon that was already inflated to maximum capacity, and Tsunade hardly ever treated her son unless he was low on chakra and his healing factor was focused inwards instead of outwards. "I can work with that." She and the Hokage took up defensive stances back-to-back

The Hulk exploded out from the building he had been buried in, but before he even reached the Hokage and the Sannin, he was blasted by dozens of fireballs from multiple directions. He threw his hand up in front of his face and raged ever forward on, as if he were walking against the stream of a rapid, but this only invited more fireballs and streams of fire, and even Dante and Tsunade joined in, the former spitting his own fire, the latter chucking enormous hunks of debris at the creature.

"Well... Never mind, then." Said Dante, as he took in the new arrivals with a proud smile.

The Uchiha had arrived to do battle. Hundreds of military police were arriving every second and were contributing their clan's signature attack to the onslaught. The maelstrom of fire soon turned into a raging, swirling tornado, in which Aojiroi was center. Unable to continue moving forward, the Hulk roared out loudly, and enormous growths popped out from his arms, back, and chest. From these tube-like growths blasted his chakra, and the powerful gust of wind eliminated the firestorm and put out a great deal of it, spreading the rest across the ground almost like a wave across a pond. Dante, however, responded to this with an attack that couldn't be blown away, and zapped the hulking monster again with a bolt of lightning.

Aojiroi's head recoiled from the impact, but when it snapped back forward, his red Sharingan eyes were graced by Tsunade, her hands streaming muted green medical chakra as she threw her fist forward. But before she could touch him, the world slowed to a halt, her fist just inches from his chest. The Hulk, channeling his swift chakra, elbowed Tsunade and thrust his hand upwards, blasting the buildings upon which the assembled Uchiha stood with explosive chakra. When the world caught up with him, Tsunade was sent flying, blood spraying from her mouth, and several Uchiha were blown apart by the explosive bolts.

Dante dashed in, his red Susanoo blazing, but Aojiroi caught its fist and buried his own into its spectral ribcage. Dante felt the impact through the air it displaced, and he responded in kind by catching the Hulk with his free hand and smashing it into the ground, whipping it around like a ragdoll and smashing it, again and again, before finally burying it into the ground and punching it deeper, for good measure. His eyes were now profusely bleeding, and Dante had to cut the technique short. This afforded Aojiroi the time to pulse his swift chakra again and spring to his feet, but before he could bury his fist into Dante's face, another spectral fist buried itself into him and caused him to skid across the ground.

Dante had, after all, said he wasn't the only one with his unique eyes. Another Uchiha, surrounded by a deep blue ribcage, glared lividly at the Hulk, standing right alongside Dante, as he straightened up. Then a second arrived to stand on Dante's left, he too was surrounded by a spectral ribcage, this one of a yellow tint. More and more, until well over two dozen Uchiha appeared next to him, and those who weren't burning their Mangekyo eyes were blazing their regular Sharingan, and all eyes were locked onto Aojiroi, who simply growled, staring right back.

Before he could even roar, Tsuande appeared behind him and buried her fist into his exposed back. Aojiroi was sent flying forward, where he was caught by one spectral fist, blasted by a fireball, and then roundhoused by a particularly zealous Uchiha, who came flying in with lightning covering his foot. Dante's Susanoo returned with a pained grunt, and he contributed to the fight, he and his extended family mercilessly pummeled the gray goliath deeper and deeper into the ground. Some susanoos mere skeletons, some with musulature and skin, some used only their fists, some used weapons and ninjutsu, but they all were the absolute strongest the fighting Uchiha were capable of, and it was clear they were damaging the Hulk.

So clear, in fact, that Aojiroi himself realized what was going on. His next roar was compounded by a second one, right in tandem with the first, and ust like that, everyone present was sent flying backwards as a bright column of light blasted upwards. Dante skidded across the ground, and had to wipe the blood from his eyes before he looked up and saw, as the smoke cleared, a massive gray chakra construct. It, like its wielder, was bare-chested and muscular, its chest heaving in unneeded breaths, and standing tall within the gray Susanoo was Aojiroi.

_"FINE!"_ He bellowed, before he and his Susanoo bolted forward, against an onslaught of fireballs.

* * *

Before Dai even hit a tree, she felt a fist close around her neck and she was choke-slammed into the ground. She felt blood spilling onto her back from the heavily wounded Undead, who ripped a knife from its free wrist and sent it sailing downwards. Dai felt it pierce her back and couldn't even howl in pain as it was dragged downward and then wrenched to the side in a gruesome 'L' shape.

Just as the woman ripped the blade out of Dai's back, she was enveloped in dozens of deep, dark chakra chains, and then yanked off of Dai. Kushina swung the woman over her head and then slammed her into the ground. Gamabunta then appeared and buried _his_ blade into _her_ back.

_"How do you like that, Missy?!"_

In response, Facsim wrapped her arm around the toad's tanto and channeled lightning chakra through it. Being mostly water, and of a water nature, the toad felt the effects even worse than others would, and by the time she let up, he was visibly smoldering. She kicked him away and ripped the massive tanto out of her back. Minato then came charging in, and she sped up to match him, she caught his next fist and growled, before wrenching her fist back. He overextended and she buried her steel fist into his gut twice before tossing him aside.

She leveled both of her hands and after a brief pulse of pure white light, bright blue lightning blasted out of her extended hands. One bolt went straight for Minato, another curved around like a bend in the stream and went for his toad, while a third and forth did a one-eighty and hurtled towards Dai and Kushina. Kushina, however, still had her chains attached to the woman, and with a savage yank, stole her balance right out from under her. The worst she took was a minor electric shock as Facsim's concentration was wrecked by the impact. But before she could follow it up, she felt the temperature in her chains tank, and with a loud yelp, Facsim shattered the frozen and brittle chakra chains around her waist with just an upward chop of her hands. A sendon made of ice then appeared in her hand and she threw it straight for Kushina. The jinchuriki hadn't even the time to blink before the freezing senbon buried into her shoulder, the ice weapon so cold that the Uzumaki heiress immediately felt a chill wash over her.

Facsim was then engaged again by Minato, and as she blocked and intercepted his ferocious punches, more beetles came flying in from Dai, who had one hand pressed against her bleeding back and another thrust forward, streaming beetles. Her skin was paling from the bloodloss, but she kept up the fight, her beetles continuously growing as they consumed the undead woman's chakra.

Facsim noticed her chakra levels dropping, but didn't freeze, electrocute, or detonate the beetles. Instead, out from her wounds sprayed an acidic agent that ate through the beetles like a fire ate thin paper. The beetles melted into nothingness and Minato barely had the time to wrench his head to the side to dodge a huge dollop of acidic spit from the indomitable Undead. Unfortunately this put him in range of a particularly devestating punch that managed to crack his cheekbone and split skin, he stumbled to the side long enough for Facsim to put a boot to his back and front-kick him away.

Both Gamabunta and Kushina came sprinting in at this point, the former with his tanto retrieved, the latter with her fist clenched. Facsim simply snarled and blocked the tanto with her steely forearm, shattering it into shards as she used her other hand to grab Kushina by the throat. Her Sharingan then snapped up to the sky as she spotted a toad flying in.

_"Minato-san, I've got -"_ Before the toad could finish, Facsim threw Kushina at it. The Uzumaki being bigger than it by several multiples, she slammed into it heavily and the two cards it had pressed to its chest then flew through the air.

The eyes of Dai, Minato, and Facsim locked onto those two cards, lazily flipping through the air. As if in sync, they each pulsed their respective methods of Swift Chakra, but where the Konoha two launched themselves into the air, the Undead took the quicker option and thrust her hand forward. Lightning shot forward and zapped the two cards, burning them to cinders before both bolts curved to the side, electrocuting Dai and Minato and sending them hurtling back towards the ground.

Gamabunta tried to stop Facsim, but even as the sole individual there with natural chakra running through him, he was no match for her swift chakra's speed. Facsim was straddling Dai in an instant and was savagely burying another blade into her back. She managed seven more brutal stabs before there was a bright yellow flash, and Dai was replaced by Minato, who again had his gun in hand. This time, however, the Undead grabbed it by the barrel and the bullet blasted forward, slamming into her steel palm with the sound of metal striking metal. Her fingers wrapped around the barrel, but before she could throw it away, Minato vanished in a bright yellow flash.

He appeared next to Dai, whose back was bleeding profusely and whose skin was deathly pale. Her beetles were now disobeying her every command and were instead focusing on plugging up her wounds to staunch the bloodflow. The Aburame was wheezing, gasping for air, Minato suspected one of her lungs of collapsing.

_Damn it..._ He frowned, as Kushina slowly roused back to consciousness, and Facsim lazily got to her feet from her kneeling position. Minato was all but certain those cards had been what Dai was talking about, and now, without them, they couldn't call Hibiki. To make matters worse, Minato was reaching his halfway mark, Dai was knocking on the shinigami's door, and if this battle kept up, Kushina would probably be forced to call upon her tenant - revealing herself to the woman and to Katsuo. _What do we do?_ He clenched his fist and took up a protective stance above the excessively bleeding Aburame.

As if answering his thoughts, before the indomitable woman could attack again, a new combatant arrived on the field, his own bony blade being shoved through the woman's chest. He raised her up and over in a wide arc, before slamming the tip of his blade into the ground and burying it deep, pinning the woman down. He flipped his head up and got his pale white hair out of his pale green eyes.

"Arjuna!" Minato found a smile crawling across his face.

The Kaguya heir shook his head, "get her to hospital!" He nodded his red-marked head to Dai. "And come right back!" His bony blade was frozen solid and with a jerking twist of her torso, Facsim swung around and raked her clawed fingers across Arjuna's bare chest.

She paused when she saw the bloody gashes on his chest seal up before her eyes. She blinked once and raised her eyes to meet Arjuna's gaze, as Minato dashed over towards Dai and vanished with a bright yellow flash.

The Kaguya heir's scowl turned to a sneer. "Your countenance suggests you've never met the progenitor of your stolen bloodline." He said, as his chest finished sealing itself up. "Now -" But before he could continue, Facsim slammed her fist into his chest and sent him flying back several feet.

Immediately thereafter, she found herself wrapped in the Uzumaki's adamantine sealing chains and pinned to the ground. She was then blasted by a powerful gust of wind chakra, tearing into her skin and sending her blood flying in a wide spray. Before she could try to counter, Arjuna bounded in, a massive drill growing around his reared right arm. Facsim's skin turned to steel just as Arjuna slammed his drill-covered fist into it, sparks flew from the point of impact as the sound of steel grinding against steel filled the air. The indomitable Undead filled her mouth with acid and spat it in Arjuna's face, but Arjuna took it wholesale and as the skin began boiling off of his head, two sharp horns burst forth from where his clan markings were, and he headbutted the woman hard enough to dent the steel of her skin.

Facsim followed up his attack by elbowing him across his face, but before she could hit him, bones began sprouting from his body as a part of the Larch Dance, and had she not had her Sharingan, she would not have been able to tell exactly how sharp they were. Despite the chakra turning her skin to steel, her hand was impaled through the knuckles and blood began seeping out. Arjuna kneed the woman in the gut before hopping back, ripping one of the bones out of his shoulder blades, and slicing the super-sharp weaponized skeleton across Facsim's throat. He followed it up by rearing his bladed bone and rapidly pile-driving it forward and back.

_"Camellia dance!"_ He called out, never more thankful than now for Hibiki's instruction of his clan. His concept of single-molecule-width blades was what was allowing him to so easily penetrate the steel-skinned woman's defenses.

Unfortunately for him, she seemed to be aware of his strength as well, and after he turned her head and chest into swiss cheese, she froze the area around her with her ice bloodline and headbutted his blade whilst sprouting large thick beams from her ribcage, shattering his blade and Kushina's chains at the same time. Undeterred, the Kaguya shoved his palm around in a wide arc, a long blade sprouting from his wrist, which buried right into the woman's cheek. She dropped the steel skin and wrenched her head backwards, whilst kicking forwards. Her foot was impaled on the bones sprouting from his body, but she still managed to send him flying backwards.

Here, Kushina came flying in, blasting the undead with water and wind techniques, but Facsim simply raised her right hand. The diamond markings glowed bright, and all of the chakra she was being hit with was absorbed right back into her body and added to her stores. Before Kushina could react to this, Facsim had her grabbed by the throat and was repeatedly smashing her head into the ground. After several long seconds of this, Facsim felt several pointed objects slam into her back and tear through her body, forcing her to jump away and leave the bruised and bloodied Uzumaki heiress behind.

Facsim whirled around and saw Arjuna, hand extended, and boned blasting out from his fingers, spinning through the air and drilling into her like bullets from a gun. She frowned and, with her Swift chakra, caught the next dozen projectiles hurtling through the air. This display caused the Kaguya to briefly pause, as Facsim dropped the projectiles and let them scatter to the ground, a grin replacing the frown. Arjuna, however, simply grinned, and pointed downwards. Facsim's eyes shot open as she realized what he was alluding to, and before the Dance of the Seedling Farm could envelop her, she hopped up into the air. Kushina, however, caught her in mid-air with one of her chains and swung her right around in a massive circular arc, before slamming her back onto the ground, impaling her on Arjuna's bone constructs.

She dashed over to regroup with the Kaguya head, both of them breathing heavily. "What's taking Minato-san so long?"

"There is another." Arjuna responded, "the one known as Aojiroi is battling the Uchiha clan at the village gates." He grinned, "and we've our own help coming our way." And as he spoke, and as the indomitable undead ripped herself from the bone upon which she was impaled, her senses warned her of many approaching combatants.

Ringing the clearing in the training grounds in which they fought were hundreds of shinobi, with dozens more arriving each second. Some wore the thin combat gear of the Kaguya, and others, the thick, billowing robes of the Hyuga. As her gaze orbited the battlefield, and a savage, wild grin grew across her face, Facsim locked eyes with the two shinobi she had been fighting. She straightened up, her wounds stitching themselves back together, her grin unchanging.

"I am so very glad you joined me here, this afternoon." Her low, womanly voice called out. "Unfortunately... None of you are my goal." And with that word, she vanished with the sound of a zipper being drawn.

Arjuna's face dropped into a frown and Kushina's head recoiled, expecting an attack that was not to come. Before either of them could speak, however, a Hyuga gasped and called out - _"The hospital!"_

The entire training grounds was all but torn apart by the force of so many hundreds of shinobi launching themselves away.

* * *

Just on his own, Aojiroi was the size of three full-grown men and had strength enough to match Tsunade Senju on a bad day. He could form lasting injuries on even someone as durable as Hibiki Senju, and was able to smash apart buildings with his bare hands. With the multitude of kekkei genkai running through his body, this only exacerbated and augmented further his monstrous strength, leading him to be powerful enough to shake the very earth upon which he walked.

With the most powerful technique of the Mangekyo Sharingan adding to this power, however, it was tantamount to giving a monster his own monster. The enormous gray construct of chakra, covered in the interlacing lines of the Envir clan's bloodline, clashed heavily with the equally massive constructs of the Uchiha which he fought, immediately demonstrating another advantage he held over them: A nigh-inexhaustible chakra supply. With his Envir blood granting him absorption of the surrounding natural energy, and his Kaguya blood healing the damage done to his eyes, where some Uchiha could only hold their Susanoo for minutes at a time before running dangerously low on chakra, the Hulk could do so all but indefinitely.

His building-sized gray construct parried a wide superman punch from an equally titanic blue one, before countering with a thunderous punch to its chest. Two Susanoo and their wielders came charging in from behind him, one with black fire covering its fist, another with a blade clenched in both hands. The first blasted Aojiroi's construct with its fire and the other chopped and swung savagely, its blade slamming into Aojiroi's Susanoo's back with the sound of glass striking metal. The enormous Hulk swung its hand around in a wide arc, before slamming it back downwards and beating the ground like an ape.

Many lost their footing as the earth quaked, but Tsunade took this opportunity to launch herself forward with the assistance of one of the Uchiha fighters' constructs. She bellowed loudly as she soared through the air, one fist reared. She slammed this fist into Aojiroi's chest with all of her might, and as the shockwave blasted outwards, the construct's bare, muscular chest cracked from the center outwards, like glass. Aojiroi roared out in rage and snatched Tsunade out of the air, squeezing her with all of his might. Tsunade, however, countered strength for strength and began pushing at the hand that held her, her own roar matching that of the gray goliath's. She began to pry open the Susanoo's hand from the inside out, and when Aojiroi was blasted from the back by multiple black balls of fire, she utilized the brief stun it caused to wrench open the hand and leap out.

The assembled Uchiha took this moment to attack as one, with hundreds of glowing, fiery blades of pure chakra surging forth and slamming into Aojiroi's construct. The combined might of hundreds of the Uchiha's partially blind fighters proved too much for the already damaged construct, and even as some Uchiha had to cancel the technique to set their bleeding eyes, the Undead's construct shattered like glass. This, however, seemed to be exactly what he wanted, as he leapt upwards and wrapped his arms around as many blades as each could physically hold, before locking his hands to them and channeling as much explosive chakra through his hands as he could. Through the constructs the chakra went, and right into the spaces in which the shinobi were protected. The explosions all went off at the same time, and in seconds, dozens of Susanoos vanished with bursts of multicolored chakra. Some Uchiha were obliterated entirely, and some were able to dodge and only gain partial wounds or destroyed limbs.

This was where Dante stepped in. His vision blurred and his eyes freely bleeding, he roared out and blasted Aojiroi with black fire, and just as before, the assembled Uchiha joined him. Those with similar eyes launched similar techniques, and those without simply contributed conventional flames. Aojiroi was now screaming in intense pain and equally intense rage, but before he could try to attack again, Dante bellowed out.

_"Now!_"And with the word of their Hokage, those Uchiha who still had the chakra to do so called upon their spectral guardians again and the blades and fire of these constructs soared downwards.

Aojiroi was impaled by dozens of blades that were twice as big as he was. His body was burned from the inside out, as it was carved apart like a beast in a butcher shop. His lungs were burst by the blades and the sound of him roaring faded from the air as more and more blades and a maelstrom of fire joined those lucky few to stab him first. They kept the blades lodged in him for multiple long seconds, before some Uchiha collapsed from exhaustion and others from bloodloss through the eyes. Dante let his construct fade away, chest heaving, eyes bleeding, and his chakra reaching half of its full stores. He stared down at the crater in which Aojiroi lay, watching the black flames lick at his bulging gray body.

And seeing the damned wounds stitching themselves together.

He groaned, as several Uchiha noticed too what he was, and steeled themselves for another fight. "What _now?"_

As if answering his question, he felt an enormous rush of chakra coming from the north. The Hokage whipped around just in time to see a titanic explosion, and behold as the Kyuubi, with rubble streaming down its back, raised itself from the ground, roaring so loud that even the gray goliath below him wouldn't have been able to outmatch it. And, of course, all of their sealsmasters were either out of the village, or in the case of Minato, simply unable to handle this kind of trouble on their own.

Tsunade, beside him, sighed. "You had to ask."

"Go." He nodded to the Kyuubi.

"You sure?" She glanced back down to Aojiroi, whose burning body slowly stitched itself back together.

"The entire clan against one man. We'll figure it out. You're needed over there." What he desperately wanted to know, however, was what on Kami's blue earth had enraged the Jinchuriki so much to call on not just a few tails, but the entire creature.

As the most powerful of the tailed beasts swiped with its enormous, furry red hands at a person only it could see, Dante asked himself: Who died?

* * *

Minato had no sooner reached the hospital, than did a dark-haired medic spot him and the heavily bleeding Aburame in his hands. He hastily explained to her what was happening outside and what had happened to Dai, as he and the Aburame rushed through the building to an emergency room. He was an instant away from teleporting back to the fight when Shizune cornered him.

"Minato-kun! What's happening out there? We're getting evacuation orders and injured!"

"Katsuo's people are attacking!" Minato responded, "I have to -" He blinked, his senses warning him that something was approaching, and fast.

He had hardly the time to even realize what was going on before he had been smashed in the chest by an elbow and sent flying away from the door to the operating room, which exploded inwards from an unseen force. Minato panicked, knowing that Facsim's underying goal seemed to reach Dai above all else. He hadn't had the time to think of anything else, he just acted on instinct and used his Hiraishin to swap his position with that of Dai's.

Before the light had even faded from the room, Minato felt the feeling of cold steel splitting skin and penetrating his throat. The three inch long blade of metal went through his throat at an angle, and blood instantly started spilling from both wounds. Facsim snapped the blade off and broke the necks of two medics with one backhand swing, before she tackled her way through the wall. She blinked once at what she saw - Dai was standing, hunched over but still mostly upright. She panted profusely and her face was deathly pale, but her arms were covered in a bright purple, squirming substance.

She saw the Aburame use her body flicker and was able to speed up to match the speed. She parried one punch and intercepted the other, but here she immediately realized her mistake as she felt her body being torn apart on a minuscule level. The damned woman's beetles were being transmitted through contact, and were so small that they were eating her very cells. The pain she was experiencing was excruciating, and stunned her long enough for the Aburame to smash her free fist into her face, causing more contact and more insects to invade and eat through her body.

Unfortunately for the Aburame, she was low on chakra and heavily injured to begin with. She couldn't keep up the body flicker for nearly as long as she had to, and she slowed down after just a few milliseconds. Just as the Kaguya and the Uzumaki from before came barreling through the hospital and right towards them, the Undead shoved another metal blade through Dai's stomach.

The Uzumaki was the first to process this information, and when she saw through the enormous hole in the wall, and beheld Minato, a blade sticking through his throat and the surviving medics trying desperately to save him whilst also protecting themselves from the Undead, something within her snapped. Facsim sensed the rapid influx of energy pervading the air before she heard the Uzumaki's rage.

Barely a second later, Facsim was tackled by a raging beast and sent blasting through the hospital. Kushina followed her out onto the streets of Konoha, blood red chakra surrounding her body and bubbling, as she roared and raged. Facsim got to her feet and beheld, a wide smile on her face as she watched Kushina grow in size, as more and more demonic chakra channeled through her body and the full power of the nine tailed fox was unleashed. It towered above her, its sheer size eclipsing even the mountain behind them, with massive chunks of rubble falling down its furry body, and its large, angry red eyes locking directly onto her.

_Exactly how angry would he be... If I managed to take her?_ Thought the woman, as a dull gray aura of chakra began swirling around her, and she began to levitate.

Just a second later, she stood in the head of a skyscraper-sized mass of chakra, the first perfected Susanoo to grace the village in generations. She took up a fighting stance to counter the enormous beast, and grinned from within the construct, as the beast roared again, shattering the windows and shaking the lungs and ribs of everyone still above ground.

* * *

Where initially, there was just one towering beast in Konoha, now there were two. Worse than that was that neither of them were in any state to be caring of the collateral damage they could be causing as they traded blows, and perhaps worst of all, was that all of those who had the eyes that would be even remotely capable of subduing one and combatting the other, were so low on chakra that they could hardly even continue fighting the Hulk, buried in the main road in front of the gate.

Aojiroi roared out loudly, and launched himself from the crater he had been buried in by the susanoo assault. He was blasted by multiple fireballs and several bolts of lightning. The Anbu buried more knives in his enormous back and tore at him with wind and water techniques, before he landed on the ground and was electrocuted by Dante's most powerful lightning bolt. Its body convulsed painfully as the ground shook from the distant battle between titans, and as the water covering it began to boil, and its skin began to smoulder, it stood up to full length, angry red eyes facing Dante and his entourage of Uchiha.

With a loud bellow, it bent down low and prepared to launch itself forward, but in the blink of an eye, found itself immobile. It blinked, and jerked its upper body upwards, but still was rooted to the ground. Dante's red eyes snapped down to his feet, and saw what it didn't: Its shadow, covered in chakra. What was more, as time went on, more and more shadows arced over the ground and connected to its, and before the monster could blink, its shadow was practically a jet black dot on the ground, and he was frozen solid.

_"Hokage-sama!"_ Yelled out a Naara, who arced over a rooftop. Dante recognized it as the same kid who had taken over his office, before he'd taken up the hat.

The monster continued struggling against its bonds, but with the entirety of the Naara clan immobilizing it, there was little it could do. Tendrils of shadow were wrapping around its torso and inching towards its eyes, blinding it and grasping them with physical force, clearly intent upon ripping the glossy orbs out of their sockets.

"Shikaku-san." Said the heavily breathing Hokage.

"His chakra is his strength. So long as he is as that -" He pointed to the gray skinned hulk, "nothing we do can kill it. It is using Envir blood to draw in natural energy and heal its wounds. What you need to do is focus on her -" He turned and pointed to the enormous Susanoo, as it ducked down underneath a wide swipe of the Kyubi's front paw, and countered with a thunderous punch to its gut. "- get all of the Uchiha over there to assist Kushina-san as best you can."

"What about him?" Aojiroi would have screamed in pain as his eyes were ripped out of his sockets, but he was so immobilized that he could hardly breathe, much less shout. "You can't keep him immobile forever, and his eyes are already growing back." He noted, watching the organs regenerate inside his skull.

"We didn't take the eyes to injure him." Said Shikaku, "but that's for later. No, you're needed to fight the big one. Serizawa-sensei and a cadre of Hyuga are coming here. If we can keep him pinned long enough, they can close his tenketsu and we can kill him." He explained, as the hulk's eyes were tossed to a younger chunin, who dropped them in a small jar filled with a pale, viscous liquid. The Chunin then vanished in a plume of smoke.

Dante felt compelled to ask about the eyes, for reasons beyond the fact that he was an Uchiha, and the Hokage, but he decided that would wait until later. Shikaku had more than proven he knew what he was doing on a level few could reach. "Can you hold him for that long?"

"With every Chunin and Jonin Naara in the village, Hokage-sama, we could hold Madara Uchiha himself." As he spoke, the Kyubi in the distance blasted the gray Susanoo with a massive column of chakra, but the woman inside simply thrust her hand forward. The Susanoo's hand followed her motions and glowed with two overlapping diamond symbols, and when the bijuu-dama slammed into her outstretched hand, the chakra was absorbed into the woman's construct, strengthening it and causing its glow to grow brighter and its gray colors to grow more vivid. "Now _go!" _The Naara called out, as the shockwave from the impact washed over them.

Dante turned to the assembled Uchiha, "you five!" He pointed at the most alert looking five with bleeding eyes, "you stay here and do whatever he says!" He pointed at the Naara heir, "the rest of you, with me! If you've a Mangekyo you're a priority - we need to put everything we have into subduing the Kyuubi and defeating the Undead!"

_"Yes, Hokage-sama!"_ Came a chorus of Uchiha, before they, and he, launched themselves from the ground, going rooftop to rooftop as they bolted through the village, straight towards the battle of the titans.

* * *

The downside to taking on a form of such monolithic size was that the subsequently increased surface area meant they moved much slower, almost as if they were fighting underwater. The Kyubi lunged through the air and tackled Facsim's titanic Susanoo to the ground and with its tails, pinned its arms and legs. The enormous tailed beast used its claws to viciously tear at the gray titan's heat, smashing at it with the sound of flesh striking and clawing at glass. The impacts thundered in the Susanoo's head and made Facsim's eardrums bleed, but she bit through the pain and threw her head forward, smashing it onto the Kyubi's snout and stunning the gigantic creature.

Through the cracked chakra construct's eyes, Facsim shifted her gaze to the right and tore her right arm out of the Kyubi's grasp, before swinging it around in a wide arc and striking the Kyubi on the side of its face. It rolled to the side and Facsim hopped to her feet, but before she could straddle the beast and beat its face in, she felt fireballs striking at her back and exploding. She whipped around and swung her hand at the ground, tearing it apart and sending debris and bodies flying.

This, however, turned out to be a diversion, as several imperfect Susanoos began attacking her. They barely came up to her waist, but their weapons were large enough to scrape and damage her chest, and while they attacked her, the others rushed towards the Kyubi. She bellowed out in anger and crouched down low, spinning on her hands and kicking outwards as if sweeping the legs out from beneath her opponent. This shattered several of the Uchiha's chakra constructs, but also seemed to be exactly what they wanted, as those who didn't get hit, immediately latched onto her leg, the arms anchored to the ground, and her back, before wrenching her downwards.

Every impact came with an angry grunt, as the dozens of Susanoo beat at her face and chest relentlessly. The endless shattering cacophony of glass striking glass filled the air, as did the angry roars of Konoha's founding clan. Through the haze of chakra and the bites of pain, she saw the village's Hokage leap onto the Kyubi and dash for its head, and with an angry yell she clenched her jaw, and released her jutsu.

Instantly, she fell to the ground, and the Uchiha lost their balance. The world slowed down to a halt as she channeled Swift Chakra, and she bounded forward, weaving in and out of a veritable rainbow forest of chakra constructs, and to the Kyubi. Up its tail she sprinted, and onto its chest, overtaking the Uchiha and sliding to a halt several meters in front of him. The world snapped back to real speed as the Hokage skidded to a halt in the thick fur, his deep red eyes staring deeply into hers.

"Now, what do you think you're doing?" She asked, as the bijuu struggled against its bonds.

Dante smiled, "stalling." And barely a second later, there was a loud, enraged roar, and the bijuu began shrinking beneath their feet.

Facsim whipped her head around and saw, standing atop the creature's snout, another Uchiha entirely making eye contact with the Kyubi. He collapsed from chakra exhaustion, and barely a second later, with no need to continue holding down the enormous tailed beast, the remaining Uchiha charged the woman. In response, she summoned up her spectral guardian, but before it could grow legs and suspend her in mid-air, from beneath her came drilling multiple shinobi. Her eyes afforded her the ability to see it all happening in slow motion - three feral-looking shinobi and three more equally feral looking canines under transformation techniques. They collided with her chest and slammed her into the back of her Susanoo, digging her apart and viciously tearing into her, spreading blood, gore, and sinew across the inside of the titanic Susanoo, as, simultaneously, those Uchiha who still had the chakra and the wherewithall to fight on this level, did exactly that, and engaged Facsim's construct directly.

But splitting her concentration two ways wasn't enough for the leaf shinobi. Fighting the angry Inuzuka inside her Susanoo, and fighting the powerful Uchiha outside of it wasn't enough - barely a second later, she had to similarly begin fighting inside her very mind as well, as the Yamanaka clan entered the fight and unleashed their most powerful clan-techniques upon her. This three-way splitting of her focus finally proved to be the tipping point, something had to give, and in her case, it was her Susanoo she had to sacrifice.

The enormous fists and blades of the Uchiha's guardians came crashing down as the Inuzuka dived back underground to avoid them. The mental assaults picked up in frequency and intensity, causing her to bleed freely from her nose and even more heavily from her eyes; but before the blades could reach her, the world slowed down to a halt. Breathing laboriously, Facsim stood up straight, now moving at a speed faster than the Yamanaka clan could think. With this brief reprieve, she looked up, seeing an assembly of multicolored blades and black fire raining down upon her, just inches from her face. Surrounding her on the ground were those Uchiha either without the power, or too weak or blind to use it, all of whom had their hands clenched in various handsigns, ready to launch their prepared ninjutsu, and behind her, the Jinchuriki had been subdued by the power of the Uchiha clan's eyes and was now lying in an unconscious heap.

She spent several long minutes at this speed, allowing her heart to calm and her body to heal. She may not have killed the Aburame, but, thinking on it, what she had done was perhaps just as bad. She'd scarred her, and mortally wounded the blonde one. If she left the village as it was right now, with what she knew of John, it was inevitable that he, in his rage, would come to meet them. But if she began leaving a higher body count than what she and Aojiroi had already created, he would instead wait and mourn, come up with a plan and then engage. She needed him mad, and continuing this fight wasn't the way to do it. If she wanted to, she could keep going - she knew this, and the entire village fighting her knew this, but therein lay the problem: The entire village was fighting her and Aojiroi. She remembered hearing him speak of their first encounter and battle with Hibiki, it would be only a matter of time before the leaf shinobi tried the same trick and closed off Aojiroi's tenketsu, after which, it would be an entire village focused on one person. Even Lord Katsuo hadn't like those odds, nearly a decade ago, there was a reason this village was so powerful, after all.

So, with a nod, she vanished, with a contrail of pale white light. Halfway through the village, however, she stumbled over her own feet and found herself frozen solid. She blinked as the world snapped back into focus, and with her bright red eyes, saw what had done it: A long, thin shadow, arcing across the ground like a tripwire.

"Shikaku-sama it wo-"

"Hit her now before she tries something!" Yelled another voice, to her right. _"Shadow Neck-Binding Technique!"_ And seconds later she saw the shadows beneath her thicken, and then begin curling up her body, physically pressing against her and taking the shape of three hands, going straight for her throat.

Facsim cursed silently, but just as she began channeling her lightning chakra, a Hyuga with bandages around his eyes appeared with a plume of smoke and slammed his palm into her stomach. Her chakra circulation was disrupted and she felt blood travelling up her throat, but it didn't make it to her mouth as the shadows constricting her clamped down on her throat and closed it shut. Every attempt she made to use her bloodlines to escape ended with the eyeless Hyuga repeatedly smashing his palms into her tenketsu. To her credit, she lasted for seven minutes before blacking out, and the Naara kept up the choking shadows for another ten minutes before the Hyuga, as a final measure, snapped her neck and broke her trachea with one strike.

"She is dead." Breathed the Hyuga. "Good job, Shikaku-kun."

The Naara, his breathing increased by the exertion, walked towards the woman's corpse and nodded. "Sensei. I only wish this would have worked on the first one."

Serizawa shook his head, "worry not. You adapted, she did not escape. And now we know they can be killed."

As he spoke, the Hokage arrived, and upon seeing the corpse in the street, his first words were, "how about Aojiroi?"

Shikaku shook his head, "he detonated his chakra to create a flash of light and disrupt our technique, and used the Swift Release to run in that moment we did not have control." He explained, "I used Serizawa-sensei to ensure this did not happen with her." He made eye contact with the lightly wounded man, and saw the question forming on his lips. "It wasn't as hard as many make it out to be, sir."

Still working to regain control of his breathing, the Uchiha leader tilted his head. "How so?"

"To fight Hibiki-san, or Katsuo, or the people with their shared abilities, it is a fool's errand. In combat, only a person of equal or greater strength can defeat them. They are all unstoppable in their own ways." He nodded down to the dead woman, "but it isn't impossible to outwit them. Their fighting styles all but rely on their ability to take damage to create an opening, but when Hibiki-san fought Arjuna-san, he displayed sufficient blunt trauma can knock out an opponent with the Shikotsumyaku, just as easily as it could one without. This was an important clue, because that means their healing factor is not absolute, and can be outmaneuvered, so to speak."

Dante leaned back on his feet, "He reported that he was able to defeat the Yuga-nin by throwing them to the sun."

Shikaku nodded, "so it stood to reason that their healing abilities could not correct oxygen deficiency. The best way to fight them is to pointedly not do so. Drowning, choking, what have you, if you deprive a brain of oxygen long enough, all of the healing abilities in the world cannot save you." He looked down, pensively. "I would still recommend incinerating the body, however. With all that we know, there is still more that we do not."

Dante nodded, "alright. We're going to get a search going, ensure that there aren't any others here, and that Aojiroi or any reinforcements aren't coming back." He said, his face falling to a determined frown. "While we're doing that -" He looked to Serizawa, who straightened up. "I want you to rally any uninjured Hyuga and start checking the damaged buildings, make sure there aren't any injured civilians we aren't aware of, and if there are, get them to the hospital immediately. Then -"

"Hokage-sama!" Came a light voice.

"Hey!" One of the present Uchiha called out, "stop!" And as Dante whipped around, he saw Akane Hyuga, Aoi Inuzuka and her ninken all rushing towards them, but the head of the Military Police and several of his officers, along with a few Anbu, stepped in front of the Hokage and restrained the two.

"Let them through!" Dante called out, waving his hand and taking a few steps forward. "What is it?" He asked, as the two were released.

"Hibiki-san, sir."

Dante's brow furrowed, "what about him?" And as if on cue, in the distance, right where the hospital was, there was a thunderous explosion, and Dante saw debris get thrown into the air, following right behind a pale white contrail arcing into the sky and blasting away. The Hokage's head snapped down to the two trackers, "how did he even get here?"

"He created fuinjutsu that allowed him to teleport, sir. Dai-san, Akane-san, and myself, we all had one." Aoi explained quickly, "Minato-kun's summons took ours when the fighting started, but Akane saw that they were destroyed by her."

Akane interrupted, "they wouldn't have come for ours if Dai hadn't used or lost hers, so while they were fighting we tracked hers down, Hokage-sama." She swallowed, "then we used it right as the Kyubi disappeared."

"Nothing we said stopped him, sir. He grabbed Tsunade-sama and helped her heal Minato-san and Dai-san, and then..." Aoi indicated the debris falling back to the ground.

Dante frowned, his head snapped to Wolf. "Go to Hot Water, _now!_ Find the first Hibiki-clone you can and tell him to stand down. _Move,_ or he'll do something rash!" Immediately, he realized the what and why of this attack. It hadn't meant to actually destroy Konoha, else there would have been more - Aojiroi had meant to distract, while the woman, to hunt. They wanted to piss Hibiki off, and these two girls, in their bid to help, had given Katsuo everything he wanted.

* * *

He landed in America with an earth-shaking crash. Dirt and debris flew into the air from the impact, and trees were ripped from the air as he skidded to a halt. Even before the trees stopped falling, the dirt showered to the earth, and the earth stopped shaking, the Senju slammed one foot into the earth and spread his knees shoulder-width apart.

He was _done_ being reactive.

Both fists were thrust to his hips and the full force of his chakra began radiating from his body like a torch. He took in a deep breath and began roaring out at the top of his lungs, with all of the power of his organs and his chakra. His voice echoed out for miles across the dead country, causing startled birds to take off in fear. As the power he began calling to the surface grew in intensity, and the bright blue chakra went from a lazy flame to a raging fire, the earth below him began to shake.

He was _done_ waiting for things to happen.

The quakes grew stronger, and stronger, and his deep bellow only continued to grow louder, the only pause being when he drew breath. Just like the earth beneath his feet, the muscles in his arms began to shake from how hard he clenched them. The veins in his neck bulged and the wind began to howl, sending the tail of his coat billowing as his onyx orbs turned a deep, dark red, the three tomoe merging to two spirograph hourglasses.

Damn the consequences, he was going to kill them _all._ But he knew, above all else, that he wasn't strong enough to do such a thing, not as he was, and not even with a thousand shadow clones and all eight gates. It took an entire village just to kill _one_ of them, and he wanted to kill, if not all of them, then enough to make sure Katsuo _hurt._ They no doubt thought their strength was in the bloodlines he didn't have, but what they didn't know was that he had something even they didn't. Something that could get him, literally, anything he wanted. Something that he knew, above all else, that the _Devil_ would sell _his_ soul for; he just had to get its attention.

And as the saying went, speak of the devil, and he would appear. In response to Hibiki's veritable signal-flare, the devil himself melted out of the ground. A solid mass of black, light-absorbing chakra, with pale yellow eyes and a cheshire grin, its demonically deep voice managed to cut through Hibiki's bellows.

_**"Well then... Isn't this a surprise?"** _Spoke the instrument of Hagoromo Otutsuki himself, the Black Zetsu.


	73. Veidt Was Right:Just Kill The Batman-II-

Chapter 72

* * *

His signal flare answered, the livid Senju's chakra faded away into the air and he turned a full one hundred and eighty degrees to face Zetsu. It leered at him with its blank yellow eyes and cheshire smile, its blob-like body taking on a humanoid shape with little to no physical features. It stood at the Hibiki's exact height, one meter away, its yellow eyes locked onto Hibiki's.

_It all starts here._ The Senju frowned. "I have something you want." He called out in a deep voice.

_**"Oh? And pray-tell, Senju, what would -"**_ Before Zetsu could even finish, Hibiki thrust his left hand right above his thigh, and with a pulse of chakra and a plume of smoke, out came the head of Nagato Otsutsuki. Its eyelids twitched, a byproduct of the space-time seal halting the progression of time and natural rotting processes and thus, technically, meaning it was as still alive as it had been when Hibiki had torn it from the man's body: just a collection of the last few minutes of firing neurons before the brain shut down.

Black Zetsu's pale yellow eyes narrowed and instantly locked onto Nagato's ringed purple eyes, but Hibiki was so livid that he didn't even grin. He switched to English, _"if you had backups, or others, you wouldn't have reacted like that."_ He stated, his voice loud and filling the air between them. _"But each eye has a price, and you **will** pay it!"_

Its smile now replaced by an angry frown, the Black Zetsu's yellow eyes shifted back to Hibiki's red ones. _**"And what price would that be?"**_

_"You still have the memories of that shadow clone from our first fight. **All** of my bloodlines and the ability to use them **all** effectively. I want those memories, or so help me god -"_ He raised his right hand and with a plume of smoke, his pistol appeared. _"- I will fucking destroy them, right goddamn now. And I'm the alpha, motherfucker - they won't come back!"_ The unflinching, deep tone he spoke with conveyed that there was no part of him that was bluffing.

Zetsu narrowed its eyes in an unmistakable glare, one made of anger and spite. _**"You wouldn't dare. The Rinnegan is too powerful, and you are attracted to -"**_ But before he could finish, Hibiki pulled back the hammer on the pistol, silencing him.

_"And that's the price for **one** eye."_ Hibiki said, _"oh no, we're not done, you're not getting out of this easy. You want the other one? I'm going to need something **much** stronger than these. Something I can use, and I **know** you can give me."_ He didn't move his pistol from Nagato's temple as he spoke.

Growling, the Black Zetsu took the bait. _**"And what would that be?"**_

The one thing he knew none of them had, besides the Rinnegan. _"An eternal Mangekyo Sharingan."_

Zetsu burst out into uproarious, harsh laughter. _**"You think I can -"**_ But Hibiki again silenced him, this time by lowering the barrel of his gun by an inch and firing - the bullet blasted through Nagato's head at a downward angle, missing his eyes by inches and nearly blowing out his right orbit. The ground was caked in gore and Zetsu, without thinking, cried out, _**"NO!"**_, before realizing that the eyes were still intact, and what his outburst had cost him.

_"I told you, motherfucker - I'M NOT BLUFFING!"_ Hibiki yelled out, _"and I am **NOT** in the mood to argue with you! Now with brief contact with my shadow clone you not only accessed all of its bloodlines, you had them mastered and were using them as if you'd had them for a lifetime. These are bloodlines that have to be ACTIVATED, through stress, circumstance, or training! And you just did it with no hesitation! What's more, you could keep those memories from me, and that suggests a mastery and knowledge of chakra **no one** alive can come close to! Don't you **dare** insinuate that this request is an idiotic one because we both know better!"_ He straightened his stance, _"now if the next words out of your mouth aren't 'I'll do what you want Hibiki' then I'll put a bullet in this asshole's eyes, and instead of killing Katsuo and his people, I'll kill **you!" **_He had seen the scars on Dai's back, and had personally removed the blade from Minato's throat. As evidenced by the jaw on Nagato's head, hanging on by one mandible and flaps of skin, his bullshit tolerance flew out the window once he and Tsunade had confirmed they would survive.

Had the creature had lungs, it probably would have been breathing deeply and with clear rage by now. It had expected another brief game between the two, perhaps a fight - it had, of course, seen what had happened in Konohagakure. That he had come here, he was expecting some half-baked plan to remove a problem and, as the humans said, work off some steam. He hadn't, however, expected to be placed in such a situation, and worse was that the reborn man was in no mental place to run a successful bluff. He was angry, slightly hysterical, and had a gun to two of the most valuable eyes in the world. His threats weren't groundless, and they weren't even threats - they were warnings.

The Black Zetsu let out an audible, livid sigh, _**"I'll do what you want... Hibiki."**_ He growled, _**"but I warn you... You won't like how it must happen."**_

_"I have a fucking theory."_ And, on cue, a shadow clone appeared, his two hands holding a bright explosive orb, shaking from the strength needed to keep the power inside. _"And let me offer a counterpoint. **You** won't like what **will** happen if I even **think** you're trying to take my mind."_

Again, Black Zetsu knew the man wasn't bluffing. Considering his abilities, surviving a blast of the power he sensed wasn't outside of Hibiki's realm of capability, and, if he were to be honest, it probably wasn't outside of Zetsu's either. The Rinnegan, on the other hand, it wouldn't, and stealing one from one of Hibiki's shadow clones was, in a word, not sufficient. He needed the real ones, just as he knew Hibiki wouldn't risk this kind of move if he weren't offering anything _but_ the real ones. They were in a situation where one knew the other would be aware. If Hibiki bluffed with the wrong eyes, he knew that Zetsu would know, and would act accordingly. If Zetsu didn't give Hibiki everything he wanted, Hibiki would know, and would too act accordingly. They each had something the other desperately needed, but only Hibiki was in a position to be making demands, bargaining and threatening not just to throw out the power of god, but to destroy it and ruin millennia of planning, all for some paltry excuse for power that he thought his blood and eyes could give him. Worse was that, since he'd put a bullet in the brat's head, whatever he had done to preserve the Rinnegan likely wouldn't work, not for much longer at least. Zetsu was in no position to bargain, he had to give in.

He made a mental note, as he slowly raised his glob-like hands in a placative gesture. When Hibiki Senju got angry, he got results. A part of him wondered how long he had had this backup plan ready to go. Even if Hibiki's body wouldn't be ready for the massive influx of power it as about to get, whatever Hibiki was planning after this, Katsuo's people wouldn't know what hit them.

So, with slow, deliberate movements, the Black Zetsu crossed the distance between him and Hibiki, his eyes going back and forth from the heavily bleeding head of the Rinnegan wielder, to the unblinking, hard glare of the Senju heir. Shifting his eyes to the shadow clone, whose sole purpose seemed to be adding more and more chakra into the ever-densifying orb of explosive chakra in his hands, Zetsu slowly raised his light-absorbing hand, and shifted his gaze back to the Alpha, pitying the other Undead who would be facing this man's wrath. With deliberate slowness, he reached forward and grasped Hibiki's head with his pointed fingers, clenched his wiry, oily muscles, and forced his chakra into the man's system, as if physically pushing a wide object through a narrow tunnel.

Were someone to ask, taking such a short route to gain exponentially greater power may have seemed cheap, and could even be called cheating. A proud man would want to work for it all, to gain it 'fairly' and on his own. Hibiki, however, was only proud when the situation allowed it, and right now, he didn't care for his pride. He didn't care for how much stress this sudden influx of power may place upon his body, and he sure didn't care about the adage that earning power granted more wisdom than being given it. Right now, he was livid beyond all definitions of the word, and the only thing he cared about was making Katsuo hurt as much as Katsuo had made Dai, and Minato hurt. He only wanted to make bleed the group that had made Kushina think two of her closest friends had been killed, and subsequently made her all but lose control of the beast in her stomach.

He only wanted to _kill_ as many as he could, and if pride meant he couldn't do that, then _fuck_ pride.

Zetsu's chakra went straight for his brain and his eyes, the former with traces of his own, the latter, primarily the black beast's. Memories streamed into Hibiki's mind and his eyes began to burn profusely, as if he'd opened them in salt water and then tried cleaning them out by wiping them down with sandpaper. It hurt, but Hibiki was so livid that he hardly felt the pain. Rage, as they said, was a hell of an anesthetic. The process took all of fifteen seconds, and ended with Zetsu ripping his hand away and stumbling backwards. It was clear to the shadow clone that it wanted nothing more than to rip the head out of the Alpha's hands and retreat, but without a clone to possess and steal a Swift Release from, Hibiki with his Sharingan was far faster than it, and any sudden movements would undoubtedly set off the clone. The Alpha Hibiki's eyes were openly smouldering, his chest heaving in and out deep breaths, and his head covered in sweat.

Slowly, the Alpha Hibiki opened his eyes, and revealed to his clone and to Zetsu their new appearance. The spirograph hourglasses had shrunken down to the size of pupils, and surrounding them was a shape almost exactly resembling that of an atom with its orbits traced. Zetsu stared, wide-eyed, at the man as he felt his power unconsciously radiating off of him, and a brief, ill-used part of him actually felt some small order of fear, as he realized that, inevitably, that power would only grow. Worse was that, eventually, all of that power would eventually be turned upon him and his master.

_It all..._ Hibiki raised his deeply scowling face to Zetsu's. _Starts..._ He thrust the head of Nagato Otsutsuke forward. Zetsu looked at him suspiciously, head bobbing up and down, gaze shifting from the Rinnegan to the Sharingan, before he threw his arm forward. _Here!_

The shadow clone sprang into action. At a speed Zetsu couldn't possibly react to on its own, he thrust one arm up and launched the explosive orb into the sky, not even bothering with letting it dissipate. Instead, he spent the time he could have used cancelling the technique, lunging forward and grabbing Zetsu's oily arm, and with a loud, angry bellow, crouched down low and then launched himself upwards. He was wreathed in lightning chakra and covered in the cursed seal of earth, and with his Swift Chakra, he hit the speed of light and blasted right past it just the second he hit the earth's exosphere.

As they left the Earth's atmosphere, Zetsu only got a few seconds to scream out in rage and attempt to take over the clone, but with the sheer speed at which they travelled and the whiplash the creature felt, its focus was horrendous. Hibiki blasted out of the atmosphere with a sonic boom that could be heard from the other side of the planet, and hurtled straight towards the enormous, blinding ball of plasma at the center of the solar system. At lightspeed, one could reach the sun in eight minutes, but at the speed Hibiki flew, he could have made it in an eighth of that time, had he so desired. But he was well aware of who he was dealing with, and as they passed the area where Venus would have been orbiting, he reared his arm back and threw it forward, his skin burning up from his ever-increasing proximity to the sun, and his bright red eyes rapidly going blind from the unfiltered sunlight slamming into them, his healing factor barely keeping up.

In complete silence he watched as Zetsu zoomed off through outer space. With his own forward momentum and the lack of friction in space, the clone followed the devil for those precious few seconds it had before dispelling. In another life, he would have marveled at the stars surrounding him, or the lack of atmosphere to slow him down, or the sheer fact that he was in outer fucking space, and without a spaceship to boot. But in this life, the only thing he cared about was flipping off the damned devil before he let himself vanish in a plume of smoke. It was due to this intense, single-minded focus, that he didn't even notice that it wasn't just the sun's unfiltered rays burning his eyes out and making him go blind, but also the fact that, surrounding him and pervading the very void through which he hurtled, was a chakra, deep and crushing black, but also translucent, like frosted glass, or a gas.

The memories from the clone hit the Alpha with physical force, and his head recoiled from it. The scowl still planted firmly on his face, Hibiki lifted up Nagato's head and turned it to face him. His atomic, hourglass eyes stared deeply into the thoroughly dead Otsutsuki's ringed purple orbs, and without a second thought, he threw the head to the side with all of his strength. He heard a splat and the sound of skin and bone bouncing off of dirt, but paid it no mind. As powerful as the Rinnegan was, he would never be able to control it, not with the way he was going about it, so better to let it rot in the hot southwestern corner of America than walk around with it all the time.

With Zetsu dealt with and that problem solved, next came Katsuo. He did not, in the slightest, expect to actually kill all of them, but the small, but highly vocal, vengeful part of him, accepted this fervently. He wanted Katsuo to know he was done playing games, and he wanted him to know what would happen if he even looked at his family and friends wrong. If Billy was there, he'd die. If he wasn't, Hibiki would settle for his loved ones.

The eternal mangekyo eyes of the heir to the Senju clan snapped back up to the horizon in a kubrick stare, and he blasted off from the ground, hurtling straight back to Konoha. At relativistic, but not post-light speeds, it took only a few milliseconds for the Senju heir to circumnavigate the globe, locate the leaf village, and come in hard. He had to pulse his chakra thrusters powerfully to ensure he didn't slam into the ground like a meteor. The next thirty seconds, relative to him, were spent zooming through the village in search of the body of the Undead they had killed. It was only now, when he found it not even a quarter of the way to R&amp;D, that he realized his deal with the devil hadn't even taken fifteen minutes. Moving the corpse hadn't taken priority, and as he skidded to a halt, watching as a few Naara members of the R&amp;D sector transport the corpse at his super-speed, he scowled deeply.

With the world still frozen, he lifted his right hand, and with barely a thought, two diamond-shaped markings appeared on it. He shoved his hand onto the woman's head and began draining the chakra in her body, filling his own stores, stealing her personal tricks and masteries of her bloodlines, and, most importantly, her most recent memories.

When the recently re-dead was drier than the dust bowl, Hibiki wrenched his hand back and focused almost everything he had into capping off her chakra. From her memories and Zetsu's, the Dark Release absorbed others' chakra and made it one's own, but from his own memories and experiences, chakra more than he needed would just flail about and vanish after a while, like pouring more water into a bucket than it could hold. Hibiki, however, was all but forcing that chakra to stay right where it was through sheer force of will. The concept of suppressing one's chakra was akin to wrapping it all up into a ball and pressing down as tightly as they could, Hibiki found that analogy appropriate, as he pressed down everything that could fill him naturally, and let the rest stay where it was, in a process akin to putting a bucket, already full of water, into another, larger, also filled one.

Was it healthy? Probably not, and he'd likely come to regret the decision once all was said and done, but at the moment he couldn't be brought to care. He had one more stop to make, and with that, he raised his gaze from his clenched fist, and zoomed away. The two Naara with the body wouldn't even know something had happened, they would only have felt a stiff breeze.

Through the village Hibiki sped, straight to his apartment and through the enormous hole in its roof. He'd fix that later. Instead, he searched the rubble of his and Dai's thoroughly trashed room. After a few minutes, relative to him, he found what he was looking for, and dug the picture out of the rubble, before sprinting away. The rubble he tossed about would smash the room up even worse than had already happened, but that was what insurance was for. Again through the village, and now into the hospital, straight to the intensive care ward. His wonderful woman had seen fit to decide that surviving enough stab wounds to put an Akimichi down wasn't enough, she'd gone and decided to just up and breed enough rinkaichu to turn her arms purple, draining her chakra stores almost empty - Hibiki didn't even know she could _do_ that! And while a part of him wondered if she knew she could, either, a larger part of him squashed those thoughts down as he slid into her room.

There was a medic, frozen in place by his intense speed, running his glowing green hand over her heavily bandaged body, hovering over the wounds on her stomach, and there was an Aburame he didn't recognize, with a popped collar straight from the eighties, standing in the corner of the room, likely supervising the ordeal. He ignored them both and spared a moment to look at her. Usually, despite her small stature, she was enough to take up an entire room through sheer presence alone. She wasn't built for combat, but Hibiki couldn't think of a stronger woman, not even Tsunade or Kushina could compare to her. Despite this, here she was - practically mummified with the bandages and splints covering her torso and arms, never having looked weaker than now, as if one good tap would shatter her like glass.

Hibiki placed the picture on the nightstand next to the bed and, after tearing some paper off of a scroll in one his pouches, left her a small note. He folded it up and wrote her name, in English and in Common, and left it leaned against the picture, before he tapped the nightstand once, leaving a Hiraishin seal on it. He turned back to her and, with only a second's hesitation, reached forward and tenderly poked her nose. The light, nearly inaudible honking noise he made was muffled, due to the fact that he was traveling faster than sound. He gently removed his hand and, with that, zoomed out of the room.

Through the woman, Facsim's memories, he'd gotten a brief but intimate look into the lifestyle of the Undead, at least from the last few weeks. The only detail he cared to focus on, however, was where they were, and the irony of it made him laugh. He loved to say, time and time again, that the best place to hide a secret was right under the nose of the person one was trying to hide said secret from; so of course, the best place to hide fifteen - now fourteen - of the most powerful creatures on earth, was in the very country of their sworn entry. Katsuo and his people were operating out of a cave system, in the valley of the end.

* * *

They were waiting for him. Aojiroi had escaped Konoha and likely went straight back to warn them. Of the ten assembled there, Hibiki only recognized one from his own memories. His name was Gin, but Hibiki knew him as Runner. Not present were Aojiroi, Katsuo himself, Yui, and the second youngest Undead, the one born right before Hibiki, a man named Aeneas. Everyone else, ranging from the frankenstein born right after Katsuo, to the brute born right before Facsim, was here.

They all stood atop the enormous lake that formed at the bottom of the valley, staring up at Hibiki, who floated in the air looking down at them, chakra pouring from his four extremities. Keeping his chakra in check and Facsim's chakra from spraying out everywhere like a squeezed water balloon was an endurance exercise for the Senju, feeling akin to clenching his abdominal muscles for hours on end, but he just lazily cut power to his thrusters and began floating downwards. He came to land on the lake, and stood up tall, facing the ten assembled Undead, who stood framed on both sides by the two enormous statues of Madara Uchiha and Hashirama Senju.

The other frankenstein took a step forward, and spread his arms out wide. _"My word, it is the Magnum Opus himself!"_ He called out in their shared language. Hibiki, in response, unzipped his overcoat. He continued, with exaggerated waves of his arms and long, drawled syllables. _"Do you like our home? It is not nearly as grand as our previous, but it has history nonetheless."_

Hibiki's eyes narrowed; from Facsim's memories, he recalled that this guy in particular liked nothing more than to read and study up on the history of the world. From what Hibiki could ascertain through brief peaks into the woman's memories, if he had to guess, the guy had been born in the middle ages, around the time education was picking up swing, but books were way too expensive for the common man to afford.

_"I mean, just look!"_ He turned to face the enormous statues. _"Ours is not the only titanic battle to -"_ But before he could finish, Hibiki shoved his hand forward and an explosive bolt blasted forth. It sailed straight over Frank's head and soared into Hashirama's; Frank actually cried out _"No!"_ when it exploded, and the rubble smashed apart Madara's face as well.

He whipped around to see Hibiki sliding his arms out of his longcoat. The shockwave brought with it a powerful gust of wind, which caused his coat to billow in the breeze, as he held it in front of his face. The cloth bundled up in his fist, and with ten pairs of red eyes locked right onto his own, Frank more than anyone else looked angriest, as if Hibiki had just personally affronted him.

From behind the coat, Hibiki called out, _"I saw the scars on her back. I saw the puncture wound in his throat. I saw the chakra burns all over her body."_ He called out every letter forcefully, and with purpose. _"That cunt wanted to piss me off, she wanted me to come here angry and fight you all. Well... There's one problem with that."_ He opened his hand, and the coat flew away, picked up by the winds and carried for several meters before hitting the water, and sinking into it. His dense, wiry arms were revealed, as were the lines and webs of storage seals and other various fuinjutsu running across them. _"Let me tell you all a story." _They watched the coat fly away, completely unaware of its intended purpose. _"I call it... Simply... Killing... The Batman."_ A pause, _"though I will admit, an alternative title would have been 'Veidt was Right', but you'll understand that even less."_ He said, slowly stalking his way towards the assembled Undead, arms swinging with each step. _"See... A very long time ago, I watched a movie - none of you know what that is and I don't blame you. But during this movie, the main villain, the antagonist - perhaps one of the most perfect representations of the man to have ever existed - said something, and it was only when I saw guns killing veritable gods, in this world, that I started to realize what it was he meant. _

_"See, the people he was helping were having trouble in their war against one man. A knight in a dark cowl. Whenever they fought him, they lost. Whenever they battled him, they lost. Whenever they tested him, he passed. Nothing they did worked, and they were losing. So in comes this man, who says that the way to defeat him is simple: You just kill the batman. Now for a long time, I just thought he was boasting - I am good at what I do, look at me! - because he never did as he said he could... But when your people killed the third Hokage with but a single fucking bullet, and then mine ended Rasa of the Sand with a single blade to his throat, I realized what he meant. _

_"A person like me."_ He patted his chest, "_or people like you."_ He thrust it forward and indicated them all, as he grew closer. _"If you fight us, up front, you will lose. We cannot be defeated conventionally - the way we fight, is **BY FIGHTING!** We heal, we grow, we fight! To run right up to us and expect to win is suicide... But if you didn't fight us - if you simply murdered us - then you'd win every time! Let me give you some examples."_ He swallowed thickly, his bright, red eyes locked onto the ten Undead. _"Hiruzen Sarutobi and Rasa of the Sand, as I said - dead by a single stroke. The absolute strongest of Iwagakure, gone in a flash. Kiri, conquered in hours. Konoha nearly suffered the same fate. Yugakure's immortals, flown into the fucking sun. Every time, instead of fighting these people - I JUST KILLED THEM!"_ He was now halfway between where he had started, and where they stood, transfixed, as the teenager seemed to take up more of the lake than their assembled numbers.

"_No fighting, no playing to their strengths or working around or through their defenses. Just avoiding entirely with a bullet, a knife, or escape velocity."_ Even Nagato Otsutsuki and his allies, he had killed with decapitation and a gunshot, respectively, as opposed to fighting them. _"But the million dollar question is how do I **kill** people who can heal from every injury they receive?"_ He laughed, _"well, science helped me out, there. I got my first hint when I fought a Kaguya, and learned that their healing abilities didn't matter if you just beat them in the face with enough force to cause whiplash and shock. Enough blunt force trauama knocks **anyone** out! So my next question would be what else couldn't the healing factor solve - but that too was answered! Because I fought a man whose first intention was to take me over, and to do so he tried shredding my lungs - **AND I ALMOST DIED!** And every time I flew out into outer space? The clone suffocated and died! And the final nail in the coffin was that dumb cunt Facsim! How did she die?!_

_"SHE WAS CHOKED TO__ **DEATH!"** _Hibiki bellowed out, as he came within meters of the group. _"It is **DEMONSTRABLY EASIER **to kill someone like us, than it is to fight us! Pride be damned, this isn't about that! So what do I need to do? It's simple - I need to kill the Batman!"_ He stopped mere feet from the biggest one, the Frankenstein from earlier. Hibiki leered up at him, as he leered to the Senju heir. _"And that's not all! Is it easier to assassinate a political leader from range, or rush him and his guards?! That's how the god damn ANBU work! _

_"Is it easier to fight a man who cannot be touched, or to poison his next ten meals? Is it easier to attack a Jinchuriki head on, or seal their chakra away and slit their throat?! Yes, you lose that slight sting, after every fight. But that? That's pride, and pride's fucking with you... And you know what? Fuck pride!" _Hibiki growled. "_But then there's always the fucking catch - what if one of you, by some miracle, manages to survive?" _He raised a hand and reveled in the gasps as the Undead, clearly not having expected the Senju to have possession of this bloodline among many others, watched it vanish, the skin, then the muscles, and finally the bones and ligaments, all turning to smoke.

_"What if you manage to escape my grasp and get back up here? Well friends, that's where the devil comes into play."_ His hand snapped back into reality, and his eyes briefly snapped to the back of his hand, noticing how some of the skin hadn't fully reformed, since the smoke had been brushed just far enough away by a brief gust of wind, resulting in open, bleeding wounds that began to stitch themselves together. He frowned, noted this for later, and continued on. _"You see, if one of you managed to escape, I would naturally have to fight you, and since you all have had decades to bounce ideas and training off of eachother, you all know your bloodlines better than I, and would have access to more. Obviously not good for me - so once again... Fuck pride! You people did perhaps the dumbest thing imaginable and pissed me off! I don't want you beaten I want you **DEAD!** _

_"So I sold quite a few valuables to get not only immediate access to these hidden bloodlines, but mastery too! And sold even goddamn more to get a set of eyes I'm **certain** none of you have!" _He straightened his fingers and pointed at them with a knife-hand. _"So now I have what you were NOT prepared for me to, and arguably a greater mastery too!" _Though there was the question of whether or not his body, without any training whatsoever, could handle the stress, hopefully the plan would continue running smoothly, and he wouldn't have to worry about it.

Hibiki dropped his hand, and wiped the blood from its back. "_Now I bet I can read your minds right now - why is he telling us this? Well... There's another story I read, once. In it, the main villain demonstrated that an evil monologue has its place: When it plays right into your plan, by buying you time for it to become irreversible. You're all thinking, how do I intend to kill you if you're aware that that's my intention?! Well..."_ He grinned wide, _"it's much more simple than you think. Because as long as I keep your attention - and all of those beautiful Sharingan eyes - locked onto me... You won't notice, perhaps, five thousand shadow clones, made from the chakra of your dead friend, teleporting to the Hiraishin on my coat, diving under the water, and waiting!"_ And with a pluse of chakra into the water beneath him, it suddenly began to roar and churn as if it were boiling.

In the time it took everyone to blink, more than a hundred shadow clones burst up from the water, their chakra thrusters roaring as loudly as their lungs. With ten clones to each Undead, and all of them with the added weight and mass of their steel skin, the struggle hardly even lasted a minute before they all began getting submerged. The clones locked their steel-skinned hands around their targets, and with their weight and their chakra thrusters, they hurtled underneath the water just as quickly as they had surfaced. Runner, however, was spared this attack and was instead launched high into the air by several clones, struggling, but unable to win out as four clones immobilized his limbs and a fourth blasted them all into the sky, allowing the Alpha, who had not moved, to enact the next part of what was, by definition, a mass murder.

This was where the second part of his plan came into play. As strong and as numerous as his clones were, he was leaving nothing to chance, and fortunately for him, thanks to his encounter and subsequent murder of Zetsu, he had the mother of all backup options: All of his bloodlines. He clasped both of his hands together in a brief handsign, and immediately the air around him began to cool and chill as his ice bloodline activated. He then plunged his hands down into the water upon which he stood, and roared out from the depths of his lungs as he poured his ice chakra into the water. The surface of the lake immediately stalled and stilled as it froze solid, spreading outwards rapidly as Hibiki poured more and more of his chakra into the water. It took ninety seconds and a considerable amount of chakra for him to freeze the entire lake, but what came next was substantially easier, as he turned the outwardly spreading chakra downward. The previously inch-thick ice then began inching downward into the lake, freezing more and more until one inch became two, became four, and then eight. He didn't stop until he'd made a barrier, three feet thick, of ice, and then, to ensure nothing would break through it, next came the Kaguya's dance of the seedling farm.

He got a burst of memory from a shadow clone as his bones began spreading out across the surface of the ice, like oil. The Undead were putting up a hell of a fight, but it was obvious they had never even once considered they would be fighting for their lives under water. What was more was that they were wholly unprepared for Hibiki to be using all of his bloodlines, and in even less the way he was doing it. All of the clones weren't fighting to defeat them, but simply to make contact and cause damage. They raised the temperature of the water with Scorch Release, they electrocuted their enemies with the Storm Release, smashed their Steel Release fists into their stomachs, their entire goal was just to force more and more air out of all of their lungs.

Hibiki didn't let up when he felt his bone-constructs hit the edges of the lake, he instead poured more chakra into it, clenching his muscles tightly as he did so. The density of the bone-made barrier skyrocketed, and from him outwards, he then mixed it with Steel Release chakra. Thanks to the memories and experiences he had stolen from Facsim, who had demonstrated an ability to mix her Kaguya and Steel bloods, he was able, to his great satisfaction, make it work, and after thirty seconds, there was ice and steel not just keeping them all under water, but blinding them as well. Hibiki ripped his hands from the surface of his now steel lake, breathing heavily as he did so. His body was not nearly used to having all of these bloodlines active at the same time, and what was more, his fighting style by and large relied on shadow clones to experiment mid-fight, which meant he never had to deal with a body unable to regulate a sudden and unexpected influx of power, or change in the status quo. Always, he as the Alpha Hibiki had had time following a fight to train up, study whatever new bloodlines or techniques he had discovered, and acclimate his body to it. Here, however, he'd had none of those chances, and he hadn't expected Zetsu to speed that process up for him, to begin with.

The result was, as he straightened up, he felt half of his chakra missing, and he was covered in a thin film of sweat. He panted deeply, as he turned his gaze down to the steely black surface of what had once been a lake, and a monument to a titanic battle at that. Underneath, and in the pitch black, he got another burst from his clones. Three had already perished, a few had tried boiling the water to get brief pockets of air, one had even taken to using the process of cavitation to take brief puffs, but it was all in vain. Every one of them that died freed up several dozen pairs of shadow clones to fight, and the human brain could only last so long without oxygen. Healing factors did nothing to stop this - else, when he had chucked the Jashinists and Zetsu into the sun, he would have been perfectly fine in the vacuum, or Facsim wouldn't have been killed by the Naara.

Twenty minutes after he had buried them all under steel and ice, the shadow clones, and the Undead, were all gone. All that was left was Runner, and when the clones in the sky felt the memories streaming in from the clones beneath the deep, they dropped him from his extreme height. The Alpha watched Runner tumble through the air, his face twitching in abject rage as he reveled in the terrified screams of a man fighting gravity and losing. End over end, arms flailing, from several thousand meters in the sky, Runner fell, before finally, it stopped when he smashed into the steel lake and bounced off of it. The entire front half of his body was flattened and bleeding profusely as muscles, tissue, and some organs popped and burst out of his mostly invulnerable skeleton.

Hibiki stalked over to Runner as predatorially as he had done so to the entire group earlier, doing so with a slow speed, to ensure Runner would heal. Yes, he had just given that whole spiel about just killing the batman, but there was something primal in him, that wanted to punch something until it wasn't just broken, but obliterated. More than that, however, was that even with Runner healing, he had just suffered massive head trauma and hadn't been able to do anything about it - if and when he healed enough for Hibiki to beat his face black and blue, he would likely still be out of it long enough for Hibiki to ensure he was unable to fight at all.

When the Senju heir reached Runner, the tenacious Undead was trying to crawl away with only one functioning limb. He was crying, from fear and from pain, and Hibiki listened with satisfaction, to the wheezing sounds spraying out of his mouth and nose, and to the painful sounds of his bones snapping back into place and his skin stitching together. The steel lake was stained bright red by the blood pooling around Runner, who coughed heavily, spraying more blood from his damaged throat.

Hibiki walked after Runner, always staying two paces behind him, watching, reveling in the pain he was feeling, until he felt Runner was close enough to being healed, both physically and neurologically, to put up something resembling a fight. To head this off at the pass, Hibiki lifted his right hand, and the two diamond markings on it glowed bright like fire. He lurched forward and grabbed Runner by his ragged shirt, jerking him around and then hauling him into the air, before slamming his palm onto the Undead's face, and stealing his chakra. Runner began seizing, as Hibiki clenched his head and disrupted his healing abilities, and when Hibiki felt the flow slow down, he ripped his hand away.

Anyone else, and hell - maybe even him - in any other situation, may have given their captive some last words, but Hibiki was not feeling so level headed. He was seeing red with a kind of biblical rage the likes of which hadn't been seen in this world for thousands of years. He had chosen Runner specifically - because this was the bastard that had started the whole thing. His attack and diversion had prompted Hibiki to fight him, which led to him and Minato destroying Iwagakure and kickstarting the third Shinobi War. Because of _this_ bastard, Hibiki was responsible for the needless deaths of millions, and the guaranteed deaths of hundreds of thousands more - entire percentages of the human race would be gone by the time this was all said and done. More than that, however, was that this had been the man to demonstrate not just to the world, but to the _Undead_ exactly how far he was willing to go if he felt like it contributed to the safety of his loved ones. They had taken that information and turned it right around, intent upon maiming and killing the people he cared for, to enrage, ambush, and kill him. They hurt maimed Minato, hurt Kushina, and scarred Dai - because this asshole, right here in Hibiki's hands, had led to Hibiki blowing up a village.

Short of killing Katsuo, killing him with his bare hands would be the best catharsis for Hibiki, and with that in mind, he covered his fist in steel and smashed it into Runner's face. The sound of steel striking skin filled the air, and there was a pause as Hibiki pulled his hand back into position. He slammed it into Runner's face again, Runner's head snapped from side to side as skin was split and his cheek began to swell. Hibiki reared his hand again, but this time brought it down in a downward arc and buried it into Runner's stomach, letting go with his free hand and letting Runner slam into the steel lake.

The savagely growling Senju heir stepped above Runner and wrenched him around. Runner's breathing was already labored, and Hibiki could see that his eyes were starting to roll back into his head. He must have attacked too soon, his injures weren't all healed, or perhaps he'd taken too much chakra. In either case, he snarled, _"no!"_ And flicked his hand back and forth, coating it in muted green medical chakra.

He clawed at Runner's face and explosively accelerated his body's natural healing abilities. The wounds stitched together and the broken cheek bones and swelling all settled down and snapped back into place, before Hibiki pressed harder and let his chakra run through Runner's body. He audibly heard organs inflating and ribs crackling and grinding against eachother, as they were forcibly set by Hibiki's medical chakra. When Runner looked vaguely human again, Hibiki cut the flow, raised his fist again, and brought it down on Runner's face. The muscles in his arms were clenched so tight that the entire limbs were shaking, and his face was red he was so livid.

Again and again Hibiki beat Runner's face, slapping it from side to side, pistoning his fist up and down and breaking bones, splitting skin, causing enormous welts and gruesome lesions. When the left half of Runner's face was more bruise and blood than it was skin, Hibiki simply grabbed at it to stabilize and steady it, and raised his left hand, and repeated the process on the other half of the Undead's face. With his head now unable to whip back and forth, the pain increased tenfold. Each impact of flesh on flesh resounded through the air, joining Hibiki's animalistic, enraged bellows and grunts. After more punches than Hibiki could count, both sides of Runner's face was heavily bruised, his nose was horribly broken, his skin was mangled, and his breathing was hardly even passing through the swollen face.

Hibiki, however, was not done. His arms weren't tired. _"No!"_ He bellowed, before grasping Runner's head in between both hands and pouring more medical chakra into it.

This had the added benefit of removing a lot of the trauma and shock damage Runner had suffered from earlier, but with so little usable chakra in his system, the now lucid Runner could do little but groan in pain and cry out in fear as he felt the swelling and bruises on his face shrink down. When his face looked as fresh as it had been when Hibiki had begun, he resumed his savage beatdown. Runner's head bounced up and down and whipped from side to side with every punch, and this continued for what felt like hours. Hibiki beat Runner's face black and blue, undid the damage, and then did it all over again, roaring and grunting with every punch until the muscles in his shoulders and arms burned, and he could hardly feel his knuckles.

He smashed Runner again in the face, collapsing on top of him and breathing heavily, his body demanding as much oxygen as he could supply. Runner was still conscious and breathing through a swollen face - Hibiki refused to allow the sweet embrace of a pain-induced coma spare this man. Every time Runner fell out, Hibiki electrocuted him and brought him out of it. Runner, for a brief moment, had the shine in his eyes that indicated to Hibiki, as he slowly straightened up, still straddling the Undead, he thought Hibiki was so exhausted he would just kill him and go home, now.

This hope grew as Hibiki grunted and hauled himself to his feet, but shattered when he saw Hibiki raise a boot. With an enraged yell from a raw throat, Hibiki brought the foot down and stomped on Runner's face. The muted, crunching sounds of bones breaking and being ground apart filled the air and joined Hibiki's rage. Now able to put his entire bodyweight into every blow, Hibiki savagely stomped on Runner's face again and again, starting the process all over, healing him and grinding his head into the ground until his left leg, and then, his right leg, burned and would hardly even move.

The sun was high in the sky and was starting to set, now. The pain had long since obliterated Runner's sense of time, and Hibiki was pretty sure he had spent at least an hour or two out here, working his rage out in the most animalistic fashion possible. He collapsed onto his back, and once again gave the supine Runner some hope that it may end - at least until he saw Hibiki dragging his hand over to his abdomen. There, Hibiki dug five fingers into the flesh covered by his sweat-soaked shirt, and turned them counter-clockwise. There was an explosion of revitalizing chakra, and all of the pain in Hibiki's body, the stiffness in his improperly used joints, the numbness in his repeatedly beaten hands and feet, it all vanished as the chakra from his ninth gate storage seal exploded outwards, built upwards, and then rushed right into Hibiki's body.

He _still_ wasn't done.

Hibiki hauled himself to his feet with pained, tired grunts. He looked down at the wheezing, moaning runner. More words came to mind, as he wondered how this pain Runner felt compared to the clenching, steel-like feeling in his heart. Words about how he truly wished he could have done the same to all of them, but was also more than glad that they had all -

A long blade penetrated Hibiki's chest and he was pushed forward several inches, nearly tripping over Runner. He whipped around and was greeted by a soaking wet undead, who was breathing as heavily and looked as haggard as Hibiki and Runner. This Undead had some sort of slime covering his skin, and it only took a few seconds for Hibiki to come to a conclusion as to how he could still be alive.

"A fucking fish." He rasped, tearing the blade out of his chest in a spray of blood. "Nice trick." He tossed the blade up into the air and threw it at the Undead like a spear, but the Undead dissipated, his body turning to smoke and the improvised spear sailing straight through it.

_"Thanks."_ Said the Undead, still in his smoke form. _"It took me a while to find the edge of the lake."_

The few seconds the Undead's words bought him, however, were all that Hibiki needed to realize how he could end this situation and get back to Runner. He remembered how he had been wounded through improper reforming after using his Smoke Release. Intangibility was its own greatest strength and weakness, and until Hibiki mastered it, it appeared as if it would be a bloodline he wouldn't get much use out of. However, in this situation, what he focused on more than anything was the fact that, when he'd reformed, his hand hadn't done so perfectly, and had begun bleeding freely as a result. If he disrupted the smoke, he would kill the Undead.

So he did just that, accelerating to swift speeds and thrusting his hand forward. He detonated his chakra, and immediately the silvery-gray smoke that formed the Undead was spread so far that it stunned the man, just long enough for a lapse in his concentration. The result was that he inadvertently canceled the technique that granted him his intangibiity, and instantly, all of the smoke turned back into flesh, and human parts. It spread out along the steel lake like a grotesque painting, the only parts of him that were still whole being a leg, his head, and some intestines, but they were all several feet from eachother. Hibiki was behind the head and caught it before it hit the ground, and he raised it up, looking into its eyes almost exactly as he'd done so to Nagato, five years ago.

"Valiant effort... But not worth - " With no warning, he heaved the head through the air, throwing it at Runner and bouncing it off of the steel lake. _"DON'T YOU FUCKING MOVE!"_ He yelled, as Runner flinched, ceasing his attempts to crawl away. "Oh-the fuck-NO! I am _not_ done with you! I just needed a fucking smoke break..." He stalked over to Runner, a shadow clone popping into existence.

It grabbed Runner by his back and hauled him into the air. Hibiki raised both fists and out from in between his knucles came a technique that had fallen to the wayside in recent years: His Wolverine claws. The moment they fully formed, however, he channeled his steel bloodline into them, and they took on the metallic sheen that signified that these, more than anything, would be the closest he would ever get to the real damn deal. Runner's eyes widened and he croaked in fear, as he realized what Hibiki intended to do.

As fast as he could without Swift chakra, Hibiki slammed his fists into Runner's chest and stomach. Each impact accompanied a grotesque popping noise, of skin splitting and being sliced open by steel. His grunts devolved into one long, animalistic bellow, and the clone behind Runner was forcing medical chakra into his system, healing the wounds almost as fast as they were opened. Without this, Runner would have been swiss-cheese a hundred times over before Hibiki stumbled back, out of breath, the first time. This reprieve only lasted a second, however, as the clone didn't cease the flow of healing chakra.

With no damaged cells to replace, the cellular division ran rampant and in the time it took the two of them to blink, Runner's head exploded in a mess of gore. Hibiki hopped back in surprise and outrage, whereas the clone was caked in gore. The Alpha watched Runner's headless body fall to the ground, before his own sweat-covered head snapped upwards, locking eyes to the clone, who stared in shock at the body at his feet, and the gore covering him.

_"You FUCK!"_ Without even thinking, the Alpha leapt forward and slashed at the clone's throat with his claws. The clone's throat split open and he stumbled backwards, trying to staunch the flow of the blood as he gurgled, but the Alpha followed it up by several bladed punches to the stomach, and a final kick to the chest and a command for the clone to disperse. _"**FUCK!"** _He roared, his voice echoing throughout the land. _"NO!"_ He whirled around and leapt back onto the corpse, carving it apart in a bloody, enraged frenzy.

By the time he was done, the metal blades sticking out of his wrist, and the entire front half of his body, were covered in bright red blood and caked in sticky gore. The corpse was unrecognizable beyond its vaguely human shape, and Hibiki fall back, the claws collapsing into dust as he breathed heavily, his head fuzzy and his entire body shaking. _"Fuck!"_ He shouted again. _"Fuck..."_ He quieted down, slowly raising his hands and grasping his head, spreading the blood and gore to his thick raven hair. "Fuck..." He breathed, trying desperately not to lose control and break down. "God... Fuck!"

He raised his gaze, seeing the partially destroyed, building-sized statues of two of Konoha's strongest, staring down at him. Hashirama's face was gone, and Madara's was pock-marked by craters and debris. They loomed above him, seeming to personify the entire world as he felt himself shrinking under their presence.

_"Be it pledged as an Emergency Medical Technician, I will honor the physical and judicial laws of God and_ _man."_ Hibiki heard, thundering in his ringing ears._ "I will follow that regimen which, according to my ability and judgment, I consider for the benefit of patients and abstain from whatever is deleterious and mischievous, nor shall I suggest any such_ _counsel."_ Spoke the sky directly into his head, the pressure building as he clenched and pressed at it harder, trying to physically drive it away._ "Into whatever homes I enter, I will go into them for the benefit of only the sick and injured, never revealing what I see or hear in the lives of men unless required by law. I shall also share my medical knowledge with those who may benefit from what I have learned. I will serve unselfishly and continuously in order to help make a better world for _**all** _mankind."_ It took him a moment to realize that the ringing in his ears was the sound of him screaming, and only then because his throat began to hurt and blood began to join the spittle._ "While I continue to keep this oath unviolated, may it be granted to me to enjoy life, and the practice of the art, respected by all men, in all times. Should I trespass or violate this oath, may the reverse be my lot. _

_"So help me God." _The rage quickly began to return, the despair and frenzy boiling away as Hibiki forced himself back to his feet and gathered up a dense ball of explosive chakra in his hands.

**_"SHUT UP!" _**He screamed, his voice cracking as he threw the orb like a baseball. It bolted through the air and slammed into Hashirama, before detonating in a massive explosion and enveloping both statues, disintegrating them both. The shockwave blasted Hibiki off of his feet and sent him flying through the air, but when he felt himself being dragged back down by gravity, he yelled out once again and pulsed his chakra, keeping himself airborne and soaring high into the sky. The blood and gore he had been covered in began streaming from his body as the friction from the air tore them away, until he was left with his crimson clothes, the handprints on either side of his face, and a pressure in his head.

_"FUUUUUUUUUUUUCK!"_ He howled, as he blasted through the air and the wind tore at him.

* * *

Hibiki reappeared back in the hospital, right where he'd placed the seal next to Dai's hospital bed. He silently grabbed a chair from the corner of the room, and pulled it up to the bruised and beaten woman's bed. It took much more effort than it should have, to tenderly take the letter he had left and stow it in his pocket, he hardly had enough energy to even be glad it hadn't been needed. He spent a few moments in silence, watching the wonderful woman sleep and praying she would make a full recovery, before he turned his gaze downward, at his bloodstained visage. The task of summoning up some swift chakra, pulling a change of clothes out of a seal, and changing, was more laborious than he cared to admit, and when he was done, he didn't even store the bloodstained rags, he just collapsed into the chair and leaned back, his head hanging over its edge. After a time he didn't even bother counting, Hibiki finally gathered up enough mental energy to lift his head and hands to summon three shadow clones. Two sprinted through the hospital to locate Minato and Kushina, while one bee-lined for Tsunade.

As if the lake hadn't even happened, that third clone spent the rest of the day, and a vast percentage of the night and the next morning, assisting Tsunade in dealing with all of the injuries that had accumulated during the day's battle. If Tsunade wondered where Hibiki had run off to, and why he'd blasted a hole in the roof of the hospital to do it, only to come back an hour, she didn't ask. A lot of shinobi had died in the attack, but a lot more had been injured. Broken bones, severe burns, and severed limbs were the orders of the day, but the two Senju made quick work of the former two, and were able to fix the lattermost as best as they could. Some would get their legs back, but others, whose limbs had been obliterated in explosions or burned too much to be recovered, had to deal with amputations and prosthetics.

All of the hospital's staff ended up pulling more than one shift until all of the major surgeries had been finished, and once the shadow clone had concluded, alongside his adoptive mother, that everyone was stable enough to stand back and take a drink of water, was when he finally noticed the look of unparalleled guilt and extreme indecision on the blonde Senju's head.

"That Uchiha guy, we got his stomach in, in time, Ma." Said the clone, tossing the woman a water bottle. She caught it without flinching, but didn't open it, her brow still furrowed. "Something else biting you?" He asked, tilting his head back and taking a deep swig of the bottle. He hadn't dispelled himself, in case he was still needed, and would rather have bought the Alpha that peace and quiet.

Tsunade sighed, "I assume he's with her?" She asked, finally making eye contact with the clone.

Hibiki's eyebrows furrowed, "yeah. Got me working with you, and two more clones keeping an eye on Minato and Kushina." A pause, "won't be long until sensei figures out I'm back in the village, though. Probably need another clone to go talk with him."

Tsunade, face still pensive, ignored the last statement. "Is he busy?"

Hibiki shook his head, "not unless you count a few thousand shadow clones in another country busy, but he's used to that... Why?"

Tsunade set the bottle on the counter, "I need to talk to him." She said, giving the clone an apologetic look. "The actual him. This... Can't be delivered by a second source."

The Senju clone gave Tsunade a look for a moment, before shrugging. "Alright." And he spawned a new cone, before dispelling it. "He's waiting."

Tsunade left the clone in the break room with a still nod. The trip down to the intensive care ward was a silent one, as she tried to order her thoughts and find some way to put to words the news she was going to have to drop on her son. A part of her was glad he had already gotten whatever it was he had to do, out of his system, but another part of her was far more worried about what he would do after she told him this. It could go either way, she realized.

She reached her destination, and looked briefly through the window on the closed door. Dai had a quiet room, with the lights dimmed to allow her to sleep. More than a few IV's and blood bags were hooked into her arms, and a heartbeat monitor kept a look at her pulse. The Alpha Hibiki, without the customary coat he had adopted in months past, was leaned back in his chair, head hanging over the back. He looked exhausted, as if he had just gotten out of an intense fight. He had one hand resting on the bed, lightly touching Dai's heavily bandaged arm.

The blonde Senju rapped her knuckles on the door, and Hibiki jumped. Apparently he had been asleep, or at least lightly so. He wiped his eyes and shook his head, before getting up from his seat. He approached the door and quietly opened it, sliding out of the room and closing it, before turning to look up at his mother, an arc to one of his raven eyebrows. As she felt her heart slow down in her chest, Tsunade swore Hibiki suddenly vanished, and in his place was the small boy still struggling to get his chakra control down. She blinked, and back was the S-ranked shinobi who had obliterated a village, and likely outclassed her own grandfather, whose necklace, she saw, still hung around his neck.

"What's up?" He asked, one hand in his pocket.

Tsunade frowned, pursing her lips. "Hibiki... I..." She broke eye contact and looked back into the room.

"I saw the scars, Ma." He said, cutting the silence. "They were too deep to get rid of. I know."

Tsunade felt her breath catch in her throat. He had _no idea._ "It's not the scars, Hibiki. It was her stomach wound."

Hibiki's brow furrowed, "I wasn't there to patch that up, but the medics looked like they'd done a good enough job at -"

"When did you and Dai have sex, Hibiki?" Tsunade blurted out breathlessly, shifting her gaze from the dark hospital room, to her son.

Hibiki's onyx orbs stared right into her brown eyes. For a moment, his face was a picture of light confusion, not comprehending the meaning of the question, before it dawned on him. She could literally see the realization wash over him, starting with his eyebrows, drawing ever so tighter, then moving down to his eyes widening a fraction of an inch. His nostrils flared, and immediately thereafter his bottom lip spasmed, before he swallowed through what was no doubt a very dry throat.

The light vanished from his eyes as he asked, in a voice so quiet and so broken that, had she not watched him speak it, Tsunade wouldn't have been able to pin as his. "Did... Did it..." She saw his skin begin to pale and picked up on his chest tightening up underneath his baggy black shirt.

She couldn't speak, she just shook her head, stealing the very breath from his lungs as his shoulders slumped.

Limply, without an ounce of the energy or pride for which he was so well known, his head turned to the window on the door. He looked inside, staring at Dai, who still slept soundly in her hospital bed. "Does... She..." His voice quivered. "Did..." His mind stopped and started, like a bad engine, unable to send more than a few words down to his mouth at a time.

Tsunade shook her head again, "she hasn't woken up yet. It was so early... I don't think she even knew." She felt her heart rot as she delivered the final gut punch, "and... Because of the damage... It's incredibly unlikely she'll ever conceive again."

Hibiki found the breath missing from his lungs, and the empty, sinking feeling that came when one felt their heart slow down. He limply reached with a shaking hand and covered his face, eyes hardly even wider than they had begun, as they stared dully into the room. When she saw tears begin to mar those onyx orbs was when she felt her own resolve begin to crumble, and without a further thought she reached forward and grabbed her son, before bringing him close and pressing him to her in perhaps one of the tightest embraces the two had ever shared. She now physically felt his heart pounding at his chest, and his lungs quivering as he struggled so desperately to not break down. She heard him blow slow, shaky breaths through his nose, as the hand that was pressed so tightly against his face lost its strength and fell limply to his side, before wrapping itself around her waist.

What pained her most, however, was that he didn't even cry. He didn't have the energy. She just heard him whisper in that broken, dead, and quiet tone, "fuck."

He wished he hadn't stopped.

He wished he'd killed them all.

The fifteen lives of people he now, well, and truly, _hated, _without end, for that of one whose hadn't even begun.

In a language Tsunade didn't understand, but in an unchanged and all-too-familiar tone, and quivering voice, he spoke again. _"Fuck..."_


	74. A Death In the Family

Chapter 73

* * *

Fuck.

Hibiki now had an actual list of things he would readily give up any and all chances at getting a pair of jeans, for. Bottom of the list was Ame, because despite the damage done, the village was still there and a lot more people survived than didn't. Ame was followed by Iwagakure at second place, because there wasn't even a village left, aside from the scattered and wayward survivors. Top of the list, of course, was the three month old corpse of shredded, raw-looking red meat, hardly even six inches long, in a clear biohazard bag, getting ready for cremation. Hibiki didn't necessarily know who had been broken more when Tsunade had explained to him why they had to cremate it as soon as possible, he for getting the news and understanding it, or Tsunade for having to deliver it. It was, after all, his flesh and blood, and he had enemies - enemies that knew where he lived. If they figured out that he'd had a child, even so early aborted as this, they would relish the chance to take samples of its DNA and try to replicate his bloodlines.

It didn't even look human, and the fact that it looked almost cleaved in two did nothing to help its image. He didn't know when they were supposed to grow bones, or even begin looking infantile instead of what he could only describe as vaguely like some kind of poultry, with more exposed muscle and red, raw skin than anything else. To anyone else, and even, to a small part of him, it looked repulsive, horrifying, even. It didn't even appear to have any eyes, and its mouth was stretched and sunken into its bulbous head, giving it a look of torture mixed with the serenity one could only find in a deep and restful sleep.

Fuck.

It hadn't even been old enough to find out its gender. Would it have been a boy? Maybe a girl? Who would it have taken after? Its idiot father or its stunning mother? Would it have been a fighter, like him? Or would it have preferred Dai's method of snide remarks, as opposed to direct fighting? Would it have even been a shinobi in the first place? How did that part of the chakra genetic lottery work? Hell, if Kenichi the Grave Robber was to be believed, the only way to create a soul was to do so naturally and grow one. How fast was that process? Had it already gotten a soul? Or had it died before it could get even that far? Or, could it even be that, because Hibiki's body was technically soulless without the container seal on his chest, would it have even grown one in the first place?

"Fuck." Came a voice that lacked any strength, as Hibiki, staring dully at the table with the clear biohazard bag with dull, red, puffy eyes.

Hell, he'd actually sell a lot more than the goddamn Rinnegan, rotting in some ditch in America as it was now, just to get the last week back. He turned on his foot and began walking down the hallway, his coat feeling a lot tighter against his chest than it had before he'd seen its body. His mind was so numb that he could hardly bring any thoughts to it, he simply walked like a machine, putting one foot in front of the other, stuffing his hands in his pockets and staring dully at the ground. If there was any solace to take in the fact that Zetsu had burned up in the vicinity of the sun, that Nagato's head was rotting somewhere in the US, and that ten undead had been drowned by his hand, he couldn't find it. Not when he was being stared down by the corpse of an unborn child, and being weighed down by the sheer inability to decide how he'd tell its mother.

_Hey, Dai! So, guess what? You were pregnant! What's that? 'Were'? Yeah, funny fucking story. That chick who stabbed the shit out of you stabbed you in the gut, too. The baby was almost cut in **half.** But don't worry! I drowned nine Undead, beat and stabbed the other one for a few hours before I... Guess I gave him super-cancer and blew his head up. Then I flew Zetsu into the sun, and pretty much _gave_ that chick's body to Uncle Oh. _He sighed, turning the corner and walking up a flight of stairs. _Hey, Dai... I really don't know how to say this, but those menstruation pills my mother made? Turns out there's a small chance they won't work. Probably made bigger the more active, quote-unquote, the kunoichi is in a short timespan, and we sure shocked the shit out of your system, going from zero stress to... A lot, didn't we? You were pregnant. Were._ How the fuck was he going to do this? _So, what would you say if I told you that you almost died, our unborn child _did_ die, and I killed Zetsu and ten Undead inside of an hour?_ The breath was starting to be stolen from his lungs, as he felt his chest begin to tighten and his heart begin to race.

Hibiki sighed, shook his head, and prayed he could deal with it later, if he entered the room and Dai wasn't awake. He crossed the distance between him and the door and gingerly opened it, but what he found in the dim room wasn't an awoken kunoichi, but a man standing vigil over her bed. He was half a foot taller than Hibiki and wore a deep gray jacket, with its collar puffed to the point where Hibiki couldn't even see the bottom half of his face.

Hibiki blinked at the Aburame, who simply turned to look at him as he entered the room. It wasn't her father, and was too male-looking to be her mother, though Hibiki did remember that he'd mistaken Dai for a man when they had first met, and kept that in mind as he cleared his throat. "Good... Morning."

"I would not go so far as to say so." Said the man, in a voice too deep to be a woman's. "May I inquire as to your presence in this room?"

Had Hibiki not spent nearly every waking moment with an Aburame, he wouldn't have picked up on the reserved, clipped way in which the man spoke. The way every word was as short as it had to be and was spoken quickly, as if forcing it out and then snapping the jaw back shut the moment it was in the air. This guy was pissed, and more than that, he was all but actively hostile, which put Hibiki on edge.

Hibiki would fully admit that, considering the events of the last few days, his bullshit tolerance was at an all-time low, and this influenced his response. "I could say the same to you... She doesn't have a brother, so far as I know. So you're not family."

"Same could be said of you." The man retorted.

Hibiki frowned, "I didn't get your name."

"I didn't say it. I would recommend you leave, Senju-san."

Who the fuck did this guy think he was? More than that, how _dumb_ was this guy, practically picking a fight considering the events of the last few days? Hibiki had broken his last punching bag too early, and could sorely use another, and the guy in front of him was looking mighty attractive as one. "And on whose authority? Because technically, I work here, when I'm not on deployment. And with my shadow clones granting me a unique situation, my status is pretty much wherever I happen to be. So take your _god_damn pick - I'm one of her doctors, her boyfriend, one of her listed next-of-kin, her room mate... I'm the kind of guy to whom the term 'visiting hours' doesn't apply, and I've been having a pretty bad couple of days." Add on the fact that the whole memory-dump from Zetsu, and the sheer stress he was being out through, both working to give him a migraine, he was rapidly losing any ability to be rational. "So I'll ask again, on whose authority am I supposed to be leaving? Who the fuck even are you?" He slowly placed his hands in his pockets, to hide them shaking.

The room grew a few degrees colder as the man said simply, "her husband, Shibi Aburame."

There was a moment of silence. _Well... Okay. Questions for later._ Hibiki pursed his lips and let out a sigh from his nose. "Okay. Sure." He nodded, "and I'm Hanzo the Salamander, guess where I am." The urge to punch this prick was growing with every passing second, as if a wave of sheer rage had passed over Hibiki's being. "Now that we're done playing games, how about you get to the point. I'm tired, I'm grumpy, and you're not helping either of those things." He dropped his voice to a rumbly tone, just barely above a whisper. "What the fuck do you want?" He really would lay this guy out if he woke Dai up to the sounds of their little verbal sparring match. She needed sleep even more badly than he did.

"For you to leave, please. I am her clan head, and I am lawfully her husband. You may be friend and you may be listed on her file, but you are not family, so you must leave until or unless she summons you."

Hibiki's face was the very picture of an unamused frown. He didn't have the energy to deal with this, and he hardly even had the will to summon up what he'd need to knock the guy out. "Okay, Shibi." He sighed, "you know as well as I, that that's not happening. And considering your word choice, and personal experience, I would assume you're her husband because of a piece of paper. Am I warm?" Shibi didn't get a chance to respond, "I'm pretty sure I am. But here's the thing. As I said, I am _really_ not in the mood for this, and..." He trailed off, noticing the room drop another few degrees. "You've got me under a genjutsu." He flashed his sharingan, and sure enough, the temperature rose and Shibi's killing intent rolled off of him like water. "Now you've got me _pissed..."_ He growled, clenching his hands to fists in his jacket. "How long do you think you'll last, bud?"

"I've seen some of your fights, Senju-san. Come." Said Shibi, from his still neutral position, hands in his pockets.

_Okay, let's see how you like MARS, asshole!_ But Hibiki hadn't so much as twitched, than did a third voice speak up.

_"Hibiki..."_ It croaked, from the lone bed in the dim room. "Check..." There was a cough, "check your arm."

The Senju did no such thing, dashing to Dai's side the moment he saw her stir. She, however, raised a heavily bandaged arm and grasped Hibiki's right arm. A beetle flew out from one of the pores on her bicep and into Hibiki's sleeve, and just a moment later, it chased out another, smaller one, which fled to Shibi. Hibiki blinked, watching it fly right back into the teen's spiked hair. Shibi simply stood there stoically, waiting for his response.

"You woke her up."

"He had you under a genjutsu, Hibiki. Two." Dai said, before Shibi could respond. "He was goading you into hitting him..." Her voice was frail and weak, but she still turned her head to glare at the other man in the room, her bare, amber eyes digging holes into Shibi's dark glasses. "He is my clan's head, now. Had you done so, he could have legally forced me to sever ties, on the grounds of a clan feud."

"Oh really." Hibiki deadpanned, as he straightened up. "So all I have to do is not touch him?" Oh, the choices. Polyjuice bloodline, or calling favors? Would Noboru deck him, or would Suboro choke him out with a genjutsu? Would Tsunade come in and boot him into another country, or would Hibiki make three shadow clones do all three?

There was a hatred in Dai's eyes that Hibiki had never seen before, directed towards the other Aburame. "I do not want you here, Shibi." She said, with as much strength as she could push into her throat.

"You cannot make that decision, Dai-san. Especially considering the emotional trauma you have just suffered."

"Oh don't you fucking do it." How he knew wasn't even the problem, the problem was that he was trying to use it in perhaps the most underhanded way imaginable. Hibiki had to exercise every ounce of self control not to crush Dai's hand, he was holding onto it so hard.

Dai, however, mistook his meaning. "I am well aware of the fact that I nearly died and I've scars on my back, Shibi. I am in full control of my faculties, I am still refusing your marriage contract, and I want you to _leave."_

"I am not talking about that, Dai. You are a kunoichi and scars are expected. I am talking about -" _Crack._

The sound of a bone breaking actually broke Shibi's train of thought, and caused Dai's head to turn to Hibiki, before lowering down to his left hand. He had been clenching his fist so hard and in such a purposefully awkward position he'd broken his own thumb. He begrudgingly let go of Dai's hand, to lift both of his own and, with a rough snap, he set his bone and let his Kaguya blood do its job. Through narrow, red eyes, Hibiki stared right through Shibi's glasses and into his own.

"Let me tell you a story. There was a guy, a notebook, and an apple. I don't remember the rest of it, but a lot of people died, and he did too." Hibiki leaned forward, "finish your sentence. I dare you." He rumbled, eyes melting from their regular tomoe to the atom-orbit hourglasses. The only reason he wasn't letting out his own potent killing intent was because Dai was in the room.

To Hibiki's ceaseless and immense surprise, Shibi called his bluff. "Your dead child." He said, looking Hibiki directly in his eyes as he did so, as if challenging him.

There was a silence in the room, with tension so thick that it was like breathing in molasses. Shibi kept his eyes on Hibiki, Hibiki, his own on Shibi. Out of the corner of his eternal mangekyo eyes, he saw Dai's expression shift an inch, her pupils dilate, and her lips part, but she steeled her expression a moment later and just reached for Hibiki's arm. The warmth he felt, as she linked her fingers with his, could not overpower the sheer heat of the fire in his chest. He was literally one stray thought, one wayward glance, one threatening motion, one bad word, from pulling out a gun and spreading Shibi's brains on the wall. Shibi was literally _goading_ him into attacking, and with what Dai had said, it was literally everything he wanted.

It only took Hibiki another moment's silence before he realized that this wasn't even suicidal for the Aburame head, because he couldn't die if there was a clone taking the bullet for him. This actually calmed his heart a little, and he looked closer at Shibi, noticing a slight tingling, shifting quality to his skin, almost exactly matching that of the beetle clone Dai had used, years ago. Granted, this knowledge may have calmed his heart, but 'a little' was in comparison to the sheer unbridled rage of a man who had had one _really _bad day. Shibi was just a few seconds away from Hibiki going full Joker, and making good on his old threat to Danzo, and just killing everything he saw.

It was Dai squeezing his hand, silently pleading for him to stay here, and not in that dark place where death and fires burned, that pulled him back just enough for her to speak up. "Leave, Shibi."

"I will not. You are a part of my clan, and are suffering the loss of a dead -"

No.

"- illegitimate."

He did.

"- fetus."

_Not._

Hibiki wasn't sure when the ground started shaking, or when the previously dim room started glowing bright blue, or even when the paint began peeling off of the walls as equal parts killing intent, and dense chakra, began leaking out of him. So too, wasn't he sure when or how a gun had appeared in his hand or how he found himself staring down it with wide, wild red eyes, but before he could do anything, Dai spoke up, her hoarse voice cutting the silence. "I renounce my ties to the Aburame clan, with the heir to the Senju as my witness."

Hibiki blinked, the chakra flow ceasing and the tense, shaking grip he had on his gun loosening up. As he lowered his hand limply, Shibi's head snapped down to Dai's. Her amber eyes were locked onto his own shielded ones, challengingly. "I've told you time, and time again, Shibi." Her whispering voice shook, though be it from the pain of her injuries, or something more angry, Hibiki couldn't tell, as he reeled from what she had just done. "I do not want to warm your bed, I do not want to make any of your damned children and I do _not_ want to be a trophy wife. If your first act as clan head is to attempt to start a feud with Hibiki, falsely claim I've been compromised, and take advantage of recent events, then I no longer want to be a part of this clan."

"Dai, you -" Hibiki was cut off by the kunoichi, whose narrow eyes snapped over to his.

"Shut up, Hibiki." She said, warningly. "Put your weapon away, I know what I have done, and I know what I have said." She turned back to Shibi, planting her hands on the bed and straightening up to a sitting position, as the bandages on her arms began to squirm and shift from the beetles attempting to escape from them. "Now listen to me, Shibi. I've tried to keep things civil between us because, no matter what it has or hasn't done, I do love my clan. I love my parents and I love my family, but this has gone on too long, and gone too far." She lifted her hand, and pointed at him, as bandages fell away and revealed a single digit, covered in a strange, goopy purple substance. "Get out."

Hibiki couldn't see Shibi's face, but there was a twitch to his eyebrows that suggested to him that the current head of his clan was anything but amused by this turn of events. No doubt his lips were pursed in a tight frown, "you've a childhood crush, Dai." He said, lowly. "If you take this path, if and when he leaves you, or you leave him, you will have no one to turn to."

At this, however, Hibiki just frowned, clenching his fist as the gun vanished back into the seal on his wrist. _"Cheese."_ He rumbled in English, loud enough to be heard from the other side of the room.

Shibi recoiled his head, and looked at Hibiki strangely, but his attention was quickly stolen by a flash of light and a brief pulse of chakra, from the bedstand, followed by the sound of a tiny piece of metal falling from the center of the picture frame, hitting the bedstand, and spinning in place like a coin. Its little dance attracted all three pairs of eyes, and when it rumbled into place, Shibi stared at it blankly, slowly raising his hands to bury them in the pockets of his coat, to hide them in case they began to shake.

"I know it's not nearly the best time..." Said Hibiki, as Dai too, stared at the ring. "Especially considering recent events... But in my defense, I _did_ tell you to say it, three months ago." He turned his scowl back to Shibi, "checkmate."

Shibi didn't even watch Dai grab at it. He turned on his heel and stalked out of the room before she'd had it grasped tightly in her hand. He turned out of the room and the beetle clone dispersed. Hibiki let his shoulders slump with a deep sigh, but Dai, a frown still on her face, held up the hand with nothing in it. "Leave."

Hibiki blinked, "wha -" But before he could finish, she nodded to the door, to which he looked, and saw a few more beetles flying away.

"He isn't as good as he thinks he is, and noticing those kinds of things is literally my job." Dai said, lowly, before her hand finally collapsed onto the ground and she sank three inches down, the string image she had put up falling to pieces as her lower lip trembled. "Hibiki, what was he saying?" She asked in a shaking voice, as she fingered the ring in her hand. "What about a fetus?" Hibiki sighed, and reached for her hand, but she retreated. "Rinkaichu." She said, grasping the exposed finger with her other hand and rubbing at it, the purple substance falling away like sand. "I didn't even realize I'd bred them, when she was here..." Her gaze fell down to her stomach, as she let Hibiki take her now pale hand, her amber eyes twitching, as she tried to keep her face straight.

Hibiki knelt down to below Dai's level, gripping her hand in both of his. "Dai... I..." He sighed, _"fuck..._ I'm sorry, but there's... I... I don't know how to say this gently."

He noticed her purse her lips tighter, her cheeks trembling as she reached the same conclusion he had, without him saying anything. "It wasn't the fish." She whispered, staring at her bandaged stomach.

Hibiki blinked, "fish?"

"I got sick, during the mission, Hibiki. I thought I had eaten bad fish... But it lasted the entire mission." There was no strength in her voice, as if she weren't even trying to speak loud enough to hear herself, let alone let her Senju hear her. Her chest now joined her face in barely contained trembles, as she shifted her gaze just an inch, appearing to stare off into space, in the space between her abdomen and the hand Hibiki held. "It... Did it..." She lifted her gaze, head still hanging.

Hibiki pressed Dai's hand to his lips, it took every ounce of his strength to life his eyes to hers and shake his head. "And..." His own voice was shaking too, he was trying to remain strong, for her, but the both of them had burned a lot of energy in the last fifteen minutes, and they were alone, with only eachother for support. "Tsunade said..." He gulped, tightening his hold on her hand. "The damage was so severe... They couldn't fix it. You may not conceive again." He pushed out, from a tight, clenched chest. "I'm so sorry... Dai." He breathed, his chest quivering and his voice shaking, as any resolve and any strength he had built up shook to its very foundations in just four words.

There was a silence that settled in the room after he finished pushing out the last of those words. Neither he nor her had the strength to maintain eye contact with the other, and after a few moments passed, she lowered her gaze back to the bandages wrapped around her stomach, and he lowered his head, her hand pressed against his forehead. The both of them fought hard to keep their facilities in check as they stayed silent in their shared grief. This silence, unbroken by any tears or any sobs, felt like it lasted for an eternity between the two of them. It could have been seconds, it could have been minutes, it could have been hours or days, it would have been years for all they cared or knew. They lost track of time so easily, and were so focused on processing the sheer enormity of the last few days, that neither of them noticed the visitor in the room, briefly entering and stopping at the door. The blonde Senju saw the state of the room and sensed the thickness of the air, and wisely retreated as quietly as she could.

Hibiki could hardly even think, let alone properly digest what he had done to Dai. He couldn't tell if he hated Shibi for forcing all of this so soon, he couldn't tell if he hated himself for leaving her when he could have stayed to help. He knew he felt a regret and guilt the likes of which had never before settled on his shoulders. Ame and Iwa paled in comparison to this feeling, and Katsuo and Zetsu failed to measure up to the weight settling down upon him, and he had had an entire day to process it. He had had time - for all the good it did him - to come to terms with it. Dai, however, he couldn't imagine what she was going through. This strong woman, this powerful woman, who had helped see him through his lowest depths and been there for his highest heights; he knew her as well as she knew him, and even without discussing it he knew that she would have loved this child. He knew she wanted one, perhaps more than anything else, perhaps more than he liked to think he wanted pants. This thing had been taken from her as much as it had been taken from him, and Dai was trying to shoulder it. Was she trying to emulate him? Was she trying to do as he - was she trying not to show this pain? Was him trying to be strong for her, forcing her to hurt even more?

"Hibiki..." The Senju heir heard, after the short silent eternity; he raised his head to meet her gaze, that act alone taking nearly all the strength he had. Her narrow amber eyes were red and puffy, and had slipped to the space just between her and the hand held in Hibiki's, as if she didn't have the strength to look at her Senju. "Will you please hold me?"

He didn't even speak, his mind didn't even fully process the question before his body began moving. The bed was entirely too small for the two of them but he ambled into it just the same, sliding around her and wrapping his arms around her back. She took ahold of his hands and pressed them to her chest, and they stayed like this for several minutes before she lowered one hand, opening it up in front of her sunken head. In it was the ring that had fallen from the storage seal inked onto the back of the picture on her nightstand, and her hand shook as she stared at it limply.

"Hibiki..." She said slowly, swallowing through her dry throat. "I..." All of the breath in her chest flew out in one quick, brief sob. She tried again, "I... You... You have... Terrible timing." She whispered, hardly loud enough to be considered a rumble.

Hibiki let out the breath in his own lungs, "Yeah... I guess I do." How many problems in his new life came down to piss-poor timing? "I'm so sorry, Dai." He breathed, "I'm..." He didn't even realize it, but the sheer sorrow and stress on his mind made him regress to his basest, and his next words came out in a language no one in his village spoke. _"I'm so goddamn sorry."_ He placed his forehead on the back of hers, burying his nose in her dark brown hair, its soapy scent flooding his nose, though he didn't even register it.

Even if she didn't know exactly what it was she said, she knew what he meant regardless, and she clenched the ring tight in her hand. "Hibiki... I... You trusted me with something very..." She gulped, "very important, a very long time ago... Just as you entrusted something just as important to me... Mere months ago." She said in a quivering whisper. "And... I protected them both as best I could... But in both I failed you." She cried, scrunching up her face tight in an expression of incomparable sorrow.

"Dai -"

"No." She breathed, "please." She gulped, "under the mountain, you broke down in my arms, in pain I have never since seen again, until now... And..." She took in a shaky breath, "and you begged me, to help you... And I tried, Hibiki, I tried so hard, to give you everything I could." She paused, and used the only words she knew in the language of her Senju. _"I love you, Hibiki..._ And I knew you needed me. I swear I tried, but in that too I failed. Everything you have given me I have failed to protect." She closed her fist around the ring and it convulsed along with the rest of her. "You gave me your secret, and I gave it to Minato... You gave me your trust, and I convinced you to destroy a village... You gave me your child and I failed to protect it!" She sobbed, breaking Hibiki's heart further and further with every word. "And now... Now..." She hiccuped, "now, now I need your help, Hibiki, but I am not worthy of it. Not when I've failed you so much..." She broke down, "I don't deserve it, Hibiki, but please help me... I feel so much guilt for what I have failed to do for you. Your child was inside me and I failed to protect him, Hibiki! I cannot describe the pain I feel nor the guilt that accompanies it. I cannot bear it by myself and I need your help with it, Hibiki, but I do not deserve it!" She fell back into Hibiki's arms, turning to face him and burying her face into his neck, pressing herself as tightly to him as she could as she wrapped her arms around him. "I am so sorry, Hibiki, please!" She sobbed, "please help me. Please -" she hiccuped, "- please do not leave me!" She had no more strength and whatever was left in her lungs was let out in a gut-wrenching sob, as she bawled in his arms, all the pain and anguish she had described coming out with each rasping cry.

At least now Hibiki knew who he hated more. Seeing this pain in Dai, seeing her break down in his arms and tell him she felt personally responsible for failures that he had never even considered existed in the first place, things he had never even considered she felt, it killed him. At this moment, even that distant loathing he had reserved for Zetsu and the Otsutsuki for destroying his world paled in comparison to the unbridled hatred he felt towards himself, for putting her through all of this. There wasn't a word strong enough to describe how unbelievably angry, and simultaneously guilty, he was towards himself at this very moment.

Fuck.

Hibiki's own breaths came in quick gasps, as tears streamed from his eyes and he held her as tight as he could. "Dai..." He breathed in a rumbly voice, that hardly made the distance between his mouth and her ear. "I'm... I'm going to try something, okay?" He said, "and... It's going to either work... Or not... But I need to try it. Do you trust me?" The sobbing Aburame nodded her head into Hibiki's chest. He swallowed through a bone dry throat, "okay..." He breathed, "first... Take a deep breath, and hold it for me." He drawled out. "Can you do that?"

Dai didn't let go of him, but he felt her nod. It took her several tries, as each one devolved into another wail that shook Hibiki's soul, but after a while, she finally was able to hold her breath for him.

"Good, you're doing great." His voice cracked, "now... Let it out slowly, through your mouth. Do that three times for me. In through the nose... Out through the mouth."

She still trembled in his arms, but she did as he said. She wasn't calming nearly as much as he was ready to sell a lot more than a few Rinnegan for, but she wasn't sobbing her lungs out, at least.

"Alright... Now... I want you to close your eyes." He said, "and when you do this... I want you to pretend that the whole world outside this room... And everything in it... Will just vanish. Just like that." It wasn't helping that he was still emotional and he and his voice were both still trembling, but all he needed was for her to do as he said. In his first actual, literal prayer in a great many years, he begged a deity he had lost a lot of faith in this would work.

"Okay." She whispered.

"Alright... Now, your head is on my chest. I want you to... Well, you can't look, but you can listen and feel. Try to hear and feel my heart, okay?" He asked.

He felt her shift her head, pressing her ear against his chest as she tried, and largely failed, to keep the breaths in her trembling chest still. "I hear it."

Hibiki gulped, "Okay, Dai... Now..." He took in a slow, deep breath, "I want you, to focus solely on me, okay?" He said, "there's nothing else anywhere. No worries... No young war... No undead... No world in ruins... No villages hidden from more than just eachother. Just you and me. Nothing else." He wanted to add 'no guilt and no pain', but his every instinct screamed at him that such a thing would be a bad idea, considering what all she had just said.

It made his heart leap as he felt her trembles weaken, as she spent several minutes doing as he said. She still shook and twitched, she still cried, and she still held him as tight as she possibly could, but she diligently followed his instructions, and it showed, as she stilled just enough for him to notice.

"What's out there, Dai?" Hibiki whispered.

"Nothing." She trembled.

"Just you and me, right?" She nodded, another rasp not making it past her lips, but blowing out of her nose. Hibiki hoped that was a good sign. "Okay... Now... Forgive me if I fuck this next part up." He said, as he slowly unwrapped one arm from her back, and raised it in front of her face. She tightened her grip on him, but otherwise didn't move.

He waited just a second, before extending his index finger and pressing it against her nose with a honking noise.

For a moment, as he looked down on her, he saw her features tighten up and he felt that soul-crushing, gut-clenching terror that came from the realization that what he had tried hadn't worked, at least not in his favor. But she ducked her head down and leaned forward, pressing her forehead into the palm of Hibiki's hand as she sobbed again through her nose, the sorrow still apparent in her body, but the way in which she cried, the way her body clenched, but didn't tense up, and the way she nuzzled her head into his hand and pressed her ear into his chest, it told him that despite the odds, he hadn't fucked up.

He weaved his fingers into her hair. "I'm so sorry you thought that way, Dai." Hibiki said, the Aburame hearing the vibrations from his lungs as well as the words from his mouth. "I never knew... I never even considered, and for that I can never... Ever apologize enough... But." He swallowed, "Dai... I never once thought you betrayed me. I never once thought you failed me... If anything, _I_ don't deserve _you,_ Dai. You do so much for me, I don't think I'll ever be able to return that favor. You told Minato, but he in turn helped put things in perspective for me. Helped me come to terms with what I did and get off of whatever self destructive path I was setting down on... I was _honestly..."_ His breath caught in his throat. "Honestly... Considering opening that seal on my chest, Dai, and that... I don't even know what that would do, but I have ideas. I was so low I... I was cursing the heavens, Dai. That thing the idiots in cliche books do." His grin didn't last for more than a second before it fell back to the deep frown. He continued stroking her hair. "If you hadn't sent Minato, I may very well have sunk low enough to do it. But you... You... You amazing woman, you. You wanted nothing but to help me, and you _did,_ Dai. Don't ever think you didn't.

"You were the first person I _ever_ told about America, Dai, and you bared that burden for me. Just by being there as an option, for someone I could talk to candidly... That helped me more than you can possibly imagine. When we were in NORAD and I was broken down, begging and pleading in your arms... When I asked you for your help, I wasn't at all expecting you to keep me from all harm. _God,_ no. That... That's too much to expect from anyone... No, I just wanted you to be there, Dai. I was asking you if you would help me, and you have not failed in that in the slightest. And the child..." He remembered which word she had used, "he... He wasn't on you or me. That was _them,_ Dai. That was Katsuo and the Undead, and their... Idiotic... _Stupid_ attempts to do the impossible, and wreck everything as they did it. You didn't fail me, and you didn't fail him either, Dai. You did everything you could - and more. You bred _Rinkaichu, _Dai. I can't _not_ know how important that is." He let out a long, calming sigh.

"Dai... Even if you don't put that ring on, I swear to you I won't leave. I promise you I'll be there when you need me. There is absolutely nothing I won't do for you, Dai. I'd sell my soul just to see you smile, and I'd do a lot more just to crawl back into bed with you every night. To hold you, just like I am now." He ran his fingers through her long brown hair as he said this, noting how her shakes were growing weaker as she continued to listen to him, still studiously following his earlier instructions. "A long time ago... You and I were in the belly of a mountain, sitting in nerve center of a species and history too stubborn to die, but too dead to live. Do you remember?" She nodded against his chest. "And when I saw my species' self-eulogy, I, broken and crying in your arms, begged you to help me through the pain I was experiencing... Do you remember what you said?" He didn't wait for her to answer, he just leaned in close and dropped his voice. "You need _only_ ask." He ran his hand through her hair and down her back, before giving her head a tender kiss. _"I love you, Dai."_ He whispered, "please don't ever think otherwise."

Dai was silent for a long time, as she digested everything Hibiki said. "Hibiki... I..." With the she breathed in and out, it appeared as if her every word took all of the air in her lungs. "I want to sleep now." She finally whispered, "will you please be there when I wake up?"

_Holy shit, I did it._ The mother of all ass-pulls, and he'd managed to calm her down. How he managed to not ruin it, even having literally just done it, he did not, nor would he ever, know. He let out a light chuckle, "I guess... Yeah, I guess we do have some stuff to talk about, don't we?" He sighed, "Dai... If you want me here, nothing on earth will drag me away." He said, firmly.

She didn't say anything, and it took several minutes for Hibiki to realize that it had been because her breathing had mostly steadied. _Yeah..._ He thought, leaning his head back up against the wall. _I'll be here._ She shifted once, laying against him and using his chest as a pillow. The Senju heir looked down at her, her face etched with tears, lined with the creases of the emotions that had just plagued the both of them. Even if she seemed calmed, now, he still felt horrible. He had never even considered that she had been thinking these things, and realizing that he had been so unobservant, that he hadn't been able to help her.

_Fuck..._ He leaned forward, trying not to disturb her as best he could as he reached for the blanket pooled around her waist, which he pulled up to wrap around her shoulders. It would be damn awkward, to sit like this, half on the bed and half off of it, but if it helped her, he'd be willing to do a lot more than just be uncomfortable for an hour or two.


	75. Amnesty Dinner

_A/N:  
Short, yes, but the next one should make up for that, and combining the two would have made it entirely too long.  
_

_Though considering the arc we're coming up on, some short/long chapters giving us as much time between now and that horror may be desirable. _

_If you thought what I just did was dark - that was just setting the tone. _

_-TCWO_

* * *

Chapter 74

* * *

Perhaps the sensible option, when he woke up hours later, would have to been to figure out how and when he fell asleep. A part of him knew that, given the events of the day, he had been so damned tired and exhausted that he probably could have fallen alseep standing up, and not known, but then there was the larger part of him that groaned in abject, muted anger, having wanted little else but to stay awake and hold his woman. Then, of course, there was the fact that, in the time between Ame and now, the only night he had ever gotten a full and restful sleep had been the night he and Dai had moved in together, and that was not a trend that would end with just a few month's absence. Even positioned so awkwardly as he was, with Dai in his arms Hibiki fell asleep within seconds of leaning his head against the wall, and stayed in such a deep sleep that even an hour would have felt like eight. However, then came the second variable: No matter how deep and restful the sleep, the last fifteen years of his life had been spent wiring him to be able to wake up to the slightest motion and the most muffled noise. In this situation, he may have been deep in the stages of random eye movement, but the shifting of the wonderful woman in his arms had him awake and alert in a second.

"Oh, good, you are awake." She said, in an airy, tired voice, halfway between whispering and a conversational tone. "I have to pee, but I didn't want to wake you." She said, as Hibiki shook his head and rubbed at his eyes. "I will have to thank my mother in law for a room with its own bathroom."

"Ugh... What time is it?" He groaned, as Dai slipped out of his arms and he heard her feet pad across the ground.

"Seven at night, Hibiki." Said Dai, "you seemed to be dreaming well."

Hibiki pressed his hand against his forehead, fighting the wave of drowsiness that threatened to crash over him as his body realized its fight or flight response wasn't needed, and it could fall back to waking up naturally. "I what?" He called back, as Dai slipped into the bathroom and out of sight. "You were watching me sleep?"

"Consider these last few days, Hibiki. I will take whatever novelties I can get." Dai deadpanned, "and seeing you actually sleeping for once... It is not something I get to see often." A pause, "and don't act as if you didn't watch me sleep, those months ago."

Hibiki hummed, "I won't fight that..." He shook his head with a yawn. "Wait..." He said, "did you say mother in law?" He asked, as the gears in his head stopped grinding and started spinning.

"I was wondering if you were so tired that that had slipped by." Said Dai, her words preceding a flush of the toilet. She came out of the bathroom, smoothing the hospital gown covering her bandaged torso. She made eye contact with Hibiki and raised her left hand, fingering the ring on its third finger with a light smile. "I hope you are not the kind to run away at the altar, Hibiki."

Hibiki chuckled, and got to his feet. "Even in my last life, I'd never thought I'd be one for a big ornate wedding. My dream had actually been to try to get away with a quick Vegas wedding, and if she said yes, see if we couldn't do a drive-through, just because I'd heard they existed and wanted to see how that went about, going about." In a perfect world he would have gotten an Elvis wedding, if only to make jokes about it years later and mortify his parents.

_I wonder who'd be more pissed off... My mother Tsunade, or my mother from Back Home?_ He shook his head and ran his hand through his hair.

"I remember you telling me about that place... Vegas." Dai said, slipping closer to Hibiki and leaning against him, making Hibiki idly wonder how much longer the small height difference between the two would last. "It is like Tanzaku Quarters, yes? I would like to go there, during our next leave."

Hibiki laughed, and wrapped his arms around her waist. "The rundown city of lights? I might be able to arrange something." The question was how he'd do it in the first place. He hadn't been there once, since he'd found NORAD - he wasn't even sure if it was still standing, let alone recognizable. Hopefully there would be something there to make her happy, because lord knows she needed something like that. Thinking on that made his thoughts drift towards realizing how light Dai was acting. He let out a small sigh, "you bounce back fast, Dai, how are you holding up?" Hibiki had always known Dai liked to hide her issues, or play them down, with a joke or some snide remark, but it had only been after their emotional episode just a few hours ago that he had become privy to exactly how deep her issues ran. He didn't want to see her hide them, anymore, but the problem was, she was a kunoichi - hiding things was literally what she did. "Are you okay?" He rumbled, quietly.

He felt Dai physically deflate a little at the question, leaning heavier on him, before she too wrapped her hands around him, resting them between his shoulder blades. "I still hurt, Hibiki." She whispered, "I do not know if the pain of this knowledge will ever go away, but... I got most of it out, before. Enough to function long enough for us to speak, alone, together... Seeing you still in my bed when I awoke, however, and fitting the ring where it belonged... It helped."

Hibiki let out a long, low sigh through his nose. "This is one of those few moments in life where I don't really know what to say." He rumbled, "maybe... Actually address it when we're home? Give us a little time to just... React, gather our thoughts, yeah?"

Dai nodded, "that sounds nice, but we've less time than you think." She said, leaning back and looking down at her Senju. "Tsunade stopped by a few hours before you awoke. She placed me on medical leave for the next two weeks, and assigned her third best doctor to watch over me." He felt her finger the ring between her thumb and pinkie again, and with a upward curve of the corners of her lips, she added, "and she welcomed me to the clan." with a brief nod of the head.

Hibiki chuckled, "did I just get volun-told?" He smiled morosely.

"Indeed." Dai rubbed his back, and slid out of his arms. "Technically speaking you _are_ a part of her staff here, because of your extensive utilization of your shadow clones, to assist her in her work." She moved to the corner of the room, where sat a pile of fresh clothes.

Hibiki furrowed his brow, "did she check you over without you moving?"

"I'm the best medic in the world, Gaki, is that doubt I hear in your voice?" A new voice called out from the distance, causing Hibiki's eyes to flit up, as Dai picked up her pile of clothes and retreated to the bathroom, this time closing the door behind her. A few moments later, Tsunade entered the room, a clipboard in one hand. "Try not to sleep like that often, it'll wreck your back."

"I broke my spine, once." Hibiki deadpanned. "I needed Noboru to literally snap it back into place." He made a jabbing motion with his palm.

"Shut up." Tsunade snapped, though she did grin at the joke. "The Hokage wants to see you to debrief him on Yuga and the Valley of the End. Our scouts saw your handiwork there when they were tracking two strange chakra patterns, likely Katsuo and an ally. After that he's cleared you to stay here to help Dai recover." She flipped the clipboard around and thrust it to him. "Sign this."

Hibiki grabbed the board, and lowered his right hand to his thigh, where out came a brush he used for fuinjutsu. "What's this?" He asked, wetting the tip of the brush and scribbling out his name.

"Clan Regency papers. Your birthday passed while you were out on deployment." Tsunade said, waiting until Hibiki had finished signing to speak. His shoulders slumped as he realized she'd gone and duped him, and she wore a wide, victorious smile on her face. "Congratu-fucking-lations, Gaki. It's your problem now."

Hibiki snorted, "what, no time to recover?" He tossed the former Senju head the clipboard. "I'll give you props for that one, Ma." He said with a grin. "I'm a minor?"

"Only in a numbers game. But since you're sixteen, a chunin, and are literally leading a front in the war, you're more than an adult in most peoples' eyes. I had to use the Regency papers specifically just so everything looked nice, and proper, and Senju." She rolled her eyes. "When's the wedding?"

Before Hibiki could respond, however, Dai decided to doom him as she called out from the bathroom, "he doesn't want one!"

Tsunade's head snapped from the bathroom door, to Hibiki, an eyebrow twerked. "Oh really, now?" She said with a dangerously calm voice.

"Now... Uh... Wait a second..." Hibiki backed up, but only made it two steps before he hit the medical equipment. "_Want..._ And... Um... Will tolerate, are two different things, you see." He raised one hand defensively, while the other steadied the equipment he'd nearly toppled.

"Gaki, I put Jiraiya through a wall because he pissed me off. Do _not_ think I won't do worse to you because you'll deny me a wedding!" Tsunade cracked her knuckles.

"Uh... I'm your clan head. You can't hurt me?"

"I'm your mother, I can do whatever I damn well want." Tsunade began approaching him.

Hibiki saw Dai, standing in the doorway of the bathroom, new hoodie donned and her hood drawn. He couldn't see her eyes behind the new pair of shades, but the way she was leaned against the door frame, and the light smile she wore, he knew she was enjoying the show. "Help me out?"

"I'm a tracker, dear husband, and I've not mastered the Rinkaichu nearly well enough to claim to be a combat tracker. You will have to conquer this one on your own."

Tsunade now loomed over him, and he wore a look of sheer terror. "Will it be my ribs or my spine?" He breathed.

"Both!" And Tsunade wrapped her arms around him and hauled him into the air with a crushing bear-hug. Hibiki felt his ribs cracking and his spine creaking as she crushed him. "Kami, you're getting big, Gaki." She said, putting him down and giving him a look of joyous mirth.

Hibiki shook his head. "Man, why do you have to do this to me?" He popped his back back into place, and then held up his hand. "Next time I'll be heavier." He said, as his skin turned to steel, and he clenched his fist.

"You think I can't crush solid steel? Gaki, I'm ashamed of you. Give me the clan back, you're unfit to rule."

Hibiki frowned, "but if we're involved with a power struggle, we won't have time to induct our new arrival." He nodded to Dai, who nodded once and straightened up.

"While you two are dealing with your minor civil war, what do my doctors recommend I do during my leave?" She asked, airily.

"I'd say bed rest, but I know you." Tsunade smacked Hibiki on the back and took a few steps back, turning to Dai. "Try to get some sleep and keep any strenuous activity to a minimum. Three times a day, I expect him to be checking you over and giving you healing sessions. Preferably after each meal. Other than that, don't get yourselves killed, and at the very least you better have a wedding plan by the end of the month." Tsunade placed her hands on her hips. "At the very least, if not for you, then for the village. Hasn't been a Senju wedding in decades, and what with how scared everyone is since the attack, it'd do good to get their minds off things. I heard the Hokage was thinking about an exhibition max with our up-and-comers, for the same reason." She paused, and gave Dai a look. "And... Come to me if you ever need someone else to talk to, okay? We're family, now. Even if it's not on paper."

Dai lowered her gaze a fraction of an inch, but intwined her hand with Hibiki's and nodded. "Considering my words to Shibi, I will need all the family I can get, soon enough."

Tsunade huffed, "screw him. He tries something, he'll have three Sannin ready to kick his ass. No politics, just a good ol' fashioned beatdown."

"A lot more than three Sannin, Ma. You'd have her squad -"

"And Tsume."

"- and Tsume, my squad, Minato, Kushina, and then a few thousand clones of me. His testicles would be powder by the end of the day."

This got Dai to smile, and after a few more pleasantries, the three went their separate ways, with Tsunade returning to her work, and Hibiki and Dai leaving the hospital to return home. They were forced to reconsider, however, when they arrived at their apartment building and were confronted with the gaping hole in its roof. Hibiki and Dai craned their necks, looking straight up, hand in hand. It looked as if someone had shot the building with a cannonball. There were already a few workers and some genin working to clear out the rubble and debris so it could get rebuilt, but it was still clear they wouldn't be living here for the next week, at least.

Hibiki hummed, "suddenly I feel bad about what I did after you got stabilized." He said, looking up at the hole in the building.

"I suspect it was destructive." Dai deadpanned.

"I flew out of the building. May have blasted a hole in two or three floors and the ceiling, doing so." Hibiki pursed his lips, trying to look innocent as he spoke. "But... On the plus side, I killed Zetsu and a shit ton of the Undead."

Dai slowly turned her head to stare at Hibiki, "and were you going to tell me this?"

"After we got home, yeah." Hibiki nodded up to the partially ruined building. "I think now, though, I'll tell you over dinner. We'll swap stories. Shibi for ten undead and the devil." He looked at her sideways, "sound good?"

Dai shrugged, "will you allow me to pick where we eat?"

* * *

"Damn, I haven't been here in a while!" Said Hibiki, as he and Dai sat down in a corner booth in the restaurant owned by none other than Chouza Akimichi's father.

Dai grinned, settling in underneath the shadows cast by the booth, across from Hibiki. "Aoi and Kyo are fond of the food you helped introduce, here, and I must admit a certain fondness for it myself. I was here a few months ago, and the clan's former head recognized me, mentioning that I should bring you next time." She explained.

And as if on cue, Hibiki heard a loud, boisterous voice call out from the back of the restaurant. "Is that who I think it is?" And with a grace that belied his massive size, Chota Akimichi was across the restaurant in but a few seconds, wiping his hands on his apron and wearing a large smile. "Hibiki-kun!" He shouted, his voice loud enough to carry over the din of his restaurant. He reached their table and looked down on the Senju heir with a boisterous smile, "how long it's been! How are you?" He boomed.

Hibiki smiled kindly, "just find, Chota-san." He responded, "yourself?"

Chota laughed, "bored. Ever since Chouza-kun took up the family, things have been entirely too quiet, my boy!"

"Well, it looks like you're fining ways to occupy your time, at least." Hibiki said, looking down to the man's stained apron. "Got anything good?"

Chota waved his hand, "anything you need, Hibiki-kun!" He said, "for you and your lady friend, I -" He did a double take when he saw Dai fold her hands on the table. "Is that a ring I see?" The big man gasped.

Hibiki nodded, "a recent development, Chota-san. Thought we'd celebrate with some good food."

Chota clapped his hands together, "well this calls for some congratulations, doesn't it? I tell you what - I can get something real nice whipped up, you just give me some time. I'll have a waitress come for your drink orders!" And with that, he bounded off with the same grace as before, not even disturbing a single table as he cut straight through the restaurant and to the kitchen.

"Such a kind people, they are." Dai commented, adjusting the fit on her hood and pushing her glasses back up the bridge of her nose.

"You know..." Hibiki looked back at her, "I just realized, I still haven't asked you to marry me. You put the ring on and it's been a series of semi-direct implications." He nodded to her hands.

Dai inclined her head, "oh? Are you trying to back out now, Hibiki?" She asked, airily.

"Nah, just pointing out." Hibiki leaned forward, resting his hands on the table. "By the way - will you marry me?"

"No." She sneered.

"Too fucking bad." Hibiki laughed, "it's either me or Shibi, and I may have to kill him on principle anyways."

Dai smiled at the joke, but lowered her head regardless. "I suppose I must tell you about him, shouldn't I?"

Hibiki shrugged, "well, _must,_ and, _might want to,_ are two different things... But it may help with the paperwork side of things, considering that stunt you pulled when we saw him." Hibiki had no clue how and where they would get the paperwork to make Dai's claim valid, but he was certain the process, while likely to be long and drawn out, wouldn't necessarily be difficult. "Which, uh, I... Don't really know what to say about, by the way."

Dai shook her head, "there is nothing _to_ say, Hibiki. It may not necessarily have been something I wanted to do, but by now I was only connected to them by name and blood." She said, leaning back. "I am certain you are aware of marriage contracts." Hibiki nodded, "well, when my father bred Rinkaichu and reached Jonin-rank, he was approached by the previous head of the clan with a proposition to link their hive and ours." She explained, "a marriage contract between their then unborn children. As it was a great honor to be offered to marry into nobility, my father accepted. Years later, I was born, and following me, Shibi."

"I'm tempted to make an age joke." Hibiki said, shifting in his seat, and sliding his arms out of his coat.

"I would not object to you calling me senpai." Dai said, without even a delay. "But, our contract stipulated that upon our promotion to Genin, the marriage could be founded, and after a promotion to Chunin, it would be mandatory. For many years, I hadn't a problem with it. I did not necessarily approve of my lack of a choice in the matter, but I knew Shibi would be a responsible husband and we would make a good child, and as such I did not complain. But then, after nearly a year of service with my squad and Eiji-sensei... He took us out for tea."

"This part is sounding familiar..." Hibiki frowned, "I don't know why."

She nodded, "I met a very ugly, terrifying little boy four years my junior. The moment he made eye contact with me he was smitten beyond words and I had to pry him from my thighs." She gave him a faux-glare from over the rim of her sunglasses. "He still hasn't stopped stalking me, and likely matches the definition of clinical insanity."

"Sounds like a fun guy."

"He is tolerable, though quick to anger and rather proud, at times." She grinned, fingering the ring around her finger as she did so. "Though not very strong. He has gone longer without a promotion than Might Dai."

"Uh-huh, keep talking." Hibiki said, with a raised eyebrow, and a flicking motion with his right hand, as if he were drawing his pistol from its seal.

Dai paused long enough for the waitress to arrive and for the two to order their drinks. When she left, the kunoichi Senju-to-be nodded, "when we first met, I will be honest in saying that the queens were quick to dislike you." She saw Hibiki roll his eyes and bit back a snide remark, "but... It may sound silly, but I needed only our first encounter to know that there was something else about you. You were, in a word, different, and I still very vividly remember the enthralling feeling that coursed through me when we discovered the rifle in the apartment. How you picked it up as if you had been practiced with it, and how you seemed to know what to look for on it without having ever even seen it or anything like it, before. I decided I would get to know you." Another pause, to receive their drinks. "To say nothing of the fact that you, unlike Shibi, amused me more than once and got me to smile, when we convinced the patrolling Chunin we were boys and were having sex."

"Have we _ever_ addressed your name, by the way? I don't remember."

"Tread carefully, Hibiki. You may be my fiance, but that does not make you untouchable." And to illustrate a point, a beetle lazily flew out of her coat and came to rest on the table, at a point equidistant from her and him.

Hibiki shrugged and took a sip of his fruit drink, "just saying." He may have never noted it before, but this world didn't have soda. All it had was flavored, sugary fruit juices, and just like coffee and pants, he missed soda dearly. "Though I'm glad to hear I can actually make you smile, and you're not just -"

"Oh, I am definitely humoring you, Hibiki. You are not nearly as funny as you think you are." Dai sighed emphatically, "but, as your dutiful lover, and now fiance, I must do my part in ensuring my man's happiness. Even if I must lie to his face to do it."

"Oh, so we're pissing eachother off now? Well I had sex with Kushina." He let a toothy grin grow across his face.

"You would do well to take that back, Hibiki. You will not lay with her before I get a chance." Dai retorted, "go lay with Tsume instead. I may have believed that." She waved the tangent away and took a sip of her drink. "Regardless. It was seeing you in your element, fighting, during the chunin exams, that I knew my initial conceptions about you were correct - you were a prodigy in combat, the likes of which I've never seen." She shrugged guiltily at this, "and... Perhaps... Maybe... I myself was smitten when I saw you defeat a jinchuriki in pitched combat."

Hibiki smiled, and reared his head. "Oh? You saying you liked me 'cause I could open the eight gates?"

"You brag of your power, Hibiki, yet still do not feel the beetles in your hair." And on cue, said beetles gave him a quick nip to remind him of who was in charge. "As I said, I found myself smitten at that moment. Attracted to you in a way that wasn't entirely dissimilar to what I was supposed to feel only for my intended. Perhaps I had felt this before, as well, and was simply not admitting it, but I digress. I knew it would still be years at least, until Shibi would graduate. I had time and legal authority to delay any marriage proposals, and look into precedents to continue to do so, if it turned out that you were skilled in combat, but not love."

Hibiki nodded, "and as it turns out, I'm pretty damn slow."

"You are very slow, Hibiki. That it took us until the mountain had me worried. I consistently had to remind myself of that moment we shared in the Forest of Death, and upon the Hokage's Head, to continue to hold out hope. It was after No-Rad that I made earnest work into delaying Shibi and my clan as much as possible. My father soon found out about my pursuits in the clan's library. We had a large falling out, and I began staying with Aoi and Kyo."

Hibiki blinked, "uh... When was this? You've been living with the Inuzuka?"

"Four years, give or take. And yes." She explained, "though it was fortunate for me that you decided to visit my compound unannounced. Your encounter with my father and... Unorthodox method of dealing with it actually helped my illusion." She said, briefly bowing her head. "It is here that I say I was outright lying to you, all this time. He may respect you as a shinobi, but not necessarily as a man, Hibiki. You have taken his chance at nobility in the clan and have sullied his reputation within it, by taking me. And when I left, it made him appear as if he had no control over his hive. I told you the opposite for the same reason I withheld all of this about Shibi." She took another sip of her drink, "I... I know at least enough of the way your ancestors courted to know that, even now at sixteen, you feel out of place getting married and having serious, romantic, and now sexual relationships. Be it because of your legal, physical age, or because of your mental age, you grapple with it, if not daily, then at least very frequently." She looked up at him, "I would hazard a guess at thinking you consider these things every time we take a major step?" Hibiki frowned, and she took that as her answer. "I wanted to allow you the time to move at your own pace, Hibiki. To do so, I went against my clan at every turn. Called forth writs and precedents that hadn't been spoken of since the Warring States. I did, literally, everything I could to delay Shibi and my clan's legal efforts. Fortunately, befriending and being declared a friend of the Inuzuka clan's Alpha-to-be was a boon, but it was a temporary measure at best, especially when Shibi himself hit Chunin and he had the legal right to force a marriage, should I remain unwed before he took over as clan head.

"I've been grappling and fighting him over this since he graduated, but it always ended the same. No matter whom came to try to change my mind, you were both my defense, and offense. If I continually refused, they would have to force it through, fully, and that meant inevitably bringing it to your attention in an unpleasant way. Considering your protective reputation towards those you call friends, and then your previous feats, for a while that was enough to continue delaying, but the key word is delay."

Hibiki nodded, "you mentioned at the hospital, he was trying to goad me into hitting him, to make the whole thing a clan issue."

She nodded, "he likely found the same precedent I myself feared the most. It was in those few decades leading up to our joining the first Hokage's then-fledgling village, an influential member of our clan and of the Kamizuru clan became infatuated with the other. The bee-summoners were and, though there are far less, still are, our rivals and enemies, to the point where we waged many wars against them over which bloodline was superior. They had raw power, but we, numbers and skill." She explained, "when these two became infatuated, rumors began of a unification between their clan and ours, but the popular opinion was that this was unacceptable. Even the Senju and the Uchiha were still more or less at eachothers' throats, over in their Village Hidden In the Leaves, and our relationship with the Kamizuru was, in many ways, the same. The difference lay in our methods of warfare: The Uchiha and Senju fought in massive open conflicts, where we specialized in sabotage-based warfare and brief battles.

"It was suspected that this could be a plot by the Kamizuru to join our clan and rip it apart from the inside. It still isn't clear whether this was true or not, but regardless, the head of the clan back then couldn't take the risk, so he goaded this noble from their clan into attacking him and several of his guards, in the presence of the lady. He succeeded, and used this attack, and the deaths that resulted, as a means of taking back the lady, wedding her to keep her in check, and to continue the war against the Kamizuru. We would join the Leaf a decade later." Dai explained, with a nod of her head.

Hibiki furrowed his eyebrows, "sounds like an important story. How did Shibi not know about it?"

"Because it is an _old_ one, Hibiki, and one not often talked about even immediately after it happened. The whole series of events being explained as a Kamizuru plot was accepted at face value, and the issue was dropped soon after it arose." She explained, "he likely only even found it because he had been searching so long. It was why _I_ found it, after all. So, his intent at the hospital was to goad you into an altercation with his beetle clone, posing as him. If you had gone lethal, he could have claimed attempted murder, and if you had simply assaulted him, he could have claimed that, but either way would have started a feud and he would have been legally able to take me, as a result."

Hibiki leaned back in his chair, eyebrows high. "And here I was... Not even a second away from shooting him." He wasn't comfortable in admitting how close he had been to pulling the trigger.

Dai nodded, "I know you, Hibiki. I knew that if he played that card, pushed that button, there would be nothing but great, sudden, and equal shock could stop you. But if I hadn't been able to, even if I had tried to sever ties, he could have used the newfound feud as a way to convince the elders and those who cover the paperwork that I had been compromised, tainted by your way of thought."

The Senju head frowned, "you're talking about yourself as if you're something to be owned." He noted.

"Because as far as the marriage contract is concerned, I _am."_ Dai responded, taking another sip of her drink. "My purpose would have been to breed him a son to take over the clan after him." She held up a hand, which slowly was covered in the purple goop that signaled her breeding of Rinkaichu. "I have an urge to say that it would have been a powerful son..." She mentioned, before wiping off the insects as if they were crusted-on sand.

Hibiki sighed, "Dai -"

"She said it was cremated, after you came back to check on me." Dai said, lowering her hand, and her gaze. "Please tell me, Hibiki. How did he look?" She lifted her gaze back to her fiance, eyes shielded by her thick sunglasses.

Hibiki pursed his lips, "it's... He was... Very young, Dai." He warned. "And the damage wasn't pretty."

"Please, Hibiki." He saw her finger the ring, and briefly wondering if he was witnessing a habit form.

Hibiki stared into her eyes a moment longer, "he was hardly even a few inches long, Dai. I couldn't tell if he even had a skeleton." He finally breathed out, "not even really developed enough to determine a gender."

"It was a boy." Dai stressed, "I know it."

Hibiki didn't doubt her. "And... The angle of the blade, into your stomach... He was almost bisected. He couldn't have caught more than the edge of it, but he was so small that..." He shook his head. "It was still enough. Tsunade told me that if they hadn't noticed and removed him, you would have miscarried in a week."

Dai held his gaze a moment, "there is more." She stated.

Hibiki nodded, "despite the fact that he hardly even looked human..." He shook his head and leaned back, "I'd be hard pressed to say that the little thing wasn't beautiful, in its own right." Revolting had been a word he had also used to describe the partially destroyed fetus, but that had more been meant to describe its physical appearance. Despite that, there was still something about seeing it - his child - that still called out to him, that still said it was beautiful, and tragic beyond description that it hadn't had a chance to continue to grow.

At least at this, he saw a smile creep up towards her lips. "I feel I would have said the same, had I seen him."

Hibiki frowned, "I should've told her to wait -"

"No." Dai said, "I say that, but... I also fear what I may have looked like, after having seen him." She said, her eyes briefly drifting downwards. "I cannot even imagine it." She reached a hand across the table, "but I am happy you were there for him to be witnessed, Hibiki." Hibiki took her hand, squeezing firmly. "And I've something else to ask of you..." Her eyes flicked above his shoulder. "Let us wait for our food." She said, leaning back as Hibiki turned to look behind him.

In was coming Chota, with an enormous pan of pizza, two glasses for wine, and a bottle, all held in his two thick hands. He set them down on the table and bowed deeply, "to the newlywed Senju." He said, "I cannot overstate my congratulations, and if I am, allow me to be the first to wish you luck." He said, before raising back up. "Please call if you need anything."

"Thanks, Chota-san." Said Hibiki, with a nod.

"Thank you, Chota-san." Dai repeated, with her own nod, before Chota backed away. Dai's eyes flicked to the wine bottle, mimicking Hibiki's disinterest, before she took a large slice of the pizza from the pan and set it on a plate.

Hibiki found it amusing and chuckled, as he did the same. "If you told someone from Back Home that my marriage proposal meal was a pizza, I would have been castrated by my Bridezilla friends." He lightened his tone, mimicking that of a teenage girl, "oh, I want a three course meal at a five-star restaurant! I want him to propose at the break of dawn with a band in the background! I want my ring to be in the glass delivered by the owner himself! ... Wait, pizza? Who the hell do you think you are?" He shook his head.

"Your women sound high-maintenence." Dai commented, her mouth full of food. "A simple dinner with food they both enjoy should be good enough."

Hibiki nodded sidewards, "you'd think." He drawled. "So, you wanted to ask me something?"

Dai nodded and set her food down, as Hibiki took a large bite out of his own. "Hibiki, what did you do after you stabilized me?"

Hibiki coughed, "huh?" He sputtered, dropping the pizza in his plate and wiping his sauce-covered face with the back of a callused hand. "Say that -" Another cough, "- again?"

Dai kept her gaze locked to his own, "I know you, Hibiki. There are few ways past your defenses as fast and as efficient as those you hold close. Accident or not, you did destroy Iwa and raze Earth's capitol over Kushina. I suspect... Or perhaps _ex_pect, is a better term, that you would have done much more on my behalf, even before you knew about our child."

Hibiki let out a light chuckle from his nose. "It's a... _Long_ story, Dai." Hibiki said. "And it's one of my own, skeletons, too."

"I kept Shibi from you, Hibiki. We can consider this an amnesty meal, wouldn't you agree?" Dai tilted her head beneath her hood.

Hibiki conceded that, "well..." He tapped the table, and out from his fingertips spread a minor two-way privacy seal. The noise from the surrounding restaurant dulled, just as their conversation would fail to drift past their booth. "I guess the short of it is that I stole a Rinnegan five years ago by inadvertently smashing the shit out of Ame, and then fast forward to now, sold both Rinnegan to gain access to all of my bloodlines, killed Zetsu, and then killed ten of the Undead, within an hour." He leaned back, an eyebrow raised.

Dai stared at him, she blinked once before taking in a deep breath. "I think I should have expected as much." She took up her food, "please, start from the beginning. A Rinnegan? As in... The Sage of Six Path's dojutsu?"

Hibiki nodded, "like I said, a _long_ story... And that was the real short version." He said, before taking another bite out of his slice. "I didn't even get into detail about Teague Hast."


	76. Moving On

Chapter 75

* * *

"Best place to start out would probably be where... Pretty much everything did." Hibiki said, leaning back in the booth. "Five... Or, well, six years ago, now, when we sacked Kiri, I fought Aojiroi, and through him I set up a meeting with Katsuo. This was after I got shot down at Eglin, but before NORAD. I had suspicions, but no proof, but if I was right, I expected I'd have my proof by the time I had to go see him." He explained.

Dai nodded, "you wanted to try and talk him down." She said, "I remember you were so conflicted about fighting him, when we spoke in the forest. I had always wondered how many options you would exhaust before you finally dedicated to fighting him."

Hibiki nodded, "to pull a mangled quote from a book I read, I knew it was only a matter of time. Either I'd kill him, or he'd kill me. Sooner or later. But I wanted to at least try, just once, to talk things through. So, after I set up the meeting, I grabbed this chick I knew - you don't have to worry about her. She means nothing to me." He suppressed a grin when he saw the corner of her lips twitch. "I had her help me out track down the proof I needed, but you know that story. After I got the proof, I came back and had my fight with Arjuna to clear my head and get me ready. Next day I went out to go meet him..." He sighed, and took a bite out of his food. "It would have fucking worked, Dai. I was _this close."_ He held up his fingers and squinted an eye. "He was sobbing, blubbering at my feet, holding a superman comic. I was this damn close to convincing him that his ideas were unfounded, that this was his world, and ask him why destroy what we could create? But then... I still don't know. I tried to comfort him..." He mimed putting his hand on a shoulder, "and then... Fuck, it sounded like everyone alive was screaming in my ears." Thinking about it, he could still vividly remember the cries of the damned. "It screwed me up and sent my chakra into flux. Did the same for him. Made him think I had broken our little ceasefire and tried attacking him... So, I shit you not, he punted me to Ame." He explained.

Dai blinked, _"Ame."_ He nodded, "I cannot tell if that's lucky, or unlucky, but the odds..."

"Very small. I thought the same goddamn thing." Said the Senju head. "I had to hide in a pile of trash and wait for my chakra to come back, so I could flee from the trackers. But it took too long... And it wasn't Ame shinobi that found me. Remember, this had been in the days following my fight with Zetsu. He tried getting his shots in - sent his boss after me."

Dai paled, "the Sage's heir?"

He nodded solemnly, "guy had the build and the look of an Uzumaki, but the eyes were what gave it away. Didn't even bother hiding them - two bright purple Rinnegan, staring me down." He rumbled, "I was still in that state of flux, and I knew that if he got me, that would be my card punched. I'd die. So I drew on him and told him and his friends that if they stepped towards me, I'd shoot." He clenched his fist, "it was Otsutsuki's heir. He _knew_ what a gun was, I know he did. I _warned them,_ but they thought I was bluffing. They took that step forward, called my bluff. So I called theirs." Hibiki said, miming a gunshot with his hand. "One was down before he could blink, and the Otsutsuki used some kind of gravity manipulating technique to drag me over to him. The gun went off again and went through... I think it was the neck, of the other one.

"I put a few bullets in Otsutsuki's chest, but he responded by summoning the fucking Jubi." Hibiki said, before a yawn, and another grab for more food.

His fiance frowned, "I thought your ancestors said it was killed?"

Hibiki shook his head, "the sage stole its power and split it into the Bijuu. Its body was still there, and his brother took it to the moon. I guess that since he had a Rinnegan, he could call it back and fuel it with his own chakra, and whatever it stole from the village's shinobi. I got a little chakra back and was able to keep it at bay, but every time I tried to get back and shoot Otsutsuki, he shot me away with that gravity power of his. Eventually, Hanzo the Salamander showed up, promised to kill me, but only after we dealt with Otsutsuki." He explained.

Dai wiped her face, "I assume he succeeded."

Hibiki nodded, "yeah, but we all know what kind of a relationship _I_ have with dying." He patted his chest, "he distracted Otsutsuki long enough for me to get in close... But then I realized, if I put a bullet through his head, Zetsu could come right back and loot the Rinnegan. He'd only lose a person, not the eyes - and if there were more heirs, my victory would be hollow. I had to deal a blow beyond just killing Nagato, so instead of shooting him, I cut his head off and put it in a storage scroll. I stole his Rinnegan." He explained, "and after that, I had to deal with Hanzo." He took a long drink, "remember that bloodline I showed you, in Hot Water? I figured out it existed in Ame. I don't know how it manifested, I don't know why... All I know is that when I touched Hanzo, all of a sudden I had _become_ him. Maybe it was because my chakra was in flux, and I was imprinted upon by him, and my body took it in and activated the bloodline... I don't know. But when I took his form, I got his memories, and then I realized I could use that. I could kill him, take his place, and then turn an unsanctioned war-worthy attack by a Konoha shinobi, into a random attack from a then-unknown bijuu."

Dai looked at Hibiki from over the rims of her glasses. "So... _You're_ Hanzo, now?" She whispered.

To which, Hibiki shook his head. "I had that man's memories, Dai. I knew how to be him. That wasn't something I could live with. I didn't want to be him... He wasn't plain evil, but he wasn't even approaching that good-half of the gray area, shinobi operate in. When I got back to Konoha, you know I took that time? Did a whole lot of nothing?" A pause and a grin, "apparently which you spent looking over my shoulder and trying to figure out my language?" To her credit, she didn't even blush. Hibiki continued, "I abused the shit out of my Swift Release and spent a long time in relativity, boosting how long I had to think things though. I came up with a plan, and his name was Teague Hast. I'll show him to you later." He said, with a nod. "I made a shadow clone and went out, hunting for the warzones where Dante-sensei fought the Hast clan. Even Ame cremates their shinobi, but I wasn't looking for bodies so much as I was looking for _parts._ There had to be something that hadn't leaked out all of its chakra yet. An arm, a leg, maybe a head with the gate of opening still intact."

"I didn't realize it took that long for chakra to leak out of people, naturally."

"It depends on how much chakra a person has, more than anything. Gets exponential, with Genin taking a few months, but the problem is, even jonin hardly take more than a decade or two. I was taking a hell of a risk... And it didn't pay out. I found body parts, bones and such, but none had chakra. Too much time had passed... So instead I tried a different route, tried looking for living heirs - anyone I could find, even distant relatives. That one panned out, I managed to track down a band of merchants with this guy, hardly in his twenties, was a kid during the war. Had the build and look of a hast, but it was the case of genes skipping a generation. Grandfather was one, father was a halfblood but his mother wasn't, but he got enough of the recessive genes. I took a sample of his chakra and used the same process I did against Zetsu to unlock the bloodline, and then Teague Hast was born."

"What of the original Teague?"

"Has no clue. Not of his genes or the fact that I stole his appearance... And he lives in Iron, anyways. Shinobi events don't really make their way over there." Hibiki explained. "So I used his body and took parts of his story and made them fit my narrative. He got into Ame... and that's where the fun began. For a good few years there was always at least three of me running around at any given moment. Hanzo, Teague, and myself, here in Konoha."

"You said you didn't want to rule as Hanzo. Was Teague your answer?"

Hibiki nodded, "I'm getting to that. Acting on Hanzo's memories and using his previous actions and personality as a base, I concluded his reaction to an attack like that would be trying to... Hide it, essentially. So I, as Hanzo, committed my shinobi force to capacity, making things look business as usual. The cost, however, was an almost instant societal regression. Ame was holding on by a thread - to the point where Ryo were only worth things in the parts of the village directly under Shinobi supervision, and there weren't many of those. Hanzo's tower and their academy, that's about it. Anywhere else, it regressed back to goods-based trading and the haves and have-nots. Because of the large lack of shinobi in the village, bandits roamed the alleys and stole what they wanted. It was chaos, and the only reason the village itself never fell was because - well, where else would they go? Ame and Rain Country were the other countries' stomping grounds during war. Refugees from Rain would be turned away wherever they went, especially with the tensions rising because of Katsuo.

"Enter Teague." He explained, "I played him as an idealist. A philanthropist - the name itself comes from my time. It means philosopher. He's a man who sees the big and small, the things that need changing, and the ways they need to be changed." He saw realization dawn in Dai's eyes, "I've been telling you a long time I've wanted to find a way to reintroduce post-enlightenment thought and my world's science to this world." He confirmed, "Teague is how I'm doing it, and Ame is _where_ I'm doing it."

"But why Ame, and not Konoha?" She asked.

"Because Ame was and is _much_ more ready for that kind of a drastic, sudden change, than Konoha is, and Teague's entire reputation is built around the pursuit of knowledge and change for the better. My reputation, however..." He sighed, lowering his voice. "It's pride and war. I fight, and that's how people outside Konoha, and even within, know me. _I'm_ not an idealist, I'm a protector. _I'm_ not an agent for change, I'm a fighter for peace. If I wanted, I could take up the hat, and everyone knows it. But if I did and then tried introducing my kind of thought, it would be rejected. That kind of change, unless people want it, _must_ be gradual - that's why the Renaissance took three hundred years. This can't happen fast, not unless people want it - and even then, it still needs time to grow. The only way _I - _Hibiki - could sow those seeds would be if I changed... _Right now._ Had some kind of epiphany, a change of heart. Stopped fighting and started preaching... And even then, it would take at least ten years to make everyone believe the change, if not, more, and I can't do that. Not with Katsuo running around, and..." He pursed his lips in a contemplative frown. "Fuck, I hate to admit it, but I like fighting too much. Chakra, superpowers, that was fiction where I came from. Nothing excites me more than learning more about chakra, expanding my understanding of it to new heights, and then applying that knowledge against people that I _should not be able to._" He pointed at his neck, where the cursed seal of earth lay dormant. "Without this?" He pointed at his head, "without the eight gates? Without what I've learned about them, and everything else? I wouldn't be nearly as powerful as I am right now. I probably would have had trouble with..." A pause, "shit... What was his name? Sparky-sparky boom lad..."

Dai blinked, "the Gelignite from the first chunin exams?"

"Yeah."

"That was Don. Don Shiro."

Hibiki grunted, "well, without my power augmentors, I'd have trouble fighting _him._ Let alone folks like Ay or Bee, Emi, or the Undead. Katsuo or Zetsu..." He broke eye contact with Dai, "and _god_ _damn it,_ I like fighting. I like learning. I like trying to understand things that no one else can... But all of that means that I, Hibiki, cannot be that agent for change. Not when my reputation is built on my fists."

"You say that as if it's a bad thing, Hibiki." Dai pointed out, "I understand what you say... But you say it as if your power -"

"My fucking pride almost got you, Minato, and Kushina _killed_ Dai!" Hibiki snapped, "it _did_ kill our _son!"_ He breathed, nearly slamming a fist on the table, but able to stop himself before he could draw the restaurant's attention. "I _hate _that I like this so much. I _hate_ that I can't do anything about it without putting you all in even greater danger - and _god damn it_..." He unclenched his fist, and shook his head with a breathy chuckle. "I hate that I sound like an angsty teenager." He leaned back, letting out everything in his chest with a sigh.

Dai was silent for a moment, before finally saying, "but... Hibiki. You _are."_ She grinned.

Hibiki gave her a look, pointing at her with his hand and giving off the appearance that he had a remark prepared, before he slumped over and laughed again. "I'll give you that."

"It's not a bad thing that you like to fight, Hibiki." Dai gave a half-shrug. "It's one of the things I love about you." She smiled, "you can enjoy what you do and still be a good person, Hibiki. That's why I point this out - you say these things as if they preclude you from changing the world... When they _don't."_

Hibiki shook his head, and finished what food was on his plate. "Maybe you're right, but... Still." He said, "The point I'm trying to make is that, sixteen years here... I, as Hibiki, I've always just gone with the flow - and that's not to say that isn't _me..._ And is also why this talk of 'I as whoever' gets confusing." He said, "_I_ am Hibiki... Teague is Teague, Hanzo is Hanzo. I am all three, in a way, but only insomuch that the latter two are puppets that have to be played to character, while I be myself." A pause, "does that make sense?"

"A little."

"Then think of it like this. Actors in a play. I'm myself, but the clones are playing Teague and Hanzo." He saw Dai nod, "_I_ am me. I'm a proud, angry little asshole that doesn't really rock the boat, and somehow gets gorgeous women in his bed. Hanzo is... Hanzo... And Teague is a philosopher. He wants to change, to improve things. To make people believe _I_ can be that person, it would take a long time and a game far more subtle than I could possibly play to realistically make people believe I've made those changes... And if I'm to be honest, it's not a game I want to play. I don't want to lie like that... I'm not willing to play two characters and never be myself. So to change Konoha... I'm not the man who would do it. I'll protect it with my life... But I would only lead it if I was the last choice." It had nothing to do with the fact that he was already leading one country, and he didn't want to age twenty years in the span of five, of course. "And Konoha is... Somethin' else entirely. It takes far better men than me to lead it. Folks like Hiruzen Sarutobi, or Dante-sensei..." A pause, "fuck, maybe Minato, if he keeps going like he is. But me?" He shook his head, "I'd rather just live my life. Not have to worry about everything."

Dai saw the weight on his shoulders as he spoke, she reached across the table and grasped his hand. "I understand, Hibiki." The way she saw it, he had died once. What little control he had in his life back then paled in comparison to the power he had over it now, and he just wanted to solve the problems facing the world. He wanted to kill Zetsu, to eliminate Katsuo, and then just settle down and live his life how he saw fit. He was willing to play Teague, but that was only because Teague was a shadow clone in Ame. He wasn't willing to put on that same mask here in Konoha, not if it meant sacrificing the peaceful, quiet life he desired. Of course, 'peace' was relative considering his love of combat, but Dai digressed. "I understand."

Hibiki enjoyed her contact for a while, before he nodded, she let go, and he continued. "So, enter Teague. He's a man who's preached change since day damn one, and there isn't a village out there that's more ready for change than Amegakure. Stomped on repeatedly ever since it was formed, it's just as much refugees as it is native-born villagers, and they all don't want to be stomped on again. But Hanzo, he was set in his ways even before I took over for him. He was a figure from the past, and the change they wanted wouldn't come under his rule. But then comes this lanky, pale-haired philosopher to their chaotic, nigh-destroyed village, preaching change and a better world just beyond the horizon. All he had to do was take the village from Hanzo."

Dai nodded, "I can't imagine that would be easy."

"Nope. If he just walked up and slaughtered Hanzo, Hanzo's shinobi would do the same to him and I'd be back to square one. So instead, I won their hearts and minds. Used Teague, his blood, and his clan as an excuse for my power and chakra. He did nothing but help, for years, and years, and years. He helped rally the civilians and create a rebuilding effort. Started with shanty shacks, then back to stone masonry. He won the people, and with them, had pull over the children in the rookie school. The rising Genin were pulled over soon enough, and while they were resistant to change their loyalties, the seeds of his ideals were planted in the Jonin teaching the rising Genin. Time passed. Months. Years. Every time they returned, the Chunin and Jonin saw a village looking better and better, and every time one name was on everybody's lips: Teague Hast. Bandits? He dealt with them. People? He fed them. Shelters? He was there from the foundations to the last nail in the last wall. For _christ's _sake, he even helped get Ame's economy working again. Even managed to use his influence to gather up _everyone's_ money, in the newly repaired Ryo system, and funnel it wherever it needed to go, helping bring back stone masonry and sturdier, more rain-resistant buildings and medicine."

"You did all that?"

Hibiki shook his head, _"Teague_ did." He stressed, "I cannot stress enough how hard it was to start thinking like three different people. I started having a major identity crisis about midway through, when I woke up here in Konoha and couldn't sort out my memories from Teague's and Hanzo's for a few hours. I had to just start thinking of them _as_ different people to make it work." A pause, "hell, even me, right now, is far different from who I was before I died, but I digress. It took a few years, and more than a few attempts on his life by Hanzo's _gestapo-_like ANBU secret police, but eventually he had enough influence that, if it came down to blows, and he won, the people would agree to his claim to power. He won their hearts and minds, and had enough of the shinobi force agreeing with him that he could take Ame.

"Hanzo figured this out, and chose to try to head the problem off before it came to bite him worse than it already was, so he challenged Teague to a duel... But with me pulling both puppet's strings, Teague's victory was assured. It also helped that Hanzo, even before there was a change in management, had neglected his training, so Teague's victory was believable as well as easy." He leaned back, "so now I've got Ame."

Dai blinked, "that's why you didn't seem surprised when I reported the Ame shinobi to you." She intoned.

Hibiki nodded, "I tried to play it off as dull surprise. Like I said, Teague's trying for change. Chief among it is making a more equal balance of power. People need to be able to protect themselves from the shinobi who fight for them - that way Hanzo can't happen again. So Teague sent his ANBU to Earth Country. They couldn't steal the blueprints from Iwa, but they could steal a few weapons from the Capitol. Teague helped his fledgling R-and-D division to take them apart, and used that as an excuse to advance their weapons development."

"So now Earth _and_ Rain have your thunder techniques?"

Hibiki grinned sheepishly at this, and swiped at his nose with his thumb. "No. Aaaaas it turns out, their capitol was getting their guns from Iwa. Some... Strange arrangement. They got the resources, Iwa handled the industry, everyone benefited... But because I showed up and made them look like they weren't even worth the metal they were cast from, they pretty much decided Katsuo had to have been lying to them - like he had been lying about how he would protect them, and the village."

Dai blinked, "no." She grinned, "they aren't that stupid."

"They are. Teague's spies are telling him they've started melting down the most powerful weapons in the world, burning whatever they can't, and are using the resources they get back to make more armor, swords, and arrows to protect themselves now that they don't have a hidden village." Hibiki explained, "literally every gun in the world is now in my sphere of influence... And in that sphere, only two shinobi have one." He said, holding up two fingers. "Me." He lowered a finger, "and Minato."

"Teague didn't give any to his shinobi?"

"It would make them too strong." He said, "the point is to equalize the balance of power, not drop a rock on one side of the scale. He spent almost a solid year training up a small militia in gun safety, and now Ame has their own equivalent of the Uchiha Military Police. Folks didn't think it would work until a Jonin tried raping some woman, and got acquainted with the business end of one of the 'thunder sticks'. A _Jonin,_ dead by a civilian's hand. Yeah, the respect and authority they commanded jumped pretty high after that. If a civilian can kill a Jonin, maybe it's time to start treating them like equals.

"The folks _you_ saw were scouts. Not nearly as effective as their shinobi counterparts, but capable in their own way. Since they don't have chakra, and since guns can be taken apart and made to look like harmless baubles when disassembled, they can cross borders with ease and never be found by sensors. Then they just set up, watch their targets, flag down a shinobi messenger and send their reports while they head back."

Dai nodded, "I don't know what to say, Hibiki. That's a very powerful village you... Teague, commands."

"Quality over quantity. Right now, Teague's keeping an eye on our war, writing a non-aggression pact with Iron, and fostering an Alliance with Snow." Hibiki paused, "Dai, Snow has _industry._ Actual, honest-to-god, _industry._ Trains, zeppelins, I saw cannons that shot kunai - and _power armor._ They've got power armor!" He let a genuine grin stretch across his face as he said this. "Teague's been real interested in how they got all that... _I'm_ hoping it's either, A, they entered a renaissance on their own and Teague's job won't be as hard as initially planned, or B, they _found_ it, and learned from it, suggesting that there could be some kind of Japanese NORAD, or maybe ruins of a city, or something they could have found and translated." He sighed.

Dai smiled, "I'll take credit for that idea, Hibiki. Don't think I forgot I introduced you to the idea that Yuki had things you would be interested."

Hibiki chuckled. "Fine, fine, dear fiance, have your moment." He eyed the remaining pizza, but refrained. "So... While that's all been going on, over here, I've been studying the Rinnegan." He explained, "it's been a _long_ damn process... That thing burns chakra like it's going out of style. I only got a baseline knowledge on what it could do... Chakra absorption, mass manipulation, summoning techniques, shared vision and sensory details between shadow clones... Shit, that thing could create matter from chakra - it could skip the shadow clones needed for Something from Nothing. Just draw straight from the source. Bread? Warm and fluffy. Water? Pure and filtered. Oil? Flowed like water. There was more - I swear I think it was _telling me_ there was more... Like some kind of instinct - but I ran out of time. While I was looking for whatever else it could do, Runner faked Kushina's kidnapping. Things kept happening... And then Facsim and Aojiroi went after you.

"So... To get to the question you asked... After I patched you up, I went to America and got Zetsu's attention." He saw Dai stiffen up, her eyes growing wide behind her glasses as she realized what he was about to say. "I sold them to him for the memories from the shadow clone, five years ago. I got access to, and mastery of... _All_ of my bloodlines -" He snapped his fingers. "- just like that." His hand briefly turned to intangible smoke to demonstrate his point. "And that was just for one eye." Back grew his bones, tendons, muscle and skin, with Hibiki noticing that his hand hadn't gotten torn up, this time. "The second eye... The short version is that it boosted my Sharingan's power. The long version is... With the power I unlocked after Iwa, if I kept using it I would have eventually gone blind... Unless my healing abilities did something about it, but I didn't want to take that risk. So for the second eye, I had Zetsu remove that from the table, an eternal Mangekyo." He rumbled.

"He could _do_ that?"

"It was a gamble, but I had a hunch, and proof to operate from." Hibiki explained, "so I got _all_ of my bloodlines, and eyes powerful enough to replace the Rinnegan." And a set of direct orders from Dante to try and figure out what his 'unique Mangekyo ability' was, though for the life of him he had no idea what the Hokage was rambling about.

"You actually did that, Hibiki? You gave _it_ the Rinnegan?"

Hibiki grinned, "have some faith in your fiance, Dai." Said Hibiki, "remember how I dealt with the Jashinists?" He pointed upwards, "I flew them out into space and chucked them at the sun. See... Ever since the first gun came and killed the Sandaime, I've been getting one long lesson in that it's demonstrably easier to kill a shinobi than it is to fight one. That's the same principle Teague's operating under, for his civilian militia. Sarutobi died from one gunshot, Otsutsuki and his men all died from a gunshot... Konoha almost got conquered with guns, Kiri _did..._ The question was my healing factor, but Zetsu and Arjuna taught me how to get around that. Zetsu almost killed me from hypoxia, and Arjuna showed me that all the healing factors in the world can't undo rapid and repeated blunt force trauma to the head. You get choked out eventually, you knocked out eventually.

"Yuga was the test on this lesson. Zetsu and the Undead were its natural conclusion. It is easier to kill god than it is to fight him." He explained.

Dai's mouth was agape, as she looked upon her Senju with new eyes. "You killed Zetsu?"

"I didn't let go until the heat of the sun was setting us both on fire." Hibiki explained, an inkling of pride in his voice. "Zetsu is _dead,_ Dai. Hagoromo _lost!"_

Dai couldn't help but smile as well, "Hibiki..."

"Then..." Hibiki nodded, "then I went for Katsuo's group. They were hiding out in the valley of the end, so again I put my theory to work. I distracted them long enough for a few thousand shadow clones to submerge themselves in the lake, and once my trap was set, I sprang it, pulled them all in the deep, and drowned each and every one of them." He held up four fingers, "there's only _four left,_ Dai. Four Undead between the world and _peace._" He sighed from behind a genuine smile, "can you fuckin' believe it?"

Dai shook her head. "No, I cannot." But while her body answered automatically, her mind, and her eyes, were locked onto Hibiki's. The shocking jolt this last part of his story provided placed a lot of things in perspective for her, and now she could see, hidden behind his blood red eyes, the very thing she always saw him hiding, but had never been able to identify: _Doubt._ He had absolutely no idea if he had made the right decision on any account, not with Teague and Ame, or with Zetsu and the Undead, and there was a crippling fear keeping that doubt afloat, but of what, she couldn't tell. Was it fear of what he was capable of? Fear of peace? Or fear for the lives he may lose in this final stretch? He was masking it all, whether he knew it or not, with that confidence and bravado he put on. The constant attempts to make her and everyone else laugh, the joy he showed at the prospect of peace not just in his time, but imminently, it all hid a crippling fear and a consuming doubt. He was doing it again, whether he knew it or not.

He was _lying._

He did it the same way every time - one truth for one lie. It fooled many, but not those who knew him best, and not her. He always did it the same way, and the bigger the lie, the grander the truth. Here he had just spilled truths that could get him killed, or worse. His greatest secrets, all to mask perhaps the biggest lie he had ever told. He wasn't okay at all - he was just as shattered by not just these past few days, but these last months and years, as she was. If he was doing it on purpose, she didn't know. If he wasn't even aware that he was burying it all, she couldn't tell. All she did know was that he was trying to remain strong, trying to put on that front so his closest allies could use him as a pillar to lean on, a symbol to look up to.

On the outside, he was a giant stone pillar, but behind those eyes, he was a glass tower with a splintered foundation. Suddenly Dai realized they had come a lot closer to something much worse than a clan feud, when Hibiki had drawn his weapon on Shibi. Just as she felt an indescribable, unending pain for having failed him day in and day out since the day he had trusted her with his story, he was in the same pain, experiencing the same fear, grappling with the same doubt.

"Hibiki." Those red eyes that hid Hibiki Senju behind the Thunder God snapped down to her, and his thin eyebrows arced up questioningly. "Are you okay?"

He blinked, "Dai -"

_I'll be fine, I just want to help you._ She could see the words getting ready to spill out of his throat, and cut them off. "Hibiki." She said, with a lowered voice. She furrowed her brow, as she tried to come up with the right words to get him to open up, to stop trying to defend himself, be it from her, or, worse, from himself.

Unbidden, a memory floated through her mind. One of a conversation they'd had a long time ago. _I very much doubt you've ever felt the sweet, sweet embrace of a hot shower._ He had said.

She got to her feet, holding her hand out, while the other dug through her pocket for a wallet. "Come."

Hibiki arced an eyebrow, those pained red eyes boring holes into her amber orbs. "You have a wallet on those clothes you got this morning?" He grinned, taking her hand and sliding out of the booth.

"Then pay for the food, Hibiki." Dai said, poking him in the side. "And then take me to No-Rad. I want a hot shower. And you. And not in that order. And not separately." She let flow out in disjointed sentences, as she tried to figure out how she could keep up whatever momentum she had, here.

Her Senju gave her a curious look, but acquiesced. After dropping money on the table, he took her outside, asking if there was something she wanted to pick up. When she said no, to just take her to the mountain, he shrugged and wrapped his dense arm around her side, before placing two fingers to his forehead. Likely, she thought, he was under the impression he was helping her, that she was still trying to heal - not even considering that it was he who was being helped. Not even asking - just obeying, trying to help. Not even thinking about himself. Always someone else. Never him.

With a ripple of light, suddenly she was in darkness.

"Oh - hold on." Hibiki let go of her and she heard a few quick clacks, before lights began flipping on. "The last clone I had in here was here before Iwa. The lights are motion sensitive to conserve power... No motion, no lights, no power being used." He explained, straightening up and turning to Dai. "So... Decided you just up and wanted some old world magic, eh?"

Dai furrowed her brow, "something like that." She said, knowing full and well that of the two of them, he was the one who appreciated hot water more. He had practically sung its praises, after introducing it to her. "I've only been here once before, Hibiki. Are you going to show me where they are?" She asked, holding her hand out for him.

He took it, and she recognized the look he gave her. Those red eyes radiated an equal mixture of concern and curiosity, with the doubt and fear still buried underneath, glazed over by the time between their last conversation and now; no doubt he was trying to figure out of something was wrong with her, and trying to determine how he would help. That he was so quick to be able to shove even those small expressions as far down as he could told Dai that he'd been doing it a long time, and worse, was that it made sense. As he led her through the mountain, she realized exactly how long he had been lying about things, and burying them. He had lied about his origins for sixteen years running, about Ame for six more, and then with the weight of Katsuo and Zetsu on his shoulders he had been playing off the burden he had to bear. Much like how he had become ashamed with himself after seeing herself laid bare in the hospital, so too was she mortified at how much she had missed, considering the sheer amount of time they spent together.

_How am I going to do this?_ She asked, briefly looking down on him.

The corridors he led her down were familiar, and finally reaching the showers she felt a brief wave of memories. Despite the context of their return, experiencing the magic of Hibiki's people was something she remembered fondly, and she wasn't object to making a new memory with him, now. Packed in the showers were linens left by Hibiki's people, though no toiletries. Hibiki explained to her how those 'wouldn't keep well', and instead pulled some out of the web of seals he'd inked onto his body, as the two stripped down.

It was here that Dai began to get something of an idea of what she would be doing, here, as first Hibiki's coat slid off and revealed his dense, wiry arms, and then off came his shirt to reveal the web of seals on his chest, arms, and back, including the one right above his heart, with the word for soul in its center. She saw the myriad of scars that he had collected over his sixteen years, a gnarly burn stretching across a large portion of his back and more than a few stab wounds and penetration scars. She knew enough through exposure about his shikotsumyaku to be aware of the fact that it didn't leave scar tissue behind: all of the scars she saw were from moments where he was so low on chakra that his healing factor had shifted focus to keeping his organs working in order; when he had been close to a second death.

A smile pulled at the corner of her mouth when she noticed just the slightest hesitation as he began pulling his pants off. How cute: they'd had had sex, nearly a child, and here he was hesitating over a shower - and one of _his_ showers to boot. Not to let him a moment to think about things too much, Dai soon joined him, stripping herself down and taking no small amount of pride in feeling his eyes briefly dart over her, as more skin showed. Pride that soon turned to dolor as she realized that, once her shirt had came off, with her back to him, the scars on her back, given by that Undead woman, would be laid bare.

She knew they held some sort of meaning for him, beyond her simply being hurt. She recognized that they spelled out some word in his language, but she knew precious few of those, and what was on her back, _'LIAR',_ it was not one of those words. To shift his attention onto something less gruesome, she turned to face him as she slid her feet out of her shoes.

"You know..." She said, as her eyes darted up to Hibiki's boots, discarded and leaned up against a row of metal lockers. "You never told me why you wear boots, and not open-toed shoes. Do your feet not sweat?"

She heard Hibiki snort, "oh, something fierce." He rumbled in his pubescent baritone, "but I'll put it to you like this: Being raised on open-toed shoes your entire life, would you switch to closed-toe boots if you had the choice?"

She shrugged, "I guess not." She responded, sitting down on a bench and sliding out of her pants as she did so.

"So... Are _you_ okay? I would've thought you'd want to sleep, after these last few days." Hibiki commented, after sliding off the last of his clothing and grabbing a towel. Though she didn't know, a thought idly passed through his mind about whether or not sharing a public shower, and a military one at that, could be considered romantic.

"Hibiki - neither of us are okay. Not after Iwa, and especially not now." Dai responded, "and that's why we're here." She reached back to unclasp her brassiere, "you've always sang the hot springs praises, how they help you relax. Meanwhile..." She looked up at him from behind her bangs, as her undergarments came off and her porous, pallid skin was shown bare, to contrast with Hibiki's combat-bred tan. "You decided it prudent to tease me for five -no, six years, now. Only allowing me to experience your people's magic, stress-relieving hot water once, while you hogged it to yourself for the better part of a half decade." She stood to her feet, taking a towel from Hibiki. "I need this, you need this, and we both need to not have to deal with Chota-san. Nice as he may be, that kind of euphoria isn't what we need." She darted her eyes down to his chest, "are you going to remove your mother's necklace?" She asked, an eyebrow arced as she brushed her heir out of her face.

Hibiki blinked, and looked down. "Oh, shit." He pulled it off of his neck, "I forget it's there half the time." He tossed it to his pile of clothes, and Dai took the chance to take him by the hand and drag him deeper inside.

The two hung their towels on a distant pipe, and Dai let Hibiki worry about summoning the water and ensuring its heat, taking a shower head lining one of the walls, against which was a bench. Once the room began to fill with steam and the humidity jumped, Dai lightly kicked at the back of Hibiki's knees. "Sit." She ordered, to receive a curious glance from her fiance. She didn't budge, "sit!" She repeated, "I can make you, you know." Her hands slowly became covered in the viscous purple substance. "I would love to see what they can do to your spine." A pause, "you like to tell me how bandit poison can slow down your healing abilities, as it tries to compensate and fight the poison at the same time. What do you think would happen when it comes under assault by Rinkaichu?"

This made Hibiki back down, raising both hands in a placative gesture as he sat down on the bench, right under the stream of water. As Dai grabbed for some body wash, she sent a silent command to her insects to plug up the pores in her skin; it wouldn't completely eliminate any water getting in and irritating them, but it would help. The Queens would appreciate it. When she turned back to face Hibiki, she saw how much the stream of hot water had changed things: In just those few seconds she had looked away, Hibiki's broadening shoulders slumped a few inches and she saw the tension in his muscles visibly begin to unravel.

She stepped into the stream herself, shuddering as she felt the unnatural feeling of a stream of warm, heated water pouring over her body. "When was the last time you relaxed, Hibiki?" She asked, tenderly reaching forward to grasp at his trapezius.

She heard him grunt, and felt the air moving out of his back as he spoke. "You say that like I'm _always_ in here. These showers use power and fuel to work, can't just hop in here whenever it suits my fancy." He said, "last time I was in _here,_ specificaly... Probably when Teague took power. Felt it was a good enough occasion." Years ago, if she understood his story correctly. "Last time for a hot spring, though... A while ago. A few months before Iwa."

She rubbed at his back as he spoke, trying her best to help his muscles unravel underneath his skin, though she had to admit she was far from a masseuse, and Hibiki had shown her long ago that the very same effect could be achieved with medical chakra. She and him were silent for several minutes, enjoying the hot water, and he enjoying her hands on his back, before she finally took a figurative step back and actually looked at it. His entire body was covered in scars and fuinjutsu, either self-inked or, as was the case with the seal on his chest and on his neck, donated.

"What's in here?" Dai asked, pouring a dollop of bodywash into her hand, and gingerly spreading it across his right shoulder blade, upon which was a seal with 'Rifle'.

She heard him groan, almost drowned out by the downpour of steaming hot water. "That one... A gun. Used to be one I made myself, but once we found NORAD, I looted a few professionally made ones."

"And here?" There were several smaller seals linked to the main one, like parts of a spiderweb.

"Other kinds." He grunted, keeping his eyes on the ground in front of him. "One meant to shoot longer distances... Shorter distances... Shoot more bullets in a shorter amount of time..." He trailed off.

"I always knew you had these, but never how many." Dai commented, as his back became covered in substance. "Why?"

"Sometimes it's easier to kill the Batman, Dai." Said Hibiki, "like how I drowned the Undead instead of killing them. These things are last resorts. If I'm in a fight I can't win... More often than not, a bullet will win it for me." He explained. "Though, I say that, when it's usually that the fights I'd think a gun would be useful are rendered moot because my opponent is either too durable, or heals too quick. Realistically, they're more for folks not worth spending the chakra on... Or when a clone doesn't have any to begin with." He shrugged.

Dai hummed, nodding as she washed his back. Soon she saw the scar tissue, lancing from his abdomen up to his right shoulder blade. "Where did these burns come from?"

"Hm..." She could imagine Hibiki frowning, "Yui. The Viper. Right before I fought Katsuo the first time, she filled the room with acid and gas. I lit it, but didn't have the chakra to heal, so it made scars." He snorted, "paid her back quick, though. Bullet in the braincase." He didn't mention it, but she did remember seeing the same woman after he had escaped her, all those years ago. Clearly his attempted retribution hadn't worked.

She moved lower, tracing her fingers around several thin stab wounds, as if he had been gored by arrows. "Do I even want to know?"

"I would hope so, you were there for those. Zetsu gave them to me, tried shredding my lungs before he took one of my shadow clones." Hibiki explained.

Dai frowned, remembering that she had only arrived for the final portion of that battle, and the only injury she saw was the horrible gash on his stomach. She finished scrubbing his back and moved to his hair.

"The point here... Hibiki, is that you do not heal from everything." Dai finally said, after lathering his scalp. "You have scars, just as does everyone else... But just like everyone else, I can only see the ones you cannot hide." She leaned forward, lifting his head a bit and rinsing the soap from his hair, using the opportunity to peer down his chest, where she saw ever more scars, including the faded remnants of the stomach wound she had thought of earlier. She leaned down to Hibiki's ear. "Tell me if you're in pain, Hibiki." She said, wrapping her arms around his neck. "Tell me if you're okay."

She felt him let out a light chuckle. "So... That's your plan, eh? Get me naked and defenseless, treat me to a hot shower... Wash my back and spill my guts?"

She smiled despite herself, "please, Hibiki."

She felt him wrap a wet hand around her own. "Can it wait, Dai?" He rumbled.

She shook her head, "no. We'll stay here, naked and defenseless, for as long as we must, but I cannot try to help you if I do not know what it is that ails you." She pressed her hands and his to his chest, as the hot water beat down on them both. "It's just us, here. You and me... Your skin against mine."

"I can't get anything past you, can I?"

"Not forever, Hibiki." Dai tightened her hug around her Senju, "I know your tells."

She heard him sigh deeply. He was silent for what felt like an interminable amount of time, before she heard his voice again. "Dai... I beat Runner within an inch of his life." He let out, slowly. "I stole his chakra to make sure he couldn't heal, and I beat him black and blue until I couldn't physically lift my arm anymore... And whenever he got close to dying, I pumped medical chakra into his system, and did it all over again, until my hands and feet were swollen and covered in his blood." She felt him grip her hand tighter as he spoke. "I was so angry, and I didn't even know about the baby. _Christ,_ I was out there for hours, just... Beating him senseless." A pause, "he was crying by the end of it, and he finally died when I pumped medical chakra into his head with no wounds to heal." A beat, in which only the sound of running water filled the silence. "Do you know what happens when you do that? Unchecked, rampant cellular division. It gives people rapid and explosive cancerous growths - I gave him super cancer and blew up his head. Popped it like a ripe cherry, and then as I fell back, caked in blood and gore, I asked myself... Am I a good person?"

Had Dai not been expecting that very question, she would have felt her heart do more than simply slow down in her chest. "Hibiki -"

"I was wondering what Tsunade would have thought about what I did. Using her medical techniques, the good ones she's only shown to me and Shizune, to harm instead of heal. I wondered what Uncle J would have thought, torturing my enemy with no cause... What Uncle Oh would've thought, playing with my food, as it were. What Minato and Kushina would have thought, if they saw what I was doing in their name. Heard his bones breaking, saw his skin splitting, my hands and feet getting covered in his gore... Saw the people below the steel surface of the lake. If they'd _felt_ their throats just... Pop, before they went really still and the bubbles stopped leaking out." He let out a shaky breath, "I... I wondered what you would've thought, if you'd seen it. Where this would have fallen on your scale of acceptable evils..." His breath caught in his chest. "Dai...

"What would David Semloh have thought about me?" Hibiki continued. "What would he have thought of a man who, by the actual, literal definition, committed a mass murder? What would he think about the man who ended more lives than he'd saved? What would he think of a man who obliterated an entire village because he got proud over a glorified arm-wrestling contest? What would he think about the guy who smashed a village and played its inhabitants like puppets for _years_ so he could take it over and try to essentially kickstart what was basically a new world order? Who all but sold his soul for power? David was a good man, Dai. Not perfect, but good. He saved lives and helped people... Even -" He snorted, "- even if they were calling Nine-One-One because they kicked a metal door and couldn't understand why their foot was hurting. He made fun of them, and smiled a _hell_ of a lot more than I do... But he was good... And I think if he saw what I did and what I've done he'd be ashamed.

"I've killed more people in hours than he ever saw in his life. I've commanded honest-to-god miracles, and crossed that threshold, to use them to kill people. Half the time I don't fight because I have to, but because I _want_ to, and after I spent hours upon hours just beating the holy shit out of Runner... You once told me that there's a gray area that shinobi operate in. Acceptable evils, you called it. Even David would agree with that, because there were people even back then who daily committed the definition of evil so as to take on that burden and preserve what little good there was." He swallowed through a dry throat, "but how many people have I killed versus how many I've saved? Really think about it - I don't think more people have benefited from me than have been hurt.

"What is the difference between me and Katsuo? Or me and the Sage of Six Paths? Because I'm rapidly losing the ability to find any." He let out in one, long breath.

Dai shifted position, sitting down next to Hibiki and wrapping an arm around his chest, just as he liked to do to her. She noticed, as she considered her response, that he leaned into it, just as she would, making her briefly smile to how similar they really were. He, just as she, loved the affection, and physical contact. "Hibiki, I've said this to you before. I'll say it again, as many times as I must: You're not a bad person."

He turned to look at Dai, those red eyes locked onto her own. _"Am I?"_ He stressed, the water from the pipes streaming down his face.

"That you question these things, and want to know, _means_ you are, Hibiki." Dai responded with conviction. "You _try._ Katsuo and the Sage, they didn't. And this... David, you speak of... If he would be ashamed of you, I would invite him to truly attempt to shoulder what you do each day."

This, however, had the opposite intended effect, as his eyes sunk low and his shoulders slumped. "Dai... That was my name before I died."

Dai felt her heart run cold, as she desperately tried to steel her expression before it revealed the panic that was welling up in her chest. How had she not made that connection? "Hibiki -"

"Listen, Dai. I'm not him anymore, and I know that. I've been put through things that I didn't even know were possible to be put through. I've been given things I didn't even know existed. But I always thought that... Because I am the sum of what I've seen - I am both David's memories and Hibiki's experiences - that there would be this... I don't know... Universal sort of rulebook I would operate on. Things I wouldn't compromise on, even in the face of Arma-fucking-geddon." He sighed, "shit... I thought I could be a hero. Does that sound familiar?" He briefly glanced over at Dai.

"Hibiki, you -"

"And here I am. Just like him. Killing everyone in my way that doesn't agree with me. Forcing those who won't die or are too important, to think like I do. And when things don't go my way, I get pissed off." He said, before he reached forward to turn up the heat on the shower. "And I kill some more. I almost killed Shibi - an _ally - _pretty much because he hurt my feelings. Whether or not it was a beetle clone, it doesn't matter. I'm not a good person anymore, Dai. If I ever was. If David could meet me now, he'd be ashamed." His head sunk low, "god damn it, Dai, I'm scared of what I'm becoming. Power corrupts, and pride comes before the fall. I'm terrified that one day I'll get proud of how strong I am, and exert my will over everyone else. Those who don't conform won't live to regret it. I'm not a good person, Dai. Not with the things I've done."

"Hibiki, please don't say these things." Dai said, lowly, as the hotter water began turning their skin red, as if it were trying to burn their sorrows away. "_Katsuo_ is evil. _Katsuo_ is a bad person. He doesn't try to protect... _Anything!"_ She had almost said anything that he didn't care about, but quickly realized that would be counterproductive. After all, what did Hibiki fight for, but his loved ones? "But you do. You _try, _Hibiki. He works selfishly and doesn't care for what he does, but you _don't._ You care enough to mourn those you kill, those you can't save. Just because you enjoy the things you do doesn't mean you aren't righteous." A pause, "you compare yourself to who you were, but that's not far. Not to him and not to you. Back then, when you answered to David, you lived in a different world, were raised in a different environment and around different people. A peaceful time not at all like the time or the world you live in now. It's nature versus nurture, Hibiki; that you were a different man then is only _natural._

"It was then you were _raised,_ Hibiki. You..." She paused, but decided that this may be what he needs. "You live in a new world, now. You may have done bad things, but you are not a bad person, Hibiki. Because you live in a new time, and a new world. You are a new _man,_ with new experiences. You aren't David, and you aren't even Teague - the first is a dead man, and you yourself said the latter is simply an act to be played. You are Hibiki, and you're torturing yourself by comparing yourself to the ideals and conventions of a dead society. One in which power was stored..." She leaned forward and rapped her knuckles on the hot metal pipes. "In metal and machines, not people. But you don't live in that world, Hibiki, you must stop clinging to it. You must stop comparing yourself to it... Or I fear what you did to Runner may not be the worst to come." She reached forward and turned his face to hers. "Your world is dead, Hibiki... You've grown, since David died and Hibiki was born. You _do_ save lives, Hibiki, just not necessarily in the same way. You're a warrior, but _war_ is in the name. People die and evil things happen in war. What you do is ensure you keep those death and that evil from your home. Enjoying it doesn't make you a bad person, Hibiki. Growing your power and taking pride in your accomplishments - that's not _evil!_"

He tried to turn away, but she held firm. "Look at me, Hibiki. Drop your sharingan, stop hiding and please look at me." He was silent and still for several long minutes, hot water beating down on them both, before the black tomoe in his eyes expanded to turn those red eyes into his beautiful onyx orbs. She saw the emotions the dojutsu was masking gush out as the light caught them, and she felt her heart clench in her chest. "Do you see this?" She asked, removing her hand from around his waist and holding it up for him to inspect. "You gave this to me after I begged you to help me." She said, fingering the ring. "But I wouldn't ask you to help me if I wouldn't try to help you. So please, listen to me.

"You're not a bad person... Hibiki. You're not evil, you're not Katsuo and you're not the Sage. But most of all... You aren't that man anymore. You aren't David. He couldn't survive in this world - and you are living proof of that. He would have to change, adapt. Because the standards of his world, they wouldn't apply now. Their ethics wouldn't fit. You need to accept this, Hibiki." She cupped his face with both hands. "You need to move on." She said, shakily. "Be here, and now, with me, in this world. Not then, and there, with your older self, in that one. You were good then, just as you were good now. The only thing that changed is in what way." She could see her words were getting through to him. His resolve and his defenses were crumbling around them, to the point where he was physically deflating, from the imposing Thunder God to her Senju. Never again would she question the magic of hot water. She went for the kill.

"We are both in pain, Hibiki. I almost died... Our child did die. You nearly broke yourself and you've tortured yourself over all the things you could have done... But what matters isn't what could have happened, but what _has_ happened. Yes, you killed those Undead... You hurt Runner. But you're still alive. I am. Minato is, Kushina is - everyone you care about is still here, Hibiki. So what you are doing is working. But you need to understand that the past... It isn't something to be clung to. It should be respected and learned from, but left alone." She sighed, "please, Hibiki. Don't say those things. You're a good man, and nothing you ever do could change what I think."

Hibiki let out a long, exhausted sigh, that went unheard under the deluge of hot water. He took one of her wrists in his and slowly removed it from his face, "I don't know if I can, Dai." He rumbled, "but..." He slid his hand down, to take her hand in his own. "I'll try... As long as you're there with me, I'll try."

Dai let out a long breath and smiled, leaning her head against Hibiki's and letting the hot water pour down them both. "Hibiki, you say that as if I'll be leaving you sometime soon." She gripped his hand tighter, "you gave me a ring, my soon-to-be husband. It will take a lot more than self doubt to drive me away."

Hibiki chuckled, "sometime you'll get tired of me bitching and moaning so much. Wish you'd run out when I gave you the chance."

Dai simply laughed alongside him and gave him a peck on the lips. "It's why I love you, Hibiki."


	77. Loop: Wibbly Wobbly -I-

Chapter 76

* * *

Whenever Hibiki found himself in America, these days, he found himself never able to get used to the silence that had settled upon the post-human ruins of the formerly modern world. It was an unnatural stillness that permeated the air, only broken sometimes and only briefly by distant animals or the sound of the wind blowing. Before, and even now where the last vestiges of human society picked themselves up from rubble they knew not even existed, there was a white-noise that signaled something perhaps beautiful, in its own right: Civilization. The sounds of commerce, people talking, goods being exchanged, animals calling, there was a comfort to knowing that somewhere nearby there were people living their lives, but here? Not so much.

Hibiki and Dai spent the rest of their day finishing up their shower and using the once proud military base for completely inappropriate uses: Ancient movies and, a new addition to the routine, Hibiki coaching Dai on her English. She surprised him at how much she absorbed in just short of a dozen hours instruction, going from just one sentence to being able to follow along, somewhat, to the conversations being played out on the big screens in the command center. She still wasn't anything even approaching conversational, but she knew exponentially more now than she had when she'd woken up that morning.

The both of them enjoyed their night together. Dai liked seeing Hibiki smile in fond memory, at the moving images playing out on the screen. The 'classics', he called them; they played some of his favorites and he showed her things he was certain she would have liked. There was a movie about a man who thought he was in a storybook, and heard voices in his head, and one where nearly a dozen people in colorful attire beat eachother senseless in an airport, and another one about two men, one old and one young, that ended with the elder donning a suit of armor so they could beat eachother to death in an alley. Dai had no problems admitting she actually found herself enjoying more the films about the man who went on a global killing spree because some arrogant fool killed his dog, he reminded her of Tsume. When she told this to him, Hibiki immediately leaned forward onto the console and started searching up something new, and the two found no small amount of amusement when he pulled up a series of movies about people who all lived under a shared genjutsu, fueled by some sort of a machine that was also out to kill everyone not in said genjutsu. Pointing out the innumerable errors and fallacies in the movie's fight scenes, as compared to how they would have happened were it a real encounter. Even Dai found herself laughing more than once, a rarity, in these increasingly trying times. As the night drew to a close, they ended on what he claimed to be the end-all, his most favorite, a movie about an ailing old man with claws in his hands.

Now, however, they found themselves standing in the tunnel that led deep into the belly of the mountain. Hibiki was standing in front of the console he had once stood in front of, years ago, the very same console that had led him inside, that would also lock him out. He leaned up against it, turning his gaze from the dimly lit screen, to the opened, dark tunnels leading back inside, their enormous metal doors sitting wide open. That he was even considering this meant, to Dai, that he wasn't even near the point of no return, mentally speaking. He was more than willing to try to fix himself, to work for it.

All he had to do was move on, no matter how painful it was. His world was gone, and dead, and torturing himself by inhabiting its still corpse would not help him at all. She understood why he wanted to hold on - this mountain and everything in it, it was all he had of his old world, no one in their right mind would spurn that - but what it was doing to him was unhealthy, it was leading to these increasingly common moments of mental breakage. He was holding himself to their standards, was obeying their morals, and was trying to live a life by their rules, when all three were inadmissible in the modern world. Their standards didn't apply when a 'global scale' hardly even stretched across an island-nation, let alone the planet. Their morals weren't proper when the world at large had regressed to a feudal system, and had to deal with increasingly larger and larger scale wars and more powerful people, coming closer and closer to home with every generation. Their rules couldn't be heeded when people could crack the earth with a finger, and similar people were needed to defend against that, and to kill if need be. If Hibiki continued living by his people's standards, it would do far worse than kill him.

For this reason, Dai placed her dainty hand on his shoulder, prompting him to look at her. She didn't say anything - if she were to be honest, a part of her would come to miss their ancestor's miracles. Technology and hot water, chief among them. But for Hibiki to improve, he couldn't even bring those home with him. They all had to stay - every book, every ancient device, every scrap of his old world. He had to heal himself, and to do so, he had to move on. Maybe one day they could come back, maybe one day when he wasn't hounded by Katsuo and beaten by his guilt, but until then, to heal him and to help him finally, after sixteen years, begin the process of moving on, they had to leave the lonely mountain behind. They had to allow America and his ancestors to finally let go of their last breath, to bequeath the earth not in memory but in spirit. The only thing she felt was appropriate for him to keep, was perhaps the only thing he would have outright refused to drop: His language. He had told her that a person had once said that it was no nation people inhabit, but a language; that one's native language was their true fatherland. Dai felt it appropriate for Hibiki, and knew speaking English to him could potentially help. It would bring them closer, would link them in a way that no one else could share. He would have fond memories, and they, something that no one else had.

Dai nodded once, and Hibiki, lips pursed, clenched his chest and turned his head to the console. He tapped a few buttons, and stood up straight as the winding gears and massive steel doors began to grind. Hibiki took a few steps back and watched as the doors ground shut, placing his hands in his dark coat, his brow furrowed as the ancient steel doors sealed off the mountain. Dai hooked her hand through the loop of one of his arms and leaned against him, reminding him of her presence, as he allowed the ruins of his old world to seal themselves away for the final time.

The mountain finished closing with a loud, final-sounding thump of metal against stone. There was the sound of steel rolling as enormous bars stuck firm into the base of the mountain and fortified the entryways, and finally, the silence that pervaded almost the entirety of the modern world. The mountain settled, the base sealed, and the first humans to have beheld it in centuries took just a moment longer to take it in.

After a while, he nodded once, prompting Dai to straighten up. "Are you ready?"

"Almost." He said, "if... If I'm closing the door on this chapter of my life, there's one place I want to go, that I've been putting off for a long time."

"And where would that be?" Dai asked, as she pushed the glasses up the bridge of her nose.

"Scariest place on planet earth." Muttered Hibiki, as he braced his hand on the back of Dai's head, pressing it against her hood. "Hold your breath."

Dai did so, and in less than the time it took her to blink, she found herself and Hibiki outside of the mountain, a pale white contrail following them and dissipating in the air. She blinked as her vision, enshrouded by her shades, found herself in a field, surrounded by dead, gray grass and large, ancient slabs of stone laid out in a gridlike pattern. The two of them stood at the foot of one such stone, which Dai looked down upon. It was covered by an equally ancient skeleton, its chin pressed against its chest and its arms at its sides.

Hibiki hummed, removing his hand from Dai's head and stowing them in his pockets. "Must've not wanted to die alone." He thought, kneeling down to face-level with the skeleton. "Picked a hell of a place to sit and rest." He respectfully picked the body up and moved it over a few feet, to uncover the headstone.

It was ancient and weathered, and Dai squinted her eyes at it. "Is..."

Hibiki grinned, "can speak but can't read?"

"_Not well."_ Dai said in his language, pouting.

_"Oh yeah?"_ He snorted, "sound it out, I know you can do that. We'd learn both at the same time."

"Hibiki, I'll sound like a child."

"Well you are half my age, Dai-chan."

"Say that again, I dare you." Dai glared at her fiance, whose grin didn't drop, as he nodded to the headstone below. She frowned and turned her gaze back to the ground. _"Day... Vihd... Sem... Law." _She said slowly. _"Barn... _I don't know what those are..." She sighed, but Hibiki's silence, and the grin on his face, beckoned her continue.

Hibiki chuckled, "close. But that bit there -" He pointed at the headstone, "L-O-H, pronounced like 'low'. Makes it David Semloh. Both times you used the short 'O', which makes things sound like 'law', 'soft', and so on. Here you've got examples of a _long_ 'O', makes things like 'oh', 'bow', 'arr_ow'..._ That second word, _born,_ meaning 'born', and those symbols there, being numbers. The first set, when the person was born, the second, when they died. Put it together... _David Semloh, born..._ So on and so forth."

Dai's shoulders slumped, "is this _your_ grave?" She blinked, recognizing the name from earlier.

Hibiki grunted in the affirmative. "I'd always wanted an epitaph." He said. "Like... I dunno -"

"He died as he lived." Dai picked up, "waiting for his better half." She wrapped her arm around his.

"Insulting a dead man, Dai. I thought you were better than that." Hibiki deadpanned, staring down at the headstone with a light grin on his face.

Dai hummed, he felt her twisting the ring around on her finger as she leaned against him. "Are you okay?" She whispered to him.

Hibiki shook his head honestly. "No." He rumbled, "I'm standing above my own thousand-odd year old grave... It's kind of surreal." He said. "I'll admit, I've been avoiding this place." He explained. "Didn't want to accept it, I suppose. Didn't want to be confronted with the reality that David well and truly is dead... I'm just his soul and memories, piloting a different body." He explained.

"You are _you_, Hibiki." Dai stressed, running her hand down his arm. "Your memories as David simply help guide who you are."

Hibiki snorted, "I suppose he is to me, just like Teague is. I am always _me,_ but then..." He nodded to the headstone, "I was him. Was David. And there..." He nodded to the side, "I am Teague." She heard his breath catch in his throat, and a moment later, "can you do me a favor?"

"Of course." She stressed.

"Your shokaichu. Can you use them to see if the body's there?" A beat, "my body?"

Dai nodded, "you need only ask." She said, as she straightened an arm and out fell a few pairs of earthworms. They hit the ground with light plops and were digging without delay, quickly sinking into the nothing as Hibiki and Dai maintained eye contact with his headstone. "So... How did funerals occur, back then?"

Hibiki chuckled, "_that_ I don't know." He said, "never went to any. Never thought I'd be that sentimental. Always said I'd want a party thrown when I'd died, so people equated my death with one last happy memory, a lot of alcohol, and a lot of noise. Bagpipes and Amazing Grace, about the length of my knowledge."

Dai hummed, "a party following a death. That sounds nice, actually, if the alternative is mourning."

"That was my thought process." A beat, "and I usually wouldn't offer up the explanation until they asked _why_ I'd want a party. That way the implication would be I'd expect everyone would be happy and partying when I died." He laughed.

Dai too chuckled, before sobering up as she heard back from the earthworms. "Are you ready?"

Hibiki nodded.

"It's there. You're there." She said, slowly.

Hibiki grunted. "Hm..." He said, his head lowering in a bow. "So... I am literally standing at my grave, next to my own dead skeleton." A nod, "_fuck."_

Dai watched Hibiki stare pensively down at his grave, a furrow to her brow. "What are you thinking?" She asked, running her hand down his arm.

"This thing I saw the Tsuchikage do." Said Hibiki, "called the Dust Release." He lifted both of his hands, spreading out his fingers and forming a light cage with a space between them. "Wouldn't you know it..." The muscles and tendons in his callused fingers tensed, and chakra began to radiate outwards, as a pale, opaque cube appeared in the space between his hands; inside the cube, a white orb radiating light like waves appeared. "Kenichi stuck a bit of that in me, too... Two problems, though."

"Hm?" Dai said, her eyes flicking from the opaque cube and the orb within, to Hibiki, a single bead of sweat running down the side of his head.

"One is that it takes time to get going. Onoki had pretty much had it mastered and it still took him about a minute to get it going. Me, Zetsu gave me access, and I saw Onoki use it in his way, but it still takes time." He explained, "two, is that it takes some chakra to do. I think..." He squinted his red eyes, "it has something to do with the three chakra natures it draws on... Of which, I only have one. So..." He lowered his hands, pointing them to the ground below them. "Even with my stores, it may not be until I'm past puberty that I can use this as something approaching a primary weapon." The cube shot down to the ground.

"You speak as if you've more plans for it." Dai sensed her earth worms vanish, and saw Hibiki's arms drop. "Did you just mutilate your own corpse?"

"No. Just... Gave myself a cremation." He said, "if... Hm." He paused, "I just feel like I should." He explained. "I do have somewhat grander plans for it, but it'll take time to see them get any effect. You remember, as Iwa was happening, you came across my clone?"

She nodded, "the lakefront was smoldering, as you and Arjuna spoke."

Hibiki grunted, "yeah. I've been spending the last five years working on some kind of kill move for Katsuo and the Undead. I've been able to replicate the bijuu-dama in more ways than one, in my time, but my problem is that I've never been able to make it _perfect."_ He stuck his hands in his coat. "The kamehameha gets the look and the accuracy, but loses a lot of its power. My big bang attack gets the kilotonnage - hell, could probably go up to megatons if I forced it - but lacks the accuracy and precision. I've been trying to mix the two, get unrivaled power packed into unparalleled precision... But every time I try, boom."

"And you think the dust release can help you."

"I think it can seriously amp up the destructive capability, yes." Hibiki responded, "but the problem isn't how powerful it is. Just the method to contain and aim it. Even just a little pinprick hole in a softball sized mass of chakra is too much for me to handle. It'll crack wide open and - boom." He leaned back, "so you can understand why I won't be trying to incorporate this until I've got the last one done and ready."

She nodded, Hibiki disintegrating himself, or perhaps much more, wouldn't be good on any accounts. "I've seen Minato working on mastering shape transformation, as of late. Have you considered something similar?"

Hibiki's eyebrow arced, and a smile tugged at the corner of his lips. "Dai, are you spying on our friends?"

"It's my job, Hibiki. In some cases literally." Dai deadpanned.

Hibiki chuckled, "I'll give you that." He reached out, rubbing his hand up and down Dai's back. "Let's go home?"

She nodded, "let's go home." She affirmed, before Hibiki placed two fingers to his forehead, and the two vanished in a ripple of light.

They returned to Konoha with little fanfare. Many had assumed that their absence had just been the two retreating to solitude after the events of the previous few months, and since Hibiki's clones were still in Hot Water, holding the line and assisting in the war effort where needed, no questions were really asked. The two assisted their landlord and the genin they had hired in finishing up the repairs to their apartment, nearly getting Hibiki's neck broken by Tsunade when she happened across Dai using chakra to stand on a wall, helping move some debris into position. It had only been his and her swearing that they had been compliant with Tsunade's directions, and the former Senju head checking and confirming herself, that she let Hibiki off the hook. Of course, in this case, 'off the hook' was synonymous with 'buried his head in the ground and let him figure out how to un-bury it', but considering Hibiki had the newfound ability to become intangible, it wasn't much of a problem.

The two spent their month off duty resting and recovering the only way shinobi really knew how: Physical therapy. Hibiki helped Dai get her damaged muscles back into shape and helped her flex her chakra coils by being her test dummy for the rinkaichu, and Dai was there to see him acclimate his body to the sheer number of bloodlines he had sold the Rinnegan for. Smoke wasn't the strangest thing, truthfully - he had the ability to generate and bend lightning as if it were water in a stream, to manipulate magnetic materials like the kunai in Dai's weapons pouches, he could create ice from thin air, and do the exact opposite by controlling heat to boil it all away, or turn the ground around him molten. In spite of this newfound power, however, he found himself far more interested in hers, practically spending every waking moment he wasn't conditioning his own body, experimenting with her rinkaichu.

A part of her actually wondered if her father even knew what kind of power he had dominion over, as she listened to Hibiki explain to her the concepts of atoms and molecules, and how her rinkaichu were somewhere in between the two of those, in size. Theoretically, he said, there wasn't anything she couldn't use them to cut through, or even disintegrate, if she wanted - a theory he put to practice by using his lightning cloak and having her rinkaichu eat through it without absorbing the chakra first. The way he explained it, the way his lightning cloak worked was by generating something called electrons and saturating his body with them, which in turn gave his body an abundance of these things, allowing what he called 'covalent bonds' to not only increase in strength, but number. According to him, this should make him all but invulnerable, but with her rinkaichu's infinitesimal size, they ate right through it with little problem; he compared his armor to a bronze shield, and her rinkaichu to an iron knife. He could defend, but eventually, with work, she _would_ get through, it was just a matter of time.

"Hell, you might be able to eat Katsuo with this." He mused one day, as they sat in the shade of a tree and he poured warm green chakra in through her back. "I figured out a while back that you can get around his durability with a sharp enough blade, but the problem is he adapts and heals about as fast as you injure him. It's only raw force that makes wounds stick, but with those purple beetles..." He trailed off.

Dai couldn't resist a snide remark, and in her natural, airy voice, she said, "are you suggesting I could succeed where you could not, and defeat Katsuo the Monster?"

Hibiki simply snorted, "trying for a bingo book name, Dai? Monster Slayer?"

"Well I did tame the Thunder God." She grinned as she could almost _hear_ her fiance's teeth grit.

"Lady, I'm working on the Dust Release. You won't be showing me up for much longer."

"Of course, my dear." She hummed.

Unfortunately, their month wasn't all snide remarks and physical therapy. On the days where one or the both of them didn't want to train, or whatever left over from Dai's brief battle flared up again, they instead worked with paper. As Hibiki had predicted, while not difficult, considering the high-profile nature of her proclamation, separating Dai from the Aburame clan was a long process. By the time their month had come up, they had to have gone through enough paper to cut down an entire forest, and Hibiki was ready to swear to her that his healing factor was broken and his hand was going to fall apart. Dai simply laughed at him, but said little else, as she was more happy that he was assisting her in the process, than anything else. She had to get it done first, before she could marry into his clan, after all. The result had been that the two made so many trips back and forth between the Shinobi Messenger office, that Hibiki had ended up just planting a Hiraishin there so they could expedite the process.

Hibiki laughed one day, as he handed Dai papers that would, once process, legally strike 'Aburame' from her name. "You know this means you'll just be Dai 'Of the Leaf' for a while, after this."

"I think it still a better name than Thunder God." She remarked.

Hibiki may have given her a larger share of paper for that remark, but she took it with aplomb. It was endlessly entertaining to tease him about his entry in the book.

They weren't completely alone during their medical leave, either. Minato and Kushina both made frequent visits, as they all were on medical leave together. They even assisted with the paperwork on more than one occasion. Kushina, of course, had been completely healthy after but a day in the hospital, and Minato, one of the few shinobi in the world to actually obey a doctor's orders, was good to go within two weeks, but he kept up his medical leave to stay with his friends, even dropping a few hints to Hibiki about a 'cool secret project' he was working on, that he couldn't wait to get back to with more than just ailing shadow clones.

"Why..." Said Minato, as he pulled up a sheet of paper from the stack the to-be-wed couple had set aside as finished. "Do you have to list out living relatives if you're just cutting from your clan?"

"I am not just leaving my clan, but my entire family, Minato-san." Said Dai, as Hibiki handed her some paper to look over. "Everything must be in order, including living relatives. Legally, they no longer have an heir if I do this, and as such I must be aware on an official capacity that, for example, should they experience a sudden windfall and gain a large sum of money, or should I or they be injured, I and they have no rights to anything. The money, visitation, medical expenses, nothing will connect us save history." She explained, "this is fine." She handed the paper back to Hibiki, who placed it on top of the 'done' pile.

"Well, yeah, but..." Minato looked at the bottom of the paper, "who is Queen Kaimon? And why is she listed twice... No, wait, three times?" He turned the paper sideways.

"It should only be twice..." Dai looked over, "my mother summoned that queen, she doesn't have her anymore..." She reached for the paper.

Hibiki answered Minato as Dai looked over what he pointed out, "the Kikaichu queens are considered living relatives." He explained, "since they share hive minds and can provide information not just to their breeders, but to other queens given a link between two beetles, they're considered family."

Minato blanched, "really? Then why Kaimon?"

"They feed off of the chakra given off by our eight gates." Dai said dully, as she grabbed some white-out and erased the error on the paper. "In exchange for the Queens, we do not grow the gates. As more queens are born, they move onto the next gate until all eight are accounted for, usually by the time we finish growing in puberty." She explained. "So we name them by the gates they consume."

"I've heard Shimon hates me more than most." Hibiki chuckled.

"That sounds weird..." Minato shuddered. "And they live in your skin?"

"In our chakra pathways." Dai said, finishing the corrections on the sheet. "That reminds me, have I filled out the secrecy papers?"

"Ah shit, you're committing treason now, Dai." Hibiki narrowed his eyes, as the color in them washed away and they turned a translucent, milky-white. The veins on his temples bulged out and he stared intently at the pile of papers in front of them. "No, not yet." His eyes turned back to their normal, onyx state. "So you're good for now, missy. Won't have to turn you in to the Uchiha."

"So... New bloodline?" Minato asked, sliding another document across the table and to the side of the 'done' pile.

"Hm." Hibiki grunted, "two at the same time. Trying to practice with them... I combine one that lets me absorb chakra and make it my own, with another that lets me assume the physical form and bloodlines of anyone whose chakra I've sampled. I thought one day, shouldn't those two together let me copy bloodlines? Sure enough, I was right, but that's two bloodlines at once, so it takes some chakra to do, gives me one hell of a hangover, and in the case of Noboru's byakugan, I lose access to my Sharingan to do it." Hibiki responded. "Though fortunately it helps the narrative we made up, so, win... lose... win? I dunno. Still working the kinks out."

"I'm going to have to never let you touch me ever again, aren't I?" Minato grinned.

Hibiki looked up at him, and held his right hand up, upon which the two diamond markings glowed brightly. "You fast enough, Yellow Flash?" A pause, before an opaque orb sprouted out, the center of which glowed brightly. "Should I take out your legs?"

Minato, however, called Hibiki's bluff. "I've seen you playing with that, Hibiki. You can hardly get out three meters. Not even close to the mountain-obliterating stuff the Tsuchikage did."

Hibiki shrugged, "you're well within three meters now, you know."

"Boys, please, or I'll find Kushina-san." Dai chided, instantly shutting the two of them up.

"Oh, she's coming." Hibiki intoned. "Got enough ramen to feed a fucking army." The opaque orb shrank into the glowing markings on his hand, and vanished completely after a moment.

"Joy." Deadpanned Dai, "I'll tell her Minato-san grabbed my thigh."

"What?!" Minato's chair scraped against the ground as he backed up, "I did no such thing!"

"Sure you did." Hibiki said, passing some paper to Dai. "I learned a long time ago. Dai says something happened, it happened. Even if it didn't, it did. She tells me the sky is red and the moon is... I dunno, an eyeball, I'd believe it." He gave Minato a brief glance.

Minato furrowed his brow, "doesn't that mean you're whipped?"

This got Dai to break eye contact with her own papers, she looked at the Namikaze from over the rim of her sunglasses. "A very interesting comment, coming from the man who is terrified of his girlfriend's hair."

"You've done it now." Hibiki now sat back in his chair to watch the exchange, a wide grin on his face.

"Well, I -"

"I also know that she developed a technique that lets her hair stand up on end, on command, just to curtail you when you get rowdy." Dai said, "also as I am aware of what she calls you when you're alone together." Minato's eyes were wide and full of fear, as his academy friend next to Dai was trying desperately not to laugh.

"Well... _Damn,_ Dai-san!" Minato laughed.

"Your mistake was picking a fight with an information retriever." Dai looked back down. "That was not all I had, by the way. She's told me about as much as I've learned." She peered up at Minato from behind her glasses, the shadow of a grin tugging at the corner of her mouth. "Only I am allowed to insult my man, Minato-san. There are but few who I afford such a privilege to, and the Yellow Flash may very well never be one of them."

Minato gaped, "but he messes with me all the time!"

"That's because _she_ can kick your ass." Hibiki deadpanned, sharing a brief glance with Dai, the sparkle in her eye telling him she was having just as much fun as he was, even if she hid it behind her Aburame-bred facade. "Let alone _me."_

Minato sputtered, "what, is that a challenge, Thunder God?" A smile grew across his face, as he kept up their game. "When was the last time we really sparred, huh? I bet I could take you on!"

Hibiki chuckled, and looked back down to his papers. "Tell you what, call Kushina the Red Hot Habanero with a straight face, and I'll think about it." Said the playing-hard-to-get Senju head. "Survive a fight with _Katsuo_ for more than five minutes, and we'll definitely find a clearing somewhere and tear the hell out of it."

Minato tilted his head and pointed at Hibiki, wearing a faux look of determination. "I won't forget that, Hibiki!"

Just a few seconds later was when the sound of a foot slamming into the Senju and Senju-to-be's door greeted everyone's ears. The rattling and shaking of the wooden entryway was soon joined by the choir of a thousand angry Uzumaki women vying for one throat, as the red hot habanero loudly called for her man to make himself useful and open the door. Minato was, appropriately, next to the door in a flash and the moment the Uzumaki woman on the other side saw it move just an inch, she kicked it open, grinning viciously when she saw Minato stumble away, a welt forming on his forehead.

"Ramen patrol, you know!" She called out, stomping past Minato and into the apartment.

"Lady - you spill any of that on these papers and I'll teleport you to the moon." Hibiki threatened over a growling stomach.

The noises of a stomach in distress didn't miss Kushina, who simply grinned and made to sweep away the 'done' pile with one long, slender arm and the enormous bag of ramen to-go hanging from it. It was Dai who managed to stop her, a swarm of beetles held together by rinkaichu forming a needle-thin stick which pressed against the Uzumaki's arm. Kushina blinked at the sudden appearance of what looked like a squirming chopstick, but this lit a fire in her eyes as she trailed back up and saw Dai holding it.

"Oh it's -" But before she could finish her declaration, both of the men in the room used their respective speed-altering techniques to reach mind bending velocities. In the blink of an eye, Hibiki had all of the papers on the coffee table in front of the couch, and Minato had grabbed the three massive bags of ramen hanging from Kushina's arms, and was halfway through setting them up in a neat pile when his technique ran out of time. "- on!" Kushina blinked, "hey!" She turned her gaze to a sheepishly grinning Minato.

"Look at it this way." Came Hibiki's baritone, "you don't have to find out what she can do with that." He shuddered, as Kushina gave him a curious look. "Once she figured out she could glue her beetles together with the rinkaichu, she got _scary_ fucking good." She was becoming increasingly fond of gluing his mouth shut, in a very Spiderman-esque fashion. "I'd put her and her Rinkaichu above half of the crap I've got." Really, it had only taken a single suggestion from Hibiki, for Dai to start trying to use her beetles in vastly different ways when compared to her clan. After all, he reasoned, pretty soon she wouldn't be an Aburame, so why not give them a reason to get pissed? She started her Spider-Woman impression about a week later.

"Aw - but I wanna see it!" Kushina wailed, as Dai pulled her beetle stick back and it vanished back into her sleeves. "Hey - did you guys hear we got some returning shinobi from Sand?" She said, instantly dropping her faux-frustration as everyone sat at the table, and began stealing bowls of ramen.

"Kushina, have you ever heard the phrase 'screw you I'm on vacation'...?" Hibiki asked.

"No."

"Well screw you, I'm on vacation." He said, "who's back?"

"I think I saw Suboro-san coming in!" She said, "he had a few guys in ANBU armor following him, and this one red-headed kid with a Suna headband." She looked pensive for a moment, "he looked kind of roughed up, actually. Suboro-san, did." She clarified.

"Well, he's _Suboro."_ Hibiki snorted, "not hard."

"You shouldn't pick on -"

"He's the Tsume of their squad." Dai cut the Uzumaki off. "He's too easy." She explained, as she ate her own food.

"Well - still!"

"So you can make fun of Suboro, but I can't make fun of Hibiki?"

"Yes." Said Dai, with a straight face.

"I return to my point about ass-kicking." Intoned Hibiki, after a slurp of noodles.

"Guys, come on - if you're going to pick on someone, at least make it a better target!"

Minato blinked, staring at the three of them. "I think she's cheating on me with Suboro." He said innocently.

Kushina choked on her ramen, Hibiki laughed, and Dai was the first to make a real response. "As entertaining as the thought is, not only would he be unable to handle Kushina-san, he has a daughter. He doesn't have _time_ for women." She explained.

Kushina's head whipped to Dai's, "wait, what? Suboro's a dad?!"

Absently slurping up some noodles, Hibiki grunted. "Yup." He set the cup down, "little button by the name of Kurenai. According to him, she's stressed two shadow clones enough to burst. To the point where he's got a standing C-rank with the rising genin of the academy. They rotate checking his house every hour or two, and if they find the baby, but no clone, they get paid to send it to listed next of kin."

"In the last month alone he and I have gotten it twice, Serizawa-sensei at least once, and Hokage-sama once, though he gave it to us quickly thereafter, making it three." Dai explained.

Kushina blinked, "wait -" Her gaze briefly dropped down to Dai's stomach, "does - does he _know?"_

"No." Said Hibiki. "Got a funny story to go along with it, too." He nodded to Dai, "she's not the only one with clan issues. His are comparatively easier to solve, though."

Kushina blinked, "I thought the Kurama were a nice folk, what's he going through?"

"Eh..." Hibiki waved his hand back and forth. "It's a long and complicated story, but it boils down to he loves his clan, but considering that he's the most powerful shinobi to come from there in a long time, he's not necessarily convinced that they'll have his bloodline's best interests in heart, should he not be around to protect her." He explained. "Been trying to keep her a secret the last four or five months."

"That can't be working too well..."

"Well, for now he's just calling her a favor for a friend. When I came back on medical leave, one of his shadow clones, near ready to burst from sleep deprivation, came to us for help." Hibiki set down his cup and started gesticulating with his hands. "Gave us the kid and said, 'I'll be back in a day just keep her safe, I'm sorry!', all in the same breath, so fast I thought it might be Kushina for a second. Next day, another clone shows up, gives us the skinny on what's going on. The long and short of _how_ is that Kurenai was basically an oops-baby." That got Kushina to choke on her ramen, though Minato knew Hibiki well enough to see the joke coming, and Dai, having heard it before once Hibiki got the whole story and said it to Suboro's face, simply kept eating. "So he tells us about this whole thing he's going through... Trying to figure out how to keep her to raise her, but convince the clan she's not his so they won't be interested until he can get a long term solution going, or train her to protect herself; and the entire time we're staring at him like he's the biggest fucking idiot in the world."

Minato tilted his head, the golden-blonde hair twisting with his motions. "Why?"

"Because the solution is so damn simple it's painful." Hibiki leaned forward, "so. War's on. Folks are dying. Not in droves, but there have been casualties. Single-parent shinobi tend to drop their kids off before going to war, such that they'll have stable parentage in the event they die."

Minato nodded, "it's what my parents did."

Hibiki concurred, "exactly. So we said, all he had to do was drop the kid off, right? Then me and Dai show up. We adopt the kid and put it under the protection of the Senju clan... But, oh no, we're both high-profile shinobi with sought after skillsets, so we need someone to trust to take care of our rent-a-kid. Oh look! My close friend Suboro could totally use a kid." He grinned, "can't fight worth a damn. Can't get a relationship or a promotion worth a fuck, but he can raise the hell out of a kid alright!" Hibiki chuckled as Minato leaned back, laughing. "Yeah!" He shook his head. "So, turns out, he's basically got an _in_ with his old orphanage. His old caretaker, Goson is his name, is getting ready to retire, and he loves the hell out of Suboro. So what he's going to do is draw up all the paper work we need - for Suboro to make an anonymous adoptive drop off, and for me and the future-missus over there -" He nodded to Dai, "to take her up before anyone else can get a look at her. Then we write it up so Suboro is the sole benefactor and listed next-caretaker in the event of our deaths, essentially making him her godfather, and granting him legal authority to continue operating as her parent." He leaned back, "only snag was that if she took the Senju name, my enemies would be looking after her, and if she took the Kurama name - well, that's the whole plan tossed out, isn't it?"

Minato nodded, "makes sense. What'd you do?"

"Suboro came up with the idea." Dai picked up. "He gave her her mother's family name, Yuhi."

Kushina, her brow furrowed, was looking pointedly at Dai. "And what do you think about this, Dai-san?" Her eyes briefly lowered to Dai's stomach, before shooting back up before the Aburame would notice.

Dai arced an eyebrow, "it was my idea to begin with."

Kushina blinked, "but -" She pointed at Hibiki, "he made it sound like -"

"He tells stories better." Dai interrupted. "Also of note is that he never actually said it was his idea."

"It's pretty much the only reason she keeps me around. No money, not the name, not the sex or my ninjutsu, I tell good stories."

"He's not wrong." Said Dai, to the laughter of both of their guests.

After a while of further eating, Hibiki nodded. "Yeah, I'll be the first to admit that my solution was far more convoluted than what my smarter half came up with. The two of us looked at her like she was a kami-damned genius when, in five minutes, she managed to outthink hours of brainstorming, and at least one assassination plot, for fun."

Minato and Kushina stared him down, before the latter said, "I have to know, you know?"

Hibiki grinned, "it involved sixteen shadow clones, my Rinha blood, and a metric fuckload of paperwork." He neglected to mention how he'd managed to work the Eagles and Jiraiya's Toads into the mix; Geoff hadn't been too happy when the Hibiki clone over in Hot Water mentioned during their off-hours how he had narrowly missed getting the Eagles another summoner.

"I..." Kushina recoiled, shaking her head. "I... I should have expected more, you know?" She waved Hibiki's idiocy away, "so, you're head of the Senju now, right? How much money do you have, you know?" She snapped her gaze over to the Senju Head.

Hibiki arced an eyebrow as he cracked open another cup. "Don't you know it's rude to ask a man how much money he has?" A pause, "I'll buy you a ramen stand if you never ask again."

"Oh dear kami _\- do not_ make that offer, she'll take it seriously!" Minato cried.

"Shut up Minato!" Kushina's head gravitated to Hibiki's. "Which ramen stand?" She asked, seriously, head leaned forward and her iron gaze locked to Hibiki's onyx orbs.

"Whichever one leaves me enough money to buy... A lot more." Hibiki said, fingering the gem that hung from his neck.

"You know I'll have to beat you up if you don't follow through with this." Kushina warned.

Hibiki nodded sidewards at Dai, "my fiance would have something to say."

"Please do so."

"See?" Hibiki leaned back, holding both arms out to the side. "Come at me, sis." He was rewarded with a chopstick, thrown like a kunai, sailing for his forehead. His response was to briefly dematerialize into smoke, and quickly snap back to flesh and bone a moment later, the chopstick harmlessly clattering into the kitchen behind them.

Kushina pouted, "that's cheating!"

"I prefer to call it creatively winning." Said the grinning Senju head.

The four laughed together and continued eating, making idle-chit chat and continuing to threaten eachothers' lives, relationships, careers, and whatever else struck their fancy. Well into the night their dinner continued, until Minato and Dai had to sit back and refuse to eat another bite. Hibiki, half full himself, then challenged Kushina to see who could eat the ramen the fastest, both as a way to entertain himself and as a way to clear the ramen from his table. What followed was Kushina's eyes turning red and drawing on her tenant's chakra to speed herself up, whilst Hibiki used Swift Release to inhale his own food. Unfortunately for Hibiki, he didn't have a jinchuriki's metabolism, but unfortunately for Kushina, they hadn't defined terms, and Hibiki had used a brief lapse in focus on her end to take as many cups of ramen as he could and hide them in her apartment, before returning, cloning empty cups, and then placing them on his side.

The look on her face was one of priceless shock, as she looked at the growing pyramid of spent ramen cups. Her red eyes turned blue as they trailed upwards, but the dull, shocked glow they had quickly was replaced with an iron edge when they snapped downwards. Hibiki felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand on end, and he turned to look over his head, where he saw an ANBU agent in a Ghost's mask standing in his windowsill, one hand on his knee, the other resting on the katana he had strapped to the small of his back.

"You're needed at once." Said the masked shinobi. "Your leave ended six hours ago."

Hibiki stared at the blank, ovular mask. "Which of us?"

"All." And the Anbu vanished in a plume of smoke.

There were a few seconds of silence, as the group took it in. "I can't be the only one..." Began Hibiki, "who notices that this shit happens... Pretty much every kami-damn time we sit down and pretend to be human beings for a few hours."

Minato snorted, "it almost sounds like you're _not_ looking forward to wanton... Eh..." He coughed, "destruction."

In short order, he received a kick in the shin by Kushina, a blank death glare from Dai, and an arced eyebrow from Hibiki. "Smooth, my friend." Said the Senju head. "Real smooth."

* * *

After the trio geared up and prepared themselves, they all met up outside the Hokage's office. Entering found them met by a tired and haggard Suboro, nursing more than his fair share of wounds and injuries, including a deep red bandage covering the side of his head, and an arm in a sling. On his right was a fidgeting, anxious-looking Suna shinobi, tall enough to be a genin, with hair just a few shades duller red than Kushina's, whereas on his left was the remaining portion of Team Eiji. Hibiki's eyes narrowed as he slowly took in the gravity of the situation, something clearly was going on.

Dante raised his onyx eyes to face the arriving shinobi. "Good, you're here." He said, leaning back in his chair. "We've got an S-rank mission, time sensitive." He nodded to the red-headed Suna shinobi. "This is Sasori, a member of Sunagakure's puppet corps, he volunteered to make the journey here to Konoha to guide you where you need to go, and will debrief you in full as you're en-route." He explained, to a nod from the puppet shinobi. "The short version, however, is that deep in Wind country exists a place called Roran, ruins linked to an ancient and enormous well of chakra. Katsuo has located this well, and two of his surviving allies are currently assaulting these ruins to gain access to the well of chakra. The puppet corps is one of Suna's most ancient shinobi corps, and was charged a long time ago by the first Kazekage and the daimyo of the time of protecting this well, fearing its power falling into the wrong hands." Dante explained, before nodding to Sasori, bading him finish.

"Currently, ninety percent of the corps is engaged in battle against the Monster's allies." Said the budding teen, resting his hands respectfully behind his back, as he turned to the assembled shinobi. "Suboro-san here was our attache of sorts from Konoha, but his injuries and resistance from the Monster's allies forced us to pursue a different method of defending against them. He suggested combat specialists from his village, now we are here, and we must move quickly."

"Why a tracking team along with a combat team?" Dai inquired airily. "From the way you speak, I would think you would require no need of tracking assistance."

To which, Sasori shook his head. "You would be wrong, Aburame-san. The ruins are very large, and the corps has been laying traps there for generations. It is the only way such a small branch could protect such a large place. Our goal is to reach the center and the well before the enemy does." He nodded to them, "aside from my grandmother, who is indisposed, fighting them, only an accomplished team of your skill could perform such a task." He looked to all of them, "we need to move immediately, however. What they lack in sensory abilities or knowledge of the location of the well, they make up for in speed and tenacity. In the forty eight hours they have besieged the ruins they have not ceased but four, and already we have lost eight of our number."

Suboro took now to speak, his voice raspy and rumbly, from the lack of sleep and his extensive injuries. "The ones there are Yui the Viper and Aojiroi the Hulk. They're being slowed down by the puppet corps' assaults and the traps in Roran, but even as he and I were fleeing, they were still moving. They're searching the ruins in a gridlike pattern, every building until it's clear, every street, every cavern and basement."

"Do we have time?" Aoi asked of the puppetmaster and her Kage, shifting her gaze between the two. "The time we have to operate dictates how safely we can approach the situation."

Dante responded, "since Sasori will be guiding you directly to the Ryumyaku, you'll have the advantage there, but his and Suboro's reports say that you may only have hours to prepare even if you leave right now."

Hibiki and Minato exchanged glances, the former nodded. "Let's try this, then." He turned his gaze to Sasori, "you and I will leave right now. I can get you and I to Wind in a few seconds. You can point me in Roran's direction, and once we get here..."

Minato pulled out a three-pronged kunai from his weapon's pouch, "I'll bring everyone else. Then we'll have more time."

Kushina piped in, "I can set up barrier seals around the well. How much damage can it safely take? What happens if it goes past this threshold?"

Sasori frowned, "this I do not know. There are reasons beyond 'a vast and infinite source of ancient chakra' that we keep Roran and the Ryumyaku a secret. Even after centuries of study we know very little about it, and even the ruins it is surrounded by." He said, stepping up to Hibiki. "If you can get us there as fast as you say, we must move now. Every second counts."

Hibiki nodded, and gave the assembled squads a brief glance. "Then hold your breath." He said, placing his hand on Sasori's head. "This'll help with the whiplash." And with that, he vanished from the office, leaving a pale white contrail in his wake.

In the few seconds they had, Dante turned his iron gaze to the remaining shinobi. "If at all possible, try to avoid destroying or activating the Ryumyaku. Sasori emphasized its cultural importance to Suna, however considering what we know of Katsuo and his goals, he has received clearance to bury it if necessary. Your primary goal is to protect it, but if that's not possible, stay alive and push Yui and Aojiroi from the area. However, we're still trying to locate Katsuo and his final surviving ally following Facsim's attack. If they arrive, do whatever it takes to ensure he is unable to do whatever it is he desires."

The assembled shinobi nodded and voiced their understanding, just as the kunai in Minato's hands began to levitate and grow. "Alright, that's our signal." He said, "everyone grab my shoulders." When everyone assembled, he nodded once, and the office emptied in a bright yellow flash.

"Ghost." Said Dante, just a moment before the Anbu in the Ghost's mask melted out of the shadows, kneeling right next to Suboro. "What have you found out?"

Suboro vanished in a plume of smoke, and Ghost spoke up, his previously deep voice melting away just as he had left the shadows. "That chakra is at least one thousand years old, Hokage-sama, and it only gathers more as time continues to pass. Drawing more, as it has more. Turn one to two, to four, to sixteen, and so on. Should he gain access to it, no one could stop him. Not Hibiki, not his grandfather, not all Kage, past and present, nor even Madara Uchiha, or the Sage of Six Paths. He could truly do whatever he wished. I believe even if Hibiki and they kill Yui and Aojiroi, it would only delay him.

"He is like a child. Once he sets his mind to something, there is nothing, not even evidence, that can convince him he is incorrect." Said the lighter, but pained and tired voice. "I believe that this may be what he was hunting the jinchuriki for, and considering he captured the Ichibi almost half of a year ago, it is not difficult to draw conclusions."

Dante nodded, "so we may very well set this war on an inevitable collision course with its end, or perhaps be standing at the precipice of something immeasurably worse." And with how fractured the world was, if Katsuo gained this power, quite literally nothing could stop him. Dante shook his head, "summon the head of the Uchiha clan." He had to discuss contingencies, in case the worse came to pass.


	78. Loop: Timey Wimey -II-

Chapter 77

* * *

Oh, he had not been ready for this when he'd woken up, this morning. Roran was ruins, alright, Hibiki was willing to agree that far, but it was _what_ specifically was ruined, that had him reeling. Because as everyone was recovering from Minato's Hiraishin and acclimating to the cold desert night, Hibiki stared, wide-eyed, at skyscrapers. Hundreds of them, many in horrible states of disrepair and showing clear battle scars, some hardly even living up to their namesake and stretching less than a few dozen meters into the sky. Some even looked like parts of them had just vanished, disintegrated, and tunneled through, to the point where there was at least one low-built building that was still standing under its own power, but there was a perfect circle missing from its middle floors, stretching through the entire building.

"Haunting, is it not?" The kid, Sasori, spoke, jarring Hibiki from his reverie.

"You have no idea." Said Hibiki, shaking his head.

The question now was, considering the vastly altered Japanese landscape, where were they? He felt a hand on his shoulder and turned to face it, seeing Dai, a concerned expression marring her otherly stoic face. He nodded once, letting her know he'd be fine, and she slid her hand from his shoulder. Hibiki turned back to look over the city, slowly coming to the conclusion that where wasn't necessarily important, but rather how he had never seen it before, what with all the times he had run through and flown over the Elemental Nations. A moment later, to the east and just before the horizon, he saw a fireball bloom, briefly reaching into the sky and turning the otherwise dark city bright orange.

"How close is that?" Hibiki asked the puppetmaster, who shuffled inside his shirt and pulled out a sheet of paper.

"Close, but with their search pattern it will still be hours before they find us." With his Sharingan, Hibiki saw hundreds of small projectiles spraying out of the smoke and falling back down to the ground. "And longer still with the traps and puppets they fight." The kid explained, "we've been ensnaring the ruins for a very long time, Senju-san." He knelt down on the ground and unfolded the paper. "Here, an ancient map, of when it was once alive."

Hibiki and the Konoha shinobi gathered around the puppetmaster. Hibiki arced an eyebrow, upon glancing over the map.

_Well... That answers that question._ He thought, as he saw, in large, bold characters of an ancient language tangentially similar to the Common Tongue, the word 'TOKYO' emblazoned across the top of the map. It was filled with scribbles and symbols, and was weathered and old, but it still yet lived, and briefly made Hibiki wonder that, if there had been literal proof staring Suna in the face for at least a century or two, perhaps the hope of people finding the old world's ruins and understanding what they were wasn't too grounded.

"We..." Sasori looked up, "we are here." He pointed at the northeast corner of the map, where a highway should have been, but instead was a massive sandy dune. "And here..." He pointed center-left of the map, "is the Ryumyaku. It is surrounded by several felled buildings and is in the center of another, at its deepest point."

"Is it underground?" Minato asked.

"Only insomuch that one's basement is." Said Sasori. "We must be careful once we arrive. It is highly sensitive to ambient chakra, even dormant and sealed as it is. Too much stress could activate it." He traced his finger back to where he had marked first, "this is the clearest, most direct route. However despite this we must be careful - as I've said..."

"A lot of traps, a lot of time." Hibiki summarized. "Exactly how long are we talking about?" He asked, as Sasori carefully folded up the map once again and stowed it in his flak jacket. "And how is this place a secret? It's huge."

"Since before the hidden villages existed. The puppetmaster discipline was born here." Sasori explained, before turning to the tracker trio. "If you would please." He said, with a respectful nod of his head.

Dai nodded, and gave Sasori, Hibiki, Minato, and Kushina all a firm look. "Step where we step, stop when we stop, move when we move. Puppetmaster traps are among the most notorious in the elemental nations." She said, before she gestured for Akane and Aoi to take up positions. Akane stood in the center of the three, whereas Dai and Aoi took the left and right, respectfully, and Kyo took point, his nose already sweeping at the ground, tail wagging lazily.

The tracker trio descended the massive sand dune and were followed by their allies; Sasori took this moment to continue speaking. "As to its secret... It is its own secret, Senju-san." He said, his pubescent voice briefly cracking, before he cleared his throat and continued. "It predates the massive dunes that make up Wind Country... If you'll notice, surrounding it is both a sandstorm, and a genjutsu." He said, nodding to the horizon.

Still slowly sliding down the sandy dune, Hibiki turned his red eyes to the distance, and indeed, upon focusing he saw, encapsulating the city, a thin film of chakra, and beyond that the distortions of sand being flung about by harsh winds. Considering what was likely to be found here, Hibiki understood the need for secrecy beyond trying to hide the Ryumyaku.

What he wondered, however, was, "so how did the ancient puppetmasters get here?"

"Senju-san, I cannot just go about throwing my discipline's secrets like candy." Sasori responded, as the group paused in their advance for the tracker trio to observe the nearby landscape. Kyo sat silently, pointing his nose dead ahead, for Aoi to note she smelled poison and explosives, and Akane to point out a wire stretching between two buildings, right in front of them. "Suffice to say we have been here for a long time, and have been protecting the source of the Ryumyaku for just as long. It is indescribably dangerous, for more reasons than the obvious."

Beetles flew out of Dai's jacket as she knelt down, with Akane guiding her to where the explosive seals were located, such that the beetles could neutralize them. "You can't just leave me on that..." Hibiki furrowed his eyebrows, "what else can it do?"

Sasori was silent a moment, itching at his red scalp as he thought. "The legends say that, because it is the oldest known source of chakra... It can allow a person to travel through time." He said, as the two clouds of beetles vanished inside two towering buildings.

_Bullshit._ Thought Hibiki, as he sighed. "That doesn't sound good."

"Especially not if the Monster gets his hands on it." Sasori agreed.

"Will we be allowed to examine the seals work, Sasori-san?" Kushina piped in, as the tracker trio got to their feet and bade everyone forward. They curved around a large trap set in the very pavement, Hibiki could see ancient sealswork inking the cracked roads, and could only guess at what it did, or how it could still have chakra without any noticeable nature seals.

"No." Said Sasori, as he nervously examined his surroundings, after a distant explosion and the sounds of rapid and repetitious thunder. "Its secrets must die with it if we cannot defend it."

Minato seemed to be offended by this, "wait - you haven't studied it at all?"

_"No."_ The young shinobi emphasized, with a shake to his voice that seemed to come more from fear than frustration. "We tried once, and -"

Hibiki's head snapped to Sasori, "what the hell do you mean trie-" But before he could finish, his ace was splattered with a squirming purple goop and his mouth sealed shut. He blinked, and turned to his front, where Dai stood, hand extended, a frown on her face.

"I am glad you are getting along, but what we do is not easy." She said, "and more often than not, sound is detrimental to more than just focus." Hibiki felt the bugs retreat from his face, "please stay as silent as you can. Speak when we reach the well."

_Why the hell didn't I just fly here, again?_ Hibiki wondered, as he nodded, and the group descended into silence. _Actually, that's a good point. I can literally fly at relativistic speeds, with minimal recoil. So why the hell didn't I?_ Though, as if the universe heard him, mere minutes later the tracker team came across a series of traps interconnected with eachother that made approaches from all avenues, even the air, nigh impossible. When Dai had attempted to use her beetles to cut wires, the air had exploded into a poisonous gas so thick that even with his Sharingan, Hibiki hadn't been able to see through it. Worse was that, in the half second it took the shinobi to leap back, the gas had reached its flashpoint and ignited.

Hibiki's hair was smoldering, the fireball had gotten so close to them before he'd accelerated fast enough to grab everyone and retreat. When he reached a safe distance, then he held up his hand, covering his head with his elbow and enshrouding the entire group inside a large gray chakra construct. His eyes burned as he summoned his spectral guardian, but the benefit became apparent when the fire rushed by, leaving them mostly unharmed.

"Did anyone breathe in?" Aoi asked, her nostrils flaring.

"I don't see anything in their lungs." Akane quickly reported, as everyone else sounded off, shielded from the dissipating gas by Hibiki's Susanoo.

"I believe it worth noting that I did disarm the trap." Dai reported.

"Unhealthily so, Dai-san." Said Aoi, to the agreeing bark of her canine companion.

Sasori dug a scroll out of his flak jacket, "they'll have seen that." He said, ignoring the banter. "They have a heading now, we must move faster."

Hibiki lowered his arm and turned to Sasori, "relax." He said, "they'll have seen it, yeah, but you said that the entire puppet corps was hammering away at them. We'll get there before they do." He assured the young teen.

Sasori frowned, "Senju-san..." But he was silenced by Hibiki placing his hand on his shoulder.

_"Relax."_ He said. "You've got three of Konoha's heaviest hitters here, and its best tracker team. This one notwithstanding, they're the best at what they do and we'll get through the traps fast. Then you do what you have to do while we three deal with Katsuo's folks. "You need to stop worrying so much. Act like you know what you're doing, and you'd be surprised how much you actually do." The spectral ribcage vanished, and immediately the tracker trio took point again.

They continued advancing through Tokyo's ruins, the traps growing ever more complex and deadly as time and distance went on. Even Sasori mentioned more than once how, despite having been trained by his grandmother and his parents, who were apparently very good at what they did, he was stumped more than once on the function of the ancient traps and wire work. Hibiki wondered if there wasn't a little science mixed in, as the older the traps got, the more complex they became, to the point where they found one whose function was to shower them with poisoned needles, break apart the earth below them, fill the air with a poison that stuck to everything like glue, ignited on contact with moisture, and to top things off, had razor-sharp wires bursting out from in between the buildings, creating a spiderweb of poisoned wire, and it only got more complex from there.

_When those puppetmasters want people out... Boy, do they keep them out._ Hibiki wondered what kind of unholy protection could have sprouted from the puppetmasters teaming up with Uzumaki sealsmasters. On more than one occasion did they actually run across some seals that Kushina had to be pried away from, lest she try to dissect Wind's few sealsmasters' work.

Despite the trials and tribulations, however, getting through the next trap and overcoming the latest puzzle never took the tracker team more than a few minutes of examining and brainstorming. They did not fail, and despite repeated offers, didn't take Hibiki up on just bull-rushing his way through them with a few shadow clones. Even when they came across what Hibiki could only describe as some sort of fuel-air pipe bomb, it only took Konoha's brightest a quarter of an hour to think of a way through it. Sasori even mentioned this, to which Dai simply said that their sensei had come up with worse.

However, when they finished disarming this next trap, was when he noticed a sudden tension in the muscles of the tracker trio. It started with Akane's eyes constricting just a fraction of an inch, and went on to Kyo and Aoi's necks stiffening as their nostrils flared. Dai drew her arms just an inch closer to her core. Hibiki had no more thought to ask them what was wrong than did Dai leap away - a kunai soaring through the air and burying it into the ground where she had been sitting. Hibiki saw the shine of light reflecting off of the ninja-wire the knife was connected to, and his eyed widened as he saw ports on the side of the kunai open up.

Before the deep purple, poisonous gas could jet out of the rigged kunai, the entire world had slown down. Hibiki traced his way up the wire and found it connecting to a building more than two kilometers in the distance, and with height enough for the air to thin. A clone popped into existence and sprinted for Dai, as Hibiki blasted into the sky, slicing apart the wire and following it back to the building.

Through the steel frame he crashed, with the titanic sound of ancient metal bending and grinding. Truly, as he skidded to a halt, the entire building seemed to shudder, but he ignored it as he stepped forward to the puppet-master, pale blue chakra strings connected to his fingers.

"Hey -" He said, placing his hand on the Suna-nin's shoulder. "We're Konoha, don't -" But the instant he made contact with the shinobi, his head twisted around like an owl, revealing a wooden face with wide, unblinking eyes. Its mouth dropped like a talking marionette, revealing a pipe that shot out a dark pellet. Hibiki jerked his head to the side to dodge the pellet, "_god -"_ But before he could finish speaking the grinding returned, and he realized that he hadn't been the puppet's target.

His head snapped around and he saw an enormous fireball, the gas mixed in with a thick, viscous poison, shooting right towards him, fast enough that even with his Swift Release, he wouldn't have been able to dodge it.

"Fuck!" And he was shot from the building by the shockwave, briefly enveloped by the dark poison cloud, before he fell out of it, trailing purple smoke like a meteor falling through the air. As he thrust his hands out to the sides, he was overcome by a wracking coughing fit that wrecked his concentration and forced him to plummet through the air like a rock.

Through the sky he fell, until he caught his back on a wire suspended between two buildings. He smashed through it, but the snapping of the wire caused a cavalcade of other traps to be set off, ending with him being caught in a spiderweb of razorsharp wire, which quickly caught fire and began glowing white-hot with the heat. Still coughing, Hibiki grunted and pulsed his Hiraishin, vanishing in a ripple of light and appearing next to Minato and the group, who were, themselves, engaged.

_"Hibiki!"_ Minato called out, before throwing a kunai, burying it in the head of a puppet that would have buried Hibiki in the ancient asphalt.

The Senju head coughed out a cloud of purple residue, his entire body abuzz as his healing factor worked to purge the poison from his system. He grunted and hauled himself to his feet, bloodshot eyes snapping up to see a puppet swinging in from high above, on a collision course with Dai and Akane. He grunted and crouched down, before launching himself through the sky, tackling the puppet and smashing his shoulder into its chest. It exploded in a shower of wooden parts and metal screws, but, adapting instantly, the unseen puppetmaster had his chakra strings attached to all of the flying pieces, and blades and poison gas sprang out from them all, before they enclosed around Hibiki, practically burying him.

When the Senju head hit the ground, he heard a muffled shout and was blasted by a fire technique. This weakened the puppets and gave him the chance he needed to wrench himself out of his tomb, smashing pieces of wood onto the ground and grunting and yelling with each violent jerk of his body. He tore blades from his skin and muscles, but since his healing factor was preoccupied with the potent poison running through his system, his injuries healed at a sluggish, hardly even noticeable rate.

Hearing the air whistling, the scowling Senju head's skin suddenly darkened, and now drooling down from his head to his toes like a thick covering of oil, his skin darkened until it turned to steel. He punched backwards, slamming the back of his fist onto a charging puppet, whose poisoned blade scraped harmlessly against his cast-iron skin. He whirled around and grabbed at its chest, before slamming it into the ground and torching it with his blaze release. His red sharingan eyes quickly flared to life, and his head whipped around. Two puppets were closing in on the tracker trio, while they worked on dismantling a third. Acting like a human wrecking ball, the ailing, pained Senju threw himself through the air and smashed his hands into the puppets before detonating his chakra, destroying them in a shower of splinters.

"Akane - where are the puppet masters?" Hibiki called out.

"Sasori, why are they attacking us?" Minato demanded, as he teleported out of the way of several knives and a poison pellet.

"We need to _run!"_ Kushina yelled out, ducking under a poison blade and blasting apart a puppet with a wind technique.

"Nine o'clock, two kilometers away, thirty meters up!"

"I don't know!"

Hibiki grunted, hauling himself to his feet and, with a deep bellow, blasting through the air. He hurtled up into the sky before crashing into the building Akane had specified, immediately running afoul of two Suna-nin, who leapt back immediately upon seeing him.

"Friendly!" Hibiki called out.

Their response was six puppets and a shower of explosive tags, as they leapt down an elevator shaft. Hibiki grunted, backhanding one puppet and lumping from the building as the tags detonated. The top floors of the building collapsed in a bright orange fireball and a shower of what little glass and shrapnel remained after so long. Hibiki fell through the air, before he reached the ground and flared his chakra, maintaining his position in the air and rocketing through the streets, back to his allies, who were now being accosted by dozens of puppets and were fleeing towards the Ryumyaku.

"Go!" Shouted the steel-skinned Senju, who landed in front of the retreating group. "Find a place to regroup!" And as they turned tail and ran, he was enshrouded by a cloak of pale gray chakra.

Following a loud bellow, Hibiki was surrounded by the skeletal form of his own spectral guardians. His eyes burned with the strain it took to summon even this horribly incomplete form, but all he needed was the surface area of its massive fist, and the vast power increase it gave him. With a single, mighty swing, Hibiki smashed into the puppets swinging from their chakra strings like they were cables. The puppets all burst into their component parts, but Hibiki, not wanting to see them return even if their masters would temporarily abandon them, proceeded to crush them into the ground and, upon dropping his Susanoo, he leapt into the air, a ball of explosive chakra gathered in his reared hands. He threw both hands down and let the explosive orb fly, destroying them all in a bright white flash and a plume of fire and smoke.

Hibiki hit the ground and stumbled to his hands and knees, but just as he started coughing, there was a bright yellow flash, and suddenly he found himself in the belly of an ancient building, surrounded by his allies. Blood flew from his abused throat as his skin dropped its steel state and he began convulsing. Dai was at his side in a second, her insects immediately flying out of her coat and to his body, many simply latching on to open skin, while others dived into his open wounds and stuck to his blood vessels.

"Sasori, do you have an antidote?" Minato demanded, his own eyes slowly becoming bloodshot. "We all took a few hits back there." He said, trying to suppress a cough rising from his chest.

Sasori, however, shook his head. "No, Namikaze-san. These are ancient poisons, not necessarily _meant_ to be cured."

Dai, however, shook her head. "We'll be fine." She said, a frown on her face as more beetles flew out of her sleeves and began accosting the other shinobi. "They will leech the poison out, but it will take some time." As she spoke, Hibiki felt the insects doing their job, actively draining at his blood supply and filtering something out of what it was they were drawing.

Swallowing through a dry, iron-tasting throat, Hibiki, on his hands and knees, turned his bloodshot eyes up to Sasori. "Sasori..." He lifted his head, hair falling into his face. "What the _hell?_ Don't they know we're here? You said they sent you and Suboro."

Sasori shook his head, cradling a puppet of his own, thrown over his shoulder like a rucksack. "I... I can only think that perhaps, Katsuo's allies, they have some sort of ability to replicate appearances and memories... Perhaps they took on one of my allies' forms, and now they've split up." He slowly began to nod, "yes. They had to have split up into small groups to minimize potential replacements... I do not think they'll do anything but attack on sight, especially those they do not recognize."

Hibiki frowned, but couldn't say anything as his face began to turn green, and he fought the urge to vomit.

Dai, however, put her free hand on Hibiki's back. "No, that's a good thing. The beetles are drawing a great deal of it out of your blood, your body is doing the rest." And on her word, Hibiki voided his stomach, the contents coming out a deep, dark brown.

"Gah, fuck." Breathed the Senju. "That's not good." He shook his head, it feeling a bit clearer as his healing factor had less to fight.

"Are you okay?" Dai asked, as Aoi fretted over her ninken.

Hibiki grunted in the affirmative, nodding. "Yeah... I'll just - hurk!" He dropped his head and vomited another go, "- I'll be fine. Just need a minute..." He noted that this go was a lighter shade of brown, with fewer chunks, a good sign. He looked up, "how's the dog?"

"Dai's beetles are helping..." Said Aoi, as she pulled a handkerchief from one of her pouches and allowed Kyo to bury his nose in it, the tension immediately flooding from his muscles. "He will be okay." She peered up to Akane and Kushina, both of whom were helping Minato to sit down.

"I heal fast, like Hibiki." Kushina waved the Senju and the Inuzuka's concern away, "I've been poisoned before. I'll be fine." And she wasn't lying, the veins in her eyes were already starting to fade away.

Akane shrugged, "I avoided the worst of it." She said.

Hibiki turned to Minato, as the blond blur rubbed at his chest, nodding. "I'll be good." He breathed, "but something tells me that this beetle trick won't work every time."

Dai nodded, "it works here and now because we all are at our peak... But your body will become sensitized to it. A second dose will require faster action on my part... A third, a fourth, a fifth... Eventually I will not be fast enough." She nods to Hibiki, "I think only Hibiki could potentially survive repeated exposures, and only then if he had the chakra to purge it from his system."

Hibiki, grunting, maneuvered around to sit on his rear. He felt Dai rub her hand between his shoulder blades, "okay..." He said, gathering everyone's attention. "So... Sand shinobi don't know who to trust past themselves, and now they're fighting us, as well as..." The ground shook to prove his point. "Katsuo's people." He leaned back, eyes glazing over as he thought. "I don't think we're more than a few kilometers from the Ryumyaku, and we have the advantage in that we know where it is." He straightened up. "So... Here's what we'll do." He grunted.

"Hibiki -"

"I'll..." He grunted, getting to his feet. "I'll blast straight through, carve a path of destruction to the well and attract all the attention. Trip the traps and get everyone on me... And then go straight past it." He said. "Get Katsuo's goons off our trail and thinking it's somewhere else... And maybe convince the Sand-nin we don't know what we're doing." He paused, "send a shadow clone, actually." He said, with a nod. "We watch it go, and once it gets to the well, we go after it. Slip inside while the puppet corps is doing its thing." He ran his hand through his sweaty hair, and dug his thumb under his hitai-ate. "Then we shore up and wait for Katsuo's people."

Sasori frowned, "do you truly think you can do this, Hibiki-san?"

To which, Hibiki nodded. "Inside the susanoo is a self-contained environment. Posion gas won't get through. Use my steel skin, their weapons won't hurt me." He said, lifting two hands and forming the shadow clone handsign. Another clone popped into the air with a plume of smoke, and it nodded to them once, before sprinting outside. After doing so, Hibiki collapsed back to his rear, leaning his head back and groaning, as he felt the poison finally fade from his system, and the wounds covering his arms and back stitch themselves back together.

_A part of me wonders just what would happen if someone figured out how to suppress my healing factor._ He thought, as the air outside flashed with a muted, gray light, and the clone charged forward, making as much noise as he could. _I need to update my fighting style... Right now it relies on my ability to take damage and make an opening. I lose that or have it suppressed and the little things will pile up real fast._ He looked up to Sasori.

"Once we're there, what do we do?" Hibiki asked.

Sasori looked down a moment, thinking, before his brown eyes shot back up. "We must be careful." He finally said. "And protect it. It will be only a matter of time before Katsuo's allies find it, we must keep them away from it at all costs, lest they activate it and do something terrible."

Minato grunted, leaning forward and resting his arms on his knees, as the ground shook and the sounds of battle reached their ears. "If we've just got to get them away, and you said there's what - two of them?" He said, to Sasori's affirmative nod. "Then I would think all we would have to do is just get them out of the ruins." He turned his gaze to Hibiki, "Hibiki and I could use the Hiraishin to get them away."

Sasori thought on this, before shaking his head. "No." He said, "I do not think that would work. Any undue stress, even above ground, it could disrupt its fragile balance."

Hibiki frowned, "you make it sound as if it's on a pillar of broken glass. It couldn't have survived a thousand years gathering chakra without toughening up. It'll be fine if we teleport."

Sasori leveled his gaze with Hibiki, "I am worried more for the chakra that would have leaked out into the air surrounding it. Think of it like a bubble, or a balloon... Suddenly tearing even the tiniest section of said bubble would make the whole thing burst."

_Jesus... _"Sasori-san, I don't doubt that it's fragile, but what I'm saying is the goal here is to keep them away from it. Any way you look at it we'll need chakra to do that. It can either be a lot of chakra, for me to run them out of the city, or a little chakra, and Minato and I can teleport them out, and either way, so we can fight uninhibited."

Sasori shook his head, "you do not understand, Hibiki-san. With the entirety of the corps ostensibly against us, it could very well be that they are either dead, not moving, or hostile. In any case, if _we_ are not there, we cannot protect it, should Katsuo himself, or any other of his allies arrive. We will lose." He stressed.

The ground continued shaking, and there was the distant roar of an explosion as the air briefly bloomed a bright, vibrant orange, before settling down into the deep dark of the night. Hibiki's eyes narrowed, staring into Sasori's light brown. It wasn't that the budding teen _wasn't_ making sense, but more that he just was too hard-headedly focusing on one possibility.

_Damn... Is this what I'm like with a fight?_ He wondered. _Or maybe this is what I look like to Katsuo._ He shook his head. "Sasori, think of it like this. The well is a bomb. Chakra is a match. We can either have a big match, staying here to fight, a smaller match, using the swift release and the Hiraishin to get out, or the smallest possible match, with just the Hiraishin." He said, leaning forward. "Minato and I can get Yui and Aojiroi out of here. We can fight them elsewhere. You, Dai, Aoi, Akane, Kushina, everyone else will stay here to protect the Ryumyaku. Minato and I can take down Yui and Aojiroi, eliminate that threat, and still have time to return here to recover and wait for Katsuo. We can get the drop on him, then - I get him out of the city, Minato gets you, Aeneas, and everyone else out. You all gang up on him and kill him, then find me and we kill Katsuo's ass. War _over."_ A pause, "mostly." There was still the problem of the world seeing Konoha as war-mongers, but without Katsuo's power backing the enemy coalition, it wouldn't take more than a decade or two to end things.

Hibiki was suddenly confronted with the reality that the war he had started ever since that first encounter with Katsuo, may very well end within the year. Katsuo, Kaguya, Hagoromo, Zetsu, all of them destroyed. Then, just maybe, with Teague backing Ame and Dante backing Konoha, the world could very well change for the better. Get back to peace, begin to move forward with an encroaching rennaissance. Rebuild not just the elemental nations, but mankind.

It was far from an unpleasant thought.

But Sasori shook his head, "we have to stay, Hibiki-san... Maybe I'm not doing a good job of explaining the why, but at the very least your Hokage gave direct orders: Protect the Ryumyaku. We cannot do that if it is the focal point around which we center the end of the war. We must be there to protect it, must be there to meet any foes that come to find it. Because if they access its power, if they travel through time - " He waved his hand, "all of this is rendered moot. All of it will be changed."

_How do I explain to you that time travel just isn't fucking possible?_ Wondered Hibiki, who sighed. "What do you guys think about this?" He looked around the lobby of the ancient building.

Minato seemed on the fence. "I don't know, Hibiki... If he's right? He did say that Katsuo's people have your polyjuice bloodline, and you said they've already replicated Noboru-san. He's seen your shadow clone technique, they might have been able to replicate... Perhaps not the kind of perfection you have with it, but enough such that they can still use it similarly." He said, "it might be prudent to stay. Sending you and me out to fight their clones would leave just Kushina as a combat specialist, and they're both as powerful as you. If they both are distracting us with clones..." He shrugged.

Kushina seemed to agree, "Hibiki, you've sparred with me before. I might be able to take on one, but two, probably with shadow clone support? I'd need a lot more than I can take from the furball."

Dai tightened her grip on Hibiki's shoulder, "but you must consider that each of you three are built upon the strength of your chakra. A major confrontation in the vicinity of the Ryumyaku could activate it. Whether or not its reported powers are true, unleashing a well of chakra of that size is far from wise. Even Hibiki may not survive it." She said, before another ground-shaking explosion. "We should try to remove them from Roran."

Akane nodded her head in agreement. "Sometimes the wisest decision is the one that takes the largest risk. It is true that if we send Hibiki and Minato away, that Katsuo's allies could reveal themselves to be clones... But we've ways to bring Hibiki back. He's already displayed this. It wouldn't be difficult to bring them back, have them take the two, and send them away to a different battleground."

_So... Minato and Kushina against, Dai and Akane for. _Hibiki, as did everyone else present, turned his gaze to Aoi and her ninken.

Aoi ran her hand through Kyo's thick coat, thinking. "A wolf's territory must be protected." She said slowly. "Oftentimes that means retreating to their den and fighting the enemy on their terms... As opposed to meeting them on grounds none are prepared for, or familiar with." She looked up, "I feel the best decision would be to stay, despite the dangers."

Hibiki let his head hang, closing his eyes. They were about to fight on top of an unstable nuclear reactor. "Okay." He grunted.

"I'm sorry, Hibiki -" Began Aoi, to be silenced by Hibiki's waving hand.

"It's fine." He said. "Then we're going to have to get a move soon..." He looked outside, just barely able to see the distant fires and the flashes that coincided with the thunderclaps. "I'll probably be getting..." A flash of memory hit him, and he let his head snap back to show it. "That." He got to his feet. "Clone just sent back an update. Found the building, went past it. The coast is clear." He turned to everyone, "you all ready?"

* * *

When they reached the partially flattened, domed building, they found a lone woman in her late fifties guarding its one wide entrance. She stood on one end of an ancient and vast parking lot, whereas Hibiki's group stood on the other. Hibiki saw Sasori's face darken, and his lip twitch, garnering his attention.

"Hibiki-san... That is not my grandmother."

"Uh..." Hibiki blinked. "Okay?"

"She is dead."

"And?" He looked back and forth, "what does - oh." He sighed. "Oh." The woman in front of them was one of the Undead, taking on the elder's form in an attempt to gain Sasori's trust, to lower his defenses.

She called out, "you have _no idea_ what it is you are doing!" In a slightly wavering voice, on the edge of a womanly tone and an elderly tremolo. "The power inside here! Leave now, and take that abomination with you!"

Sasori gritted his fist, pulling a scroll out of his scrolls pouch, and pointing it threateningly at the elderly woman. "You take my grandmother's body, perverting her once great image with such blatant mockery!" He yelled, angrily. "You are not Grandma Chiyo, and you cannot trick me with your lies!"

'Chiyo' scowled. "You truly expect to curtail these people with lies built upon their own lies?" She demanded.

Hibiki blinked. Were they really about to play spot the imposter? He turned to Sasori, eyes narrow, and then to Chiyo. "Well... Shit." If he were to be honest, a small part of him wanted to shoot them both to save him the hassle.

"Hibiki... If you and yours assist me, she cannot possibly defeat us." Said Sasori, as a thick plume of smoke shot out of his scroll, revealing five lanky wooden marionettes hovering in mid-air.

"Do not believe in his lies, Konoha!" Chiyo called out, desperately, as she assumed her own fighting stance, with ten more puppets filling the air, each in turn, with their own pops and plumes of smoke. "My grandson died days ago, and this imposter left with your shinobi!" She called out, "he wants you here, he wants you to ensure he and his ilk reach the well!"

_Jesus Christ we really do have to play this game._ He turned to Minato, and then to Kushina, both of whom were on their heels, neither of whom knowing what to do, their eyes wide and darting back and forth between the speakers. "Okay." He stretched his back. "Fuck this." He wouldn't need to outright kill them, only convince the imposter that he intended to.

Sasori's head turned, "Hibiki-san?" But he was greeted with a gun to his face.

"If you're you, I'll buy you a woodshop, make more puppets." He had no idea what puppetmasters liked, but he was pretty sure that had to be on the list. "And... Sorry." With that, he snapped the gun down and pulled the trigger, burying the bullet in Sasori's chest. It would travel straight through his thoracic cavity, scraping the edge of his heart and perforating one of his lungs before coming straight out his back.

In an instant, Hibiki's head snapped up, and he was in front of Chiyo, gun buried into her chest as well. He pulled the trigger, and the bullet went through the same path. Chiyo and Sasori's puppets clattered to the ground in a shower of wood, and Hibiki snapped back over to his group, who were just reacting to his actions.

Minato jumped, "holy shit, Hibiki!"

Kushina's head recoiled, snapping between the two prone Suna shinobi. Aoi blinked in shock while Kyo barked at the sudden, unexpected noise. Akane's Byakugan was active and likely focused on the bodies, whereas Dai simply shrugged.

"I was waiting for you to do that." She said, eyes carefully observing the two.

Hibiki grunted in the affirmative. "Whichever one is the real one can't stay like this for long. They don't have their healing abilities while taking someone else's body. So if they want to survive, they'll have to drop it." He saw Chiyo struggling to get back to her feet, muscles twitching and shaking as she determinedly rose.

"You..." She coughed, from her position on the other end of the parking lot. "You..."

Hibiki frowned. "It's the kid." He said.

Minato's head snapped to Hibiki's, "how can you _tell?"_

"Because he'd know to play dead. Convince me it's the other guy." He raised his gun, "he wouldn't get up." He put two more rounds into Sasori's back, waiting, looking for the skin to begin bubbling, as the corpse lapsed in its nonexistent concentration and its bloodline became nonfunctional.

It would only take a moment.

Just a second.

Any second - "oh shit." He fucked up.

In the time it took him to spawn a shadow clone to leap for the boy, and for him to throw his hands out and envelop the assembled shinobi in his Susanoo's ribcage, the explosive bolt from the old woman was already three quarters of the way to them. The shadow clone landed on top of the bleeding boy when the bolt slammed into Hibiki's dark gray construct and exploded. When the smoke cleared, Hibiki and the Konoha shinobi were revealed completely unharmed, with the Senju head staring at the elderly woman, hair hanging in front of his wide, red eyes, livid.

The shadow clone had its chakra seal undone and was pouring vibrant green medical chakra into the boy with a thousand apologies and curse words flying through its head, but Hibiki saw the brief, subtle nod. Whatever he had hit, he had been fast enough. The boy would survive, hopefully with his spine intact.

Chiyo pressed the advantage, as her skin began to bubble and her form began to lengthen, increasing in height and thinning out. "I knew the right move would be to send the bald one." She said, with a wide, victorious grin.

Hibiki's brow twitched, as he straightened up, his damaged coat billowing in the wind generated by his still-standing spectral ribcage. "That was a good bluff." He called back.

The formerly elder woman, now thin and shapely, and tall enough to be called amazonian, grinned her thin lips as her heir grew past her shoulders and deepened to a bloody shade of red. "It took quite a bit of planning, you know." The Viper called out. "We had to find both of your squadmates, determine who would be trusted the easiest and the quickest. As it turns out you would _believe_ the bald one to be beaten and bloodied so easily."

Hibiki's eyes narrowed, as he noticed the ten puppets still floating in the air behind her. "You're talking about Suboro." She was also stalling for time, he realized.

She grinned, folding her arms under her shapely chest and leaning forward. "I'm talking about both of them. They fought very hard."

_She's trying to piss you off. She's trying to piss you off. _Suboro and Noboru were dead, now. He had to accept that without getting to enraged.

"The bald one actually fought the hardest. His blood was a perfect one to sample... I was so sad to have learned from Aeneas and his experiences as the white-eyed one and your woman, that the Graverobber hadn't gotten that particular blood." She grinned, inspecting the diamond marking on her right hand. "Stealing said ability... Oh, I must admit I love its power." Hibiki was failing. He was failing spectacularly at not getting angry. "Did you know... It can alter a person's perception of reality? It can partially influence reality itself... For instance..." She waved her hand, and Hibiki's clone blinked.

_Kid's dead too. Maybe? Fuck._ Hibiki didn't budge, the clone saw this as a sign to keep trying, just in case. "I'm willing to bet they gave as good as they got."

Yui grinned, "indeed. The bald one nearly killed Aojiroi, but when I arrived, there was little he could do against my medical techniques, compounding my healing abilities... The white-haired one, however... He had to fight lord Katsuo, and he is most certainly not you." Her eyes trailed to the side, "or her." She said, looking into Kushina's deep blue eyes, before shifting over to Minato. "Or even him."

_That's what she's doing._ She was using Hibiki's bloodline replicating trick, she'd stolen Suboro's chakra and used the markings on her hand to mix it with her own. Added to the polyjuice blood, she was trying to find some way through his Susanoo to get at them. Her own equivalent of just killing the Batman. A small part of him felt an intrinsic terror at the possible prospect that she, and perhaps other Undead, had used their Swift Release bloodlines to get at Hibiki while his defenses were down, to steal his memories and abilities. _It would explain the hell out of how they got the bloodline trick... I don't think they're that creative... Or we're that similar._ If that were the case, Aeneas wasn't the only one who could very well be a carbon copy of Hibiki. Anyone with the Polyjuice bloodline, Dark Release, or both, could be as difficult to kill as him. _And with Aojiroi on the way... Shit._ Hibiki and Akane were the only ones with Dojutsu, the only ones capable of fighting her without succumbing to Suboro's stolen blood, but Akane wasn't like Suboro or Noboru, wasn't built for the kind of hard combat an Undead could put out, especially if Yui had had _him_ copied and his abilities stolen.

He had to just pray that Aojiroi didn't have the polyjuice blood.

Yui grinned in a predatorial way, "please, John... Let down the shield. I'd love to play with your friends." The ground shook, as a distant fireball sprung up. "I think Aojiroi would, as well." She said, briefly looking to the east.

_Her first. _I_ have to deal with her, first. Aojiroi's strong, but with Suboro's blood she's the biggest threat._ And there was the matter of the puppets she'd taken control of, but one good explosion could shatter all of them.

The clone dealing with Sasori burst. His wounds were healed, but there had still been no vital signs, and considering the unknown element, he couldn't just go straight to defibrillating the kid. Then there was of course the unknown factor of Suboro and Noboru, but he couldn't dwell on that, he had to assume they were dead until he had proof otherwise.

_Typically the subject being copied is terminated._ Hibiki settled upon, as he narrowed his eyes.

Yui smiled, "we can stay here all night, John. I gaurantee you the chakra I drain keeping these boys afloat, is less than that you spend keeping your big boy up."

"Stop that!" Minato called out, causing Yui's vision to snap to him.

_Bad idea - all I've got!_ The world slowed down as Hibiki used his Swift Release. He bolted forward, out of the slowly dissipating Susanoo.

Hibiki crossed the distance between him and Yui in a microsecond, but in that time, something much larger, and much faster, came in. It intercepted his fist with its chest, and the shockwave shot outwards, snapping the world back into realtime as Hibiki stared at the dark gray chest his fist was pressed against. The rippling muscles, leading up to a thick neck, its veins bulging as its chest heaved, taking in and blowing out as much hot oxygen as it could. Hibiki and Aojiroi stared eachother down, as the ground quaked, and the hairs on Hibiki's arms began standing on end.

"Oh shit." Said Hibiki, before Aojiroi smashed his thick fist into Hibiki's chest and send the Senju head flying back towards his friend.

Minato leapt up into the air and with a bright yellow flash, was behind Hibiki. He caught the Senju and teleported him back down to the ground, skidding to a halt as Hibiki's momentum overtook the Hiraishin's momentum-canceling. The Yellow Flash dropped his Senju friend, and the two took up defensive stances, surrounded by their allies.

_Oh... Shit._ "They're not trying to kill us." He breathed.

_"What?"_ Whispered Kushina, as Aojiroi slowly stalked over to Yui, taking up position behind her, his enormous, nine-foot-tall frame providing a stark contrast to her statuesque figure.

"They're buying time." Hibiki said, as he saw Minato's muscles tense up.

"Katsuo's on his way. The other one - Aeneas - too. It was a trap from the beginning." The Namikaze swallowed thickly through a dry throat.

"Someone will be sleeping warm tonight..." Chimed Yui, as Aojiroi let out a chest-shaking roar, and the ground shook again.

"It's worse." Said Hibiki, "they want to break open the Ryumyaku. Katsuo comes here with that thing spewing out chakra, absorbs it... No amount of Undead, or tailed beasts, or anything else in the world could stop him." Or the murder rampage that would happen when he figured out his dreams of time travel weren't even possible.

"I think we would be able to survive long enough... Wouldn't you?" Yui called out, to an agreeing snort from the gray goliath, and an accompanying shake of the ground.

_His chakra's the wildest._ Hibiki thought, a bead of sweat running down his head. _It's fucking with the Ryumyaku. Drawing from the environment, stealing from it... Oh shit._ Even above ground and far from it, they were stressing it out just by standing there. How much chakra was in there for it to be _this _sensitive?

"Hibiki?" Dai voiced.

"I've only got one idea that'll keep us fresh enough for Katsuo and Aeneas." Hibiki said, "but I need you all to buy me the time I'd need to do it." If all went perfectly - and he meant perfectly - he wouldn't break the Ryumyaku with this, Minato could Hiraishin back to Konoha, and they could get some help. Maybe even grab one of the Puppetmasters to go back to Suna, and get help from there, too. Maybe they could even wake up Emi from her coma, break open her seal and turn her into a nuke to use against Katsuo.

"How much time?" Minato asked.

"Just a minute... Two at the most." Hibiki squared his shoulders and braced his feet, raising his hands in front of him, his palms open and held up at a ninety degree angle.

"I think they're ready... Aojiroi." Yui said huskily, as Aojiroi growled, and the Konoha shinobi took up fighting stances.

_"Dai..."_ Whispered Hibiki, as a clear white sphere appeared in front of his hands, a small, marble-sized ball of chakra growing in its center, in front of his hands. "You and your team go for Yui... Watch out for genjutsu, she's taken Suboro's blood. Minato... You two go after Aojiroi... But be careful, he's not just all strength." He got nods with every instruction. "If this works... I'll disintegrate them." He said, as the chakra began to glow brightly.

"And if it doesn't?"

"Let's not think about that. _Go!"_ And with that order, everyone launched forward.

Kushina and Minato met the Hulk in the center of the parking lot, the domed building in which the Ryumyaku lay, looming above them all. Minato's foot and Kushina's fist locked with Aojiroi's meaty fist, the impact creating a shockwave as they hit eachother and bounced off. When they landed on the ground, Dai's team reached Yui. She dodged several ferocious swings and a savage bite from Aoi and Kyo, while a puppet came in to intercept Aoi, who shattered it in a shower of splinters with a palm strike.

She landed on her feet, but was intercepted by Yui, who planted her own foot in her stomach. She flew backwards, but before Yui could follow it up, Dai came sprinting in with her body flicker pushed to its limits. Yui, not even remotely ready for the Aburame, of all of them, to be able to match her speeds, took two of her punches before reacting. She backhanded Dai's third strike away and elbowed Dai's cheek before recoiling in pain, as her face and chest began opening up and bleeding freely, Rinkaichu beetles eating away at anything they could get at. The harsh pain stunned Yui enough to snap her out of her swift release, giving Aoi, her transformed ninken, and Akane time enough to rush in and get some hits in. Akane hit her repeatedly in the back with multiple left and right palm strikes, before having to duck down and avoid a flying puppet, its knife dragging at the hem of her shirt, as Aoi and Kyo leapt in and clawed and bit at the Viper's arms.

Yui threw Aoi from her left arm, sending her flying towards Aojiroi. She hit the Hulk's back, her weight proving just enough to stumble him forward, and give Minato the chance he needed to come sprinting in with a right hook. Aojiroi fell to his knee, only to have his head get snapped back towards Minato with a savage roundhouse from the red hot habanero. His thick, leathery head was then penetrated by a three-pronged kunai, as Minato drove it down and into his temple before tossing a second one Kushina's way. Kushina caught it, her arm snapping out to the side as it flew past her, before snapping right back to drag down Aojiroi's ear, his head recoiling from the attack and allowing Minato the chance to smash him in the back of it with a double-axe handle strike. As Minato recovered, Aojiroi tried to swing his fist up to hit the blonde blur's back, only to receive a punch to the gut from Kushina, forcing him to turn to her. Minato then spun around and buried his heel into the hilt of his Hiraishin kunai, forcing it so deep into the Hulk's skull that only the handle was still protruding outwards. The gray goliath's head snapped back over to Kushina, who buried it into the ground with a downward hook.

The ground shook as Aojiroi's roar built up, Minato and Kushina exchanged glances and leapt back before they could be perforated by the forest of bones sprouting up like pillars from the ancient asphault. While they were in the air, however, Kushina was tackled by a flying puppet and Minato almost didn't dodge his attacker. Yui, on the other end of the parking lot, was managing to fight her four opponents and send her puppets to harass the Yellow Flash and the Jinchuriki at the same time. She dodged a swing from Dai's purple fists, deflected a swing from the Inuzuka fighters' claws, and intercepted a palm strike from Akane, burning the hand with a brief burst of scorch chakra, as she twitched her fingers and sent orders to the puppets.

Kushina had to backhand a knife that sprouted out from one white-robed puppet's rib cage, having to take the injury as a result, as she felt the blade drag down her forearm. Before she could counter, however, she was brought back to Minato with a Yellow flash and a quake of the earth, as Aojiroi hauled his enormous frame back to his feet and tore the kunai from his braincase in a spray of blood and graymatter. Minato felt the hairs on the back of his head stand on end and he teleported himself and Kushina back into the air to dodge two puppets, wires connecting their outstretched hands. Not focusing on nearly having been cut in half, Minato pulled out an explosive tag and threw it at the puppets, destroying one of them in the blast, and having to teleport out of the way as Aojiroi blasted them with lightning.

The two fighters sprinted back in, but were halted by Dai, who had her chest partially caved in by Yui punching it with a steel fist. They three hit the ground as Yui ducked under a leaping Kyo. She, however, left her throat open to Aoi, who sprinted in, bent low to the ground, before she slashed upwards and sliced it open with her sharpened fingernails. With so many wounds, some kept open by Dai's rinkaichu, and some healing on their own, Yui was covered in so much blood that it was hard to tell what was her form-fitting dress, what was her hair, and what was her skin. She was wreathed in muted green chakra, which formed tendrils and forced their way into her wounds, pulsating as they sealed them up and she latched onto Aoi's leg before the Inuzuka could escape.

She swung Aoi around in a wide arc, right into Akane's palm, forcing the Hyuga to strike her teammate and close one of her tenketsu. On the other end of her arc, she let go of the feral shinobi, but Dai came in at body-flicker speeds, catching her teammate, spinning in mid-air, and throwing her right back. Aoi flew in, roaring loud, her improvised claws extended as she soared towards Yui, who thrust her hand forward and detonated the air in front of her. Aoi wasn't fast enough to avoid injuries, but had been able to shield her face from the worst of it, turning her predatory lunge into a pitiful tackle, which Yui quickly turned into a savage attack by burying Aoi's back into the ground. Yui, however, left herself open to a palm strike from Akane, who followed it up with two more, and then four after that, but before she could continue, Yui snapped around and backhanded her palms away and followed it up with an uppercut to the jaw, sending Akane flying towards one of the puppets, who bearhugged her.

Blades of all kinds burst out from Akane's chest, but an instant later she was replaced with an ancient and deflated rubber tire from one of the few vehicles in the parking lot. It fell to the ground as Dai came in, pulsing her body flicker again with a brief handsign, and blasting Yui with a beetle bullet, held together by rinkaichu. Yui recoiled from the force of the attack and hissed in pain as the beetles began eating her flesh, but she sprayed her arm in acid, quickly killing all but the swiftest of rinkaichu before they could enter her bloodstream. The pain was immense, but nothing even close to what it would have been had more gotten within her.

And as all of this happened, Hibiki stood there, removed from the battle, watching it all happen. In front of his still raised hand, the once marble-sized orb of chakra was now so large it was straining against the Dust Release's cage. Hibiki's hands were tense and his arms were clenched so tight the dense muscles were bulging and shaking from the strain. His teeth were bared and his sharingan was focused on the orb of hyper-compressed chakra in front of him. This was the only way he could do it, right now. Adding in explosive chakra just made the entire thing too volatile, he wouldn't be able to control it, but the dust release on its own, it wasn't fully mastered, and he wouldn't be able to take out Yui _and_ Aojiroi with it. The kamehameha, however, was too weak on its own to take them both out with one blast; but it wasn't impossible to combine the two. It was just a matter of holding the chakra, of trapping it and letting it feed off of itself.

_That,_ he'd been able to do just fine since before Katsuo.

_"Minato!"_ He roared out, as the ground shook violently beneath him and the sand, dust, and rubble surrounding him slowly began to raise into the air. _"It's ready!"_ He leaned back, sucking in a lungfull of air.

Minato's head snapped over to Hibiki at the sound of his name. He saw the Senju, his legs braced and his hands raised, the powerful orb of chakra held in front of him, and knew it was time even before Hibiki said anything. With a thought and a pulse of chakra, he vanished in a yellow flash, grabbing Kushina, before depositing her behind Hibiki. Another flash, he had Aoi and Akane. A third, he had Kyo. A final one, he had Dai, and then he fell to the ground behind Hibiki.

_"Now!"_

Hibiki thrust his entire upper body forward and with a mighty bellow, screamed as the blast wave rocketed forth.

With an ear-shattering shriek, and a roar that shattered whatever glass still stood in the ruins of Tokyo, the Senju head's blast thundered forward. The Dust Release's protective shell shattered like glass, and the dense, raw chakra Hibiki had poured into it blasted out, briefly worrying Hibiki as he saw how wide the arc was, nearly taking off the tips of his fingers before he brought it under control. It crossed the distance between Aojiroi and Yui in a second, eating up and obliterating anything in its way, and blinding everyone who saw it.

Aojiroi saw the massive wave coming and was hardly able to bring his Susanoo up in time. He was enveloped in the top half of his mangekyo construct; he crouched down low and covered his head with one arm, while thrusting the other out and using his Envir blood to morph it into shape, before blasting chakra out of it like a jet engine, providing the counter-thrust he needed to remain firmly rooted in the ground.

Aojiroi's bright, bleeding red eyes, widened as he felt Hibiki's blast eating away at the chakra construct, and despite the counter thrust, he was slowly being pushed backwards, grinding up a great deal of asphalt. He felt fear as the arguably meagre strength of Hibiki's replicated bijuu dama was molded into the awesome power of the dust release, turning it into a weapon of unparalleled destructive capability.

He _would_ have felt fear, for himself and for Yui behind him. But then, he felt the ground beneath him cease its quakes. Hibiki's attack, was overwhelmed by an even larger one, as Hibiki's worst fear, the first and biggest hitch to his entire plan, came true.

The Ryumyaku had opened.


	79. Loop: Stuff -III-

Chapter 78

* * *

Everyone was thrown from their feet in the wake of the devastating explosion, and the blinding orb of white light. With his attack destabilized, Hibiki actually lost both of his arms when the dust release chakra lashed out and tore them clean from his body. He was hardly able to haul himself up to his knees, with how much phantom and corporeal pain he felt in his arms, and the deafening ringing in his ears. He felt a heat beating down on his flesh, as if he were in the middle of the sun, or he were on fire, yet he felt no flames licking at his body, and it was night, so it had to be the heat from the explosion.

Hibiki felt his arms regenerating, the bones sprouting out from his shoulders and allowing him to fall on them, leaning on them and letting his head hang low to the ground as he howled out in pain. With the ringing in his ears, he had almost no sense of balance, and the pain in his regenerating arms was numbing him to nearly anything else, even Minato, who had managed to unsteadily get to his feet, only to fall onto Hibiki and push the two of them over.

On the other side of the parking lot, Aojiroi and Yui were in similar states. The former was roaring out so loudly that the air shook, beating at the ground as he tried to physically push the pain and the ringing in his ears out of his head, while the latter was clutching her red head and trying to understand why none of the green chakra was working.

Hibiki heard muffled voices, and shook his head, trying to clear it of the ringing, but only making the clenching migraine worse in the process. He had to get up - the Ryumyaku had just _exploded._ He had to see the damage, he had to pray he hadn't just dropped a thousand megaton nuke on the planet. He had to see if there was some way to undo it, he had to kill Aojiroi and Yui before Katsuo and Aeneas showed up. He had to check if Sasori really was dead or if Yui had just been screwing with him.

He lifted his head with a laborious amount of effort. It took almost all of his strength to fight gravity, and his eyes were still filled with the white light of the explosion, he could hardly see anything, not even the whites of the bones on his hands, as they were rewrapped by his muscles and tendons. He heard more muffled voices, and then Dai was in front of him, her hood down, her amber eyes shielded by her sunglasses, the sun reflecting off of them.

_Sun..._ Something about that seemed wrong. Wasn't it night? Or had the explosion set a fire?

Dai's lips moved, but little sound made it to Hibiki's ringing ears. He squinted his eyes and dropped his head, but he felt cool, dainty hands grasp his cheeks and haul his lead head back up. Dai snapped her fingers in front of Hibiki's face and waved her hand back and forth, but Hibiki's dazed eyes hardly even followed the action. Her lips moved again, he thought he could make out some sound.

Something about beetles, she was saying. There were a lot of beetles around, Hibiki had to get up.

Wait, that didn't make sense. Why would Dai be so concerned about beetles?

He felt his ears start to clear up, as his arms grew itchy from the skin regrowing, and his healing factor started repairing other dire emergencies. Sound came back, and he heard Aojiroi roaring in pain, felt the ground shaking beneath him from the gray goliath's constant beating of the ground. He heard people screaming, he heard alarms blaring, he heard glass shattering and metal bending.

_Wait..._ Hibiki squinted his eyes and grunted, taking Dai's hand and slowly hauling himself to his feet, unsteadily, nearly stepping on Minato as he did so. _Alarms..._ He raised his blurry gaze, looking around.

The empty parking lot had a lot more vehicles in it than Hibiki had remembered. Hell, he remembered being somewhat disappointed that there were so few - he'd always wanted to throw a car, like Superman did in the movies. Of course it made no sense, he had super strength, so why even _throw_ a _car?_ To look cool? Hibiki shook his head, falling back a step and landing against another car.

Suddenly there was a pair of hands on him, one hand on his right arm, one just behind his shoulder. Strange, considering Dai was in front of him, Minato was below him, Kushina was crawling towards Minato, and it looked like Aoi and Kyo were holding eachother, while Akane was trying to climb to her feet up the back of a car. Also strange was that Dai wasn't attacking these hands, because the only other option was that it was one of the Undead.

_I must... I must be using the Swift blood._ Hibiki grunted in pain, before he let instinct take over and he backhanded the grab-hands away, wrapping his arm around one and jerking forward. He slammed his palm into the blurry assailant's chest and threw him around in a wide arc, smacking him into the concrete with a loud 'oof'.

Hibiki's steel-covered fist was inches from the man's face before he realized that this was a face he didn't recognize. He blinked hard and shook his head again, hearing a few voices shout, and then Dai shout back in response, before sounds of a struggle reached his ears. This face wasn't huge, gray and thick, like Aojiroi's, and it wasn't leathery and ashen, like Katsuo's. It was too old to be what little he knew of Aeneas through Facsim's memories, and it was too male to be Yui. To top it all off, it wasn't pride or anger that filled the dull brown eyes, but fear and terror - something he'd never seen in an Undead's eyes. Well, not before or since he'd beaten the hell out of Runner, but that didn't count.

Was this a puppet user?

No, he wasn't wearing desert clothing.

_"Oh... Fuck."_ Hibiki groaned, leaning forward and burying his head in his hand, the steel melting away from his fist, as that fell forward, inches away from the new guy's temple, to stabilize him.

The sound of bodies hitting the floor and bumpers of cars reached his ears, prompting him to look over his shoulder. There were three more new people, and they were all attacking Dai. The parts of Hibiki's brain still working kicked into overdrive, but the pain in the majority of his brain dulled his reflexes, forced him to watch as... Well that was odd. These people were weaker than genin - Dai was hardly even putting any effort into her attacks. It was as if Dai were a giant, holding these people at arms length as they flailed about angrily. They were on the ground in seconds, with one's head denting the bumper of a car with a sickening crunch.

Well, if they were hostile, they weren't much threats, now were they?

God damn, his head hurt. It felt as if it were stuck in a vice grip, and it would just not stop squeezing. Dai turned to face Hibiki, and saw him practically straddling his assailant. She rushed over and got him to his feet.

"Hibiki, the Ryumyaku -"

_"Yeah..."_ Grunted the Senju head, "we need to..." Suddenly he felt like everything in his stomach wanted to say 'hi', and he fought off Dai's grip so he could stumble forward and lean against a car, before he vomited. Fortunately it wasn't tinged with blood, but it still hurt coming out.

He heard some others getting to their feet, and Minato's voice floated towards his dully ringing ears. "Hibiki - it's daytime!" He gasped.

Hibiki just groaned, leaning more heavily on the car.

Kushina spoke now, "what are these things?" She asked, as Hibiki heard paws beat at the ground, and more still get to their feet. "These metal things? Where did they come from?"

_Oh god..._ The pain in his head got worse before it got better, he felt Dai's hands on his back again, as the man below him, and whichever friends of his were still conscious, scramble away.

Akane now, "how are we alive? The Ryumyaku, it was so bright I thought it had burned my Byakugan!"

The pain _was_ dulling, and the ringing in his ears was becoming more distant, but his entire world still spun lightly.

Aoi spoke, "Hibiki, there are people - so many scents around us. I even smell fire, and oil."

Hibiki groaned, forcing himself to straighten up. He blinked once, and then twice, as his eyes beheld the tall, fully standing buildings hardly a kilometer from the no-longer collapsed stadium.

"Uh..." But that was the last moment of peace he had.

The air was filled with Aojiroi's deep bellow, Hibiki's aching head snapped towards the chest-rattling roar. He saw Aojiroi tower just above the cars he was surrounded by, before he charged forward, his arms swinging in wide arcs as he shouldered aside vehicle after vehicle in his mad dash. Some were sent flying, some simply were bashed away a few inches, one was bisected down the middle as he crashed straight through it.

"Oh _fuck..."_ Groaned Hibiki, "you guys move." He took a few steps forward, building his momentum up into a full on run. "I'll -" His cursed seal stretched across his skin, "I'll hold him -" But just as he reared his fist to intercept Aojiroi's, he realized that he didn't feel anything.

No power.

No chakra, in or out.

No strength.

The cursed seal was stretched across his skin, but there was nothing. It wasn't working.

It was too late for him to react: Aojiroi buried his fist into Hibiki's face and sent him flying back towards his friend, slamming into the rear end of a car. Its alarm went off as Hibiki was buried into its bumper and it skidded forward a few inches. With most of his friends still too ailed to try to react, Hibiki simply called on the next best thing: His lightning cloak.

With lightning streaming from his body, Hibiki extricated himself from the vehicle and charged forward, managing to tackle Aojiroi around his stomach and halt him just before he would have crushed the kneeling Minato's legs. Hibiki's roar matched aojiroi's, and he hauled the man into the air, taking off with billowing winds.

The Konoha group had no time to react to Hibiki as he blasted off again, because Yui came in with her swift release an instant later. Dai, the closest one to 'healthy' of all of them, was the first one to react, pulsing her body flicker and coming in high. She buried her purple, viscuous fist into Yui's face, her head whipping back and forth as Dai landed on her feet and followed it up with an elbow to the gut. Yui fell back a step and dodged Dai's next two attacks, before intercepting a kick and hauling her into the air, before smashing her into the side of a car and burying her into its door, shattering the window in a shower of glass.

The world snapped back into focus, and with a loud snarl, Kyo came bounding in, sinking his teeth into Yui's right shoulder and tearing at her back with his front claws, leaving it and her dress a shredded bloody mess. She whipped back and forth, trying to rip Kyo from her back, giving Akane the time she needed to move in close and bury her palm into Yui's back.

With her chakra already in flux and her body already in pain from the Ryumyaku's detonation, Yui couldn't react in time to protect herself from Akane, and couldn't even stay on her feet. She fell to the ground and felt Kyo whip his head back and forth, dislocating her shoulder and tearing into its meat. Akane was joined by Aoi, as they beat Yui while she was on the ground.

Minato felt his head clearing as he shook it, and it was this sheer chance that allowed him to see Yui's eyes glint dangerously, and her mouth bulge out as she locked eyes with Aoi. Thinking mostly on instinct, Minato clawed at the ground and swapped placed with her using his Hiraishin, before receiving a blast of acid to the back for his troubles. An enraged Uzumaki, however, was what she was met with as a response, as the red-eyed jinchuriki grabbed at the Undead and hauled her into the air, before smashing her chest with her chakra-streaming fist.

Yui was sent flying, past the concrete that made their battleground. She bounced once, leaving a crater, before hitting the ground again and grinding to a halt. Before she could, however, she heard a horrendous blaring noise and multiple deafening screaching noises. Her head snapped up just in time to see a metal behemoth hurtling straight towards her. It smashed into her face and sent her skidding backwards, leaving a bloody trail across the dark gray ground, before she hit a metal pole sticking up from the ground with a loud flesh-on-metal thud.

In the blink of an eye, her vision refocused, and her mind began to sharpen quickly; she found herself surrounded, the shinobi trying to confuse her with transformation and clone techniques. With a growl, she swiped her hand in a wide arc, coating them all in burning acid. This did the trick, scattering the weaker clones with fear, incapacitating the ones closer to her, and allowing her to spin around to face the approaching Alphas. A three-pronged kunai slammed into the asphalt in front of her and buried into it, before Minato appeared in a bright yellow flash. The flesh on his back smoldered, but he bit through the pain and slammed his fist into Yui's head, sending her stumbling backwards and into the open-palm strike of the Hyuga.

Before the Hyuga could follow up her attack, however, her pale, bulging white eyes widened and she screamed, _"MOVE!", _just a few moments before Hibiki and Aojiroi came crashing through one of the towering steel and glass monoliths that surrounded the fighters.

The two Undead slammed into the ground with an earth-shaking crash and a shower of glass. Hibiki, his body covered in dull black ink, ducked under Aojiroi's thick fist and drove his elbow into the Hulk's gut. Aojiroi skidded back a few feet, and roared out in defiance, before he too was hit by one of the screeching, blaring metal behemoths. Its face crumpled up like a broken nose and its blaring voice died down with a whine, Aojiroi was partially buried underneath it, his leg trapped by one of its own. With a grunt, he swung his arm around and smashed it into the metal behemoth's side, sending it spinning through the air with the sound of crunching metal and shattering glass.

This distraction gave Hibiki and Dai the time to attack him, however, with the former driving him through with a small spear of beetles held together by rinkaichu. The spear instantly dissipated once it drove through the Hulk's thick hide, and began enveloping him and eating away at him as Hibiki charged forward and thrust his hand forward, detonating his chakra and sending Aojiroi flying back, before his bright red eyes snapped to his right and he vanished in a ripple of light. He appeared right next to Minato, kicking Yui into the Namikaze's building wind technique, which tore at the Viper's skin and sent her stumbling backwards towards Kushina, who wrapped her arms around Yui's midsection and heaved her into the air, up, and over, in a perfect suplex.

"Hibiki -" Gasped Minato, whose head pointed upwards.

"Akane -" Called Hibiki, his words no longer slurred. "- the puppet corps!"

"Hibiki, it's daytime!"

"Hibiki-san, there are so many people, I can't find them!" Akane called out.

"What the hell are you - PEOPLE!" Hibiki's head whipped back and forth as he saw panicking people fleeing from their battle. "What the fu -"

A gigantic, gray spectral fist smashed into Hibiki and Minato from behind in a wide right hook, burying the latter and sending the former flying. Hibiki tumbled up into the air for a few moments before he thrust both hands out, chakra pulsing from his limbs and steadying him in the air. He righted himself and took account of his surroundings. Down below him, Aojiroi was surrounded by his dark gray Susanoo and was savagely swinging at the shinobi closest to him as he made his way towards Yui. Beyond them, however, there were people - thousands of people - fleeing in terror from the battle, there were car-sized boxes of metal on wheels squeeling as they sped, some spinning out, down the dark gray streets, and in the distant he heard loud, blaring bells and whistles. Surrounding them and ringing the gray streets were buildings stretching higher than Hibiki thought possible, considering what -

He blinked and spun around in mid-air, the gears in his mind now no longer grinding in place. There, in the distance, was the stadium they had been fighting around. No longer gray, run down and falling apart, but standing proud and upright, paint as fresh as if it had been applied the previous day. Hibiki looked up into the bright blue sky, the sun hanging in the air that had just minutes ago been darker than his coat.

"No..." His shoulders slumped as, in the distance, he saw a great, metal, winged construction, soaring through the air, the roar of its engines trailing just behind it. "No... No, no no no!" He'd been wrong - _dead wrong - _all along.

He was _Back Home._

_"SHIT!"_ Hibiki whipped back around in the air and hurtled back towards the ground.

With a thunderous boom, he slammed into Aojiroi's Susanoo, making the Hulk stumble a bit. Hibiki's head snapped to Minato and he pointed at him as he shouted, "do whatever you have to! Just get her and get the fight out of this city!" And just a moment later, after dodging a swing from Aojiroi, he again tackled the Hulk, but this time, his body streaming bright blue lightning, his strength enough to pick up the half-made Susanoo and carry them both through the air.

Perhaps there was the smallest part of Hibiki that refused to believe this was happening, but then there was the reasonable part of him. The reasonable part of him told him that he was dead, but still breathing. The reasonable part of him said that he could literally bend and break the laws of physics, and was rapidly becoming powerful enough to wipe entire cities from the face of the earth. He'd had the luxury to believe that it was impossible only because he had found no evidence to support the contrary, but now? Now he'd picked a fight in a well of ancient chakra reputed to be able to allow its masters to travel through time, and here he was, after a massive earthquake and a blinding flash. The sun was up, the buildings were standing tall, cars and people filled the street, and there was an actual airplane in the air.

God damn time travel.

He would have to figure out how to solve this later. He would have to consider whether or not he even _could_ solve it in the first place, later. Right now, he had to kill Aojiroi. Problem: This guy was strong, and was constantly drawing in nature chakra. Drowning him wouldn't work, he'd break free too quickly, and flying him into space wouldn't work for the same reason. His own curse mark wasn't working well, which means he only had his bloodlines and his lightning cloak as a reliable power augmentation. Until he got a better solution, his only one was to try and box the Hulk. But then there was another problem: If he really was back when Tokyo was a city and not ruins, that meant there were people here. Millions of them - perhaps several multiples more than all of the people alive in the Elemental Nations, and Hibiki had long since learned that when an Undead fought another one, stuff blew up.

He had to get out of the city.

Hell, he had to get out of the _country._

So, after tackling Aojiroi's spectral beast, Hibiki hit the afterburners and began roaring out, as he dragged Aojiroi along the ground and hauled him into the air. The Hulk and the Thunder God soon were hurtling through the sky faster than sound. Aojiroi tried to cut his Susanoo in an attempt to stun Hibiki, but Hibiki simply caught him by the midsection and kept going until they were over water, where he then angled downwards and rocketed straight down, to the ocean. The two figures slammed into the ocean like meteors, skipping across it like stones and sending sprays of saltwater into the air.

Aojiroi bellowed out in anger and dug his feet into the water, rearing his fist as he ground to a halt and Hibiki came in after him. When Hibiki came within striking distance, Aojiroi swung his fist around in a wide arc, forcing Hibiki to spin on an axis and deflect the punch. He buried himself into the water and shot through it like a torpedo, before righting himself upwards and hurtling back towards the open salty air. He surfaced with a shower of water and thrust his hand forward, blasting Aojiroi with lightning. The Hulk thrust his arm forward and caught the streams of lightning with it, as he reared his own hand and formed a massive explosive orb within it.

Thinking fast, Hibiki cut the lightning streaming from his hands and dropped back to the water. He dashed forward, but just as he used his Lightning Cloak to breech Aojiroi's defenses, Aojiroi used his own Swift Release and the natural chakra coursing through his veins to overtake Hibiki's, thrusting his hand forward and burying the explosive orb into Hibiki's invulnerable chest, sending him flying and enveloping the both of them in an enormous explosion.

Hibiki righted himself in the air and threw his arms out to slow his glide, briefly looking down at his arm, seeing that the lightning cloaking it wasn't the onyx shade it should have been, despite the cursed seal stretching across his body.

_Why the he-_ But before he could finish his thought, Aojiroi came roaring through the air, burying his fist into Hibiki's face and skipping them across the water.

Grunting in pain, Hibiki kicked up at Aojiroi's chest to separate the two, as they continued skidding across the water, leaving waves in their wake. Hibiki rolled backwards and sprung to his feet, dodging another swing from Aojiroi and planting his fist on the Hulk's face. His cross sent Aojiroi flying on a second axis, in addition to their previous momentum, leading to Hibiki moving in a straight line and him at an angle. His boots still sliding across the water, the air still whipping at his hair, Hibiki spun to face Aojiroi as the monster dug at the water with his hands. When he gained his grip, he bounded forward like a beast. Hibiki stood his ground, and when he saw Aojiroi begin to be enveloped by the pale white swift chakra, he dug his foot into the water and immediately slowed down to a halt when the water around his feet turned to ice.

Still obeying his previously angular momentum, Aojiroi shot past Hibiki, who used the increased surface area of the plate of ice to slow himself down. With a grunt, he flipped up into the air and kicked at the plate of ice, shattering it into pieces, before using the chakra he'd saturated it with to shoot the ice shards at the Hulk. Aojiroi's gray skin was torn to shreds and blood flew through the air in a grotesque display, as the ice, shattering on, or burying in, his back, turned as red as the blood it drew.

_If I'm not drawing in nature chakra... Did it bring us to before chakra was here? Is that even fucking poss - no, fuck it._ Hibiki checked his hand as he ground to a halt, keeping Aojiroi in his peripherals. _Before chakra hit the earth. Okay. I don't have the curse mark, I'm burning my own fuel... But that also means Aojiroi can't re-up himself._ He clenched his lightning-covered fist and looked dangerously at the gray goliath. _I just have to outlast him, then I can drown the fucker!_

Aojiroi righted himself as the two finally halted atop the water. The howling winds and the waves they had generated all rushed forward to greet them, enveloping them in harsh winds and a spray of ocean water. Hibiki glared at Aojiroi, half of his face plastered by his wet hair, and Aojiroi, as he was wont to do, thrust both of his arms next to his hips and roared out, his voice loud enough to send ripples across the water. Hibiki responded by taking up a defensive stance.

"Come on, then." He taunted.

Aojiroi charged.

* * *

"Get her out of the city? Where even are we?!" Kushina shrieked, as she ducked under a wide swing from the Viper.

"Hell if I know, Kushina! Just hit her real hard!" Minato responded, before he did just that, dashing inside Yui's defenses and burying his fist into the redhead's back. He ripped a three-pronged kunai from his pouch and threw it into the air, "Akane-san, catch that and run! Find trees!" He ordered, before he palmed away an elbow from Yui and teleported away before she could weaponize her skeleton.

Yui's red, Sharingan eyes snapped onto the mid-air Kunai, and the pale-eyed tracker leaping after it. She sped up with her Swift Release, dodging a spear of beetles in the process, and leapt into the air after the Hyuga. Before she reached her, however, Minato's shoulder slammed into her back and the two were sent flying back to the ground, where they landed with a muted crunch. Minato scrambled off of the shapely woman's back, unable to dodge a rib bursting out and cutting open his leg, and nearly doing the same when he sprung to his hand. He flipped back to his feet and flew through a series of handseals, before he dug into his pouch and threw a kunai at the Viper.

Just as the kunai left his hand, it burst into twenty more just like it, and the Viper deflected each one. Her vision was quickly filled with bright yellow flashes as Minato teleported everywhere at once, never occupying the same space for more than a millisecond, before he finally lunged forward and slashed at Yui's side. He carved upwards with a series of quick, deep slashes, before ending it with a punch to the face, making her fall over backwards and smashing the back of her head into the ground.

She, however, clenched at the asphault with one of her bleeding hands, and just as Minato began to feel pain in his entire body, from the stress of forcing the Body Flicker to go on for longer than it should, he saw the stone churning and shaking. He leapt into the air and barely managed to dodge a huge pillar of jagged, sharp bone bursting up from it. His muscles feeling like they were tearing themselves apart, Minato was forced to teleport to one of his earlier discarded Hiraishin kunai and drop the Body Flicker.

Instantly the ground began to shake and the sound of concrete shattering filled his ears as the Undead filled the road with her bone pillars. Minato fall to the ground and stumbled forward to his hands and knees, wheezing, his face red and his body feeling like it was on fire. He shook his head and gulped through a dry throat, but before he could act next, he heard a terrified shriek.

_"AKANE!"_

His head snapped up and he saw all of the Kunoichi fighting alongside of him leaping upwards. He looked up and saw Akane tumbling through the air - straight for a jagged spike of bone. In the blink of an eye, Minato was was there, in the place of the kunai in her hands, and with her wrapped in his arms. Instantly following another flash, the two were back on the ground with a loud grunt, but before Minato could try to get the two back to their feet, Yui appeared behind him with a zipping noise. He braced for an attack to his back, but soon found himself airborne as huge, dense clouds of beetles scooped underneath him and the Hyuga and picked them up.

Bursting through the cloud as it raised was a red-eyed Uzumaki, whose face was etched with rage and whose hair stood up on nine pointed ends. She thrust her fist forward and buried it into Yui's punch with a straight right, quickly following it up with a spinning left elbow, before following her circular momentum to grab Yui's head with her right hand and bury her face into the ground. As she proceeded to savagely beat Yui into the ground and send concrete and asphault into the sky, the beetles lost their temporary burst of strength and deposited Minato and Aoi on the ground, as Dai, Aoi, and Kyo rushed over.

"You still have it?" Minato asked, as he scrambled to his feet, his hand still on Akane's arm. "Are you okay?" She nodded, and produced the kunai. "Alright - do what Hibiki said. _Run,_ we need to get out of here - something must have happened, we must've tripped the Ryumyaku, and now we're back when this city was alive. We need to get out of here before -" And on cue, something bad happened.

They were heralded by sounds none of them had ever heard before. The roars of fiery beasts and thunder contained in metal monoliths, the squeals of spinning rubber legs scraping against the ground, the howls and whistles of bells and sirens both unseen. Minato was the only one fast enough to actually be able to turn his head and behold the roaring, squealing metal beasts as they rampaged over the asphalt and straight towards them, red and blue lights flashing, and glass eyes revealing _people_ inside their gaping, darkened maws.

The Konoha shinobi and the Undead Viper were all quickly surrounded by these beasts, and the people inside tore open the metal bodies with plastic clicking and clanking sounds. The bells and siren calls silenced as the people inside grasped their beasts' dry viscera and held them to their mouths, before yelling into it, their voices somehow coming out louder than the sirens had been.

Broken Common, a dialect none of them had ever heard before, was their language of choice. The words they understood made little sense, but when paired with what they drew from their weapons pouches, were at least able to get a point across. As suddenly they all were in possession of Hibiki's thunder techniques, so did Minato and the rest of the Konoha shinobi go back to back in defensive postures, while Yui, several meters away and surrounded by her own cadre of metal beasts and their partially swallowed human prey, slowly got to her feet, her head revolving around, making eye contact with her aggressors. They roared at the shinobi, demanding in nearly nonsensical Common that they cease their attack, that they do something to the ground, likely lay upon it unthreateningly. The strangely dressed people holding the thunder techniques were adamant that any sudden moves would be dealt with, and Minato saw as hammers were drawn, safeties removed, and fingers pressed to triggers, waiting to be given a reason to fire.

"Akane... How big can you get your Revolving Heavens?" Minato muttered, as the broken orders were once again roared out. He counted the beasts and the regurgitated people: Four of the former, eight of the latter.

Akane whispered out, "press closer... I can make it just big enough, but only barely."

"Then go on my signal." If Minato messed up, it could mean the lives of everyone present - but he knew he wouldn't.

The beasts were poised over one of his Hiraishin kunai, and as fast as they had been, he was faster. The moment he saw one of the uniformed men shout into the viscera again, Minato, with the briefest straightening of his fingers into a handsign, pulsed his body flicker, and vanished in a bright yellow flash. On top of one of the metal beasts he appeared, he lunged forward, snatching one of the thunder techniques out of its wielder's hands. He smashed its grip into the back of the head of the second to knock him out, and straightened it up, aiming at the man the most distant from him. He pulled the trigger once, and the bullet froze after leaving the barrel of the gun. He snapped the gun to his next target and repeated his previous actions, before there were six bullets frozen in the air. With a scowl, he dropped the body flicker, and his ears were assaulted by the thunderclaps of his stolen thunder technique, as the slugs shot out and into the heads of their intended targets.

The heads of each of the enemy targets snapped in the direction the bullets were fired, and they fell to the ground, their metal beasts seeming completely nonplussed as they refused to even twitch in the direction of their former food. Minato didn't complain, and Akane only spun twice before she saw their aggressors fall to the ground, dead. She ceased her spins and Minato tossed his stolen weapon, but at that moment, Yui made her own attack, lunging forward to one of the people surrounding her.

She sank her claws into the man in a very literal sense, but the others opened fire, perforating her back with bullets as she tore open his chest and sprayed him with acid. Her head snapped around, acid streaming from her mouth like a rabid dog, as green medical chakra sank its tendrils into her wounds. The men who had shot her stared in abject horror as her wounds vanished, leaving behind only the look of a ravenous monster-woman, whose spinning, blood red eyes were locked onto their own fear-tinged orbs. They were rooted to the spot by her killing intent, as she got to her feet with a menacing slowness.

Before she could attack again, however, she received in short order, a blast of monomolecular beetles, several kunai and shuriken, a jet black chakra chain encircling her core, and a kick in the temple from Minato, burying her inside the metal beast as the man on the other side of it dropped its viscera with a yelp of fright. Minato heard the people loading more projectiles into their weapons, but with a body flicker, he had sprinted to each of them, snapping necks, slicing open throats, and cracking skulls, until they too were dead. This, however, gave Yui the time she needed to try and counter - she jerked her body forward to throw Kushina off balance, and then wrenched herself out of the still metal beast.

Her skin turning to steel to stave off the rinkaichu assault, and her body radiating dense chakra, she planted her foot under the belly of the beast and with a loud bellow, and muscles bulging with effort, kicked upwards, sending the beast spinning to its side, before she then kicked it in its belly and sent it sliding to Minato. Minato barked out in fear and vanished in a yellow flash, appearing right next to Kushina, to whom she pointed.

"Throw her!" He said, raising his hand and spinning it around as if he were holding a lasso. "Throw her now before -" And as he spoke, more metal beasts arrived, including at least one massive, heavy, box-like one with thick, dark skin.

Kushina didn't need anymore instruction, she yanked on the chain and used her strength to haul Yui into the air. Around and around she spun the viper, who tried melting the chains with her acid to no avail. When the Viper was but a blur, Kushina dispelled the technique and let Yui fly, but the time it took to do this allowed the new arrivals to reach their position. Aoi and Kyo darted forward when one of the smaller beasts came to a halt and the people extricated themselves from its maw, with the latter latching onto one man's throat, and the former launching a quick series of slashes and punches up and down the chest of his partner. Akane and Dai leapt into the air, with the latter grabbing onto the former's arm and spinning around in one complete revolution, before using the build momentum to haul her into the larger, box-shaped beast, just as Kushina stormed for the same one.

A large gash appeared in the beast's nose, which instantly began leaking thick smoke, as Akane landed on its back and planted her palm firmly upon it, though she left little more than a dent. As she fell back to the ground, Dai thrust her hand forward and send several more rin/kikaichu bullets blasting out of her sleeves, which quickly ate through the metal beasts and set the people screaming in pain as they were hit with the splash of the insects. Minato attempted to replicate Yui's feat, using the beasts to fight the beasts, but found that it took far more chakra and effort than he'd expected to haul the front end of the beasts up into the air and then push it forward, crushing a few people between them and shattering their glass eyes.

When he straightened up, however, all of his senses went on overdrive, and not even a second later, he felt something slam into his shoulder. It tore through and out the other side before he even heard the thunderclap, and Minato saw, at a speed few possessed the proper reaction time to process, a bullet passing through his body in a spray of blood. His body exploded into a pain he had never felt before and briefly overwhelmed his tolerance, but not enough to stop him from instinctually pulsing his Hiraishin to get out of danger. He reappeared back in the parking lot, and after taking another millisecond to grit his teeth, teleported again, this time with knives in both hands. He buried one into the head of one of the strangely dressed men, but as he considered what to do with the next one, he heard _more_ beasts approaching.

He pulsed his body flicker and snapped his head up. They were quickly being surrounded by monolithic metal beasts and men in heavy, body-covering flak jackets. The shinobi were fighting in and out of the center of the ring of assembled beasts, but there were far more men than them, and injuries were starting to mount. With the world frozen at relativistic speeds, Minato saw several weapons, larger than the one he had taken and used earlier, mid-way through firing their projectiles, with gouts of fire frozen in front of their barrels and projectiles just overcoming the fire, air distorted around them. He saw a long, bloody gash across Kyo's back and Aoi had taken a hit similar to him; Dai was nursing a flesh wound on her throat that was plugged up by some viscuous purple substance, and Akane's back looked to be bleeding, though from a glancing shot or a direct hit, there was too much clothing to tell; while Kushina had multiple wounds that were sizzling away thanks to her tenant's chakra.

Minato frowned. Chakra or not, no matter how much strength they used, if they stayed here they would die. There were too many people with too many thunder techniques around, and the only one of them that could take these hits was either off fighting a foe far greater, or not capable of healing fast enough to compensate.

These thoughts in mind, Minato quickly formed the handsign he needed for the shadow clone technique, as the clock ticked on his body flicker. Ten clones appeared - five for his allies, and five to stay to fight and distract. It took a significant amount of chakra, but it was worth it as he threw his Hiraishin kunai into the sky, in the same direction Yui had went. When he dropped his body flicker, the kunai vanished it was moving so fast, and his clones surged forward in a sea of blonde hair. They bear-hugged shinobi and slammed into the beasts and their captives, before the Hiraishin clones and the Alpha Minato all vanished in a collectively blinding yellow flash.

* * *

Each punch sent out a shockwave powerful enough to part the sea beneath them, whether or not it hit in the first place. The water rushing back in would then surge upwards and create a guyser of steam and saltwater that stung at their healing wounds and carried the electricity streaming off of the Senju head's body. Hibiki ducked beneath a massive, meaty fist, and bent forward, slamming both of his own into the Hulk's thick gray chest and sending him skidding backwards at their massive speed; the two were so far away from Japan now that Hibiki was pretty sure they were in the middle of the Pacific Ocean.

Aojiroi roared in his characteristic chest-shaking bellow and thrust his hand forward, sending a wall of bullet-bones and several explosive orbs streaming forward. With the speed granted by the lightning cloak, Hibiki sprinted in a wide arc out of the way of the ranged calcium, and backhanded away the explosive orbs if they grew too close. He roared back to Aojiroi and hopped up, his strength carrying him the last handful of meters between him and the Hulk before he thrust his hand forward, smashing it into Aojiroi's head and causing the gray goliath to spin around. Hibiki landed on the water and quickly fell backwards onto his hands, before kicking forward with both feet and springing upwards, sending Aojiroi flying through the air as his feet hit his back with the sound of leather striking skin.

Hibiki rolled to his feet and pulsed his chakra, flying after Aojiroi with lightning following in his wake. As he grew closer, he saw, off in the distance, a small object just hovering on the horizon, growing larger as he and Aojiroi continued their deadly game of hurry up and wait. Hibiki intercepted Aojiroi and, after lunging out of the way of a massive fist, sent his own fist down into Aoijiroi's chest, burying him in the ocean with a huge geyser of water. Hibiki flipped around, now flying with his back to the water, watching as Aojiroi skipped across the ocean. Before Hibiki could reorient himself and drop to the water below, he smashed into something and tore through it with the sound of metal rending.

Hibiki ground to a halt in a tangle of metal plates, pipes, and wires, surrounded by all of it and rendered temporarily immobile through a combination of those factors and shock. What had he hit? Had he actually been going that fast? If this had been what he'd saw a moment ago, it was supposed to be on the horizon!

_"Damn..."_ Hibiki grunted, ripping his right arm out of its prison, and then following suit with the rest of his body, surging forward through the hole he'd made, intent upon escaping it and reengaging Aojiroi.

Aojiroi had the same idea, in reverse - and came crashing through the entire thing like a cannonball. Steel bent and snapped around him, wires were destroyed in sparks of electricity, and pipes shattered as he thrust his hand forward and caught Hibiki in it. Aojiroi's clenched his hand around Hibiki's chest, displaying the size difference between the two as his strength and momentum carried them further through the unfortunate casualty of their war across time. After a moment, Hibiki extricated one arm from in between Aojiroi's fingers, and they came out of the other side, the hole they'd made in what was now identified as an enormous ship streaming smoke and detritus.

_"Oh -"_ Hibiki grunted, before Aojiroi squeezed, reared his hand, and then thrust downwards, smashing him into the water when they hit it.

Hibiki heard sirens and raised voices before his head could be submerged. Aojiroi's grip was too strong to break free from, and without his curse mark, Hibiki could only rely on the eight gates if he wanted to pry it open. Putting that idea on the shelf, Hibiki instead pulsed chakra into his right hand and cut his lightning cloak. A gun appeared in his hand and he aimed it into the sky, firing it, before pressing his fingers to his head, and teleporting to the bullet with a ripple of light. Now several dozen meters into the sky, just before Hibiki obeyed gravity and began falling, he got a good look at the ship he and Aojiroi had crashed through.

Long and sleek, with multiple jets lining a massive flight deck, and a powerful looking cannon on the center of the vessel, the sight of the aircraft carrier, which once would have filled Hibiki with a sense of pride, now filled him with a sense of dread. Not even caring how and when they put guns on aircraft carriers, and not even considering the fact that the odds of this happening were about as high as time travel actually existing, Hibiki instead focused on the fact that, within the first hour of having been tossed back a thousand-odd years, they had smashed through a few buildings, blown up a parking lot, and were now doing damage to not just a several billion dollar warship, but putting themselves on the military's radar.

If he survived this fight, figuring out a way home would be far harder than it would have been otherwise.

_"Shit!"_ He called out, as he saw Aojiroi launch himself onto the flight deck, angrily smashing about as he searched for his unseen target.

He angled himself downward and blasted chakra out of his feet, hurtling back down towards the flight deck as Aojiroi grabbed a fleeing seaman and threw him so fast Hibiki saw the man's neck bend over backwards. Coated in lightning, Hibiki soared downwards and smashed both fists into Aojiroi's back, burying them several inches into the flight deck, with them sinking deeper and deeper as he pounded the monster's back.

"Come on!" He roared out, popping claws and using them to increase the damage done, turning his ground-and-pound into a bloody spray. "Burn out, damn it!" How much nature chakra did this _beast_ have?

Hibiki's eyes widened when he saw the man's chakra begin centering on his back, and with a grunt, he bolted back into the air, barely managing to avoid several razor-sharp ribs popping out of the Hulk's back. They disintegrated into dust and Aojoroi spun around, thrusting his hand into the air and blasting Hibiki again with explosive chakra. Hibiki was hit in the chest with the bolt and sent tumbling back down to the flight deck, gasping for air as he felt the ground beneath him quaking. When he opened his eyes, he felt the gray goliath's meaty fist bury itself into his head and send him crashing _through_ the flight deck, tumbling and tearing into the innards of the ship.

_"General quarters!"_ He now heard from a loudspeaker, as he smashed into the floor inside and left a deep dent and multiple cracks, along with a healthy smattering of blood. _"All hands, general -"_ But the loudspeaker was overwhelmed by an equally loud roar, that actually managed to be heard by the microphone the speaker was using, thus echoing throughout the entire vessel.

Hibiki's head shot up and he saw several sailors scrambling away from him, one, a thin, lanky guy hardly a few years older than Hibiki, was sprawled out on his back trying to crawl away as two more kept yelling at him to get up. Hibiki's senses flared, he heard a cackling in his ears, and he knew what was coming - the lightning from the storm release. The sailor in front of him would be fried, so Hibiki did the first thing that came to mind - he cut the lightning cloak and lunged forward, enveloping the sailor in his arms, pinning him to the ground, and covering them both with his Susanoo.

The lightning slammed into the gray spectral ribcage and Hibiki grunted from exertion, the man below him wimpering in terror, but remaining still like a statue, as if fearing even an errant cough would make the monster straddling him attack. The lightning hit Hibiki's construct and sprayed out like water, arcing towards light fixtures and metal, sending the corridor into darkness saved only by the bright blue lightning. Aojiroi eventually ceased the attack, but Hibiki knew why - to come meet Hibiki himself.

Hibiki cut the Susanoo and used his swift release to buy him time. He hopped off of the man, grabbed him by his coat, and threw him, sliding him across the floor and out of melee range, before Hibiki snapped back to real speeds and brought up his lightning cloak again. In a shower of metal, wires, and sparks, Aojiroi appeared, digging through the ship and roaring as loud as he could, as he did so. His right arm was lifted and what looked like a piston was extending from his elbow.

_This'll hurt!_ Hibiki crossed his hands in front of his head and summoned his Susanoo to bolster his defense. Aojiroi smashed his fist into the gray ribcage, sending a single large crack through it, before the piston slammed down home and shattered it entirely. Hibiki leapt out of the way of the ten foot behemoth, who tore everything apart just turning to keep Hibiki within eyesight.

Apparently being a huge monster inside of a tight corridor wasn't enough, as now the gray goliath decided, if Hibiki was playing with his Susanoo, he may as well bring his out again. An enormous skeletal hand appeared out of thin air, wreathed in gray fire as Aojiroi swung it around, burying it into Hibiki's side and sending the Senju careening through several walls and into what appeared to be a large mess hall, but could have easily been a meeting room - he had no idea. He skidded to a halt on his back, blood spraying from his mouth like water from a spit-take. Somehow Aojiroi wasn't growing weaker, Hibiki prayed his earlier theory wasn't losing weight, but anything was possible.

_Including fucking time travel!_ The Senju head mentally cursed, as he hopped to his feet and dodged underneath a table sent flying by a wide swing of Aojiroi's tree-trunk sized arm. The table crashed into the other side of the room with a loud bang, and Hibiki sent several thunderous punches trailing up Aojiroi's stomach, but the problem was without his curse mark, his lightning cloak wasn't enough to hurt Aojiroi with brute force, his attacks just bouncing off of Aojiroi's thick, leathery gray hide.

Aojiroi, meanwhile, even when striking the technically invulnerable Hibiki, still did damage, and his punches still hurt. Every one felt like being hit by a train, especially when Aojiroi morphed his body, and used his pistons or jet-engine protrusions to increase the sheer force. Hibiki couldn't try using the Swift Release in conjunction with the lightning cloak, that would burn chakra like nobody's business, and he needed the ninth gate seal in case Yui turned out to be too tough. Especially with how much he had spent, using the dust release and the kamehameha.

_Stupid!_ He thought, using both hands to push just one of Aojiroi's out of the way, and having to take another wide right hook. _If I'd used the curse mark for that, I wouldn't have burned nearly as much!_ He crashed through another wall, back out into the tight corridors. _I need to get back out-_ He was interrupted when he heard loud shouts, and his head snapped to the right, before several bullets smacked into it and the force sent him sprawling onto his back.

He called out in pain, his skin not broken but his brain ailing from the whiplash. More bullets hit his lightning-streaming body, and Hibiki saw as several sailors, clad in body armor and partially hidden around a corner, shot at him with rifles. Hibiki could do little more than scowl at them before Aojiroi crashed through the wall, the gunfire instantly shifted to him following several terrified shouts and more than a few choice words of profanity. Some bullets penetrated his thick skin, while others dug in and bounced off, but that didn't mean none of them hurt, and Aojiroi voiced this with a loud bellow. He turned towards the sailors, who quickly realized that the Hulk was bulletproof, but before he could take a step forward, Hibiki was behind him, both arms wrapped around the gray goliath's trunk. Hibiki let out a deep yell and launched the two of them into the air, crashing through the ceiling until they were outside and on the flight deck again, two fresh new holes in the multibillion dollar warship.

They were joined in the air by several formidable looking gunships, one of whom was captained by a particularly zealous pilot. The moment he saw the Hulk and Zeus fly out of his ship, his helicopter rotated on its axis and the rotary guns hanging from its wings opened fire. Every one of these managed to penetrate Aojiroi's thick hide, and when they hit Hibiki's lightning-streaming body, they hurt far more than the rifle rounds from earlier. Hibiki and Aojiroi were thrown apart and fell to the flight deck. Aojiroi hit with the a loud crunching sound, whereas Hibiki hit with a zap of electricity and a thump that went mostly unheard.

Breathing heavily, Hibiki flipped to a prone position and hauled himself to his hands and feet. His healing factor did quick work of the pain and injuries, but did nothing for his fatigue, as he turned his gaze upwards and saw Aojiroi angrily thrusting his hands forward, blasting the helicopters with lightning and explosive bolts. The Senju head frowned, and cut his lightning cloak, before calling something stronger: A much more complete Susanoo. What he would lose in speed, hopefully he could make up for in power.

The top half of his Susanoo appeared and Hibiki scrambled forward. Aojiroi's head snapped around in time for an enormous, gray fist, clad in darker gray combat robes, swung around in a wide arc and smashed into Aojiroi's side. Hibiki saw blood leak from the gray goliath's mouth and smiled, just as blood began to leak from his deep red eyes. He caught Aojiroi in his free hand and then buried him into the flight deck, but before he could continue attacking he was again accosted by a gunship, the bullets quickly joined by a single rocket, and the sound of enormous gears turning. Hibiki grunted, as the sensations, however dulled, were transferred from the Susanoo to him, but he kept up the heat, bashing Aojiroi repeatedly into the ground, before clenching him in his fist, rearing it back, and throwing him with all of his might.

Aojiroi disappeared as he zoomed away, his deep roar growing quieter with every passing second. Hibiki coughed, feeling his chakra reserves start dipping below fifty percent. He wiped the blood from his eyes, wondering if he couldn't use his dark release to absorb Aojiroi's chakra and kickstart his curse -

As he wasted time thinking, the whirring noise stopped. Hibiki blinked, a sinking feeling entering his chest as he turned around, and saw the enormous cannon from earlier, now staring down the head of his Susanoo. He heard the sound of energy building, sounding like electricity cackling and gears whirring.

_Is that a fucking railgun?_ Hibiki blinked, taking a single step back. _They can't be that - _They were.

In hindsight, it made a little sense, actually. Two guys just suddenly showed up and started ripping apart the ship, doing the work of thousands of men at a percentage of the numbers. They had likely done more damage than Hibiki could have possibly imagined, to say nothing of the people they had killed in the crossfire. Several helicopters were swatted away like flies, the ship was streaming smoke, more than a few jets looked like they had been broken, and Hibiki saw the ship's radar dish missing a sizeable chunk. Shooting one of them, point blank, with a railgun, was probably their nuclear option. Aside from missiles from the jets that couldn't take off from the ruined runways, it was the strongest thing on the ship. Risking the vessel itself to kill one of the attackers? Hibiki probably would have made the decision.

With the single loudest thunderclap Hibiki had ever heard in both lives, enough such that his eardrums shattered and his ears began bleeding freely, the railgun fired its projectile. It slammed into the Susanoo, and in the split second before the gray construct shattered like glass, it and Hibiki inside of it were sent flying backwards. The shockwave from the impact of the slug on Hibiki's susanoo was equivalent to a bomb blast, and as he flew away, he saw the flight deck get torn apart and set ablaze, with the railgun itself barely managing to survive its first shot.

Unfortunately for Hibiki, he didn't get to fly too far, as he heard a deep, chest-rattling roar, and was soon slammed into from behind. Aojiroi's momentum just managed to overcome that of the impact of the railgun's slug, and he and Hibiki once again made the carrier their battleground. As the two skipped across the flight deck, Hibiki saw several small-looking people sprinting across it, towards the most distant jets. The two ground to a halt, but before Hibiki could attack, Aojiroi buried his fist into the back of Hibiki's head.

With no lightning cloak to protect him, Hibiki felt his skull crack open and his nose shatter against the ground as Aojiroi buried him into it. Hibiki acted quickly, coating his skin in steel to protect him from the next strike, before he used his ice bloodlines to dramatically drop the temperatures, causing Aojiroi to misjudge where his numb hand was in comparison to Hibiki's head. Aojiroi buried it into the ground next to him, and hibiki buried his wolverine claws into the gray goliath's arm, such that when he hauled it back into the air, Hibiki went along for the ride.

Hibiki was now hanging right next to Aojiroi's temple, thinking fast, he thrust his hand forward and, as his cursed seal stretched across his body, planted his hand on Aojiroi's head and began drinking chakra. Fortunately, the stupidity in not testing this with a shadow clone was outweighed by the fact that it worked in the first place - and he felt natural energy slamming into his curse mark and filling his body with its power. He visibly saw Aojiroi shrink down just an inch, but Aojiroi threw him to the side as he realized what the Senju was doing.

Hibiki hit the ground on his feet just as he heard the whine of engines starting up, and more bullets came streaming in from the gunship. With a twerked eyebrow, as the bullets tore deep grooves into his steel skin, Hibiki thrust his left hand in the direction of the gunships, and with his magnet release, the bullets froze in midair. He followed this up with a wide, circular, spinning gesture of both hands, which caused all of these frozen bullets to then began speeding towards Aojiroi at much higher velocities, tearing into him as he thundered forward like a beast.

When Aojiroi reached him, Hibiki dropped the steel bloodline and summoned his Susanoo. He grasped Aojiroi in his massive spectral hand, and slowed him to a halt while grinding up the ground behind him. He swung his free hand up and reared it high behind his head, but before he could strike, he was blasted by multiple explosions, enough to send him stumbling to the side as three jets soared by overhead, pale contrails following them as their sonic booms tried to keep up. To make matters worse, whatever crazy bastard was at the helm of this ship decided to use his railgun again, but not for its intended purpose, no - he used it as a bat, and swung it into Hibiki's spectral construct with the sound of a hammer striking an anvil, fully knocking him off of his feet and onto his back.

With Hibiki inside exposed through the hole on the bottom of the half-formed Susanoo, Aojiroi charged in, bullets trailing behind him as the gunships tried following him. He slipped inside Hibiki's incomplete susanoo and raised one foot high, before bringing it down and stomping on Hibiki's chest. The formerly displaced man sprayed blood from his mouth and felt all of his ribs break from the impact, jarring his focus and killing his Susanoo in a shower of gray fire. Hibiki almost didn't have the presence of mind to steal more of Aojiroi's chakra, to fuel his own and get his healing factor working for him again. Aojiroi responded to this theft by stomping on him again and again, burying him deeper into the flight deck with each impact of his foot on Hibiki's poorly healing chest.

Hibiki's grip on Aojiroi's massive, meaty leg slackened as he felt his lungs getting ready to burst, so he did the first thing that came to mind, and shoveled as much scorch chakra into Aojiroi's leg as he could, causing the gray goliath to leap into the air, howling in pain. As he did this, the jets came screaming back in, one actually managing to get him in its sights and unloading on him with its autocannons, tearing his skin to shreds as it flew by overhead, just barely missed by his explosive bolt. Hibiki, meanwhile was turned to swiss-cheese by the guns of a second jet, while a third one sent a bomb his way; at some point during all of this, Hibiki didn't know when, but he lost an arm and all of his clothes from the waist up, and his left leg down. Now covered in blood, chakra-laced ink, perforated like a pin cushion, and missing most of his clothes and an arm, Hibiki sprung to his feet, just in time for Aojiroi to land on the flight deck and thrust his arms down to his sides with a loud roar.

Hibiki's shoulders slumped and he shook his head with a loud, exasperated sigh. _"Jesus..."_ He cursed, as he felt his arm regenerating and his wounds sealing up. "What _next?"_

That, of course, was when he saw another, smaller, ship on the horizon, his Sharingan granting him the ability to at least clearly make out its shape. It was the carrier's escort: another warship had come to play.

Hibiki almost let his head hang, "I just had to... _Fucking_ ask, didn't -" Aojiroi came roaring in with a leaping right cross, sending Hibiki sprawling across the heavily damaged, inflamed flight deck.

* * *

Hurtling through the air were the Uzumaki Junchuriki, Yellow Flash, and the tracker trio.

Kushina, the moment she realized that they were in the air, turned her deep blue eyes to her boyfriend. _"Minato did you even consider how we would land from this?!"_ She demanded.

Minato blinked, they were far outside of the city now, the speed and angle at which he'd thrown the kunai sending it flying far and high enough that even in the few seconds it took him to gather his friends and escape, it had already reached the no-longer-ancient city's limits. Soon, he blanched too, and began flailing his limbs and letting out a short stream of curse words as he tried to grab at the kunai right in front of him. It eluded him twice, and on the third attempt he almost knocked it out of the air, but then a small cloud of beetles appeared, barely keeping up with their speed, and pushed it to him.

"Thanks!" He called, without looking to the Aburame, before he picked a random direction and threw the kunai downwards. He waited a few seconds, as they all began to obey gravity and the wind began howling in their ears, before he and his clones teleported again.

They went from kilometers above the ground to mere feet, and they all crashed with loud grunts of pain and surprise. Several of Minato's clones popped, as they took the brunt of impact for their allies, but Aoi proved to not be so lucky. The impact on the ground jarred her from her clone's grip, and the Inuzuka tumbled through the air, bouncing across the ground before smacking into the thick trunk of a tree with a wet crunch.


	80. Loop: Great Scott! -IV-

Chapter 79

* * *

Minato hit the ground and felt a few ribs break and more than a few gashes open up as he ground to a halt.

He was in a daze for only a moment before terrified, pained howls from a canine reached his ears. His vision refocused and he saw Kyo bounding for his battle partner and Inzuka master, who slid limply to the side of the tree, leaving a streak of blood splattered across its bark, along with some minute hunks of flesh. The ninken was by her side in an instant, nearly falling over as he made a hard stop. He nudged at her with his nuzzle, howling and barking as he did so, licking at her heavily wounded body, his snout coming away covered with more blood each time.

Minato was on his feet first, but Dai and Akane, with twin shrieks, were there and at Akane's side before the Yellow Flash. Akane's eyes bulged as she pulsed her bloodline and began scanning over her Inuzuka squadmate, as Dai pulled Aoi away from the blood-splattered tree, Kyo howling allthewhile. When Minato got there, he felt his gut clench, as instantly he knew that this was outside of any realm of first aid. A part of him wondered whether or not this was a Tsunade surgery - half of Aoi's face was flat swelling up to ugly purple colors, the other half seemed unnaturally flat, all of it was covered in deep lesions and freely leaking blood, with twigs and other such shrapnel plugging up some wounds, but doing little for the overall bloodflow. Her jacket and shirt were covered in blood, already seeping through the fabric and soaking it like a wet towel. Her left arm and right leg were bent at unnatural angles, and her ears were leaking some kind of clear substance that wasn't mixing well with her blood.

Kushina arrived next to him, covering her mouth with both hands as her eyes widened, but before she could cry, Minato snapped out of it and grasped her by the shoulders, taking charge of the situation. "Kushina!" He said, turning her to face him. "Yui is coming back! She had to have landed already and she will be looking for us!" He pointed at the tracker trio, "they can't fight!" He pointed at her, "you're the strongest of all of us and you're the only one without major injuries! I need you to protect them!" He said, as he stepped back and slid off his flak jacket, before tearing off his shirt, revealing the sweat and blood-soaked undershirt beneath it. "You two!" He said to Dai and Akane, "take this, control whatever bleeding you can, but be careful for her broken bones! I'm going to find Hibiki, he's the only one that can help her now!" He had to pray that the son of Tsunade would be up to the challenge.

"I'll be back!" He promised, as Akane took the blue long-sleeved shirt and, with her bloodline, began expertly applying it to the areas of worst bleeding while directing Dai where she should focus her beetles.

Minato vanished in a bright yellow flash.

When he reappeared, it was in the middle of an explosion. If the metal monoliths from earlier were beasts, then what he found himself standing on was a leviathan. A great iron creature, upon which smaller winged metal birds sat stilly, while above hovered birds whose wings spun on an axis with loud clapping noises. What gave Minato brief pause, however, was that this iron leviathan was _wounded - _there were at least two holes on its back, upon which he stood, and they were spewing fire and black smoke. But even that wasn't the worst part, because the explosion he came in on, that was mere meters in front of him - and it was spewing the width of the leviathan, tearing it in half and setting its back half drifting in one direction, and its front half, in another.

Minato channeled his chakra to his feet as the front half of the leviathan began to sink downwards, turning the previously level surface into an increasingly steep incline. He saw the metal birds begin to slide downwards before finally tumbling off of the iron leviathan's back and smashing into eachother with loud bangs and even louder explosions. Before Minato could even question what was happening, a column of fire rose up from the split in the leviathan, so hot he had to cover his face or risk his eyes being burned, but quickly following that was an equally massive guyser of water, as if a meteor had slammed into the ocean.

Then, through his crossed arms, he saw a massive, mountain-sized arm made of pure chakra swing around in a wide arc, cutting through the guyser of water and sending the shower spraying outwards, clearing the air and revealing a literal titan of chakra. The gigantic gray construct was garbed in armored robes and wore a mask, one half of which was smiling, the other half, frowning. Its body was covered in jagged black lines, almost like Hibiki when he got serious about a fight, and it radiated an aura of fiery gray chakra.

_"Abandon ship!"_ He heard from a screeching, unseen voice. _"All hands - abandon ship!"_ He didn't understand whatever it was they were saying, his awe-struck gaze locked onto the gray titan, as it about-faced and took a single, enormous step backwards.

For a second, Minato wondered what from, until two equally titanic gray arms came surging through the air, grappling onto the first Titan's chest and pushing him back, as this one came up from the ocean. Water streamed down its body in thick waterfalls, slowly revealing a titan with no armored robes, and simply a massive barrel-chest and rippling muscles. Its face too, however, was masked - but this one covered in a deep scowl; and just as it shared a mask with its opponent, so too did it share the inky black lines, but these were more ornate and curved, like calligraphy.

The incline on his half of the iron leviathan grew steeper, and he had to climb and struggle against gravity to ensure he wasn't standing sideways while the dying creature sank into its watery grave. He almost missed the two-faced titan swinging its arms underneath the angry titan's own, and then flinging them upwards to break its grip. The way the air resisted their massive frames almost made the two look as if they were fighting under water, but the thunderclaps and small shockwaves from their blows demonstrated a clearly superior power. The two-faced titan, as its arms reached their apex, locked its hands and then swung downwards in a double-axe handle strike, smashing them across the top of the angry titan's head, and that was when Minato saw it - hovering inside the head of the two-faced titan was a person. It was thin, with small but dense muscles and shredded clothes.

"Hibiki!" Minato screamed, but his voice was drowned out when several fiery objects flew into the back of Hibiki's Titan's head and exploded.

Minato traced the smoke trails from the missiles back to another iron leviathan, distant, but growing closer with every passing second. Several spinning flies were taking off from it, and after a moment, dozens of more missiles flashed and launched from the smaller leviathan's back, curving through the air before hurtling back towards Hibiki's titan. Minato's head snapped back to Hibiki and he prepared to call out, but Hibiki seemed to be aware already - he ducked down low and then surged forward, spinning around the burly titan's body and elbowing him in the small of his back. The burly titan stumbled forward, roaring out with such a loud, deafening bellow that Minato had to cover his ears. As he turned to face Hibiki, the missiles smashed into him, one after the other, stunning him long enough for Hibiki to jump upwards, spinning around in a tight circle and uppercutting the burly titan. This caused the burly titan to stumble backwards, but the brief pause as they both recovered heralded the flies to attack. They too had thunder techniques, but much louder and firing much faster, showering Hibiki and the burly titan in gunfire.

_There's no way he'll hear me!_ Minato realized with a sinking feeling, as both titans shrugged off the gunfire and threw punches at the same time, with Hibiki's right smashing into the burly titan's face, and the burly titan's right smashing into Hibiki's. _Can I get in there? Oh kami I hope so!_ And with no other consideration, he pulsed his Hiraishin and teleported straight to Hibiki.

He found the ground stolen from beneath his feet, but the sensation of falling never came. He blinked, and realized he was here - inside Hibiki's titan!

"Yes!" He called out, spinning around to face Hibiki, only to get punched in the jaw. "Ow!"

"_Jesus_ Minato!" Hibiki shouted, before he turned back forward and mimed actions that the titan followed. "How the fuck - urgh!" He blocked a wide right hook from the burly titan, Hibiki's entire titan shifting back a few inches atop the water from the impact. "- how the fuck did you even get in here!" Minato felt the entire titan shudder, and looked down - seeing its back leg hitting the corpse of the iron leviathan, and pushing it out of the way.

"There's no time!" Minato called out, "Aoi's really hurt! She's dying!" This got Hibiki to glance at Minato from over his shoulder, his bleeding, red eyes wide.

"Well that's not -" Hibiki mimed a straight right punch, before he spun into it and followed it up with a powerful elbow strike, his titan followed suit and buried its elbow into the cheek of the burly titan. "- fucking good!" Hibiki lunged backwards, smashing his back into the chest of the burly titan and sending them both careening into the sea. "Brace!"

Minato almost didn't realize what Hibiki was telling him to do, before he saw more fiery lances arcing through the air. He closed his eyes and shielded his head, and the entire titan rattled and shook with the impact and explosions. He felt them shake his chest and the pressure beat at his body, some blood leaked out of his mouth and ears, but elsewise he was unharmed. Then, several of the metal winged birds flew by overhead and launched even more fire-lances, which exploded with less, but no less violent, force.

"Damn it, I hope this works!" Hibiki cursed, before he made the handsign for the shadow clone technique. "Get back there and deal with Yui, I'll be there as fast as I can!" He shouted over the deafening sounds of war and battle.

Before Minato nodded and vanished with a yellow flash, he saw a second Hibiki, and a second _titan_, appear in a mountain-sized plume of smoke. The titan in question thrust its hand into its abdomen, and turned it counterclockwise. Then, Minato was back in the forests, where he smelled fire and blood. He whipped around and saw Kushina, her shirt partially torn and her body covered in blood, swinging at Yui, who dodged each punch with a zipping noise and a pale white contrail.

Minato was instantly charging to the Viper, one hand reared low, the only attack he knew that may have an effect spinning into existence. It was hardly mastered and he had little control over it, causing tendrils of chakra to lash out and carve up his hand, but he needed the bright blue spinning orb of chakra all the same. He pulsed his body flicker and was now at Yui's speed, before he swapped places with Kushina with his Hiraishin, and swung his open palm forward. Yui's eyes widened a fraction of an inch before his incomplete jutsu smashed into her nose and began grinding it apart, flaying skin from bone and crunching her skeleton. Minato held it there for a millisecond before he thrust forward, the ball exploded with a violent intensity and he took a small amount of satisfaction in hearing Yui's neck snap from the force, before she was thrown back.

Minato skidded to a halt as the body flicker faded out of his system, catching Kushina as she stumbled back from seeing Yui shoot backwards. Her head turned upwards to see Minato's iron gaze, his own blue eyes locked onto Yui as she hit the ground and tumbled to a halt. He gazed downwards, and the two exchanged a nod before she straightened up and patted the dirt and debris from her clothes.

"Is he coming?"

"I honestly have no idea. He's a giant, fighting another giant, being fought by two even bigger metal fish things with thunder techniques bigger than trees, and metal birds blowing things up everywhere." Minato said, with an unflinchingly straight face.

Kushina blinked, and then turned back to Yui. "Okay." The viper woman's neck was wrapped in pulsating green tendrils of medical chakra, and with a sickening snap, it straightened out, and she was on her feet, raising up without use of her arms, like a marionette. "You've seen her a few times before, right?" Minato grunted in affirmation. "Has she _always_ been... You know?"

Minato nodded. "Weird, creepy... At least we haven't had -"

_"Naughty boy!"_ Yui yelled out, assuming a wide battle stance.

_"Damn it!"_ Minato charged forward, quickly joined by Kushina.

Minato struck first, swinging his fist towards Yui's face, but Yui threw her head forward, quickly turning her head to steel and slamming it into Minato's fist with a loud crunch. Minato's hand recoiled with a yelp of pain, right before Kushina leapt over him and swung her hands downwards in a wide arc. Chakra chains burst from her hands and slammed into Yui's head with the sound of a bell's toll, quickly followed by a heavy metal on dirt thunk. Kushina landed on Yui as her chains evaporated, and planted her hand on Yui's now mostly bare and bloodied back. Chakra-laced ink spread from her hand and began glowing brightly, just a second before Yui jerked around and tried impaling Kushina's feet with her shikotsumyaku. Minato, however, grabbed Kushina and yanked her off of Yui's back, before Yui was suddenly bent over backwards, the seal on her back glowing with a harsh light and her metal body crumpling up with loud metal pangs.

Minato spared Kushina a glance, to which she shrugged. "Hibiki has a magnet release bloodline. It's not difficult to replicate the effects." And a moment later, Yui got the idea and the metal melted off of her skin, transforming back to flesh and releasing the seal's hold on her.

Her spine and bones began snapping back into place with muffled crunches. Again Yui was on her feet, breathing heavily, her bright red eyes locked onto Minato and Kushina. They all had taken their share of injuries and they were all starting to add up, but it was clear Yui was getting the raw end of the deal, as she was practically urinating chakra to stay less injured than her two opponents.

"How does Hibiki deal with fighting these - " But as he spoke, his world was suddenly several shades darker, as if clouds had suddenly come in overhead. He heard Kushina gasp, and when he turned to her, she was looking straight up. He looked up too and saw Hibiki's gray titan, falling from the sky like a meteor, roaring out like a monster, its hand reared and streaming lightning chakra.

_"OH -"_ One moment he was seeing death hurtling towards the ground, the next he was in a clearing and much higher up in the air than before. _"- SHIT!"_ He blinked, and whirled around - just in time to see the titan, now hundreds of kilometers away, collide with the ground, sending showers of dirt, debris, and trees flying upwards into the sky. As the debris flew up, Minato saw lightning fly outwards in a huge dome, growing brighter and wider with every second, before zooming back towards the epicenter and then exploding even more violently, making the earth shake with its intensity.

Minato stumbled backwards, nearly falling on his rear. "Hibiki!" His head snapped towards the Alpha Hibiki, who was already over Aoi. "You need to stop -"

_"Shut up!"_ Hibiki shouted, before four more just like him appeared. They all instantly sprang into action, two covering Aoi with medical techniques, one producing supplies, and the fourth pulling out copies of everything as the Alpha ran his diagnostic palms over Aoi. "Splints and bandages, hurry!"

Akane was next to him in a second, "will she make it? What do you need?"

Hibiki shook his head, "a whole hell of a lot more than I have right now. It would be more easy to list the bones that aren't broken." He said, as two more clones burst into being and began straightening out bones as best they could without doing more damage. One held Aoi's head in place, stabilizing her spine, others repositioning, bandaging, and splinting the mangled limbs and her grievously wounded body. The ground shook again, and the sounds of explosions reached their ears, Minato turned around to see the titan vanishing in a gray pyre, before the ash cloud was dissipated by another shockwave.

"Can you stabilize her?" Dai begged, as Kyo howled in equal parts anger, concern, and fear.

"I will do everything I can!" Hibiki responded, as he snapped his fingers in the direction of the clone pulling supplies, "get an IV and a blanket, she's going into shock!" He pointed at the second supply clone, "get me something to wrap her pelvis and get me a backboard!" He spared Minato a glance over his shoulder, "make Hiraishin kunai! Use your shadow clones and have them drop everything they have before dispelling. I can't fix her without major intensive surgery and I don't have that kind of equipment on me." He said, as he was handed a bag, in which looked to be a pile of sheets. He tore the bag open as Minato followed his instructions, "what's her blood type?"

"AB positive."

"Any medications I need to be aware of?"

"Tsunade's pill."

"Is she allergic to anything?" He demanded, as he tore into the bag and began spooling it up and sliding it under Aoi's pelvis, before he began tying it tightly around her, securing it and ensuring there would be no unnecessary movement.

"Hibiki, why -"

"Because I already said I can't fix anything without major intensive surgery. If the bones can be set properly and the nerve damage at least unfucked, then I can pour chakra into her and get her stable."

Dai blinked, "Hibiki you can't -"

"I'm already doing it, Dai." Said Hibiki. "I'm taking her to a hospital. I'm going to get you, Minato, and Aoi out of this country, I'm going to grab Kushina, hunt down Yui and Aojiroi, finish them, and then pray we can figure out how to get back forward before the world ends." He drawled off, as a a needle was tossed towards him, and he snatched it out of the air.

Kushina, pulling a new shirt out of her storage scroll, asked, "but what about the fighting right now?" She asked, sliding the shirt over her head, and tearing the rags away once it was in place. "And where even are we?!"

"Those fights don't matter anymore - the clones are literally keeping them up so I don't lose track of their location." A clone responded, as the Alpha Hibiki lifted up a needle and jammed it into a small jar, before drawing out a precise measurement of its contents, just as another took his own needle and poked it through the less mangled of Aoi's two arms. "And I was fucking wrong. Time travel is possible, the Ryumyaku is capable of it, and we set the damn thing off."

Kushina blinked, "uh, what?" She lowered her arms.

Minato answered for him, "we're in the past, Kushina." He looked back outside the small cave they populated, watching as the Hibiki clone zoomed through the air and collided with a river of lightning blasting upwards from the ground while, in the distance, he could just see the tallest buildings from Roran, stretching into the sky. "A long time in the past. Roran's buildings are still standing." He frowned, turning back to Hibiki. "What can we -"

"_Make. Hiraishin. Kunai."_ The clone repeated, "you used a lot and we might not get the chance to restock. _Go!"_

Minato didn't need anymore instruction, and instead began spawning clones, which then poured all of their tri-bladed kunai to the ground, and repeated the process until there was a pile. Dai, meanwhile, crouched down next to the Alpha Hibiki, a look of unfiltered concern creasing her usually still face. "Hibiki, you _can't_ bring her to one of your doctors!"

"Dai, we're not arguing about this." Hibiki muttered, as he wrapped Aoi's midsection in bandages.

"That's too tight!" A clone called out, "her diaphragm can't drop right, she needs all the air she can get."

Hibiki grunted in affirmation, "I'm third best in Konoha, Dai - but only person I know that can do _this_ kind of intensive surgery in the middle of the field, with a battle like _that -"_ He nodded outside the mouth of the cave, where the shadow clone and Yui clashed so hard it sounded for a moment as if a bomb went off. "- going on in the background, _and_ expect her to survive, is a thousand years in the future."

Another clone piped in, "Akane, Kushina, Minato, whatever happens when we get to the doctors - _don't say anything._ Let me do the talking."

"Good idea." Said the Alpha, instantly locking onto his clone's train of thought. "Dai -"

"Hibiki how do we even tell them what happened?"

Akane frowned, "is there a part of this discussion I am not hearing? There are doctors here and Hibiki knows how to get them, Dai - we need to trust him."

Dai looked up, a conflicted look on her face, but Hibiki, sensing her hesitation, spoke up. "Don't even bother. I'll have to tell everyone eventually."

"Why can't we talk, again?" Minato asked.

"You don't speak their language, and it will help with the story I'm cooking up."

"She's as stable as we can make her!" A clone said, as it slid the long wooden board right up to Aoi's flank. "On you." He nodded to the clone holding her head.

On three, the clones tipped Aoi onto her least injured side and then onto the backboard, before securing her as tightly as they could. By the time they were finished, Aoi had an IV stuck in her left arm, her head secured between two large foam blocks, neck wrapped in a thick, immobilizing collar, and her body was covered in so many bandages and splints that she was closer to looking like a mummy in a box, than a shinobi in bandages. When she was finally strapped to the backboard, the clones surrounded it, with two on its sides, one on its head, and one at its bottom. They lifted her as one, and the headman turned his gaze to the Alpha, who nodded once.

"I'll be back." He said, before, to everyone else, he and, practically instantly after, his clones vanished.

To him, however, the world slowed down, and he bolted out of the cave mouth. Leaping high into the air, Hibiki threw caution to the wind - safety wasn't what he needed, but rather _speed._ First his reflexes shot up with his Sharingan, and then his speed and reaction time rocketed even higher with his Swift Release before, finally, reaching the bleeding edge of relativity with his Lightning Cloak. It drank chakra like nobody's business, burning through it like a car burned gasoline, but it enabled him to rocket to the other side of the world in so little time, it was functionally instantaneous.

Unfortunately, the side effect was a decreased ability for the Swift Release to compensate, and while it was far less dangerous as it would have been if he hadn't given most of the nature chakra he'd stolen from Aojiroi to his two fighting clones, it still had effects. His flight left a contrail in his wake, spanning half the globe and briefly choking it with plasma, superheated from the sheer friction his body created with its speeds. He knew that one hell of a tidal wave would be waiting for someone, with the shockwave he'd made over the mid-pacific, but he forced those thoughts away. Instead he focused on safely bleeding off his speed, so he didn't create a few gigaton impact when he hit ground in the United States; he'd drifted across half the country through sheer momentum before he'd bled off enough to safely bring himself to a halt.

His entire plan revolved around the States not yet even being aware of what was going on in Japan, to start looking for him and his people. It wasn't for sentimental reasons he chose his former home country, but practical ones - no matter how buried they were, he still remembered faintly how their hospitals worked, and was familiar with the system as a whole. Then there was the myriad of questions the doctors would no-doubt bring up in regards to how the hell Aoi got injured - and the level of care Hibiki had managed to provide. A lot of it he could rely upon himself to answer, and could use the fact that they were in an English environment to excuse the fact that none of his companions, save Dai, could speak the language, thus making the hospital staff reliant upon him for answers, and making the whole story much easier to keep track of.

He figured, as he touched down somewhere in the mid-west, that it would take anywhere from eight to sixteen hours of surgery for the doctors to stabilize Aoi. Add in another three to four for him to bring her back up to snuff with chakra, that meant, at the most, it would be just under twenty four hours they would spend in view of the hospital's cameras and under the scrutinizing eyes of its doctors. The various world governments would react fast to everything going on in Japan, but they wouldn't be able to move fast enough to get a lid on the situation, figure out what happened, figure out that there were survivors on Hibiki's end, _and_ start looking for them. In twenty hours, Aoi could be stabilized, Hibiki could steal money from some place in Alaska, scout out a cheap motel room in Atlanta, and have everyone moved there before the various governments would even be able to connect Hibiki's squad to the hospital in...

_South Dakota._ He frowned, sprinting down a highway and into a rural town. Its remoteness made it attractive, but when he located its hospital and sprinted through, he quickly determined that it was also its major weakness: This wasn't a trauma center capable of dealing with Aoi's injuries. Best case scenario, they would bolster Hibiki's work, load her onto a helicopter, and send her to another, better equipped hospital, but at a speed much slower than what Hibiki could match if he did it himself.

So he cut out that option entirely, weaved through the frozen staff of the rural hospital, and sprinted back outside. He hit a main road and followed it until he reached a nice looking, small city, and orbited it until he found a trauma center. Inside here, the sterile white walls and skilled-looking doctors and nurses looked much more capable than the rural place's hospital, so back outside he went, to the ambulance bay. He saw, frozen in place, someone already being pushed inside, with two nurses making idle chat with the patient and the first responders bringing him. Frowning, Hibiki slid right next to the stretcher and raised his hand. It was cloaked in muted green chakra, and then he placed it just above the rotund patient's chest.

Nothing.

He couldn't get anything from him. The diagnostic palms wasn't working, and he wasn't getting any information on his condition.

_It must read interrupted or otherwise damaged chakra flow instead of vital signs._ Hibiki frowned deeper. Were this the case, then of course he wouldn't get anything from the Terrans - they weren't post-Kaguya Humans, they didn't have any chakra to read in the first place.

He shook his head, and hopped back a few feet, right in the blind spot created by the ambulance, in front of the camera. He leaned down and planted a Hiraishin seal on the ground, before letting reality snap back to its proper pace. With a ripple of light, the clones plus Aoi appeared, and with brief plumes of smoke, they each took on different appearances, with uniforms identical to the EMTs just around the ambulance.

The next hour went by in a blur of nonstop activity. Hibiki fabricated a simple story, that Aoi was his friend and they were hiking through the woods. She slipped and fell, smacked into a tree, and he called an ambulance. The tricky part was playing the part of the EMTs he'd made up to make his field treatments believable, but aside from having his clones tell the receiving nurses and doctors what all they had done to treat her, he had them vacate as quickly as possible, and do as little as possible. He didn't want the valid questions like, where is the ambulance, or, what station do you report to, to be asked. Answering those would make a trail he couldn't let be followed.

Hardly fifteen minutes after Aoi had gone under the knife, Hibiki got a burst of information from the clone fighting Aojiroi, confirming his earlier theory that, since there was no nature chakra to absorb, Aojiroi inevitably burned himself out. After that, it was a simple manner of the clone beating the hell out of him to burn whatever chakra he had on his own, and then drowning him amidst the wrecked aircraft carrier, and the heavily damaged destroyer. Yui also picked this time to make her retreat, but the clone fighting her stayed in hot pursuit, though unable to get her out of the country. He was, however, able to keep her in Asia, and after a footrace, he intercepted her in the jungles of Vietnam... Only for her to pull a switcheroo on him, replace herself with a clone, and distract Hibiki's clone long enough to get out of dodge, leaving one Undead defeated, and the other missing.

Vowing to deal with that when he had the time to recover, Hibiki spent the rest of the hour playing the role of a concerned friend, pacing back and forth before he finally allowed a moment in which to believable send a friend - another clone taking Noboru's visage - to gather up the Konoha shinobi. Now huddled in the corner of a waiting room, Hibiki sat everyone down and collapsed into a chair with a pained, exhausted groan. Everyone, lit by the hospital's pale white lights, looked tired and haggard, with their own injuries having piled up to lead to a grungy, bloody appearance. If any doctors came by, they likely would have had a heart attack at the sight of them.

"Okay." Hibiki grunted, leaning forward, as Kushina leaned up against Minato, the both of them sitting cross-legged on the ground in front of him, and Kyo fidgeting next to Akane, who ran comforting hands down its back. "The important news..." He said, feeling more than seeing Dai sit next to him and rested her hand on his shoulder. "Aoi's under the knife, right now. I knocked out one of the doctors, stuffed him in a closet -" In another country, "- and took his place, so I'm helping out with the surgery." He explained in their shared language.

"Is Aoi okay?" Akane asked, with Kyo's bloodied muzzle popping up at the sound of its master's name.

"It's still close..." Hibiki frowned, "don't have a solid answer yet, but these surgeons' standard is pretty close to my mother on a bad day."

"How do you know this?" Kushina asked, "I think of all of us, you're the one who knows what they're doing the most, you know?"

Hibiki nodded, his hair falling into his face. He felt Dai give his shoulder a squeeze, and he lifted his head again, running his hand through his hair. "Considering the fact that we've traveled through time, I'm going to be candid with you all, because at this point - my story can't be that damn unbelievable." He said, "So, during the second shinobi war..." He lifted his eyes, watching as a couple sprinted inside and towards the distant receptionist's desk, before lowering his eyes again. "A man named Kenichi developed a technique to build human bodies from scratch..."

He spent the next ninety minutes going over his story. The looks he got from everyone ranged from confusion and fear, to mixtures of the two. He saw flecks of denial as he began to explain the world they were now in, but they seemed to subscribe to the same 'fuck it' theory he had. Undead gods, international wars, people strong enough to wipe villages out of the water, ancient worlds, technology they had never seen before, and time travel, among so much else. They, like him, were far beyond questioning things. Ancient worlds? Fuck it, okay. Hibiki's an undead monster who actually _can't_ copy bloodlines? Fuck it, okay. Time travel? Fuck it. The Sage of Six Paths is evil? Fuck it. Bruce Willis was a ghost all along? Fuck it.

The question most pressing on their minds, however, was perhaps simultaneously the most important. "Do you know how to bring us back?" Akane asked.

To which, Hibiki shook his head. "Until a few hours ago, I didn't even think it was possible." Hibiki responded, resting his head in his hands and groaning into them. "I tried everything I could think of, to prove I was right, and Katsuo wasn't. I never considered it was actually fucking possible, and so I never really considered what I would do if it happened." He said, his voice partially muffled by his hands. "For chrissakes, I can hardly even wrap my head around what is happening right now." He leaned back into his chair.

"What do you mean?" Kushina asked, lifting herself off of Minato's shoulder. "It's simple, you know? We went back in time, we just have to go forward, again."

Hibiki shook his head, "consider the shit we just got up to, Kushina." He said, "we tore apart a good portion of the capitol city of a major country, blew up two warships, and tore up a huge part of the country side of two other countries. What all will that _change?_ Imagine these people learning about chakra... God - who knows how early?" He asked, "we're _before_ that meteor hit. That means chakra doesn't exist here. So will them being able to figure out about it, will it change how the war plays out? Will it make them more equipped to fight Kaguya?" He indicated all of them, "what we've changed, will we even exist, down the line?" He asked. "Consider how complicated life is. How so many minuscule things, things you probably don't even fucking remember, influence your decisions."

Kushina, however, frowned, indicating to Hibiki that she was having trouble wrapping her head around what it was he was explaining.

"Let me try it this way -" He lifted his hands, "the beat of the wings of a butterfly's wings could create tornadoes on the other side of the planet." He explained, "This is chaos theory. The long and short of it being that any one single small cause can result in changes with cripplingly large effects. Now take that and apply it to time." He said, gesticulating with his hands as he spoke. "Say we went back to the time of Hashirama Senju, in full Konoha regalia. He'd see us fighting with our hitai-ate, would associate the symbol with more of the violence of his era, and would thusly avoid it at all costs. The end result being him never creating the hidden villages, him and Madara killing eachother, and the warring states era never, ever ending." He waved at everyone assembled, "none of us would meet, we'd all probably be trying to kill eachother..." He paused, "fuck, Kenichi probably wouldn't have had the resources to make me, and Katsuo." He leaned up, "or, another way. Go back in time to the second war, hit Kenichi over the head before he made Tarzan, and then Katsuo. Brain damage, doesn't remember his plan. None of the Undead, none of us, would exist." He pointed at Kushina and Minato, "I wouldn't have been around to lock you two in that closet. My mother probably would have left the village, the shadow clone technique would still be a glass cannon..." He paused, and then nodded to Dai, next to him. "Dai probably would have been betrothed to Shibi... There's literally any number of ways and any number of things that could happen when you start mucking about in time.

_"That's_ what I'm worried about, Kushina." Hibiki looked up, noticing many eyes attracted to a large television, upon which images of Tokyo and, soon after, of the two Navy ships, flashing across the screen. "We didn't just flap our wings, we mauled a tiger to death. Killed a lot of people. That changes things, and damn it, I don't know _what_ it will change. Best case scenario, the changes won't matter because Kaguya will show up and kill everyone. But worst case? We may not even exist in whatever world we return to."

Akane, however, furrowed her brow. "But if we do something like that, then how would we go back in time to make those changes? Then we would exist, we would make those changes, and we wouldn't -"

"The grandfather paradox. I know." Said Hibiki, "and I _don't_ know. Chakra throws everything out of the window." He shrugged, "maybe we hopped universes, and as such anything we change won't affect us, specifically, personally. Maybe we're in a stable time loop, everything we do is basically just following a path laid out and it's already happened and this is all moot." He dropped his head, letting out an exhausted sigh. "I don't fucking know." He groaned.

"Dude." He heard Minato say, "relax."

Hibiki lifted his gaze, arcing an eyebrow.

The Yellow Flash simply grinned, "we're alive, man. We just need to take things one step at a time, okay? First we get Aoi healed up, then we find a place, lay low, blend in, get our chakra back. Once we're healed up and back to one hundred percent, then we worry about going back home." The spark of light in his eyes told Hibiki that Minato already had an idea or two. "We don't need to know everything, just enough. We'll get through this."

A part of him wished he had Minato's unending faith, but as Hibiki looked down at the cut running down his hand, and felt his ribs pressing against the bruises on his chest with every inhale, and watched the seconds ticked by, that they didn't heal, he knew things would only get much worse before they got better. Closing his hand, he briefly turned his gaze to Dai; she nodded briefly, silently telling him that she wouldn't say a word so long as he didn't.

Turning his gaze back to Minato, Hibiki let out a rattling sigh. "Why don't you guys get some sleep. I'll wake you up once the clone lets Aoi out of surgery."

* * *

_"And it is still yet unknown just who attacked these locations around the world, or what prompted them to choose these targets specifically."_ Said the accented voice on the television Hibiki stared down, long after the sun had set and the shinobi had gone to rest. _"There has yet to be any official comment on the events of the day, but with the dead and injured continuing to climb, it is onyl a matter of time before the perpetrators of the attack are discovered and brought to justice."_

He felt a hand on his shoulder, and turned to Dai, who had a canteen in hand. He accepted it graciously, and upended it in a long swig, as she circled the uniform chairs and sat next to him. "Is that our battle?" She asked, as Hibiki removed the canteen from his lips, and wiped away a stray stream of water. He nodded. "I think I understand them... It is bad?" Hibiki grunted in affirmation. She turned to him, noticing how his breathing was shallow, and cautious, instantly picking up on the physical pain he was in. "And you?"

"It sounds dramatic, Dai, but something's wrong." Hibiki said, lifting his hand. "Those injuries had healed... But now they're open again. I can feel my bruised and cracked ribs... There's a lot going on now. Pieces to the puzzle I don't even know are there." He closed his hand around the lightly oozing wound. "I was more prepared for that thing to shoot us outside of the solar system, than I was for it to drop us a thousand years ago."

Dai, however, picked up on his thought process. "And now you wonder if our goal shouldn't instead be _to_ change things."

"You know me too well." Hibiki managed to tease out a grin from himself.

Dai hooked her arm around his, "stop shouldering this by yourself and talk to me." She warned, her eyes flicking to the TV, which showed footage of the wrecked navy ships. "I know you have ideas. Both scenarios."

"On one hand, I find a way to send us all back." Hibiki said, wrapping his injured hand around Dai's dainty fingers. "On the other, we bunker down and survive until the meteor hits. We find Kaguya and kill her before she can do anything." He shook his head. "If I had the Izanagi, this would be a damn sight easier." He mused.

"Well you have me, and I am not easy." Dai deadpanned.

"I value my life too much to make a joke at that." Hibiki responded, coolly, as he heard the doors behind him swish open, and a light breeze played at the air inside the mostly empty waiting area. "But as much of a pipe dream as killing Kaguya is... There are just too many variables to it. I don't know what would happen... And would rather let history play out as it did. Just get _us_ home."

Dai's face grew a somber smile. "You'll find a way, Hibiki. I know you will." She said, pulling him into a light side hug. "You're one of the smartest men alive, in our time... And now direct access to the resources and minds from _your_ time. You'll -" She heard it at the same moment Hibiki did, the sound of leather shoes coming to a halt just behind the two of them, the fiery smell of the primer in bullets, and the light, nearly imperceptible sound of the bullets shifting against the metal of the guns in which they rested, and the guns themselves settling into their leather holsters.

_"Excuse me, sir?"_

Hibiki tapped his finger twice on Dai's hand, silently telling her to stay quiet, before turning to greet whoever it was who'd come to speak.

He found two police officers, staring him down, with concerned, tense looks in their faces.


	81. Loop: Something Inconspicuous -V-

Chapter 80

* * *

Two police officers stared down two shinobi. One was built like a linebacker, six feet tall with a thick build, whereas the other was perhaps his polar opposite, short and lanky, reminding Hibiki of what he had looked like before dying the first time. The lanky one, his thumbs tucked into his belt, looked down at Hibiki, who just now realized that, to them, these were a bunch of teenagers with unexplained injuries, one of whom was in critical condition and still in surgery. A thousand years from now, they would have been a pack of adults who'd seen more than a large fraction of people alive in this time, and no one would have thought twice, but now? Back Home? A bunch of teenagers with suspicious injuries and no adult supervisors raised a lot of red flags, and Hibiki had been so focused on trying to out think the government, that he hadn't even considered a good samaritan doctor informing the police of the situation.

_Explains why we've been left alone, at least._ Hibiki cleared his throat, _"sirs?"_ He said, adopting the lingua franca of the current time, and never being more thankful than he was now, that they had all taken off their hitai-ate before taking position in the hospital.

_"We'd like to ask you some questions, if you wouldn't mind?"_ The lanky officer said, _"can I sit down?"_

Hibiki flicked his onyx eyes down to the chairs the officer indicated, and nodded. The cop smiled warmly and sat down, his burly partner dragging another seat alongside him. Hibiki saw the burly cop sneak a glance over his shoulder, towards the slumbering, recovering displaced shinobi.

_"Those're your friends?"_ The officer asked, turning back to Hibiki and Dai.

Hibiki's onyx eyes flicked down to the man's dark uniform, finding his name to be Carriker. He nodded, _"yes."_ He said, to the burly man.

Carriker's partner, Manheim, leaned forward, _"what's your name, son?"_ He asked, his eyebrows creasing into a frown. _"And yours, miss?"_

_"She doesn't speak English... Well, good."_ Hibiki responded, _"she's Etta, I'm Han."_ He said, picking the first name that came to mind. Sure, dropping this over his Senju name wouldn't really make a difference, but so too would just tossing around Hibiki Senju give the people that would soon be actively hunting them at least something of a frame of reference, beyond simply a face.

Manheim nodded, giving Dai a brief, appraising look, before offering a sheepish grin. _"Doesn't happen to speak Spanish, does she?"_

Hibiki turned to Dai, making a show of giving her clearly Asian features a look, before turning back to Manheim. _"No."_ He deadpanned.

Manheim nodded, _"well... The doctors here noticed all the injuries you, Etta, and your friends were all sporting, Han. They were pretty worried, especially since you didn't offer up any contact information."_ He said, as Hibiki and, soon after, Dai turned to fully face the officers, now facing their seatbacks, their hands clenched together, in case they had to communicate. _"Do your parents know where you are, Han?"_

_"I doubt it." _Hibiki shook his head.

_"Does Etta's?"_

Another head shake.

_"Hm... Well, where are they? Can we get in contact with them?"_

Hibiki frowned. _"Probably not." _He nodded to the TV screen. _"We all came from Tokyo."_ He made up.

Manheim blinked, not noticing Hibiki's momentary pause, but realizing the implications, he grew silent. _"Oh."_

Hibiki nodded, _"mhm."_ He grunted, _"I apologize if we scared people, but our injuries are superficial, sir. We just got some scrapes while we were out hiking, is all."_ And such an excuse could work, so long as no one noticed Minato's _gunshot_ wounds; and on thinking of the Yellow Flash, Hibiki noticed the Namikaze's eyes opening, and locking onto the two uniformed men with guns strapped to their hips. Hibiki swiped a thumb under his nose, and then rubbed down the bottom half of his face, letting the man know everything was under control.

At this, Carriker frowned. _"One of your friends looks like he was shot, Han."_

_Fuck._ Hibiki shifted his eyes to the burly policeman, starting to wonder if they weren't good-cop/bad-cop'ing him, and also realizing that claiming they all were from Tokyo could be a good way to get on the road to being deported. He made a mental note to chakra-heal Aoi on the go, probably after they got shacked up on the other side of the country, instead of doing so here. They were racking up too much time on the hospital's cameras, and since the cops were Terrans, they didn't have chakra for Hibiki to try and put them under a genjutsu. Worse, was that he couldn't try and use the Swift Release and go heal Minato, and then bring him over here to show - look! No gunshots! - because they would see the contrail he left.

Suddenly he was wishing he'd spent more time developing a silver tongue, and less time punching things.

Then, however, inspiration struck, with an idea so ungodly stupid, there was no way the police would call them out on it. Hibiki broke eye contact with the police, and sighed. _"Fine, fine."_ He grumbled, _"look, truth is, we were making porn."_

Manheim double-taked. _"Uh -"_

_"I know." _Hibiki raised his hands in a placative gesture. _"We look young, and also that we just got out of a meatgrinder. Both of those were kind of the point. I mean, hell -"_ He lifted his arm and rolled up the shredded remains of his sleeve, _"- do I look like I'm built like a sixteen year old? Come on."_ He pointed out his dense, lean muscles. _"No. We're all adults, we were filming when there was an accident, didn't know what to do, took her here. Most of what you see is makeup... Good makeup."_ He said. _"The shtick was apocalypse type stuff. Guns, shootouts, sex... Apparently there's a market for it, I dunno - I just get paid to get laid."_ He nodded to Dai. _"She and I were about to pin that lady to a tree, and -"_

_"Oh-kay!"_ Manheim coughed, _"wow... I don't know what to say about that."_

_"You two are fuckin' serious?" _Carriker said, dropping his professionalism and adopting a look and vocabulary of unfiltered shock.

Dai, whom Hibiki could just _tell,_ despite no outward tells betraying her mask, that she was holding back both a smile and laughter, contributed to the conversation with her own limited English. _"Yes."_ She said, _"I have friend, Tsume. Wanted much to replace Aoi, so she could lay him."_

Hibiki could see how red the two cops' faces were getting, as he and his fiance dug their hole ever deeper. Case in point, Dai even tapped out on his hand a simple code. _These two are easier to fool than that Chunin._

_But you can't convince them that you're a guy. _Hibiki tapped back, as Manheim cleared his throat.

_"So... You're telling us that... You were filming porn."_ Manheim almost looked frightened to write that down on his notepad. _"And... She fell... And hit a tree."_

Hibiki wondered if this meant his penis had gotten the entire group out of a potentially bad situation. He nodded, _"yeah."  
_

_"I thought she didn't speak English?" _Carriker pointed out.

_"Said she didn't speak it well."_

"I prefer my own language." Dai drawled, briefly looking Carriker up and down. "'Han', I think this man has more meat on his chest than in either of his heads."

_"She said she was happy to help."_

Once they had finished well and truly tearing apart the two policemen's minds with the various grotesque and vulgar images as they could conjur, the next thirty minutes were spent assuring the two that they weren't kidding, and were really pornstars. If Hibiki hadn't actually gotten away with it, and had been told the story second hand, he would have never believed it, himself. But watching the two policemen depart, he allowed himself a small smile.

"Quite a role reversal."

"What a long way we've come." Hummed Dai, "first convincing chunin we were boys having sex... To convincing those please-men -"

_"Police men."_

"- strangely dressed men with size complexes, that we were all..." She frowned, "would I assume '_pornstars'_ are similar to prostitutes?" She asked, turning to her fiance, who frowned.

"Kind of?" He said, as he noticed Minato disentangle himself from Kushina, and stroll towards the Senju and the Senju-to-be. "They get paid to make movies about sex. Not dissimilar, but I'm pretty sure you'd piss them off if you said they were the same."

Dai hummed with a nod, as Minato arrived and sat down. "What was that about?" Asked the blonde blur.

Hibiki shrugged, but Dai spoke first. "They were military police-men. The doctors here noticed our injuries. Hibiki convinced them we were having an orgy when Aoi got hurt. They left."

When Hibiki saw the look of horror, shock, and subtle revulsion, cross Minato's face, he laughed harder than he had done in years, and desperately wished he'd had something to capture it on film. Dai even giggled at the look the Yellow Flash wore, as the normally sexually naiive Minato visually struggled with trying to figure out how such a thing would work, considering the male-to-female ratio.

"Just go back, get some sleep, Minato. Once Aoi's stable enough to move, we're getting the eff out of dodge, and we're going to try and figure out how to go home."

Minato nodded numbly, walking back to his Uzumaki, the look of shock not leaving his face.

"I must admit to being surprised..." Said Dai, as she and Hibiki finally turned back to the television, their faces now lit up by its pale, multicolored glow. "He has known you longer than I. I would have thought he would have expected such a thing."

"I got it from you, so don't act _too_ surprised." Said Hibiki, as Dai leaned over in her chair and was now supported solely by her Senju, whose arm wrapped around her side as she sighed and curled up close to him. "If you go to sleep, I'll try to as well. Deal?"

_"Hm..."_ Sighed Dai, "your world is beautiful, Hibiki. I am glad I got to see it."

Hibiki chuckled, settling back into the chair. _"Yeah..."_ He said, in his native tongue. _"So am I."_

* * *

The next morning, Hibiki awoke feeling more tired than he had when he'd gone to rest. He groaned, rubbing his eyes and trying to stretch and pop his stiff and sore back, without disturbing the slumbering Aburame, currently curled up next to him. It was still dark out, but he had a new set of memories, these from the doctor-clone he'd set up. Aoi was stable now, ready to be moved, though even with chakra, she wouldn't be fighting again until she got to Tsunade.

The clone then opened up its chakra storage seal, and sprinted out of the hospital, zooming towards the southeast edge of the country, eventually finding a cheap motel in the middle of nowhere in Alabama. Money had been an issue initially, until the clone managed to make off with a substantial sum by robbing the safes of a few coffee joints in Minnesota. He was particularly glad he had his Swift Release bloodline for all of this, as with that he was able to spread out all of these activities, and perform them so fast there was no evidence to lead back to him, thusly meaning it would be much harder to pinpoint him and his group.

Now with the keys to two motel rooms and a respectable pile of cash waiting for him, Hibiki grunted, lightly caressing Dai's side, to stir her. He felt her tense up briefly, before she lifted her gaze, a blank look in her partially glazed amber orbs. He nodded to the side, bading her follow him, and once the two were out of view of any cameras, he pressed his fingers to his head, and they vanished in a ripple of light, reappearing in the motel room. The next fifteen minutes were spent doing the same thing to the quickly rousing Konoha shinobi, and once they all were in the motel room, Hibiki promised he would be back once he could gather up Aoi.

Now seated at the foot of the bed, Dai arced her back, stretching, until she felt a wet nose press against her thigh. She looked down to see Kyo, his muzzle still covered in his master and partner's blood. There was a pained look in the canine ninken's eyes, the dog silently asking the beetlemaster what the Senju had told her about his partner.

Dai leaned back forward, and buried her hand in Kyo's head, petting back and forth. "Do not worry." She told the ninken, "Hibiki will not let Aoi die."

"So... Dai." She heard Kushina's characteristically loud voice intone.

Dai and Kyo turned to the Uzumaki, the former idly noticing that Minato had gone to collapse right back into bed, as their resident Hyuga located and retreated to the bathroom. The door shut with a swish and a click, and Kushina spoke again, "how long have you _known_ about Hibiki?" She asked.

Dai frowned, steeling her features. "Nearly as long as I've known him." She responded. "He will find our way home, if that is what you are worried about, Kushina." She added, deftly reading Kushina's expression. "He will."

"I don't doubt that!" Kushina shouted, before wincing, and, after ensuring Minato was still prone and asleep, she lowered her voice. "I'm just... I find all of it hard to take in... But _I'm_ separated from it." She said.

Dai knew where the Uzumaki was taking this. "He is fine." She said.

The redhead frowned. _"Is_ he?" She asked, "I think I've known him longer than you, Dai. Just a bit, at least... And I've been noticing recently he's been smiling less. He's been acting more rash, and he gets angry easier. He can hide it well, but I worry how much longer he may last, especially with everything he has been dealing with, as of late, you know?"

Dai didn't show emotion, simply watching the Uzumaki from behind her sunglasses. "Kushina-san. Have you had sex with him?"

The Uzumaki blanched, "no! I -"

"Then I know him better. This stress you see is something he and I are well aware of. To which I say, what shinobi _doesn't_ have some sort of problem? We are entitled to our eccentricities. I ask simply that you allow me to help him as I do... And leave it at that." Dai counted herself lucky Kushina brought this to her, and not him, first. Had she done so, she knew, Hibiki would only shut himself in further, trying to put up a false front of bravery and hope - likely emulating Minato - to ensure to everyone that the situation was under control. That he knew what he was doing. Adding to his problems was not what he needed, at the moment. The Uzumaki knew not the deft hand that was required in healing the formerly displaced man's increasingly fragile psyche.

Kushina shrunk away, nodding. "Okay... I'm sorry, you know? I just... He's like a brother to me, I worry... You know?"

Dai nodded, "if our roles were reversed, I would do the same." She said, "it will take some time, but Hibiki rarely operates in the blind for long, and his people were wise beyond anything we could ever hope to reach. Even Orochimaru, and Hiruzen Sarutobi, at their best, paled to Hibiki's people at their worst." There was another ripple of light, signalling the end of their conversation.

Dai raised her gaze to find Hibiki had brought with him Aoi's entire hospital bed, medical equipment and all, situated between the motel room's two beds. Hibiki had two clones latched onto it, one at the foot of the bed, one at the head, and with Hibiki himself holding onto its middle. One clone vanished in a plume of smoke, while the third wheeled the bed against the wall, and wrapped its hands in muted green chakra.

_"Akane -"_ Dai called out, loud enough that the Hyuga would hear, but soft enough so as to not prematurely wake the slumbering Namikaze. "- Aoi has returned!"

The Alpha Hibiki collapsed onto the bed, Dai noticed a brief tremble in his right hand, but her attention was stolen by Kyo, who silently bounded over to Aoi and hopped up on his hind legs, pressing his paws against the side of Aoi's bed and nudging at her with his nose, whimpering lightly. The clone running his hands over the Inuzuka gave Kyo a reassuring pat on the head, before slowly running his hands down Aoi's heavily bandaged body.

There was a flush, and Akane was out of the bathroom and next to Aoi's bed in an instant. "Is she okay?" She asked, her Byakugan flared.

The Alpha Hibiki grunted in affirmative. "When we get home, we'll have to bring her to my mother to do surgery to remove some of the more invasive things we had to plug in there." Hibiki explained the myriad of things he and the team of surgeons had done to Aoi, leaving the three conscious kunoichi in a minor state of shock, as they tried to understand how so few people in so little time could shove _that much metal_ in someone, without killing them. "But... With my medical chakra, she'll at least be fit to walk during our time here." He said, "that clone will be working on her for a few hours, to right everything without healing her bones over the titanium. Suffice to say that would be very bad."

With a groan, he got back to a sitting position. "So. I don't need to be the first to mention that we all look like we just got out of a fight for our lives." He said, giving the waking and sleeping men and women in the room a look. "Who still has all of their gear with them?" Kushina raised her hand and mentioned that, like her, Minato had all of his things stuffed in a storage seal, Akane waved hers in a so-so pattern, Dai raised hers. "And the changes of clothes you all have - standard, or desert?" That got hands to go down, they had all been prepared for desert combat, not mild climates. Hibiki nodded, "alright, well that's where this comes in." He grabbed a duffel bag from the center of the bed he and Dai sat on, and dragged it forward. "I stole a small amount from a bunch of places, enough to get us going until we figure out how long we're going to be here. It's good that we've all got our gear... But our clothes are going to be our problem." He picked at the shredded sleeves and back of his coat, "it's damaged, and the only other stuff we have is meant for a climate we are not in." He always carried other spares in his own scrolls, but then he ran into the next problem, "and even if they weren't, they don't fit in with what folks wear here. We're Leaf shinobi trying to fit in with Cloud shinobi, without swapping clothes." He said, breaking it down for them.

Kushina's eyes widened and her lips parted in a wide smile as she realized what he as alluding to. _"Oh my kami you're taking us shopping!"_ She shrieked, hopping up and down.

There was a flurry of movement, and Hibiki now saw Minato on the ceiling, a knife in his hands. Minato's eyes cleared up as he awoke, and that was when he noticed he wasn't under attack. "Oh." He detached from the ceiling and fell to the bed.

"Yes." Hibiki nodded, "we need new clothes. So that's going to be our goal today." A few more clones popped into the room, "I'm going to get you all patched up and presentable looking, then I'm going to take everyone in groups of two to different places, get clothes."

Kushina was now actively giggling, "_you,_ though! You _hate_ shopping!" She smiled wide, "this is going to be so much fun!"

Akane picked up on his word choice, however. "Why to different places?" She asked.

As the clones dispersed to their various patients and began pressing green chakra-cloaked hands to their backs, Hibiki pressed his own to Dai's, and continued speaking. "The short version is that the people in this time have a way of finding _anyone_ they want to. The how of it is difficult to describe, but the basic point is that, so long as they set up the required device in advance, they can access it and see whatever it sees. Think of it like looking through the eyes of everyone in Konoha. Then they've got things that let them differentiate faces, so they can turn twelve hours of searching through pictures, into a fifteen minute scavenger hunt. No doubt, we were seen when we were dropped off by the Ryumyaku, and when we went to the hospital with Aoi. So whenever we leave this room, I want us to be as far apart as we can, such that they'll have a harder time tracking us down." He idly grinned, as he watched Dai's wounds stitch together. "The good news is, they won't necessarily be prepared for the ground we can cover, or the speed we can cover it. So we can be on all four corners of the earth one minute, and then right packed into a little room the next. It'll keep them off balance.

"So, today, we spend the day recovering, mentally and physically. Get new clothes, get food... Enjoy not having to be in a war for a bit. We go to bed, wake up tomorrow, and you -" He nodded to Minato, " - you." To Kushina, "and me, will start to work on figuring out how to travel through time. I'm thinking it'll be something with fuinjutsu, because with everything chakra can do, that has always been the closest I've ever seen to honest-to-kami _magic."_ He nodded. "Are we clear?"

Everyone nodded.

* * *

First to leave was Minato and Kushina, with Hibiki's clone finding it prudent to up and leave the country with them. Unfortunately, however, he was limited in his selection - he remembered that he could speak English and Japanese, Back Home, but with Common supplanting and eventually replacing Japanese, he had by and large forgotten that language, with his only real ancient language being English. Thus, his options were limited to English-Speaking countries... Of which he couldn't even remember more than a handful, thus leading to his decision to take everyone out in groups of two, plus his clone.

This led to him deciding to lead Minato and Kushina to England, after stealing a healthy sum from a few gas stations in London, at such a speed that even the people manning the registers didn't know what had happened. Never having been to the country in either of his lives, the small, under-used part of him that thought less in war and more in the pleasures of the moment, had wanted to make their trip in London, to perhaps visit the sights, his and the group's only chance to do so before they got ruined by Kaguya Otsutsuki. Unfortunately, his logical side won out, reasoning that if he was worried about cameras and the like, making landfall in the capital city of a first world country would be a move unequaled in its stupidity.

Instead, he found a small town to the north of Manchester. There were less than ten thousand people here, enough such that there would be stores he, the Uzumaki, and the Namikaze could raid, but not enough that every one would be inundated with networked security cameras. Once he was certain he was safe and hidden enough to call them, he slinked into an alley between two buildings and sent a pulse of chakra to one of Minato's kunai.

A flash of yellow light later, and the blonde blur and the red hot habanero were in London.

Not a sentence Hibiki ever really thought he'd say.

"Few ground rules." Said Hibiki, nodding for the two of them to follow. "One being you don't speak the language... So if we need to, let me do the talking." He received two nods. "Second, walk where I walk. We're not shinobi here, so we can't go wherever we please... And -" He pointed to the small town's streets, as a few cars drifted past an intersection. "- I can't understate enough how easy it is for those things to kill you." Yes, he conceded, their reflexes were faster than what all but the hardiest soldiers could even dream of in this time, but that didn't even matter if a car came out of nowhere and plowed right into them.

"What even _are_ those?" Kushina asked, watching wide-eyed as a car turned a corner and hit the accelerator, Hibiki could see a couple teenagers in the front seat, laughing and trying to pull out all of the horsepower their used car could produce.

"You've seen horse-drawn carriages?" Hibiki asked, as he stuffed his hands in his coat, and waited for the light at the intersection to turn red again.

Kushina nodded.

"Think that, but without horses, and they can get going a lot faster."

"Hibiki how on earth did they do _that?"_ Minato pointed upwards.

Hibiki followed his hand and saw a billboard with a large poster pasted across it. On it was what looked like an advertisement for a superhero movie. Hibiki shrugged, "I have no clue. I always thought they printed them out in sections and just glued them on..." He frowned, as the light turned red and they were cleared to walk across the street. "But it may just be a screen with the image displayed... Basically, really small light bulbs show different colors to make an image." He said, turning his gaze downwards as they crossed the street.

"How did your people even do such things?" The Yellow Flash asked, "I remember what you showed me in the mountain... But actually seeing it for myself?"

Hibiki shrugged, "I couldn't tell you exactly how. It kind of just... Started one day, and we just kept going." He explained, "here we are." He nodded to the front door of a hole-in-the-wall shop, upon which the name 'Cam's Clothes Shop' was emblazoned. They entered and were greeted with a quaint little boutique, with racks of clothes lining the store and the walls. The air conditioning was on full blast, to counter the scalding UK atmosphere.

"Alright... Let's get you two kitted out."

* * *

Dai and Akane, meanwhile, proved less amiable to Hibiki's plan. Neither of them wanted to leave Aoi's side, with the Inuzuka's ninken even going so far as to plant his rear firmly on the ground next to her stolen hospital bed. However, when Hibiki offered to simply run out and buy clothes _for_ them, they each instantly shot him down, their reasoning being that they knew how he dressed, in Konoha. They didn't want to appear like a moody civilian teenager, nor did they want the plain clothes he typically wore under his jacket.

Hibiki wisely chose not to comment on their choice of words, considering they were coming from the incredibly conservative Hyuga and the typically darkly-dressed Aburame. After some time discussing it, it was decided that it would be best for Dai to go with him. She knew Akane's sizes, and Akane, with her Byakugan, was in a better position to assist Hibiki should an emergency arise with Aoi.

After spending a little more time to swap into clothes that hadn't been shredded by combat, Dai and Hibiki vanished from the room in a ripple of light, leaving the Hyuga with her comotose comrade, a kanine, and a Senju clone, who promptly removed a book from one of the storage seals in his pouches, and leaned back against the frame of his bed, reading, and checking on Aoi every quarter of an hour.

The silence between the two lasted all of one hour, before Akane cleared her throat, attracting a pair of onyx orbs and an arced eyebrow from the Senju in the room. "We do not spend much time together." She finally intoned, her voice much higher than Dai's low, womanly tones.

Hibiki shrugged his shoulders, "I can promise you it's not personal." He said, "even when I called _this_ time my home, I tended only to keep a small group of friends." To him, Minato, Kushina, and Dai were more than enough. Having Noboru, Suboro, Shikaku, Fugaku, and Chouza as well was just a bonus, in his eyes. It was all he felt he needed. "If it makes you feel better, ever since they toned down my training, I don't spend nearly as much time with my uncles as I used to." He had recently been limited to seeing Jiraiya through Minato, and Orochimaru whenever he stopped by R&amp;D to drop off his latest ninjutsu reports.

Akane nodded, briefly turning down her pale white eyes, before raising them again. "Why did you keep all of this to yourself?" She asked, just as Hibiki raised his book again.

She watched as Hibiki stared at the book without reading it, his eyes hardening as he thought of an appropriate answer. "If someone had come to _you_ and told you what I'd said yesterday... Would you have believed them?" He asked, turning to the Hyuga. "You can ask Dai, if you want. Even _I_ had a hard time believing myself until I found proof. I'd oftentimes wondered if I wasn't schizophrenic... Or on some kind of spectrum." He shrugged. "I only told Dai because she dragged it out of me. I told Minato because he... Pretty much had the proverbial need to know. I told Tsunade because I owed it to her... And now I told all of you because you _had_ to know." He explained, setting down the book again.

Akane nodded, the Senju's words making sense. "So... What was this world like?" She asked, briefly pulsing her Byakugan. "I can see so many people... So many strange things. Boxes that show light and make sound... Boxes on wheels, that eat fire and move..." Her Byakugan faded, "how did your people create these things?"

"Time, patience, and a bull-headed refusal to accept no as an answer." Hibiki leaned forward and swung his feet off of the bed. "As to what it's like..." He frowned, trying to think of the right words. "Complacent..." He nodded, "is probably the best way to explain it. As we made more, we grew more complacent." He lifted his gaze to Akane's white orbs, "I'm certain you've noticed the air smells different?"

She nodded.

"That's any mixture of gas, oil, and carbon. The long and short of it is that to power all of the things you see here, we took resources from the earth and burned them... But it damaged the Earth, ruining our environment. Most of us knew this, but our Kage? The folks in power? They never really did anything. Even when I died, not much was being done." He explained, "so... It wasn't a perfect world. It was complacent..." He leaned back, sighing. "Though I say this, and I really wish we hadn't smashed up that city... Such that we could see it properly."

The Hyuga shuddered, "and... You _lived_ here?" She asked. "It sounds awful."

Hibiki grinned, "about... Ten kilometers to the southwest." He pointed in the direction of the bathroom, "open your Byakugan and tell me what you see."

Akane did so, the veins on the side of her head bulging. "There is... A building. It is small, but inside are those wheeled boxes, bigger than any I've seen thus far. There are strange, flexible tubes lining one, and the other with a ladder folded in on itself, resting on its roof. Both hold water within their spines..." She frowned, "I can see people, standing next to these boxes, one sitting inside with his leg dangling, watching the others. They wear strange uniforms... They have thick clothing spread out in front of them, with canisters hidden underneath these clothes."

Hibiki grinned, "keep watching." He said, with a nod. "I know what they're doing."

Akane couldn't understand the point behind this, but she nodded regardless. "The one inside the box, he has in his hand a smaller box, smaller than his hand. Its screen shows light, and he has it held high in the air... He is saying something, bobbing his head and the box with each word, before tapping on the box. The people in front of him just sprang into action, they kicked off their shoes and hopped into larger pairs of boots. They appear to be racing, moving as quick as they can. They grabbed straps on the sides of these boots and leapt to their feet... They appear to be oversized pants, meant to fit over their regular clothes. The shorter of the two is moving faster, he is already on his knees again and he's put his hands through the coat, before throwing his hands over his head and sliding the coat on in one smooth motion. The second one just hit his knees, having some sort of problem with his own pants. When he gets his coat on, the other is already leaning over his canister... He is twisting some sort of knob - air is escaping from the canister, going through a tube but halting at the end of a strange device. The shorter one finished twisting the knob and is now throwing the canister over his back, as the second one finishes zipping up his coat and leans over his canister, miming the motions of the shorter one.

"The shorter one clasps his canister to his chest and hips. Now he grabs a mask made of plastic and rubber, before securing it to his head and tightening four straps. The taller one is now throwing the canister over his back, but the shorter one has pulled a hood over his mask and is now reaching for a large blue helmet. He secures the helmet to his head and then connects his mask to the canister - air is flowing through it, from the canister to him. He grabs two gloves as the taller of the two fumbles with his mask, one of his straps catching on itself and not tightening. He's laughing, as the shorter of the two gets to his feet, and claps his hands." She pauses, "they are taking off these bulky clothes, now... The one in the larger box just hopped down, clapping the victor on the back." She lifted her head, no doubt to visibly show Hibiki she was shifting her focus to him, a mannerism she shared with Noboru. "What is this that I am watching?"

Hibiki grinned, and leaned back on his hands. "You see, it's one thing to just _hear_ about this world, Akane. It's another to live it. It sounds awful, yeah, but... It's _ours,_ and like any good human, we just roll with the punches and take them as they come. That building I just had you look at - you can drop the Byaugan - that building was called a fire station. If people got sick, or hurt, or a place got caught on fire, those guys would hop in those big boxes you mentioned, they're called trucks, and would have gone out to help." Akane saw a wistful look fill his onyx eyes. "Want to know something scary?"

Akane frowned, and tilted her head, her brown hair falling over her shoulder as she did so. "Hm?"

"That station is where I used to work, when I was alive the first time." He said, "when I picked this motel, I hadn't even realized _where_ I'd done so. I'd just picked one out out of the thousands - literally thousands - in the state. It just so happened that the reception area had a map of the county... And there's station eight." He sighed, "if my math is right, the Ryumyaku somehow sent us about... Three months, give or take, before the meteor hit the earth and Kaguya ate its fruit. _I..._ I died about one _week_ before she went to Tokyo."

Akane blinked, "was... Was one of those people _you?"_

Hibiki just grinned, it not reaching his eyes. "So, my turn. Dai says you're dating Hiashi? Or is it Hizashi? One of the twins."

Akane blinked, before she steeled herself and nodded, folding her hands in her lap. "Hiashi-san." She clarified for the Senju.

"And how's that working out for you? Noboru says he's stirring up some shit, not going for the person they picked for him." And while he spoke, he stood to his feet, briefly flicking a hand and enveloping it with muted green chakra, before holding it to Aoi's head. He attracted Kyo's attention as he did this, but the ninken did little but watch him closely, as the powerful human looked over his Inuzuka partner.

This made Akane bow her head, slightly. "It is... Not a pleasant process." She let out, "but Hiashi feels he would be happier with I, than Nana."

Hibiki noticed the catch in her voice, as well as the hesitation. "But?" He prompted, as his hands slowly moved down to Aoi's chest.

"I would think that the trouble being caused for him, I would disagree." She said, slowly. "I am a branch-house, and not a Jonin-track, at that. Many of the elders do not think I would produce a powerful heir. Hiashi has been arguing a different case." A pause, "I do not like talking about this."

This gave Hibiki a brief pause, his eyes flickering up to Akane, seeing the Hyuga staring at the floor, and then back down to Aoi. "Hm." He grunted, "sorry. You may be surprised to hear this, but I'm not as personable as many think I am. Especially with women. Case in point - Dai pretty much marked her territory before any of the women my age even knew why men had eleven fingers and women had three holes." He cracked a grin when he heard Akane snort. "There she is!" He lifted his hands from Aoi, "always wondered if her teammates either just tolerated her, or could keep up with her."

Akane finally succumbed to a smile, as Hibiki sat back on his bed. "We have grown... Capable." She said, "of matching wits with her. But she is to us, as you are to a Genin." She explained, "only Tsume-san has shown capable of being truly on her level, and only because she is the quintessential Inuzuka." She lifted her gaze back to Hibiki, "more, considering she is to be their Alpha."

"You two keep mentioning the wild woman and I might just have to try talking to her." Hibiki said, off-handedly. "So let me ask you something." He said, to which Akane raised her eyebrows, waiting. "So, Dai gambles and manages to take on an entire clan in secret... Aoi is somehow capable of making her clan head _sane_... But aside from marrying Hiashi I don't know _anything_ about you."

Akane nodded, "I am afraid, Hibiki, that there is not much _to_ know." She said, "indeed, I hope to retire, should I wed Hiashi."

Hibiki hummed, "should I steer this conversation away from that?"

"I would appreciate it."

The Senju head nodded, "alright. Why'd you go shinobi?"

He visibly saw her deflate, and was able to predict the answer accordingly. "To be with Hiashi."

_Jesus Christ, everything ties back to him with her..._ Hibiki narrowed his eyes a fraction, wondering if there wasn't something under the surface he wasn't seeing. Was this thing with Hiashi even something she wanted in the first place? _No,_ he reasoned, _if she spends this much time around Dai, I'm pretty sure she would trust me enough to at least say _that... _He can't be abusing her, can he? It'd fit, but... I think Dai would have noticed it and pointed it out by now, asked me to grab Noboru and beat the shit out of him... But then again, she's a Hyuga. All prim and proper and such, teaching them how to apply makeup even outside of academy Kunoichi classes would come with the package, and with her Byakugan... Hiding bruises could be an art form._ "Well damn, Akane. What _doesn't_ tie back to him?" He said, with a light tone, to mask his thoughts and suspicions.

Now, however, he noticed Akane hesitate, again breaking eye contact with him. "Oh come on, what is it?"

Akane frowned a moment, "I wonder, Hibiki... Dai told us something once, and I wonder if it is true, as I felt she may have simply been egging Tsume on."

Hibiki arced an eyebrow, "depends on what was said. And keep in mind this is _Dai_ we're talking about. I may say it's true just to fuck with you."

"Did you really pin her against the wall with a shadow clone when you two -"

* * *

So, sending orders to all of his clones to pick inconspicuous, off-the-grid places to do their shopping had had a double intention. The first was obvious - to try and stay under the radar and not get noticed by the incredibly inter-connected Terran world. The second, however, was less so: He wanted to keep as many of them as possible in as many inconspicuous places as possible, such that the one risk he took could be as remote as it could be. After all, he had never forgotten Dai's apparent lust for Tanzaku quarters, and considering here they were, in the contemporary world, before the apocalypse, this would perhaps be the only opportunity he would ever get to see how she handled a _real_ gambling den.

Even better was that, with the time change, the west coast was under the dark of night, compared to the east-coast's early morning. So when the two arrived on the outskirts of Las Vegas, the first thing that Dai's eyes beheld was the city of lights, in all of its glory.

"If I'm ever asked..." Said Hibiki, as he and Dai beheld the golden glow of the Las Vegas Strip. "I will for_ever_ claim that going back in time was completely intentional, such that I could take you to the place that would make Tanzaku Quarters wet its fucking pants... _Specifically_ because I told you I'd take you to Vegas one day." He turned to Dai, who had a look in her eyes akin to a child seeing fireworks for the first time.

She slowly removed her sunglasses to take it all in. She watches as cars traveled up and down the main roads, beheld as the massive, beautiful casinos' lights glowed gold. She saw the Luxor's pillars of light stretching high into the black sky, and the towering signs making promises of all that would come, should they who sought simply enter these golden streets. Her eyes were wider than Hibiki had ever seen them before - even seeing NORAD for the first time paled in comparison to the look of awe currently etched upon her face.

"This is your Tanzaku?" She asked, the awe in her voice matching the awe on her face, before it slowly melted away. "And tell me, how is going to what I would assume to be a _heart_ of your society, matching your desire to remain inconspicuous?"

In response, Hibiki pulled on his polyjuice bloodline, slowly shooting up an extra two feet, as his hair shrunk and bleached until it became paper white. The onyx eyes melted away until they were two bright blue orbs, and his skin tone took on a paler tan. Hibiki stared at Dai with a raised eyebrow, as if questioning the scout as to whether or not she forgot that they could simply change forms at will. "Minato and Kushina will take... Oh... Two, hours... Maybe three, because they are getting food too." He said, in a much lighter, airy drawl. "So we've three hours to wind down, for you to enjoy this place of the most ill repute." He watched as Dai flashed the transformation handsign, and after the smoke plume cleared, in her place stood a woman of Hibiki's new height, lacking in Dai's hoodie and her toned body, making Hibiki wonder which civilian Dai had stolen her appearance from.

Dai turned her platinum-haired head to Hibiki, her green eyes meeting Hibiki's gunmetal gray. "Three hours, Hibiki?" She grinned, "I am certain I can have us thrown out in two." She held out her hand to him, "show me your world."

* * *

"Hibiki, I hate you."

The Senju clone just grinned, as he sat back in his chair and watched as the Red Hot Habanero, perhaps for the first time in recent memory, ate food what wasn't ramen. True, English McDonalds was nothing compared to the real-effing-deal American McDonalds, but the one constant all across the world was that shitty fast food _remained_ shitty fast food, everywhere. It had been approaching two decades since Hibiki had had a shitty cheeseburger, and neither Minato nor Kushina had _ever_ had one. On the list of things he intended to change, that was high on the list.

Of course, Kushina had vehemently argued that they pick up _all_ of the ramen they had found at a local grocery store - especially when Hibiki had compared the price to what they would cost if it was Ryo, and she saw dollar signs and mountains of ramen - but with Minato's help, he had convinced her to instead try Terran food, and Hibiki found the first local McDonalds and dragged the two inside. After promising to allow them to pick from the menu should they not like what he chose, Hibiki got the three of them identical meals: Plain cheeseburgers, copious amounts of french fries, and three incredibly unhealthy caffeinated drinks. Hibiki sorely missed soda. Almost as much as he missed coffee - but he knew the Alpha would be solving that problem pretty soon, so he instead opted for the deadlier of two vices.

Kushina had stared at her burger for a full two minutes before taking a bite so small that one would have thought she considered she would be poisoned by it. The look on her blue eyes, the rapturous look, it reminded Hibiki of a colorblind person being granted a full range of sight. It took Kushina sixteen seconds to devour the hamburger, and Minato nearly lost a hand when she stole his and swallowed it whole, then leading to her eying Hibiki's, and nearly going for _it,_ until the Senju took a large bite out of it and flipped her off.

"Sorry, couldn't hear you." He said, with a grin and a mouth full of shit food. "Sounded like you said you hated -" Kushina lunged across their table and grabbed Hibiki by the lapels of his jacket, lifting him high enough that the few who saw her do so stared in abject shock, as Hibiki was lifted several feet off of the ground by what looked to be a lean teenager.

_"Give me more!"_

"I kind of wanted to try one." Minato mumbled, rubbing at the bags under his eyes, only to silence himself when he saw a look that could kill enter Kushina's eyes, as her head cracked she turned so fast to glare at him over her shoulder. Killing intent leaked out of her body, and Minato wisely shrank away.

Turning back to the Senju, "Hibiki. Magic food. _Now!"_

Still grinning, Hibiki nodded and got her to let him go. He fished in his back pocket for a wad of pounds. He pulled out the cash and dropped it on the table, before reaching for a pen and some napkins. "Just give this to the lady behind the counter..." He said, writing _'I Can't Speak English, Twenty Plain Hamburgers Please and Thank You!',_ "and then give her all of these..." He pulled off a few bills from the wad, "and take back whatever she gives you in change."

Kushina was at the front of the restaurant in the time it took Hibiki to blink. He was ready to swear that the table and the ground were both actually smoldering, she had moved so fast. He chuckled, and turned to Minato, "you'll be able to swipe one of them." He said, watching Kushina's one-way communication with the cashier in his peripherals. The cashier too seemed to shrink under the intensity of the Uzumaki woman, but bravely nodded and took her money.

"Are they really that good?" Minato asked, eying the ketchup-laden mess in Hibiki's callused hands.

Hibiki barked out a laugh, "no, they're fucking _awful..._ But neither of you have anything to compare them to, so they may as well be golden fruit." He explained. "You don't actually get to experience this in Konoha. Standardized chain-restaurant's don't exist, everything is cooked right then and there for you. Made to order, and such." He finished off his burgers and wiped his hands together, "spoiled brats. You have no clue what you've got." There was a shriek of joy, causing both of the two to look up, to see Kushina gleefully taking a tray piled high with hamburgers and rounding back on their table, there seated and tearing into the pile in the blink of an eye.

Minato barely managed to snatch one away while she was distracted, and took a tentative, albeit more confident bite than Kushina's. He too felt his face grow slack from shock, as he took in the tastes of horrible chain food.

"Dear _Kami!"_

Hibiki laughed.

* * *

Hibiki couldn't breathe.

"How -" He coughed, trying to laugh, inhale, and sputter in shock, at the same time. "How the hell did _this_ come up in conversation?" He said, doubling over as he tried to recover his breath, he was laughing so hard.

Akane flushed slightly, but held her ground. "When you hear these things, Hibiki, the mind wanders, and as I said, I am curious."

"Yeah, but - _really?__"_ He asked, a wide smile painted across his face. "I think I already know _who_, but I need to know the how. What, did Tsume just bring it up, and Dai decided to just keep one-upping her?" Considering the Inuzuka Alpha knew what a felcher was, it wasn't too difficult to think that she had been the one to bring up their sex lives in Dai's company. "Or did Dai play it up so much that you guys don't know which direction is up anymore?"

Akane arced an eyebrow, as Kyo, with a light huff, swayed just a bit, before he laid down on his paws. "You may understand now why I do not like to talk about _my_ personal life, Hibiki." She pointed out.

Hibiki pointed at her, "you didn't answer my question Akane, and that scares me!" He said, with a manic look in his onyx eyes, before he leaned back and let out a breath of air. "Whew! Wow, I haven't laughed that hard in a while."

"I would point out, Hibiki, that you haven't answered my question either." Akane now had a sneer on her face, cluing Hibiki in to how much she hid under her timid appearance.

_"Jesus..._" Hibiki muttered, "you know, you were always the one -" He leaned back forward, "the _one_ woman in her squad, that I thought may be the token sane lady. The straight man, if you will. All of a sudden all of my hopes and dreams are shattered. Each of you three are just fucking terrible." The Senju chuckled, as he swung his feet back onto his bed and snatched up his book. There was a few seconds of silence, "whoever said it was full of shit, by the way."

Akane looked at him from over Aoi's bed, "are you saying your fiance is a liar?"

To which, Hibiki grinned. "Lady, one shadow clone isn't enough to hold her down." In his peripherals, he saw the implication dawn on Aoi, and her face fell and deepened to a rosy tinge. _This doesn't help her unspokane argument, though._ He thought, as, with a straight face, he stared down at his book. _Here she is practically spelling out that, like Aoi and Dai, she's got a twisted kind of a sense of humor, boiling down there. So true she may not want to talk about Hiashi, but it can't be because of a don't kiss-and-tell thing. Else she wouldn't be asking me this stuff._ Hibiki filed these things away for future use, whenever he got home he'd have to ask Noboru to - he blinked, and let out a sigh, as his face fell and his expression steeled. _Fuck..._ Thought the Senju. _That's right. Bitch said he's dead..._ And true to form, he hadn't heard from him since before Yuga, when Dai had come to say someone had used Rinha blood to take on his form. Typically the subject being copied is terminated, so Yui's words held weight. He sighed, _fuck._

Once Akane composed herself, she noticed the change in Hibiki's expression, and changed the subject, likely both in an attempt to salvage whatever opinions of her the Senju head had, and to keep his mind off of whatever it was taking up space in his mind. "So... What is it you are reading?" She asked, tilting her head, "I do not recognize the script." On its cover was a man walking across a snowy tundra, dressed in strange white clothing with a dome-shaped helmet covering his head.

"My uncle writes porn. I'm his proof-reader." Hibiki deadpanned.

Akane waited, calling his bluff.

Hibiki grinned. "I told you guys I found the history vault, in the mountain." He began, "this was among the _many_ things they had stuffed in there. I figured it relevant." He said, "the long and short of it is... I'd say just over a century ago, now - relative to this time at least - human beings built these... Ships." He said, trying to describe the history of space travel to a woman who lived in a world where astronomy was horrendous at best. "They could fly to the moon." He explained, "and when there, they opened up a huge area of science called astronomy - the study of outer space... Which is to say, the study of things that exist _beyond_ earth."

Akane furrowed her brow, "such things exist?"

"Of course they do." Hibiki defended, "you can't tell me you thought that _we_ were _it... Everywhere,_ can you?" Her silence was his answer, and he set down his book. "Well... To boil it down, our world - the earth beneath our feet - it's just _one_ in a universe where there are more than ten times the number of planets than there are grains of sand on the Earth... Think of it this way -" He said, gesticulating with his hands. "There are three million people in Konoha, yeah? Now think for every one person in Konoha, there are three million _more_ earths, just like ours. And for every one of those three million extra, there are another three million again, and it just goes on endlessly. That's the universe we live in." He explained, as Akane nodded, trying to digest the information. "Now... We know it's possible to _go_ to these worlds, but we just plain can't do it. They're so far away that it would be easier to say you could run there, at top speed, for a million years, and still not even be a quarter of the way there." He held up the book, "this is a story... Where basically the Kage of this time figured out that all of the food in the world was destined to die out, and the air we breathe would subsequently become poisonous about the same time we ran out of food to eat. So, we had to figure out a way to get off our planet, save everyone we could, and find a new one."

Akane reeled from Hibiki's words, "is such a thing even possible?" She asked.

"Possible, yes. But like I said, it's not practical. It took tree _whole days_ just to go from here to the moon, and that's a walk next door, compared to getting to another solar system."

"How do your people even learn these things?" Akane breathed.

Hibiki just grinned, "we wrote down _everything,_ Akane. And when our old researchers died, new ones took up the torch, and kept adding onto what they wrote. We went from hardly being able to fly, to being able to blast off to the moon, in less than fifty years." He sighed, "that's all of our history." He said, wistfully.

"And this world was destroyed?" Akane reiterated.

Hibiki nodded, "for all of its power, chakra was something that just broke the mold. They weren't ready for it in any sense of the term, and they could certainly fight, but they couldn't win against it." He explained, his face falling just a fraction. "But..." He shook his head, "we got their once, and that was before we had chakra to help us out." He said, standing to his feet and checking on Aoi again. "_With_ chakra... Once we start hitting our renaissance stride again... Christ, I can't even imagine what we'll be able to do..." He frowned, running his hands over Aoi.

Akane noticed his expression, "what is it?" She asked, "is something wrong?"


	82. Loop: This Is Heavy, Doc -VI-

_AN:_

_Since there maaaaaaaay be a delay in the upcoming chapters, due to some pretty damn important tests I've got coming up - which also explains the delay in the last chapter - I decided to do two things.  
One: Release this early.  
And two: Not make you all wait for what became the last third of this chapter, as the original plan was for it to begin 82. _

* * *

Chapter 81

* * *

In hindsight, Hibiki should have been able to predict the sheer amount of shit that fell on him in such a small amount of time. He should have known that something was wrong when the wounds he'd gotten, fighting Aojiroi, had just re-opened out of the blue, and his healing factor turned off without any explanation. He should have noticed the bags under Minato's eyes when he dragged himself out of the motel room's bed that morning, or how tired Dai and Akane were despite such a short battle, compared to others they'd had. Even Kyo had shown signs he had just plain missed, what with how stationary he was being and the sluggish way he moved. So many small details he had just missed without even thinking about it, they all piled up to tell a much more sinister story.

Instead, however, Hibiki had been caught, first and foremost, in the arrant impossibility of time travel, and how - if he even could - he could fix their predicament, and secondly, in safeguarding him and his squad's safety during their stay in the twenty first century. Sending Minato and Kushina to England for clothes and answering their onslaught of questions about his time, discovering Akane seemed to have something approaching an unhealthy interest in his and Dai's sex life - likely spurned either by Aoi's clan head or Dai fucking with her squadmates, Hibiki couldn't tell - and then taking Dai to Las fucking Vegas, had all served to distract him from what was unfolding right in front of his eyes, and right inside of not just his body, but all of theirs.

As the Alpha Hibiki and his fiance gambled away their minor stolen fortune in the city of sin, and as the Yellow Flash and the Red Hot Habanero found themselves enraptured by the magic that was 'fast food' - with both of their respective Hibiki's enjoying a vice or two he hadn't been able to partake in, in approaching two decades, that being coffee and shitty hamburgers, respectively - in the cheap motel room, the Hibiki clone furrowed his brow as he checked over Aoi and noticed a strange finding. Her injuries were healing nicely under his inspection - removing the metal bolts and plates in her skeleton notwithstanding - but something Hibiki noticed was how deprived of chakra she was. Her coils had shrunken at a rate that suggested not just disuse, but as if they were being actively drained and were being wrung for everything they had, like squeezing a sponge for that last drop of water.

The Hibiki clone looked up to Akane, who had a concerned glow to her eyes, as if she were scared of what news he would give her about her friend. "Stand up, please?" He said, "turn around." He removed his hand from Aoi's chest, but the muted green glow remained.

Akane tilted her head, but did as requested. "What is it?" She repeated.

Hibiki tenderly placed his hand against her back, "you slept last night, right?" He asked, "ate some of that hospital food?" He dug deep, feeling for her chakra coils.

"Of course." She nodded. "Why?" Her voice quivered. "What is wrong?"

What was wrong, was that even a half night's sleep and a good meal should bring someone up to approaching full strength. Hibiki had found he'd been able to get back to full strength on just six hours with half of a meal, but that had been because his body, used to the constant chakra exercises since before he even joined the academy, had conditioned itself and grown accustomed to having to regenerate loads of chakra in little time. Others, though, they needed more time and more sustenance to draw energy from. True, the whole process could be slown down by grievous injury, but it couldn't be _halted - _that was how people died.

But here they were, Aoi was radiating chakra from her incredibly damaged coils, and Akane, who was arguably the picture of health after Hibiki had undone what injuries she had accrued from Roran and Tokyo, was suffering from a similar condition. Her body was draining chakra at a slowly, increasingly commensurate rate. This should be impossible - people radiated and spent chakra, but when outside of battle they shouldn't just be _sweating_ it away like Akane and Aoi were, it would just idle at either full or near-full storage. Like a gas tank in a car that was turned off, or had the battery running without the energy_,_ it shouldn't be burning gas, and yet here Aoi and Akane were - both burning gas as if their proverbial cars were idling their tanks away.

"How do you feel?" Hibiki asked, "tired? Hungry?"

He felt Akane's muscles tense up, both beneath his hands and from the chakra he was mingling with her system. "Perhaps a little tired... But not hungry."

Hibiki took a shot in the dark, "thirsty? Hung over?"

Akane turned her head to Hibiki, "yes to the former - why? What is wrong?"

Hibiki removed his hand from Akane's back, "I don't think you're generating chakra..." He thought back, trying to think if the Alpha's stores had gained any considerable volume since Tokyo, until he realized that he was a bad controlled variable - he'd spawned more than a few shadow clones, which had opened up their ninth gate storage seals and topped him off. But he, the specific clone doing the thinking, had not - so he turned his diagnostic technique to himself.

He got the same result. His body was radiating chakra away, at a rate of his diagnostic technique, plus just a bit more - as if he were running two low-cost techniques on top of the diagnostic palms. Then, as he thought, more things fell into place. Minato had been fighting just as hard as the Alpha Hibiki had, and he'd been acting tired all day, even after waking up in the hospital, and after a few minutes on the beds here in the room. Kushina could have been too, but just like the Alpha Hibiki, she was a bad control, on account of the tailed beast in her gut no doubt keeping her topped off.

He turned his gaze down to Kyo, whose ears perked up at the serious expression in his eyes. He knelt down and reached over, Kyo huffed, but as he knew his master trusted Hibiki, he decided to do so as well. Feeling the foreign chakra enter his body was a strange and unwelcome feeling, but his master's blind-eyed friend wasn't reacting, and the same had happened to her, so he dealt with the unpleasantness. Kyo was worse off than of all of them. With no human chakra to speak of, he ran off of the natural chakra that nonsentient and nonsummons animals got, and his fighting alongside Aoi had burned half of it. With no natural chakra in the air to help fill him up now that he was resting, he was sweating off something he couldn't replace at a rate worse than his human companions.

_Oh we're in deep shit._ Thought the Senju, as he gave Kyo a rub on the head, getting a contented sigh from the dog. _Alright... Break it down. Ask a question._ Why weren't they generating chakra? _Do research._ He remembered that Aojiroi had been in a similar position - no background natural energy for his Envir blood to absorb had led to him just pissing away his senjutsu chakra in his fight against Hibiki. Maybe the lack of chakra in the air had something to do with it? _Hypothesis... _It couldn't be that humans absorbed chakra on their own. While one could say that the eight gates acted as a sieve of sorts, to turn natural chakra to human chakra, it wouldn't fit, because if that were the case then humans would turn to stone when they opened the eight gates, and Sage Mode wouldn't work.

Perhaps then that the causation was _specifically_ the lack of chakra in the air? The Terrans had concluded that chakra was akin to a symbiotic organism, had many times mentioned how it was poisonous to human beings, and many people in the post-Kaguya eras mentioned how chakra had something of a balanced relationship with the world around it. Natural chakra couldn't exist without people, and human chakra couldn't exist without natural chakra. Maybe that was it - instead of acting as a sieve, the human body acted as a natural generator of chakra, and once it reached its peak, it didn't just _stop_ generating chakra, it just radiated into the surrounding environment to add to the earth's chakra equivalent to the biosphere. _Chakrasphere?_ Hibiki wondered, before throwing the thought away as irrelevant. If this were the case, then the equilibrium theory would make sense - the world needed living creatures to generate their chakra so it could keep its own stores topped up. This even helped explain Senjutsu chakra - absorbing natural energy and mixing it with human chakra made something with much more volume, in a sense, and it would just be radiated right back out anyways, meaning the earth experienced a net gain of a much better version of chakra. The difference between unrefined and refined oil.

Hibiki straightened up, putting his hands in his pockets, frowning.

Tie this all into the fact that they were on an earth with no chakra, and the results weren't good. They were trying both to supply themselves and to supply an entire planet with chakra. Their rate of chakra generation just couldn't keep up, and the planet, having an exponentially larger need, was absorbing everything they could generate at a rate faster than they could make it. The result being them slowly _losing_ chakra, instead of gaining it.

_Oh we are in **deep** shit._ This meant that as time went on and their bodies became more and more deprived of chakra, they would begin to suffer from chakra exhaustion, until the planet had gobbled up everything they had and killed them for this perceived kindness. Even with Something From Nothing, his Ninth Gate seals, and _daily_ uses of medical techniques to transfer chakra to everyone, they wouldn't be able to survive long-term. They had fought hard battles and were low to begin with, and Hibiki couldn't match the natural rate of chakra regeneration, which meant that him donating everyone his own cloned chakra would be akin to a person taking a food pill to keep themselves fighting - the first time, it would work fine. But then the second time, they would get the same amount, but their bodies wouldn't use it as efficiently and they would lose it faster. The third time, even worse results, until they eventually either had to be eating dozens of them a second, or find some place to collapse and give their bodies time to rest and recuperate.

Only here, there was no recuperation.

Here, there was rest, and just lose _more_ chakra.

And with the chakra they had spent fighting Yui and Aojiroi, it was incredibly likely they wouldn't be able to survive the months and months until the meteor hit, Kaguya ate the fruit, and chakra got reintroduced to the biosphere. By that time, if any of them were even alive in the first place, their bodies would be using chakra so inefficiently that they could very well be burning through dozens of Hibiki clones an hour, just to get one _more_ hour of life. The only one of them that could have any chance of surviving that long would be Kushina, because by virtue of the Kyuubi in her gut, she had more chakra than all of them put together. _Maybe_ they all could have subsisted if they hadn't dragged Yui and Aojiroi along, maybe they could have survived, but at the moment? They all had an expiration date.

They were all actively _dying._

_"Oh... Shit."_ Breathed the Senju, slipping back into his native language. Hell, his first hint should have been his healing factor, he realized - it only ever stopped working when he had no chakra to give it. Right now, he had chakra to _use,_ but he had to consciously shunt that chakra where he wanted it, else it would just radiate outwards. As far as his bloodlines and his body were concerned, he had no chakra, and as such, his healing factor had gone 'Organs or Bust'.

"Hibiki, what is it?" Akane asked again, an edge to her voice, from Hibiki refusing to speak to her despite the growing tension in the air.

"I'll tell you in a minute, here." Said Hibiki, before he flashed a handsign, and another clone appeared, before vanishing in a plume of smoke. "Once everyone gets back." He nodded, falling back to his bed. _"Fuck..."_ He breathed.

* * *

Having a tailed beast in one's stomach had to throw their metabolism into hyperdrive. Hibiki would accept no other answers, not after seeing the many feats of food conducted by Kushina Uzumaki. This bottomless pit of a jinchuriki had, inside of an hour, managed to gorge herself on twenty hamburgers and wash it down with several orders of french fries. An Akimichi, he understood - they _had_ to be able to put down obscene amounts of food to keep up with their family's secret techniques, but seeing Kushina eat with the ferocity of a team of hungry football players, it was something out of a nightmare.

It got to the point that, by the time she was done, a crowd had gathered. Employees, patrons, people were actively buying her food just to see how much she could eat - not a single one of them realizing that, through sheer will alone, she could probably eat the entire restaurant out of house and home. Hibiki and Minato weren't doing anything to stop her, but also weren't encouraging her either - people were now paying for their food, and the three of them _were_ having a good time, at least.

Of course, then the flash of memories hit the Hibiki clone full-force. He nearly threw up, but was able to keep everything together long enough to get the two out of the restaurant, and send them back to the hotel; and as he stared emptily at the spot the two had occupied before a brief ripple of light, he couldn't help but feel no small amount of remorse for the Alpha, before he dispelled, adding his own memories to the Alpha's growing pool.

Said Alpha was currently neck deep in the world's biggest gambling den. With the first cup - though perhaps 'jug' was a better adjective, considering the mug itself was almost as big as his head - of coffee he'd had in sixteen years clenched tightly in his hands, Hibiki watched his fiance's literal transformation into another woman became figurative as well. Beyond the mere cosmetic changes done to stay under the radar, the moment after they had picked up the clothes they needed and made their stop in the Strip, he had explained the rules of the various vices and gambling games in the casino, Dai had gotten an iron edge to her eye. Hibiki immediately recognized said edge - he saw it in the mirror every morning he knew a fight was coming.

Analogous to him and fighting, Dai steadfastly _refused _to lose when it came to her gambling. Hibiki for a moment had to actually remind himself that this was his fiance, when he saw her summarily grasp, understand, and dominate pretty much any card game table she came across. Blackjack, poker, she even ruined people in the roulette games. This woman had managed to clear house _five times_ inside of a quarter of an hour, and had even made a grown man with a bushy white beard cry. When Hibiki had gone on his coffee run, he had seen that man crying into a frothy mug of alcohol, meaning that Dai had dominated him so thoroughly in the card game that she'd turned him into an alcoholic. Nothing had made him laugh as hard as that, not in either life.

_Especially_ not when Hibiki figured out exactly how Dai was so good at the games that required less of a random element and more of a human touch: Her bloodline.

Hibiki had noticed it first when he'd brought Dai to a roulette game, for 'training wheels' purposes. He hadn't thought anything at the time, but Dai, after three games in which she lost half a grand, then placed every single chip she had - at that point nearly ten thousand dollars, which was just one thousand shy of the money Hibiki had stolen near the Canadian border - on a black space. Hibiki tried to talk her out of it, the other players tried to talk her out of it, the table operator tried to talk her out of it - a passing _security guard_ tried to talk her out of it, but she just gave them all a confident, borderline feral grin, and all but demanded the game be played.

When the ball stopped spinning, it had had _just_ enough momentum to land on Dai's bet. It had been so close that Hibiki had for a moment worried Dai had just pulled a Tsunade and burned a fortune in a minute, but then it managed, just barely, to land on her bet, and she walked away with more money than Hibiki had ever seen before, when he had been alive in this world. It wouldn't be until later that he would realize the small 'nudge' the ball had gotten hadn't been the last of its momentum sending it over the edge, but a beetle _pushing_ the damn thing into her spot, the movements and appearance of the beetle masked by the shadow of the ball, and the color of the space on which she'd bet, respectively.

His next hint had come when Hibiki had given her the basic rundown for blackjack. Dai sat down and promptly lost half of the minor fortune she'd won at the roulette table, before she managed to trounce every single player at the table, accurately know when to draw, stay, and so on, and when to double down. At first Hibiki had thought she'd somehow started counting cards on her own, but ruled it out when he reasoned that there was no possible way Dai could count cards in a deck she had never seen before in her entire life. When Dai walked away from the table with so many chips that she'd had to stuff them all in a sack provided by the casino, Hibiki thought he'd seen a purple residue receding down her arms and into her sleeves, completely unaware at the time that her time spent losing money had simply been spent marking every single damn card with rinkaichu, until she'd marked the whole deck and had been able to not just _count_ the cards, but know them intrinsically.

His suspicions were finally aroused when Dai played a slot machine for all of three minutes before losing three thousand dollars and abandoning it entirely. With how lucky she had been in the night, Hibiki had been aghast. Then Hibiki found an open poker game and, after merely explaining the general concept, she all but crashed into the room with a confidence and swagger that got all of the men inside feeling lesser about themselves, as if this plump, housewife looking woman somehow knew more about gambling than they. Again, Dai lost several hands and a lot of money, before turning right around and absolutely wiping the floor with them. Men were loosening ties and breaking out in cold sweats as she out-bluffed and outplayed all of them.

Hibiki only learned what was going on when he saw a tiny beetle fly off of the bushy-bearded old man's shoulder, when he fled from the room sobbing. Then he noticed more beetles on more shoulders, and some in the corners of the room, and he had to go out to grab a drink in order to keep his composure. Dai had taken the chunin exam's 'don't get caught cheating' philosophy not just to heart, but to her fucking _soul._ She was using her bloodlines to influence her gambling game, to keep tabs on the cards in the decks, to influence the games of chance in her favor, and to act as a general cheat code to everything in the casino. It was _beautiful,_ nearly as beautiful as the sight of several burly men in suits coming into one of the poker rooms to 'speak' with him and Dai.

_Oh god, this is gonna be good._ Hibiki took a swig of God's perfect drink, and nodded to the not-mafia-thugs. _"Gentlemen."_ He said.

"Oh, are these the people to ensure I do not cheat? I am impressed, they are faster than the men back home, who know to look out for shinobi." Dai spoke, in a language none in the room save her fiance understood.

Hibiki gave the Senju-to-be a sidewards nod, _"she doesn't speak English very well, fellas."_ He said. _"How can we help you?"_

The man at the head of the pack, a burly African gentleman who seemed to have muscles on his muscles, if the suit that was two sizes too small was any indication, spoke. _"Would you and your wife follow us please, sir? We need to speak with you."_

Hibiki snorted, _"let me stop you right there, my man. I have _**_literally _**_ never seen her like this, and this whole night is as surprising to me as it is to you. But I've seen this movie before, I really don't want to know what she does to the House when it accuses her of cheating." _The way he saw it, the House wouldn't send a bunch of burly men if they were going to comp them a suite to try and win money back, these guys were here to take him and Dai aside and 'speak' to them.

"Oh, 'Han', I feel as if your words are having the opposite intended effect." Dai commented, leaning back in her chair with a pleasant smile, watching the exchange between Hibiki and the burly men.

_"We aren't accusing you of anything, sir, we'd just like to speak with you."_

_"Yet with how Mister Schwarzenegger back there is cracking his knuckles -" _Hibiki pointed to a ginger man at the rear of the pack, flexing his muscles and cracking each knuckle on his hands with his thumb. _"- I also get the feeling we won't do much talking, either."_ And as he spoke to the burly men, the other gamblers just looked back and forth, following the conversation with rapt attention.

'Schwarzenegger' was, predictably, the first one to lose his patience. _"Alright, fuck this - Boss Man wants you to come and you don't get to say no."_

The unfortunate burly man chose the moment Hibiki got the flash of memory from the clone in Georgia, to make his advance. Hibiki's smile dropped. Play time, if it had ever started in the first place, was clearly over now. He placed his mug on the table with a resounding thud, and raised both of his hands, making finger guns with both of them. Schwarzenegger paused, staring at the absurdity of Hibiki's display.

_"Alright... I'm warning you."_ Said Hibiki, as even _Dai_ gave him a raised eyebrow, though the dull shine in her eyes, added on to how well she knew Hibiki even through his currently transformed state, shown that she knew something had changed in that brief second. _"I am a lethal killing machine. See, it was a government experiment that did this to me. Spooky stuff."_ He said, before pausing, dropping his gaze a moment, and then snapping it back up, _"anal... Stuff. It turned me into a dangerous telekinetic. Now, as the ancient Tibetan philosophy states... Don't start none, won't _be_ none."_ He said, giving all of the burly men a hard stare as he finished speaking, his temporarily gunmetal gray eyes slightly crinkled with an amused grin.

Schwarzenegger stared at him as if he were the dumbest man in the world. Perhaps he was, but something _else_ he was, was an honest man, and when Schwarzenegger advanced on him, he decided to tell him what all was going on.

_"Also there's a bigass beetle on your neck."_

Schwarzenegger blinked, and Dai chose that moment to strike, the beetle on the burly ginger's neck snapping down hard, causing him to jump and bark out in pain, his entire body seizing as he fell to the ground unconscious. The head of the pack recoiled, before scowling and charging in at Hibiki. Hibiki waited for him to get within striking distance, before his hand shot out - smacking away the leader's own arm before hovering in front of his chest, palm open. With a grunt, Hibiki then closed his hand and shoved it forward in a textbook one-inch-punch. He heard the man's sternum crack and the man stumbled backwards and collapsed to the floor in a heap.

Then, however, as the final two guards approached, Hibiki flicked his still aloft right hand, and with a smokeless summoning, out popped a pistol, freezing the guards and causing the gamblers in the room to shout in fear.

_"Sleight of hand, fellas."_ Said a grinning Hibiki, before he reached down with his left hand, taking Dai's and helping her to her feet. "Time to leave, something came up." A pause, _"hate to cut a wonderful night short, but we've got some trouble on the homefront. Tell you guys what -" _He nodded to the gamblers, _"- split those chips amongst the four of you, they're yours."_ He said, indicating nearly three million dollars worth of casino chips. _"If someone asks... I know kung-fu."_

With Dai's hand in his, he and she slowly circled around the table, everyone's eyes locked onto Hibiki's gun. Once they reached the door, however, to complete the ruse Hibiki pulsed a small amount of chakra into another seal on his arm. The bullet got caught in his sleeve, but it wasn't what he wanted - the smoke was. He jerked the gun forward and yelled, _"bang!"_, before frowning, and bringing the gun in front of his face. _"Oh. Shit. Prop gun."_ He smirked, _"tally-ho!"_ He added with a brief bow, and before the guards could process the falsity he had just fed them, he and Dai sprinted away, with Hibiki stuffing the gun in his jacket.

They made it halfway through the casino before Hibiki saw a sea of suits converging on them. With a smirk, Hibiki said, just loud enough for Dai to hear, "blind spot behind the slot machines. Drop the transformation." And a moment later, the two ducked behind the machines, where no cameras, and no suits, could see them. As silently and stealthily as they could, they dropped the formed they had adopted for the casino, and instantly slowed their gaits.

The suits stormed right past them, nonethewiser.

Dai drew her hood over her head and Hibiki leaned in, using her to mask his face from any spying cameras, as they walked with a purpose, weaving in and out of thick crowds and exiting the casino with as much fanfare as they had when they'd entered it.

Once they were alone and heading for an alley, Dai turned to Hibiki, "what happened?" She asked, the homely voice she had used earlier vanishing, being replaced by her normal, airy tone.

Hibiki cleared his throat, "trouble." He rumbled, as they ducked into the alley; he placed two fingers to his forehead, and they vanished with a ripple of light.

Immediately following their reappearance in the hotel room, Hibiki's clone vanished with a plume of smoke. He saw Minato and Kushina with a spread of groceries and clothes on one bed, sorting through the loot from their trip, whereas on the other side of the room, Akane sat on her bed, her eyes instantly locked to Hibiki's. With a heavy sigh, Hibiki took up the desk to the right of the room's one dresser, and collapsed into its office chair, wheeling it around to face everyone, absorbing their looks of concern and running his hand through his hair.

"There's no easy way to say this." Hibiki said, "we're all actively dying. What I know for a fact is that there is no chakra in the atmosphere, and none of us are regenerating chakra - quite the opposite, it's radiating off of us too fast for our bodies to compensate." He said, silencing all activity; Minato and Kushina wore twin looks of shock, Akane's eyes grew wide and her shoulders fell slump, and even Dai, at the tone of Hibiki's voice, found herself having to find something to sit down upon. "As to the why, I can only guess, but my best one is based off of what my people - your ancestors - figured out about the nature of chakra before they all died. They said it was akin to a symbiotic organism - one that introduces a mutually beneficial relationship between host and parasite. Nature chakra and human chakra are two different things, but we can draw the former in, and the latter naturally turns into the former when we die. We feed off of it and gain power, it feeds off of us and evolves, reproduces, what have you.

"But, because there's no chakra in the atmosphere, I think our bodies are essentially trying to supply the entire planet with energy. In other words - _we_ are trying to feed an entire planet with chakra. The problem is, it's eating too much, too fast, for us to compensate. We can't produce at the rate we're giving away, and because we all spent so much during the fights, and haven't had a chance to properly recover - in body _and_ spirit - that means we're going to be radiating more, and more, as time goes on and our coils get more exhausted." He frowned, "and at the rate we're going, I don't think any of us will survive until the meteor hits and gives the planet chakra."

One could have heard a pin drop in the cramped motel room.

Kushina was the first to speak, a tremble in her voice, "is there anything we can do?" Hibiki saw her blindly reaching for Minato's hand, her own face paling in the face of his news.

Hibiki leaned forward, resting his elbows on his knees. "I have medical techniques that allow me to transfer neutral medical chakra to a recipient's body. They'll make it their own naturally... But the process is instant, and doesn't take place at the body's natural generation rate."

Akane asked, "what does that mean?"

"It means that it gives us chakra, but doesn't trick the exhausted coils into thinking they've recovered. It's the difference between a full night's sleep and a damn good cup of coffee. I can fill us up, but eventually one cup won't have the same effect, and we'll need two. Then three. Then four. It's like what happens when a person is in the middle of battle and takes a food pill - it fills you up and restores your energy, but it's not the same. Your body _needs_ a full night's rest, of complete inactivity, to regain that chakra and recuperate. If you can't get that rest and instead take another pill, you'll start processing chakra more and more inefficiently, to the point where one pill won't cut it and you'll need two just to survive and fight _half_ as long." He explained, "I can keep us going. Something from Nothing extends to chakra too, and it's a godsend _I_ specifically haven't opened my ninth gate seal. So I can make clones that can open the storage seals, and then push that chakra to you - but eventually you'll be so inefficiently spending that chakra that you'll go from needing one clone a day, to two, to three, to four, and on and on until you _can't_ survive without a constant connection to a chakra source."

Minato nodded, "I know the shadow clone technique too, Hibiki. If you showed me how to open the first and second gates, could I help?"

"It would be marginal at best, Minato, and you would be limited to the regular chakra transference technique - a much less efficient version of the medical techniques." Hibiki explained.

"How long do you think we can last?" Dai asked, "can your chakra techniques get us through?"

Hibiki shook his head, "maybe if we hadn't gotten caught up in that fight, a few days ago... But now? I don't know. The problem is our people's understanding of chakra - there is no way to accurately measure it. No one ever thought to put numbers to it, so I can't create an equation and math-out our very survival. We _might,_ but we might not, too. I don't know." A pause, before he sighed again, "and then there's the fact that Yui's still running around out there. Eventually she's going to try to track us down, and she's a sensor, and we're literally the only sources on the planet. She'll find us, and we'll have to fight, which will put more of a strain on us and cut even more into our time." He decided not to mention the various governments trying to track them down, as well. They weren't _not_ threats, but if they did fall into conflict with the United Nations, quantity was a quality unto itself, and they all would have to use chakra as a force multiplier against their technology, cutting even _more_ into their time.

And that was all praying that when the Terrans had started calling chakra 'E-Radiation', that it had simply been because that was what someone called it, and not because it was actually on the spectrum, and thus, _trackable. _If that were the case, this motel and Hibiki's efforts to keep their excursions spread out wouldn't be effective as delaying measures. One good pass from the satellites would get them found and would get tanks, and soldiers, and god knows what else rolling down Atlanta's streets.

Dai nodded, "then what can we do?" She asked.

Hibiki set his jaw, "I _don't know."_ He rumbled, his voice shaking. "I told you guys time travel was literally something I was unprepared for. I was not kidding when I said I was more prepared for us to be shot out of the solar system than I was for us to be thrown back in time - I had a plan for _that,_ but not _this."_ It had been simple, actually - speed up so relativity would come into play, such that no one would pop like a balloon in vacuum. Open the ninth gate seal or, if it had already been opened, spawn a few clones to open their eight gates and get a chakra influx, such that the distance between him and the Hiraishin seals on Earth wouldn't matter, as he'd have chakra to spare. Teleport to his friends, then teleport them to Earth. It wouldn't have taken but a few seconds - they would have all gotten one hell of a shock, but would have been fine.

Hell, he had been more prepared for one of the Undead finding NORAD and figuring out how to make a nuke, and actually doing so, than he had been prepared for fucking time travel. No time - absolutely zero time - had been placed in serious studies as to time travel. Beyond relativity and gravity both stretching time relative to those experiencing it, he didn't know _anything,_ and here in Terran Earth, he didn't have an infinite and unfiltered source of all of mankind's collected knowledge at his fingertips. He just had an entire planet that was literally and figuratively trying to kill him.

"But aren't Hiraishin seals called space-time seals?" Minato asked, "can't we just... I dunno - remove any ones we've placed here, in this time, and then try connecting to the ones we dropped in our time?"

Hibiki leaned back up, "that's not a bad idea." He'd always theorized the Hiraishin to be a brief micro-wormhole, which was just something that connected two points in spacetime. Technically, by that definition, it wouldn't be impossible to travel _through_ time with one. "But there are a lot of problems. First - how would we connect to them? Second, how would we test that? Third, how much chakra would it take versus how much we have access to? And would it even be possible to attempt that?" He said, gesturing with his hands. "Because so far as I've learned, we can only connect to seals that have been laid. If we could connect to ones we _would_ lay - say, a year from now - then that would overload our brains and we would never know when or where to jump. And the only way to safely test that would be with shadow clones, but if it worked but we didn't have enough chakra, the clone would burst but we may not get the memories. If it worked and there _was_ enough chakra, how would they come _back_ to get us?"

"The Ryumyaku?" Akane asked.

Hibiki shook his head, "we can't go screwing with things that our past selves need to interact with. Changing just one variable can alter everything. Using the Ryumyaku may drain it of its chakra, and the clones might not even get to when they need to, rendering the whole thing moot."

"Couldn't we use the Hiraishin seals in reverse?"

"That would require us dropping seals here, in the past, and we're operating under the assumption that in order for this to work we have to remove _all of them."_ Hibiki explained, "and this all again is rendered moot because we don't even know if shadow clones can survive in a world where their Alphas don't exist." He was pretty sure they would, but he wasn't willing to gamble all of their lives on this.

He idly wondered again if clones had souls.

He saw more slumped shoulders and curved backs, as the weight of the world was being pressed on everyone. They all were coming to terms with the grave danger they were all in. He decided to give some hope, even if it was a silver lining so thin it could slip between atomic bonds. "I have _one_ idea." He said, instantly brightening the room. "I'm afraid that we might be in what is called a time loop... Where basically everything has happened, and cannot be changed because it _has happened._ In other words, I go back in time because a man died. When I arrive, I inadvertently cause his death... Which leads to my future self going back in time... Thus creating the loop." He paused, to allow everyone to digest what he was saying. "I'm afraid that we may be in such a loop... Just in a much larger scale. In this case, we go back in time, cause the damage we've caused, and die, leading to no change whatsoever to _our_ time, which leads us to go back in time... Looping endlessly."

"But?" Minato asked, scooting forward on his bed. "You have an idea?" He prodded, with a nod.

"If we could destabilize this loop, suddenly anything could be possible." Hibiki explained, "if we... For instance..." He shook his head, "wrote a book. We detailed literally _everything_ relevant, and sent it to myself in the future, he would then have knowledge of the loop and could prepare for it. Then, when he went back in time, he could try a different solution, and should it fail, he could send the book back again, continuing to destabilize the loop and allowing for another attempt, until eventually we found a solution that was satisfactory to all parties. One where we cracked the fourth dimension and figured out how to travel through _time,_ and we all survived the attempt."

He saw Minato wince in pain, and noticed it came from the steel grip Kushina had on his hand. "But... Wouldn't that mean -"

"Every... Single... Loop. Every one we fail, would mean we would have to die for another chance." Hibiki said, with a deep, morose frown. "We write this book and send it forward. We destabilize the time loop, we get the chance to survive it - but the prerequisite would be us having to die _endlessly_ until we got it right." He said, "we wouldn't remember these deaths, we wouldn't remember the who, what, when, how, or why, but they would be in the book - they would have happened." He raised his hand, "let me be absolutely clear when I say that this isn't my first choice. This is quite literally at the bottom of my list... But it is a contingency we have to prepare for. As we try to crack time travel, we write the journal. Once we get _something_ working, we send it forward first... Or..." He shook his head, "or we bury it somewhere where it _will be found._ Or somehow manage to string it together, to get that thing delivered to where it had to be, when it had to be, to give us a fighting chance... And then we try to send ourselves. If it works, the method we described in the book will restabilize the loop in our favor, and we can move forward as if this all didn't happen... If it doesn't, the book will destabilize the loop, and we'll get as many chances as we need."

"But we would die." Kushina whispered. "Again and again." He saw a wetness in her eyes, the reality of an imminent and unavoidable death crashing down upon her like an atom bomb.

Hibiki nodded. "That's why Plan A is so much fun." He would never, _ever_ tell them that with all of the variables stacked on top of them, he truly considered Plan B the most likely of the two.

The problem boiled down to chakra. He was ninety nine percent certain that, all else being equal, sending a living, breathing, sentient being through time would take exponentially more chakra than they all had, put together. Even if the Kyuubi in Kushina had eight gates, and it opened them all, and Kushina opened hers too, and they all made a billion shadow clones that did the same thing, Hibiki wondered if that was the same amount of chakra as that gathered by a _planet_ in over one thousand years. They had to send everything - their skeleton, their nervous system, circulatory system, muscular system, organs, brains, souls, blood, the air in their lungs, the bacteria in their blood, the chakra in their coils, it all had to be sent and in such a way that they didn't just pop in the future inside out and explode. The Ryumyaku had been a timebomb of a well of chakra gathered by an entire planet over one thousand years, likely gathering so much that it could have outmatched a thousand Kaguya Otsutsuki's, with Juubi eight gates; and when they had activated it, it went _bone dry._ With the resources they had, Hibiki truly didn't know if they could replicate that kind of _volume_ of chakra. Even accounting for the fact that they only desired to send six people and a dog, instead of eight and that same dog, they still may not have had enough energy to do so.

However, a _book,_ a journal, that may be a completely different ball game. Chakra could create something from nothing, and it took practically no energy at all to do so. Sending a journal to destabilize the loop could be infinitely simpler than sending six people and a dog. He just had to send the cover, the pages, and the ink etched onto said pages. Hell, they could even ink a seal onto the book to act as a sort of solar cell, that absorbed enough chakra from the ambient atmosphere, to the point that when it was full, it would have exactly what was needed, at the exact quantity, for the time travel technique to be performed without the need for the user to use his own chakra, beyond the initial pulse to activate the seal.

But he couldn't tell them this. Hell, he could hardly tell _himself_ this - not with the lives he was gambling, and the potential that he could be gambling not just _their_ lives, but their lives _over_ and _over_ again, perhaps forever. He wasn't going to consider the journal his primary option - not at all. If he could save everyone on this first try, god damn it he _would,_ but he also had to be realistic, and prepare for the worst case.

"So..." He said, breaking the silence. "This is what we'll do." He turned to Minato and Kushina, a look of iron on his face. "You two and I, we need to get to work as soon as possible. We'll use the Hiraishin as our base. We need to find every one we've laid on Earth and remove it, before we then try and find a way to connect to the ones we've laid in our time. Then we design the seals we would need to make that mental connection a physical one... We test it small scale, first without a connection, we send inanimate objects forward in time... Seconds at a time. Minutes... Hours. Once we can get to hours, we just blow it up proportionately and math-out one thousand years..." He gulped, "while we do this, I'll have a shadow clone writing out Plan B. Once we've got a workable method of sending us all to the future, we send Plan B first as a precautionary measure... That way if the worst comes to pass, we're prepared, and we still have a chance. And if it doesn't, we'll get dropped right alongside the book, and we'll just have to hide out until our past selves go to Roran." He said, straightening his back, and taking a deep breath. "Sound like a plan?" He asked, making eye contact with everyone in the room.

He received nods from everyone.

_"That sounds... Good."_ Came a new, whispering voice.

There was a second's pause, and then, _"Aoi!"_

* * *

Hibiki would be honest - Aoi waking up so soon wasn't something he'd expected. He thought she would have been out for a week, at least, with all of the damage she'd taken. Fortunately, he had been able to avoid telling the whole story again, she had managed to wake up halfway through and at least understood enough to know that she wasn't the only one in dire straits. Dai, Akane, and Kyo spent the rest of the comforting the injured Inuzuka, with the ninken having to be forced to stop trying to climb into the woman's bed, he wanted to see her so bad.

On the other side of the room, however, after sorting through the clothes and groceries and getting everyone changed and proper looking, and after explaining to Kushina that he hadn't gotten any clothes for himself because he had a functionally infinite supply of spares from Konoha in his storage seals, Minato, Kushina, and Hibiki got to work. First was the simplest job, with Hibiki and Minato teleporting to the various points on Earth, finding their respective Hiraishin seals, and nullifying them. It took just under an hour before they were back in the motel, and sealing up Minato's Hiraishin kunai into a storage seal, to remove that element as well.

After that, they spent close to eight hours just working on opening up the Hiraishin seal and studying its inner workings. Every single written piece of instruction, when expanded, nearly took up all the space on the main wall - Hibiki had moved them all to the other room he'd rented to ensure they had space to work with, after seeing it fully expanded. By the time the sun had dropped out of the sky and the moon had taken its place, Hibiki knew they were in for a rough time of things. He knew already the Hiraishin was a complicated seal - it was primarily an anchor for the _ninjutsu_, but also acted as the ninjutsu itself.

So far as Hibiki and Co. had been able to discern, Minato's version of Tobirama's seal had taken Tobirama's original intention for what Hibiki equated to a Jetsons-style tube, to a wormhole. The seal acted as an anchor for the exit, whereas Minato's usage of the technique was the entry. He cast the technique, supplied the chakra, and then everything else happened at lightspeed. First, he connected with the Hiraishin seal, then he opened a wormhole from inside his chakra coils, and it snapped open at the speed of light, expanding in a spherical form and taking him with it, before dropping him right off at the Hiraishin seal. Because wormholes were, technically, faster than light, this was why Minato was able to combat people like the Undead, who used Swift Release - he wasn't moving faster than them, he was simply circumventing speed altogether and going from one place to another, _literally_ instantly. Once he was dropped off at the Hiraishin seal, the wormhole collapsed, causing the yellow flash. Why this flash didn't happen with Hibiki, Hibiki simply attributed to differences between the seals.

This was very important because, at its simplest possible explanation, a wormhole was a theorized - or, now, true - connection between two points in spacetime. From what Hibiki knew, this meant that going through a wormhole, one would essentially be able to travel potentially interstellar distances in seconds. They treat going from one galaxy to the other as one would treat a drive to the grocery store. However, because Minato's wormholes opened at lightspeed, Hibiki theorized that this meant they were also subjected to relativity. He didn't bother trying to explain to Minato and Kushina what this meant, simply opting to say that, _maybe,_ if they could find a way to stabilize the Hiraishin whilst keeping its relativistic velocity, anything they threw through the wormhole would be subject to time dilation, and could come out the other side at a point either earlier or later than it was thrown, instead of the very instant it was thrown.

Hibiki validated this claim with the Ryumyaku. He remembered a brief flash of light before he had shown up in 21st century Tokyo, this very well could have been the Ryumyaku's wormhole collapsing. The Ryumyaku, using its immense well of chakra, had managed to open a wormhole, accelerate it to lightspeed, stabilize it, and then use the subsequent time dilation to shunt the gang and the Undead back in time. Hibiki theorized that the way this was done was, to use the buzzword, through relativity. Because objects moving faster than others experienced time slower, an object moving at lightspeed would move through time at a much slower pace than an object moving through at sublight, the end result being exemplified by someone hopping on a ship, taking a relativistic flight, and only aging five years, whereas the world around him dropped fifty. The Ryumyaku must have accelerated the Roran-era wormhole to lightspeeds, but kept the Terran era wormhole at sublight, such that the Terran wormhole experienced time slower than the Roran wormhole, and sucked them back through time.

Another theory, that Hibiki kept to himself, had to do with quantum mechanics, and the potential reality that the Roran wormhole was simply quantum entangled to the Terran wormhole, and to go to any era _but_ pre-Kaguya Earth would take specific alterations by a shinobi. This meant that opening the Roran wormhole would invariably send someone to its quantum entangled twin. Hibiki kept this to himself to skip explaining to Minato and Kushina a branch of science that, to be honest, he didn't know much about himself. All he really knew was of the theory of entanglement, which simply was the theory that any action or measurement conducted by one particle, was reflected in its twin, regardless of distance and, he would assume, time. But even then, it only helped his theory, as it convinced him that Minato and his Hiraishin seals briefly entangled themselves every time he used the jutsu. This could be where the bulk of the chakra cost came from, and also could be more proof that linking one Hiraishin seal to another, later in time, was possible.

All of this day's work served to make an important conclusion. The Ryumyaku had proved time travel possible, and the Hiraishin proved it possible for _them,_ and both worked at least partially within a realm of physics Hibiki could understand. In other words, Minato had created wormholes on accident, and now they could be using them to surf through time.

If Terran scientists knew the sheer amounts of fuckery people with chakra got up to, in regards to various realms of theoretical physics, they would shoot themselves. Seriously, Hibiki had commented on it before, but now that he was necessarily neck deep with all of the physics-defying _shit_ chakra could get up to, he found himself compelled to ask just how something like chakra could exist, and Terrans had never seen it before, never mentioned it before, never even theorized it could have potentially existed before. There was no evidence, _at all_, that it could exist anywhere. Yes, sure, when he died his people could hardly even claim to be looking through a keyhole in regards to astronomy, but _still!_ Something this insane, something this flippant to the natural order of the universe, and in centuries of watching the sky for a living, _no one_ had ever seen it? Christ, Einstein came up with half of his most famous theories based primarily on guess work, not even knowing whether or not it was true or even possible. If one man could do that, then a species of them should have been able to notice something that flied in the face of the laws of physics.

Hibiki stood outside his room, letting the warm night air wash over his face as he leaned over a railing, looking out at the parking lot below him, sighing.

Did he have it the wrong way? Was humanity just the odd-ball out? Was the rest of the universe impregnated with the stuff, and Earth just lucked - or, as it were, _didn't _luck - out? If this stuff came on a meteor, that could _potentially_ be true, but it still left so many questions. His was a people that could tell what a planet thousands of light years away was composed of, just by the way the light of its star dipped and changed in lumosity when said planet passed in front of it. They could predict how many planets were in a solar system they had only observed for a week based off of _math,_ and nothing else. They could track supernovae in other galaxies. If the universe was impregnated with chakra, they _would_ have found it, period. So it only made it more confusing that it had just shown up out of the _blue_, like it had - or, as the case was, _would_.

He heard the door to the Tracker Trio's room open. A moment later, a familiar, dainty hand slid between his shoulder blades, while another wrapped around one of his arms. She leaned up against him, resting her head against his bicep, not saying a word. She didn't have to. He let his head sink to the side, until it rested on her scalp. Her presence was calming for all of thirty seconds, before it reminded him of what it was he was working for, his two plans. The needs-a-fucking-miracle Plan A, and the still-as-impossible Plan B. Just thinking of the damn book made his heart feel as if it were encased in ice. He felt as if this were Iwagakure, all over again, making unquestionably horrible decisions for the arguable greater good.

Yes, two fuinjutsu masters were _godsends_ to get both of the plans off of the ground, but both of said masters were turning to him at every turn. There were three dimensions that all human beings lived in, length, width, and height. It was how they all saw the universe, Hibiki was no exception. Time was the proposed fourth dimension, the theory that time, just like space, was a physical dimension that could be accessed and manipulated. It was how Einstein modeled the universe with general relativity - folding space and time into a fourth dimension; three spatial dimensions, one time dimension. He, summarily, had to prove the existence of time as a physical dimension, figure out how to access it in a way that made sure all of their minds didn't explode from the inability to comprehend it, and then _not die_ when he did so. He was trying to do, in, what, three months? What every other scientist in human history had spent five centuries trying to do.

Hibiki tangentially knew this all had something to do with string theory, but his knowledge wasn't anywhere near that level, and that was the problem. He was trying to stand on the shoulders of the greats, by using _magic_ to cheat his way to the answers. How or Why weren't in his level of expertise, only What. How could chakra do this? No idea. Why can it do this? Who knows. What can it do? He can help with that, just let him ask Einstein, or Hawking, for a few minutes of their time.

_My kingdom for a physics book from the twenty eighth century._ Hibiki thought, blithely, taking in the coconut smell of Dai's hair. "New shampoo?" He rumbled.

Dai hummed, "new world." She countered.

Hibiki grunted; he'd give her that.

It wasn't that he _wanted_ Plan B to be his first option, it was just that he thought it was perhaps the only one feasible. Time was his enemy that he was trying to make an ally, and he was rapidly beginning to think that he would have to work within it, in order to save _everyone._ Seven lives were in his hands, seven lives he cared about, perhaps more than any others, ever; and he was being faced with the reality that he would have to fail, perhaps countless times, in order to succeed just once. He _wanted_ Plan A to work - he wanted it more than anything, but with all of the odds stacked against him, with everything wrong he had done, all the mistakes he'd made... He knew in his heart that he was going to die. That Minato and Kushina would die. That Akane and Dai would die. That Kyo and Aoi would probably die _first,_ and imminently at that. If he wanted Plan A to work this first time, he would need a miracle, perhaps from that God he'd lost faith in, a long time ago. Hell, he'd give a favor to _any_ god, just to avoid Plan B.

He knew, of course he knew, that strictly speaking the morality of Plan B shouldn't matter. That, technically, if and when Plan B succeeded, they all wouldn't have even died _once,_ and as such no memories of the trials and tribulations would exist; but the book's existence would prove otherwise. If even only to him, it would be proof that he'd failed God knows how many times, and he knew how badly that would wreck him. Then Dai would figure out something was wrong, and he'd show her the book, perhaps scarring _her_, too. He dared not even think about what it would do to her, the knowledge that she'd died so many times.

Yes, it only needed to work once, but the fact that it would have to fail so many times before it was what mattered.

And all of this - _all_ of it - was operating under the assumption that they were in a stable time loop, and the proverbial clock in San Dimas wasn't still running. If time was still moving on from the point where they had hit the Ryumyaku, instead of essentially being frozen there until Hibiki got out of the loop and moved his group past it, as he theorized, he knew he may very well lose hope. It meant Katsuo would be rampaging around the world uninhibited, and - _god,_ this time stuff made his head hurt.

Dai seemed to notice this, as she tightened her grip, just a tad, on his arm, and pressed her head deeper into it. "Your world is brighter, even at night." She mentioned, looking out at the just visible Atlanta skyline.

Hibiki nodded, "yeah." He said, seeing the pale golden glow from the city's lights radiating out into the night sky. "But..." He pointed to the sky with his free hand, "it has a cost." He said, "light pollution, blots out the stars."

"I had thought they simply hadn't existed, yet."

Hibiki grinned, despite himself. "No... It's just the same reason we don't see stars during the daytime. It's too bright." He explained.

Dai rubbed her hand between his shoulder blades, "that you know this, of all things, Hibiki. That your people could explain why stars disappeared _at night,_ it fills me with confidence. I believe in you, just as much as I do Minato-san and Kushina-san. You three will figure out what you must." Their eyes were drawn to a light soaring across the sky, briefly flashing with others, identifying it as an airplane. "Everything will be okay." She tapped his back, "I've something for you." She said, letting go from him and straightening up.

Hibiki double-taked, and turned to her. "Oh really?" He asked, a grin playing at his features, as he watched her bend down and grab at a small paper sack next to her feet.

Hibiki could see Dai's thin smile clearly, despite the lack of light in the air between them. "You've little idea how thrilled I was, when you told me that you had brought your own clothes." She said, holding the sack behind her back, her arms extended to full length, as she rolled back and forth on the balls of her feet. "I knew immediately your mind was elsewhere, on far more important things than what you would wear." She said, for once in her life actually not making eye contact with Hibiki, instead looking down below his chest, as if she had suddenly become bashful. "After all, you typically stop focusing on problems once you've solved them... So..." She brought the paper sack around, and held it out for him. "I knew you wouldn't notice me grab one extra little thing." A pause, "especially not in the afterglow of those undergarments you had me try on." She nodded to the bag, a sly grin on her face.

Hibiki got the hint and reached inside, "as I recall, your shapely little ass was the one who got that idea." Not that he was complaining, of course. It wasn't often he got to ogle Dai. She, like him, opted for baggy, form-hiding clothes, which was a shame, as she _was_ beautiful, but, Hibiki argued, her casual wear was what he would see her in most often, and that she still looked beautiful in that was what he appreciated most. Dai had never been one for dresses, kimonos, lingerie, or makeup, but on the few occasions -

His fingers brushed against it. For a moment, they recoiled, not initially able to identify the feel of the fabric, nor the size of the object inside the paper sack. But when he touched it again, this time to find the edges, his lips pressed together in a tight frown, as he felt his heartrate climb, and his eyes slowly go wide. Dai, ever the observant one, noticed immediately, and her sneer turned into a full-blown smile as Hibiki grasped at its edge and pulled it out.

A beautiful.

Big.

Bountiful.

Baggy.

Comfortable.

Denim.

Pair.

Of _jeans._

Never - and boy did he mean _never - _had he been so happy to have had such an obvious lapse in judgement. Of fucking _course_ he could have gotten a pair of pants, now that he was Back Home. He wouldn't even have to track them down, like he would have had in the post-Kaguya era, but as Dai said, he'd already solved that problem, already had several spare changes of clothes, and thus the issue of his own changes of clothes hadn't even crossed his mind. Fortunately, his better half had sensed this lapse in judgement, and had seized the opportunity.

Hibiki snorted, letting out a breathy laugh, hardly able to articulate anything else. Dai, ever the snide woman she was, lowered the paper sack and leaned in close, "use your _words,_ Hibiki." She said, _"thaaaaank -"_

Hibiki didn't bother, instead bringing Dai into a tight embrace, physically lifting her from her feet and locking her lips to his. One unspoken advantage of being a shinobi? The better one got, the longer they could hold their breath. The Senju and the Senju-to-be wouldn't disentangle until their lungs burned in their chests, screaming, begging for oxygen; and with their choice of vocation, that granted them quite a long time to stay so linked.

When they finally let go, and Hibiki lowered Dai back to the ground, the once-Aburame's knees gave out, prompting Hibiki to steady her, as she blinked, regaining herself. "Well..." She cleared her throat, having to use Hibiki's shoulders as a balance, as she tried to stand on her own. "That will have to do." She said, a smile plastered to her face. "I assume I bought the wrong thing?" She teased, her amber eyes locked onto his onyx orbs.

Hibiki laughed, "yeah..." He said, "yeah. Where's my big pink poofy dress?" He lifted the jeans for inspection, "the hell are these supposed to be?" The smile on his face, much like the one on hers, wouldn't drop for anything.

"If we were alone, they would be _off."_ Said Dai, leaning her head against his. _"I love you, Hibiki."_ She said, in their shared, not-so-dead language, _"everything be okay."_

Hibiki let out a breath of air. _"I love you too."_ He said, rubbing his hand up and down the small of her back.

So close would the two be embracing, that they could hear the other's hearts beating. So loudly could they hear eachothers heartbeats, that the faint, repeating thrum of fist-sized metal rotor wings approaching the motel from high up in the sky, would go completely unnoticed.


	83. Loop: Proof they break the mold -VII-

Chapter 82

* * *

There wasn't much to say.

He had pants.

Sixteen years of suffering was now validated.

His wonderful fiance had bought him a pair of pants.

Anyone else, if apprised of his childlike glee over a pair of leg garments, would likely stare in incredulity and make a comment on his sanity, or lack thereof.

But not him.

His ass was covered in denim.

He was perhaps the closest to heaven he had ever been - indeed including the fact that he had died and could very well have spent time there, or a level or two down from there.

Words honestly failed to describe the unending euphoria of the feeling of the blue jeans hugging his legs. If it hadn't been for the fact that everyone had received updated wardrobes during their brief excursion to the outside world before retreating to the safety of their cheap motel rooms, he may have gotten some strange looks. But instead, everyone found themselves in some stranger clothes, and as such, no looks or questions were asked. Case in point, his two partners in fuinjutsu crime. Kushina had abandoned her customary, hip-length skirt and pants to instead adopt a thin T-shirt and a pair of leggings, whereas her blonde blur of a boyfriend had by necessity abandoned many of his shinobi effects, the wire mesh undershirt, the flak jacket, and the blood-soaked Konoha-branded long sleeve, instead adopting a plain undershirt and a pair of tight-fitting slacks. Both of them had shown great chagrin to being forced to adopt closed-toed shoes, usually opting to not wear them at all unless they had to leave the rooms.

Dai, meanwhile, adopted the closest approximation to her outfits in Konoha as she could get, taking a bargain-brand sweatshirt and pulling the hood as far over her head as it could. It didn't conceal her face nearly as well as hoodies in konoha could. Since kimonos more or less didn't exist in America, especially not in Las Vegas, Aoi found herself with perhaps the most drastic wardrobe change, though Dai had tried to be considerate, in obtaining for her a casual, maneuverable skirt, a shirt underneath it, and a pair of leggings.

Seeing everyone walking around in Terran clothes almost made Hibiki forget they were all dying, though it did give him an incredible sense of deja-vu.

Unfortunately, he had work to do, and a rapidly dwindling amount of time in which to do it. Discovering their dwindling stores of chakra would have come eventually, he realized, as the morning after his talks with his collected allies he and they all woke up nearly more exhausted than they had been when they'd gone to rest. Checking their chakra stores told Hibiki that they had indeed been sweating it all off during the night, and while shadow clones helped fix that, it was a temporary fix at best. Only one of those shadow clones stayed around, it was charged with writing what he was calling 'The Book', out of a lack of any better name. The rest spread out chakra and filled up everyone's metaphorical tanks, while Hibiki, Kushina, and Minato got to work cracking time, a task that proved more and more difficult as they delved deeper and deeper into it. It took a week of work before they had their first breakthrough. Hibiki had even pulled a few all-nighters, as he grew closer and closer to realizing that sleep was proving to be useless, since their lack of chakra was sapping their bodies of energy.

In short, as they had already learned, Minato's Hiraishin worked on the concept of creating a wormhole for just the briefest of moments and using it to transport across space and time, instantly. However, what Hibiki had had trouble reconciling was his and Minato's ability to be able to discern the locations of all of the Hiraishin seals they ever laid, know exactly which one it was they needed, even if they had forgotten they'd laid it, and easily access it. It should, by rights, have caused an information overload, and, were one to think of the human brain as a computer, a lot of the data from the many Hiraishin exits should have simply been offloaded and forgotten. Yet somehow, they still were able to link up with and connect to all of them, without fail, which itself led to Minato's teleport spamming, mid-battle.

It took a week of effort to try and figure out how Hiraishin users were able to make these mental links to their seals. By the time they had their breakthrough, everyone was going through one entire shadow clone a day - with Minato and Hibiki being the worst offenders of them all, due to their higher chakra stores. They burned through one and a half. Kushina was a unique case as Mito's seal automatically stole chakra from her tenant, meaning she still only went through half a clone a day, but they'd had a major scare when she wouldn't wake up one morning. As it turned out, she had unintentionally opened up a link to the space in which she could communicate with the tailed beast, and, in her words, it put up more of a fight at that moment than it had ever before, to try and break free of her seal and stop her from stealing its chakra in this 'cursed time'. With Mito's seal providing the brunt of the work, she had been able to get it under control, but it was clear that the Kyuubi was not at all in support of their attempts to survive.

Regardless, they had after a time learned how Hiraishin users made their mental links, and it made Hibiki smile. His earlier theory about the Ryumyaku abusing quantum mechanics hadn't been wrong, merely premature. After the two of them had spent close to three hours focusing solely on trying to access their Hiraishin seals, and needing to use a fair amount of chakra to do so, the two managed to do so by combining their efforts, creating a chakra matrix on the floor of their motel room and sitting inside of it. The result was that they could just barely feel the 'edges', so to speak, of the Hiraishin seals they had set up in their time, with Hibiki concluding that the Hiraishin had to be quantum entangled to itself.

This led Hibiki to realize that the seals themselves weren't actually the wormhole generators, but rather QED's - quantum entanglement devices. Since the act of quantum entangling meant that any change to one object would be reflected in another, it stood to reason that this change would also be reflected if these two objects were entangled, even if they were separated over years, or even eons. The jutsu itself was what generated the wormholes or, in Tobirama's case, the 'tunnels'. The seals, however, they acted as QED's, entangling the areas they were placed, with the chakra of the shinobi that placed them. This eliminated potential data loss - it wasn't stored in their minds, but their chakra, and as such, was always there, like a file in a computer; it just had to be accessed. The, the shinobi activated the Hiraishin jutsu, and teleported to the seal. The way Hibiki explained this to Minato, was to simply say that the shinobi and their Hiraishin seal were 'linked', and this link could only be broken by diffusing the seal. Hibiki then theorized that, because the seals couldn't be destroyed, only removed, using them to travel across time could only bring them to the earliest moment they had been placed, and no time later. Fortunately for them, they had dozens, hundreds, even, of seals that had been made and more or less abandoned at the moment they had been dropped, the trouble now was simply picking one.

For their purposes, this all meant that they could link up to these seals in the future, and potentially use them to surf across time.

The problem now was actually doing such a thing.

For thoroughness' sake, Hibiki spawned a shadow clone and had it sit in the chakra matrix with the Alpha and Minato, before finding, accessing, and teleporting to one of his seals. Its orders were simple - if it survived the jump, it would immediately speed up to relativistic speeds and vacate the area if they found a past version of Hibiki or Minato. Once alone and isolated, it would then take all the time it would need to crack time, open another portal, stabilize it, and go _back_ to pick everyone up. Once the clone found a sufficiently isolated seal, it vanished.

A few seconds passed.

No magic portal to take them home.

No memories to tell him what all had happened, either.

It didn't work.

He wished he could say he hadn't expected this outcome, but in all honesty, he'd been certain that things wouldn't be this easy. He did, however, get some valuable clues, and a heading from which they could work. First, in order to properly connect to the Hiraishin seals in the future, both Hibiki and Minato had had to be lending their brain and chakra power to the cause, and from there a third clone had been able to access and teleport to these seals. The fact that it didn't work as intended didn't matter, what did matter was the connection required between Hibiki and Minato. Since Hibiki's seals had been an offshoot of Minato's, he theorized that the problem they had had earlier in the week, before they set up the matrix, had been they'd been too singular, and had been too focused on finding _their_ seals, instead of just finding _a_ seal.

To remedy this in the future, Hibiki, Minato, and Kushina spent another several days creating a new seal from scratch. This one linked Hibiki and Minato's anchor seals, such that either one could access the other's, allowing them to link up to them without the need for a matrix seal. Now, either of them could link up with either of their seals, meaning no complex seals and shared brain power. They just had to slap down the matrix seal, and they could find their shared Hiraishin anchors.

Hibiki decided to call these new, smaller matrix seals, Flux Capacitors, because they would be what made time travel possible. When these babies hit three hundred million meters a second, they would see some serious shit. It took two weeks, but now they had a theory to work on, and a method to link up to the seals they'd laid in the future. All of them were feeling the effects of this time - the less injured of the tracker trio were going through four clones a day, Hibiki and Minato were approaching six a piece, and Kushina was hovering around three. Unfortunately, as more time passed, Hibiki became more and more concerned for the Inuzuka pair. Aoi's injuries were as stable as he could make them, but in just two weeks she was rapidly reaching needing ten clones a day just to make it through to the next. Kyo, on the other hand, he needed far more.

Hibiki had earlier explained to his mother the possibility that, when they fixed Emi's jinchuriki seal, they could hold her chakra in stasis with medical ninjutsu, and pump her system full of neutral chakra to compensate for the sudden lack of her own. It was this theory that Hibiki was operating on to keep Kyo alive, first pumping him so full of medical chakra that the end result was the war hound being stoned off his ass for a few minutes. After this, he had to pour volumes of neutral medical chakra into his canine body so it would have something to feed off of. The problem, however, was that he wasn't an Inuzuka vet, and neither was Aoi. His methods would probably be barbaric to them, as he was forcing human chakra into an inhuman body, and clearly it wasn't a good solve, as initially he had had to do this just twice a day, but as more time passed, Kyo's body spent the chakra he donated less and less efficiently, and Hibiki had to treat him now every other hour. Worse was that he couldn't head this off at the pass and just pump him full of more chakra than he needed. He didn't know how his body would react to a surplus, and he didn't want to run that risk.

With both the ninken and the Inuzuka both needing more and more frequent chakra infusions, Hibiki knew they were running out of time, and weren't making fast enough progress; and to add onto his damn troubles, the landlord for the hotel was getting antsy. He didn't know what it was Hibiki and his group were doing in their rooms - they wouldn't let him in - but he could hear the muffled thumps of failed seals exploding, and could smell the smoke of the aftermath of these explosions. He was keeping the security deposit, he said, and if he kept hearing any explosions he'd phone the police. His visits had at first been one every few days, but now Hibiki was noticing shadows in front of the door every few hours, as the fat man came to lean his ear against the door like clockwork. Hibiki had slapped both rooms with privacy seals to help out, but he knew this was a delaying measure. The fat man wouldn't be sated much longer, throwing his stolen fortune at the problem would only get more questions asked.

Once again, time wasn't his friend, in this problem. It was his enemy.

Then there was also the fact that everyone was beginning to suffer from serious cabin fever. He, Minato, and Kushina were at least able to bury themselves in their work, but the tracker trio were getting pent up something awful. Hibiki had had to start giving communal English lessons just to take their minds off of it. It didn't solve the problem, but it bought him at least a little time. Of course, he was no real teacher, so his lessons had resorted to turning on the television and giving word-by-word translations of movies and television, and adding in grammar explanations as it was appropriate. It worked, but he knew it was a delaying action. The problem was that their faces were beginning to be plastered on the news - they had been seen in Tokyo, he, on the warships, and all of them again in the hospital, though those images had been recent, a development happening mere hours before he'd started worshiping television to keep three angry, cooped up women off of his back.

The only good news he had was that, since his clones didn't have to ration chakra like him, they could blast through their reserves recklessly. Supply runs weren't an issue, and he'd had the Book written in days. His plan was, once they got the Flux Capacitor working properly, he'd send the book through first, to the seal he'd dropped at a shinobi messenger post. There, they would find the parcel with explicit instructions not to open it, and to send it to him specifically. Choosing a time and place had been difficult, until he realized he knew where he would be one day in particular, and could even pinpoint the exact time and location he would be there. It would make a bad day a hell of a lot worse, but it was his only choice. After making those specifications, he then laid instructions for the messenger to relinquish the parcel should anyone - _anyone - _come retrieve it before it was delivered, even if it was a mere two seconds before the delivery time. He dropped a pass phrase to be used as a test, then a substantial amount of Ryo, and finally, to ensure his past self would know exactly what it was being delivered, and also knew he would inevitably ask who sent it, he included instructions for the messenger to say one phrase, and one phrase only, in response to the question. Hibiki knew he would recognize it when it was said, and it would instantly put him on alert - especially if the messenger fled to continue his rounds after he said it. Once he was finished, he wrapped the book up in a brown paper bag, and taped the instructions for the messengers to its front.

Now he just had to get the Flux Capacitor to work.

Joy.

By the time a full month had trickled down, they had managed to alter the Flux Capacitor to be able to, provided a steady flow of chakra, open a Hiraishin and make it _stay_ open. However, their increasingly inefficient spending of chakra was beginning to take its toll, and they were all experiencing symptoms of exhaustion. Few of them even slept anymore, and Aoi was unconscious as often as she wasn't. Desperate for results, Hibiki, through a complex series of equations and deductions that basically boiled down to 'I pray this will work', set up an ad-hoc test for their Flux Capacitor, and decided that he would go about it by using time against itself.

Since time, at least to someone who lived, or could think, in the fourth dimension, wasn't linear - and it would take more time than he had to explain the science behind that - Hibiki theorized that perhaps he could abuse the rules a bit. He set up the flux capacitor and then focused in on a Hiraishin seal, but not one he set up in the time of the Elemental Nations, but one he would set up in five minutes. His reasoning was that, if he just considered time nonlinear, then it should stand to reason that so long as he _did_ set up the seal in five minutes, it would then be accessible by the Flux Capacitor.

He knew he was getting desperate when he was resorting to Bill and Ted logic. So long as he remembered to do something and to set it up, it would be there.

Regardless, he had a clone link up with the Flux Capacitor and search for that five minute seal. By some miracle, he _found_ it, and opened the Hiraishin. Hibiki then ripped a kunai out of Dai's weapons pouches, and threw it through. The clone vanished the second the knife went through - its chakra stores drained so dry that nothing at all came back to Hibiki. This didn't bode well, but when Hibiki counted off the longest five minutes of his life, and used another clone to plant a seal on the desk, he, and the entire crowd he'd drawn, cheered - actually cheered - when a flash of bright white light occured and a knife flew out, to be stuck in the ceiling.

It _worked._ He laughed so loud his throat began to hurt. It _worked!_

Sure, his shadow clone had died again to make that seal, but that wasn't a problem he'd have to worry about with the seals he'd dropped in Konoha. It fucking _worked. _Even Aoi, supported on her two feet by Dai and Akane, joined the cheers, hope in her eyes. Hibiki, Kushina, and Minato allowed themselves a brief moment of respite, collapsing into heaps in over-used chairs and resting for the first time in weeks, as they reveled in their small-scale success. From here it was only a matter of time until they figured out how to blow it up and go further and further out. It was literally just a change of a few variables before they could start testing with Hibiki clones, at the same time intervals.

_Holy shit... Plan A may work._ Thought Hibiki, before someone began pounding heavily on the motel room door.

_"If I've told you once I've told you a thousand fucking times!"_ The fat manager called from outside, _"come the fuck out here before I call the police! I'm tired of you assholes ignoring me and setting fire to my building!"_

What little energy had been generated by the euphoria of success had been drained by the fat man's voice. Hibiki's shoulders slumped and he groaned, but Akane, seeing his moment of weakness, instead volunteered to deal with him, if Hibiki so wished. Unfortunately for Hibiki, as much as he would have loved to let the Hyuga deal with the fat man, he knew the guy wouldn't take 'I don't speak English very well, give us just a little time please.', as an answer. So he denied Akane's offer, instead assuring her that he would get things fixed. Worst case scenario, they had to bail to a different hotel in a different state. That wouldn't be too bad, especially not with the progress they'd made now.

_Okay..._ Thought Hibiki, as he forced himself to his exhausted feet. He saw the tracker trio seated on the edge of a bed and hugging eachother tightly, smiles on their faces and hope in their eyes. _Okay... Next test needs to go hog-wild. Clone, full chakra - maybe surplus from another to be safe and account for poor efficiency - and another five minute limit. Then another clone goes through, and we pay his ass comes out the other side. _ He thought, crossing the room and fumbling with the locks on the door. _If that doesn't work... Hm. We dial back the time limit until it does, and then we can get a proper gauge for chakra expenditure versus organic time travel, and inorganic time travel..._ He rubbed at his tired eyes. _Considering that both of my clones died to set up both ends of the Flux Capacitor, I think I may need a few eight gates just to go a few seconds... But if that's the case, I may be able to work with it. Then I'd have numbers, and could just math it out.  
_

_"Okay, sir."_ He said, opening the door. _"Let me just start by saying your mother was a hamster, and your father-"_

_**BOOM!**_

Hibiki's consciousness didn't even last long enough for him to hit the ground.

* * *

The shinobi in the room with him didn't even have the time to react to Hibiki falling to the ground like a puppet with its strings cut. They hadn't been prepared for the attack, and worse, they all were exhausted and radiating chakra so much that even if they had been, their reaction times wouldn't have been good enough. They didn't even have time to see the blood leaking out of the hole in Hibiki's head - because the second the slug blasted through the door in a shower of splinters and blood, the door was blown off its hinges and four large men with guns and body armor charged right in.

Fortunately, in the absence of chakra, adrenaline was a good enough substitute that civilians used it. Their reaction times may have been shot, but their instincts weren't, and when the door was blasted off of its hinges, adrenaline flooded the system of perhaps the only man in the room who could have been fast enough to make a difference.

A three-pronged knife flew through the room just as rifles were shouldered and angry, raised voices began to flood the air. With a blindingly bright yellow flash, Minato was next to that knife and already halfway through swinging a second one. It cut through the throat of a soldier in a spray of blood as he buried the one he'd thrown into the chest of a second soldier. He tore it back out as the other soldiers began to backpedal, bringing their weapons to bear upon him, but a burst of the body flicker technique slowed them all to a crawl. It wouldn't last nearly as long as his record, but it would buy him just enough time to bury knives in throats and get this room back under his control. Once the world snapped back to real speed, then Minato, with a flourish of his hand, summoned his pistol in a bright yellow flash. He leapt out of the motel room, using one of the soldiers as a human shield, as the shinobi inside began to snap out of their brief reverie.

The entire initial exchange had taken hardly five seconds, and already twice that number was dead. Minato didn't want to think it, but one of those ten could very well be Hibiki - the Senju head's healing abilities had been thrown out of sorts due to their chakra being in flux. He forced those thoughts out of his head, however, knowing that it would be likely for the tracker trio to grab his body. Dai would grab him, Akane would grab Aoi, leaving Kushina as their beast and only means of defense. He knew how Kushina thought - she had one of his Hiraishin kunai, and with Hibiki out of comission, the goal wasn't to fight, but to flee. They had to get out of here, and she would act as reargaurd for the tracker trio, knowing Minato would flee himself once they got out of dodge, and link up to them once they all were clear and safe.

For now, Minato had to focus on the task ahead. He had only a few fractions of a second to take in the number of people he was about to engage, and he wasn't fond of his odds. There were soldiers lining the wall leading to their room in both ways, he saw others on the buildings across the street, others still in the parking lot below. Hibiki's people, the Terrans, their shinobi had come loaded for bear. Minato had to respond in kind. His gun would buy him some strength, but for the first time in his life he was fighting gun for gun - and they had more than him, and more experience to boot.

He had to use chakra. More already than he _had_ used. If Hibiki was dead, that meant he wouldn't be able to refill, and could very well spend too much by the time this fight was over. That would leave Kushina as the sole remaining fuinjutsu master, the only one who could continue with the plan. But if it bought them the time they needed, he was willing to make that sacrifice. They were his friends, and Kushina was... Well, she was Kushina. The sacrifice would be worth it.

Minato slammed into the ground, the body he'd tackled cushioning his fall and the both of them sliding into the railing. He snapped his gun up to the face of the closest soldier and fired, his revolver bucking and barking with thunderous booms. The soldier fell to his rear, taking his ally immediately behind him down with him, allowing Minato to snap to the third man down and fire again, blasting a hole in his head as Minato grabbed the corpse of the soldier he'd tackled and spun it over him, immediately in time for it to be pelted with gunfire.

With but a thought, he vanished in a bright yellow flash - appearing right above the third soldier he'd shot, where the bullet had buried into the wall. With one hand and both feet on the wall, he appeared as if he had been ripped right out of a comic book, but the image was shattered by his scowl and the pistol he immediately snapped downwards. Another shot burrowed into the helmet of the soldier below him, knocking him out and, if the cracking sound was any indication, breaking his spine from the force of impact. Only two bullets left, Minato then flicked his gun to the right and fired into the chest of another soldier as a bullet grazed over his chest. The soldier crumpled forward in pain, revealing the man behind him, who was buried with his sixth bullet. Minato flashed over to this new soldier and stole his pistol off of his hip, stowing his own in his pants.

Another flash and he was back to the other group, three bullets crowned the remaining soldiers and put down the one struggling to get his buddy off of his chest. Another flash, right back to the man whose gun he'd stolen, and his men were dispatched just as quickly. This, however, was when things grew difficult, as Minato felt something hot slam into his shoulder and send him sprawling backwards, hitting the window to his motel room with enough force to splinter it. His shoulder burned with a white hot lance of pain, but he soldiered on, dashing forward and leaping off of the railing, as he heard an explosion behind him.

He spun around mid-air, and saw the tracker trio taking the most expedient exit from the room: The rear one. As there _was_ no rear exit, they accomplished this with Kushina bashing through any of the walls they had between them and freedom. Minato backflipped back down towards the ground and landed with a grunt, before leaping forward and knocking the knees out from under the soldier closest to him. He felt another bullet slam into the back of his thigh as he twisted around the man and used him as a human shield, thrusting his stolen pistol underneath the man's arm and taking aim. His gun barked loudly with each shot as he retreated; every shot didn't kill, but unlike the Terrans he was surrounded by, the recoil of the gun had long since ceased to even be an annoyance, let alone a problem to correct. Once when he had been young he'd nearly broken his nose with it, but now? Now it wasn't even possible, the muscles in his tan arm bulged as he tightened his grip on the gun and continued firing.

The soldiers were retreating to cover, and the one he'd used _as_ cover was now struggling against him, throwing blind elbows and jabs over Minato's way, trying to stomp on his feet and hinder him in every way. Minato responded by putting a bullet in the man's neck and, when his new gun clicked on empty, he threw it away and ripped his late hostage's out of its holster. He then thrust the body forward and kicked it hard enough to send it flying. The bullet wound to his leg hurt and gave him a limp, but he'd felt worse pain and it didn't hinder him retreating back to the room with a bright yellow flash.

He dove behind a wall and ripped his own pistol out of his pants, reloading it as fast as he could so he could have more Hiraishin bullets and thus a wider area to operate in. Once the soldiers outside saw he was gone, and one shouted out the location of his flash, his room was instantly sprayed with all manner of hot lead and he had to throw himself to his chest to avoid it. They thought they had him pinned and he could just hear more soldiers charging up the stairwells towards his position. They, unfortunately, weren't even remotely close - he just needed one shot with his Hiraishin gun and he could get out of here. One shot was what he took, firing blindly in the direction of the buildings across the street. He waited a few seconds, felt a bullet graze his arm, and then teleported again.

He slid down a wall for several feet before he latched onto it with chakra and launched himself high up into the air with a mighty heave. The two snipers on the roof fumbled backwards, one lifting his hefty rifle and bringing it to bear upon him, one reaching for the gun on his hip, both of them shouting Minato's position. Minato didn't give them much time to resist, as he thrust both pistols forward and each barked loudly, spraying the roof with blood as the snipers were torn up. He arced over the edge of the roof and landed with a grunt and a flare of pain, but he didn't have the time to turn back to the motel room - there were more soldiers on the roof, and they'd seen his exchange.

Minato grunted in pain, but charged forward, firing his stolen pistol like a madman to get the other soldiers to retreat. Some of them, however, met his challenge with aplomb and started firing back, forcing him to teleport back to the seal he'd shot into the building's outer wall. He didn't, however, stop running - instead keeping his pace and running alongside the building, but now with gunfire from the motel trailing after him. Once he reached the edge of the building he latched onto the wall with his hand and swung around, generating enough circular momentum to crash through a window on the other side and roll into the building.

He felt glass cutting at his body and doing him no favors when coupled with his other wounds, but the soldiers outside continued firing in, shredding the building and sending glass, plaster, and all manner of debris flying as Minato scrambled forward and away from the windows. He didn't even care to think for why there weren't any people in this building, his only concern lay with buying his friends the time they needed to escape. Unfortunately for him, though it was clearly audible, he failed to differentiate the rapid thumping beats that were fast approaching with the gunfire just outside. Unlike his reborn friend, he simply had no context for the multitude of sights and sounds assaulting his senses - it was all blending together to him. However, this also proved an advantage he had over the Senju head - as he didn't even question the insanity ocurring around him. He didn't spend precious seconds to ask of himself 'why', or 'how', and simply reacted.

So, when several helicopters suddenly dropped out of the sky and were surrounding the building he sprinted through, Minato felt a kind of primal fear a man would feel when faced down with an angry animal many times his size, but also was able to react fast enough that none of the volumes of gunfire being blasted out of those helicopters even reached him. However, the Terrans were nothing if not smart, and when he reappeared back in his motel room, he found that more than a few squads of soldiers had taken up refuge in the room behind theirs, where Kushina and the tracker trio had escaped through, and down below in the parking lot, half of the soldiers were firing at the sniper building he'd just vacated, and the other, waiting for the flash to signal he was back in the motel room. The result of this was him instantly being caught in a crossfire, with the soldiers down below pinning him down, and the soldiers shielded from this upward gunfire having a better vantage point on him and firing directly at him.

Even he wasn't fast enough to escape this unscathed. Maybe he would have been if he wasn't exhausted and half starved for chakra, at the very least he would have taken less damage, but the reality was he wasn't at his best, he wasn't even halfway there. When he vanished, he reappeared now in a forest, surrounded by a large field of gray stones, as if he were on a mountain. He collapsed, falling to the ground, groaning and wheezing in a pain he had never felt before. He tried to shake himself out of it when he heard the raised voices of Kushina and the tracker trio, but his strength was fading, leaking out of his body as quickly as his blood did the same. They had gotten away, but the situation was still incredibly poor, none of them had gotten away unscathed, and their only medic was either comatose or dead.

He was barely able to lift his gaze. Kushina was rushing over towards him with one of Hibiki's medical bags in hand and a frantic look in her eyes, Akane was kneeled over Aoi and Kyo, swapping out bandages for the former, the older ones coming away red. Dai was, as could be predicted, over Hibiki, but she was cradling his limp body, staring blankly at the ground in front of him.

_Not good._ Minato groaned, slid right next to him and fell to her knees, tearing medical supplies out of the bag and moving as quickly as she could to apply them. "Please tell me he's alive." He wheezed, his eyes swirling around in their sockets, checking their surroundings for any more of the flying metal machines, or other soldiers.

"Just stay quiet, Minato - conserve your strength!" Kushina shrieked, as he felt her turn him onto his back.

He saw her head recoil, and knew it couldn't be good, but his own head was growing heavier with every passing second, he couldn't look down to his chest to see what it was that scared her so. Instead he had to guess, but since he was in so much pain, he couldn't differentiate or specify anything, instead only able to say it was 'everywhere'. Kushina tried her best, he felt bandages wrap around his torso and arms, he felt her wrap a torniquette around his more mangled leg and bandages around the other, but as she did so he felt it becoming harder to breathe. It was getting cold, too - colder than the lakes in winter.

He remembered once, Hibiki had convinced him to help him out, cut a hole in a frozen lake in winter, and dive right in. To test their endurance, he'd said - no chakra, no nothing. Just them, their skivvies, and frozen water. He remembered actually lasting longer than Hibiki had, but coming out into the open air, soaking wet, in the dead of winter and atop a bed of ice, it was the coldest he had ever been. It paled in comparison to the chill in his bones, now.

Strange thing, though - his vision wasn't growing dark. If anything, it was getting brighter. His ears were growing fainter, though - it sounded as if he were trying to hear everything through a pillow. He could just barely feel something devastatingly warm grab his hand, his head lolled over to the side and he saw Kushina holding his in her own, pressing it to her chest and screaming at him, tears in her eyes.

She sounded very far away, but he could read her lips. She was saying his name, over and over again. She was asking him to open his eyes, to keep them open and to stay with her. She was sad, he saw. Scared, even. Well, he couldn't allow that.

_"Hey..."_ He felt himself say, more than hearing it. _"Hey..."_ It came out more as an airy whisper than anything with strength behind it. _"It'll be okay..."_ He whispered. _"It'll be alright... It'll..."_ Wow, he was tired.

Was that Hibiki standing over him?

There was another man with him - this one towering over the both of them, wearing long white robes, and with a thick forest of white hair. His skin was gaunt and gray, and he looked down at him and Hibiki.

"Come on." Said Hibiki, holding his hand out.

Minato watched, transfixed, as Hibiki's body seemed to bubble and boil, before he began shooting up two feet and his skin paled. He thinned out and his clothes changed, his hair turning a deep brown shade and his eyes going from onyx to blue. His posture shifted with his body, going from tense and ready to fight, to relaxed and nonchalant.

He looked so strange.

"We've got to go, now." Said this new Hibiki, his voice deeper, and more somber, than it had been just a moment ago.

Kushina was ignoring the two of them, just crying over Minato, begging him not to leave her.

But he couldn't stay.

Hibiki was right.

It was time to go, now.


	84. Loop: It Was The Samurai -VIII-

_AN:_

_A little early, but my tests went good.  
As well, I can assure you - the feeling that everything seems to be raging completely out of control is intended. I **do** have a plan for this arc, it's one I've been planning since before Hot Water. Some things have changed by necessity, but everything's still going to plan. _

_'Till then, enjoy the chaos._

* * *

Chapter 83

* * *

If there was a better way to describe bliss, he didn't know it. Yes, it ruined his sleep schedule - it was a joke he made _all the time_ to the people that cared - but he didn't care. A twenty four hour shift, one of the busiest days in the week - everyone wanted to try their hand at dying, it seemed - followed by going home to collapse in bed? That alone may seem perfect to some, but then there were some variables to consider.

One - sleeping for ten hours, uninterrupted.

Two - the big enormous ball of black and brown fur that always curled up right next to him when he made it home another day.

And three - air conditioning. His apartment was probably the coldest one in the complex, and that was on purpose. The station was kept nice and chilly, sure, but it was also filled with a bunch of native Georgians who preferred heat over cold any day, and as such, their 'chilly' was his 'tolerable'. He regularly kept his apartment hovering a little north of sixty degrees, and his friends and family, when they found him lounging about without a shirt on, would often call him insane because of it.

But that was where the dog came in. Call it training by proxy, call it what one would - the dog liked the cold just as much as he did, but he liked the warmth all the much better, and whenever it was time to sleep, the one constant could be that giant graying furball hopping up next to him and curling up as close as he could get. His favorite encounter thus far had actually been when he'd zonked out on the couch, and the dog, unperturbed, just hopped up on his chest. Eighty plus pounds of aging German Shepherd, on his damn _chest._ He hadn't slept long that night, of course but he'd laughed nonetheless.

But, as with all things, the bliss of sleeping in a chilly apartment with a friendly creature curled up next to him, it had to end. He had gotten home at eight, that morning, and hadn't been able to get to bed until an hour later, after he'd fed and watered the creature, and brought him outside to do his business. Many other apartment complexes would have murdered him in his sleep for bringing such a large animal on the premises, but this had been one of the few buildings to let him - and he'd later learned that it was only because the landlord was himself a dog man. He'd seen the man with a Tibetan Mastiff once. Its name had been Bear. He was pretty sure it would win that fight.

When he woke up this morning, the first thing the man had done was check his phone, hooked up to its charger on the wall. His dog seemed to detect the motions, and itself began to stir as its master checked the time.

He groaned, "gawd damn." It was well past six thirty, he'd slept the day away. With another groan, he turned onto his back, and the dog got to its feet, leaning over him and licking at his face. He grinned and leaned away from it, "Frank the Tank!" He rubbed at the aging canine's neck, before giving it a pat on the back and leaning up. "Let's get some food."

Stepping outside his bedroom, with Frank padding along right beside him, the man swung into his small, paltry kitchen and rifled through his refrigerator. There was a tupperware of leftover sloppy joes waiting on him, and as he tossed the whole thing in the microwave, he reached out to grab Frank's food cup. Though, cup could be a poor way of explaining it, as it was closer to a trowel than a cup. The man liked to call it the Shovel. After shovelling some food into Frank's bowl, the man noticed a note taped to the dog's food bag. It was a note from his landlord.

_Hey, 33-B. Fed Frank for you when I saw you didn't get here. Heard on the news some stuff was going down in Clayton, didn't know if that was you or some other fire station. _

_Anyways, you've probably only got a few days left in this bag. Keep up the good work._

And that right there was why the man dealt with the small size of his apartment. It wasn't for the comparably small rent, it was because the landlord was fucking _awesome._ Former soldier with his arm blown off in... He couldn't remember - the first Gulf War, maybe? Regardless, the guy knew the value of the blue collar lifestyle, and he was one of the man's only public service tenants. There was a cop a floor or two down, but that was it. So whenever he was gone, the guy would come in and help make sure Frank was taken care of. It also helped that this man's sense of humor was legendary, that won him a lot of points in his book. It wouldn't be long until he'd scrounged up enough money to put a down payment on a house - as long as he'd stop blowing it all on stupid stuff like a vacation in Japan, at least - but he'd really miss this place when he'd leave.

_I wonder if he was talking about all that stuff PD was pissing itself about..._ Thought the man, as he turned to the counter that separated the small kitchen area, from the dining area. He snatched up a TV remote and switched it on, swapping through a few local news channels. _Wasn't it they'd found some folks dangerous enough to bring in the National Guard? Wonder what they did to federalize the military._ A news report was his answer, though perhaps not to that specific question.

Over the sound of his cheap microwave, the TV spoke. _"And in Georgia today, members of the National Guard and several SWAT squads were involved in a major shootout with a terrorist cell believed to be involved with the men involved with the destruction of the Gerald R. Ford, several weeks ago. Several casualties were reported on both sides, but the terrorists do remain at large, and the hunt remains ongoing."_ Several faces appeared on the television, the only clear image being a woman with hair redder than a tomato, a man whose blonde hair defied gravity, and a sullen looking man with charcoal-black hair and eyes. There were others, but they were from the side or taken from ruddy, two-thousand-eight security cameras. They all looked remarkably young, hardly older than eighteen.

"Hm." He grunted, shaking his head, silently glad that he'd been asleep for that. From the way it was put up on the TV, it seemed to have happened hardly a few hours after he'd left the station. He loved his job as much as the next guy, but that didn't necessarily equate to him being a glutton for that kind of punishment.

The microwave sounded its alarm, letting him know his food was ready.

After about twenty minutes of eating and flipping through channels until he found the latest Marvel movie, he heard someone knock on his door. With a tilt of the head and a curious frown, he got up to his feet. His dog did too, growling, but a sharp look and a command to sit calmed the mutt down. He crossed his small apartment to the door, and looked through the peephole, before he broke out into a grin.

"Shut up, Jacob!" He called through the door, as he manipulated the locks and chains.

_"Ah, inside_ _jokes."_ The man on the other side of the door drawled out in a dull droll. "_Fuck you."_ Said the man in a police officer's uniform, after the door swung open.

He noticed his uniform, and turned up to look the taller man in the eyes. "I swear I didn't do it." He leaned over and indicated the dog with his thumb. "I swear it was Frank. He's an animal."

Jacob shifted his weight from one foot to another, "ah, nah. I just got called on duty, figured I'd swing by, make sure you were here, else I'd feed Frank for you."

He arced an eyebrow, "I appreciate that, but you got called? What the fuck, Jacob, it's seven at night, isn't it? They better be paying you overtime for this bullshit." He pointed out.

"Yeah." Jacob drawled, with a blank expression on his round face, and an exhausted depth to his green eyes. "No. One guy had some emergency, had to leave early and they need everyone they can to keep up that little blockade they got going on at that motel." He explained.

He shook his head, "oh god, don't remind me about that thing. You want to know how many calls we got, stupid people deciding they didn't want to pay attention and plowing into road barriers? One guy almost got shot by those soldiers - he didn't slow down at _all."_ He ran his hand through his short brown hair. "Fuckin' amazed those idiots in the motel didn't realize something was going down."

Jacob grunted, "yeah. We've had some guys from the CIA, or the NSA, or some shit. They've pretty much taken control of the whole department 'till this shit's done." He sighed, "heard he's pretty pissed. Twenty eight soldiers dead, only one or two of their guys dead, but they didn't even get any bodies." He leaned down as Frank plodded over, "hey Frank." He drawled, reaching over to pet the German Shepherd behind the ears.

"They keeping you on all night?" He asked.

Jacob nodded, "pretty much going to bleed into my next shift. Ally's pissed."

He grinned at his rotund friend, "stag life, man."

"Fuck you."

"Shut up, Jacob." The two shared a grin, as the officer shook his head. "Well, I won't hold you any longer. I'll probably be heading out myself, here soon. Gotta get this little furry fuck his exercise, don't I?" He cooed, as Jacob stood up and he leaned down, patting the dog's flank.

"You've had that dog ten years now I still can't believe you named it that."

"Well, paperwork versus reality, but still. I fuckin' told you I would! Now all I need is a cat named Stankass and my collection will be complete." He grinned, watching Jacob walk away. "See you, man!"

"See you."

* * *

The upside to being an obnoxious idiot in highschool? A lot of people would remember you. Add in a silver tongue, a halfway decent reputation, and a sense of pride in his specific occupation, and he could get pretty far. Case in point, Hidden Valley park these days didn't stay open past six in the afternoon. But, he knew the right people, who knew the right people, and after a month's worth of talking to said people, he'd managed to convince them that he could act as fire watch, so long as he was allowed on the premises after dark.

Really, he could have found other parks, but he'd been going to this one since he was a kid. Add on the fact that, at night, the whole world had a way of shrinking down and getting quiet, he appreciated being able to walk around and exercise him and the dog after the sun went down. So long as he made it a point to show up once a week, for paperwork purposes, the park was his once the gates were closed.

He groaned, stretching his back and his legs, as he inhaled the warm night air. It wasn't as cold as he'd liked, but it had that good mixture of chill and heat that he'd be able to enjoy himself for a few hours. The moon was out in force tonight, meaning he wouldn't need to use the flashlight on his phone once his eyes adjusted. As he stretched, beside him Frank sat patiently, his tail brushing up some dust and sand as he waited for his master to finish his ritual.

"Alright, Frank the Tank." Said the man, gaining his furry companion's eye as he pulled out his phone and stuck in his earbuds. "Hm... Johnny Cash?" He gave the dog a look, the dog looked back at him. "Yeah, I thought so." No artist better for a nice quiet night.

Soon, softly playing into his ears was the Man In Black himself. _"Beside the singin' mountain stream, where the willow grew. Where the Silver Leaf of Maple Sparkled in the Mornin' Dew. I braided twigs of willows, made a string of Buckeye Beads; But flesh and blood need flesh and blood and you're the one I need."_

_Guess it's thinkin' time, now..._ The man thought, as he tugged on Frank's chain and the two descended into the dark, stony depths of the stone park. _What day is it, Thursday? Shit. I think Mom's birthday is coming up, soon._ He didn't visit them nearly as often as he should, but he also knew that they were starting to get back into the swing of being a couple, again. Two years with him in another house had finally given them that time; he was happy for them.

_"Flesh and blood need flesh and blood, and you're the one I need... I leaned against a bark of birch, and I breathed the honey dew. I saw a north-bound flock of geese, against a sky of baby blue. Beside the lily pads I carved a whistle from a reed; Mother Nature's quite a lady, but you're the one I_ _need."_

Around him, the gray stones of the park shone a pearly white with the reflected light of the moon and stars above. It gave the area an ethereal glow, almost as if he were in another world. Moments like this, he found it easy to lose himself. What with the world trying to fall apart, he appreciated those brief pauses where he could do such a thing. After all, who'd want to blow up an aircraft carrier? And actually _do_ it, too! Weeks old news, he was still reeling from the fact. Biggest, most powerful ships in the world, and this group of douchebags decided, 'yeah, let's blow that up!', and _did,_ and even crippled another ship as a bonus!

_"Flesh and blood need flesh and blood and you're the one I need. A cardinal sang just for me, and I thanked him for the song. Then the sun went slowly down the west, and I had to move along... These were some of the things on which my mind and spirit feed; but flesh and blood need flesh and blood, and you're the one I need... Flesh and blood need flesh and blood, and you're the one I need."_

He wondered if it wasn't some other country, and the government wasn't just covering it up with terrorists. It'd make sense, but then he couldn't justify them bombing a hotel. Yeah, get the guys that did it, but _damn!_ He'd seen tanks and helicopters, on that news footage. What warranted here on the homefront? What, had Iron Man shown up and decided to pick a fight with the Navy? He noticed Frank sniffing at the air and getting antsy, he gave the dog a reassuring pat on the head and let up some slack on the leash - the shepherd was now effectively leading _him,_ and not the other way around.

_"So when this day was ended I was still not satisfied, for I knew everything I touched would wither and would die. And love is all that will remain, and grow from all these seed; Mother Nature's quite a lady, but you're the one I need... Flesh and blood need flesh and blood, and you're the one I need."_ The music drifted away, before swapping into the next song.

_I wonder if the President will catch flak for that._ Thought the fireman, _isn't it... Like... Ten different kinds of illegal to deploy anything more than the National Guard on the homefront? Fuck._ He noticed Frank pulling on his leash, and let up more slack, a frown growing across his face. _What's biting his ass?_ He looked up past Frank, but couldn't see anything. It was as the opening notes of Streets of Laredo began to play, however, that he noticed something off. An orange glow, just over the hill Frank was trying to drag him over.

"What the fuck?" He tightened his hold on Frank's leash and jogged up and over the hill.

Off in the distance, he could see on a cliff overlooking the lake, a small group, three or four people and a dog, standing around a bonfire. He recoiled his head, shaking it and staring at the scene, wide-eyed in shock.

"Well... Okay then..." He reached into his pocket. "Never thought I'd actually _be_ fire watch, but -" In that moment of distraction, however, Frank managed to yank on the leash hard enough to yank it out of his grip, and he bolted. _"Frank!"_

* * *

A proper shinobi burial procedure was to burn the body and scatter the ashes. This was to protect potential bloodlines and their genes. Graves were for civilians. The fire of their hastily erected funeral pyre was hot, but she couldn't feel a thing. She was numb to the world, staring blankly as his body was engulfed in flames and slowly eaten away. Burned, such that his secrets were never recovered again. All she had of his, was the book - his Plan B. It was the only thing in his coat that hadn't been locked away behind a storage seal.

It had just been so sudden, she still had a hard time wrapping her head around it. Was that how his people warred? So suddenly? Was that how they truly took lives? Just a pull of a trigger, a push of a button, and then the person wasn't alive anymore? How did Hibiki's people even struggle, then? Did they truly just go in droves to die, hoping that less of them would die than their enemy? Was that Terran war? Just an endless series of deaths, with no true meaning? No poetic justice, no honor, no struggle? Just one man at the other end of a field getting lucky, pulling a lever, and ending a life in the time it took him to blink.

Now she understood what Hibiki had meant when he'd said that killing was easy, that it was living with it, that was the struggle. She had always understood what he meant - she had killed before, everyone she knew had killed before. She knew that learning to live with it was what made or broke most shinobi, differentiated chuunin from genin. But now she _truly_ understood what Hibiki meant. To his people, the act of killing in and of itself, it was simple. Point, shoot, dead. It was actually living with said ease, living with the act of having done it, that was where the struggle came in. That was what he meant.

She had never truly believed his people had been able to fight Kaguya and her Zetsu. If Hibiki was so strong, Zetsu had been able to put up so much of a fight against him that first time, and Kaguya was supposed to be stronger than _both_ of them, then how could a race of people without any chakra fight them for decades? She never told him this, he was awfully protective of his ancestors, but she still believed it nonetheless.

Now she knew better.

Hibiki and Minato were the strongest of all of them. Kushina came close, but there was a certain talent that the two had that she couldn't replicate with her bijuu. Hibiki could fight Katsuo, Minato had halted the advance of an entire army. Both of them had ransacked a Daimyo's capital and destroyed a hidden village. Minato had even fought on even terms with an Undead. They were the strongest of all of them - perhaps the strongest pair in the _world!_ Their power knew no limits, they simply grew. True, Kushina's tailed beast made her on a different level, and she would certainly exceed them in raw power and chakra, but that didn't stop them from eclipsing her.

And yet they were killed by a handful of civilians with no chakra whatsoever.

Yes, maybe they could fight a war against the Rabbit Goddess and the Sage of Six Paths. They wouldn't win, but they could fight.

The heat of the flames licked at her numb body. She saw Kushina doing the same as her - watching it with a forlorn, disbelieving expression. She, like Dai, all but expected them to pop right back up. Maybe Hibiki would burst into a plume of smoke and then pop out of one of their pockets. Maybe Minato would arrive, heralded by a bright yellow flash, with Hibiki right behind him. They hadn't died, of course - Hibiki had swapped Minato out with one of his shadow clones and the two had evacuated! They just wanted the Terrans to _think_ they were dead. It was a tactical advantage.

Dai didn't have the strength to even speak for the two dead. Aoi was barely even staying conscious for the proceedings, she was listing back and forth on her feet, Akane had to support her. Akane didn't know Hibiki well enough to say anything, and she knew Minato even less well. Kushina was an Uzumaki, family was almost literally _everything_ to her, and Minato and Hibiki had been like brothers to her since she'd first arrived in Konoha - Minato was even her lover. She was so emotionally wrecked that she was practically dead on her feet, simply staring at the pyre with a blank expression in her eyes. Dai, Dai was perhaps the worst of all of them, hidden behind her stoic mask.

Hibiki dying, it had never truly occurred to her as a possibility. All the things he'd survived - _death_ among them! - she'd never considered he even really could die. He was so powerful, like a pillar upon which everyone could lean. If Hibiki was there, people would live, he would accept no other substitute. She had seen him heal from practically nothing, he had fought people so many leagues above him and walked away victorious, him dying just never seemed possible. She had always thought that, if either of them, she would die first. To see him brought down not just to mortal levels, but below - to actual death - it shook her to her core.

Could Kushina really do it alone? Could she finish Hibiki's 'Flux Capacitor' seal, and use his book to change it all? Or would she be seeing him again soon? Never to leave? Were they doomed? Were -

A dog's barking cut her off. She snapped out of her reverie and turned her gaze to the south, she saw a hound with black and brown fur bounding up to them, a man frantically chasing after him.

_"Frank! Jesus!"_ She heard the man call out, in Hibiki's language. _"Sit!"_

She let her shoulders slump, there was no threat. She knew how to deal with canines, even if this was one she'd never seen before. He bounded up to her and skidded to a halt as he grew near, Dai leaned down as she heard Kushina circling the fire and approaching. When the dog approached, its tail began to wag and he placed its nose in her offered hand.

The owner reached the former Aburame, panting. _"Oh, god - ma'am, I'm so sorry!"_ He breathed, grabbing ahold of the dog's leash. "_I swear he's never done that."_

Dai looked up, giving the man a quick once over. He had a lean build, but was thin and lanky despite it. He was a few inches taller than her and had deep brown hair, but his eyes, that was what she caught sight of before everything else. Two big, kind blue orbs, crinkled up in an apologetic smile. The dog, Frank, he innocently just turned his head and brushed his scalp over Dai's hand. The Senju-to-be gave him a pet.

_"It is... Okay."_ She breathed, airily, as the fire crackled behind her.

Kushina leaned down to pet the dog, _"what is name?_ She asked, likely desperate for anything to distract her from the bodies burning behind them.

Dai cast a quick glance over her shoulder to their dog. Kyo was in a bad place, hardly lucid to begin with, but the ninken was a trooper - he knew he was sick, but stayed awake regardless, guarding his battle partner's side. Aoi was valiantly trying to stay awake for the pyre, but it was clear it was a losing battle. Dai felt ice grip her heart, knowing the two of them weren't long for this world. Days, probably. The rest of them may be lucky to have a week - Kushina a month.

The man answered, in a deep, baritone voice, _"uh... It's Frank."_ He said, _"Frank Usain Charlie Kutter - Kutter spelled with a 'Kay'."_ He said, with a one-sided grin.

Dai caught Akane's eye, and the Hyuga simply nodded. Aoi was out cold, but she'd keep an eye on her. Dai could only pray she would wake up one more time.

Kushina, meanwhile, said, _"er... English not good. That is long name."_

The man waved his hand back and forth, as Dai and Kushina gave the friendly dog some affection. _"Ah, don't worry about it. It's a really bad joke."_ He looked up, noticing the funeral pyre. _"Shit, they let us light fires, here? Wish I would've known that a while ago. Would've burned this place down ages ago."_ He laughed.

The man's humor reflected Hibiki's, Dai noted. It was perhaps this reflection that warmed her the slightest bit, and got a small grin out of her. Kushina, however, she latched onto whatever she could and laughed at it. Neither of them knew this man, however - he could be working for the Terran Kage, after all. They wouldn't clue him in to the two impossibly powerful men whose bodies were being burned right behind them, under the setting sun.

Dai looked up to the man, _"where do you work?"_ She asked.

The man seemed not to understand her implication, he chuckled and leaned down to eye level. _"Oh, I'm not park security, or anything like that. I won't get you in trouble."_ He said, _"don't even work in this county. I'm just a fireman."_ He nodded to Dai and Kushina, _"though call it a little professional courtesy... Why... Exactly... Are you guys out here burning stuff?"_ He asked, giving them each comical frown. Maybe he thought it was funny.

_"Friend wanted us to."_ Said Dai.

_"Sounds like a cool guy." _Said the man, as he leaned back and increased the tone of his voice, _"'okay guys, I want you to go out, create a big pile of wood, and set it on fire! It'll be awesome!'..._" He laughed, over the crackling fire. It began to whistle lightly, as it boiled out the water in their bodies.

Dai stood up, _"you said its name was what?"_ She asked, sliding her hands in her coat.

_"Hm?"_ The man looked up, an eyebrow arced. _"Oh."_ He stood up stretched his back, _"Frank."_ He shook Dai's hand, _"I hope he didn't freak you out. First thing I did when I got him was train his furry little ass."_ Dai noticed Frank nuzzling up to Kushina, the red-head close to holding the dog in a tight embrace. _"He's usually well - damn it!"_ He grabbed the chain around Frank's neck, _"Jesus, ma'am - I'm so sorry!"_ He pulled Frank away from Kushina, obviously thinking he was hurting, or annoying her.

Kushina, however, shook her head. _"No, please."_ Dai heard a wavering to her voice, and Frank was even struggling against his chain.

He seemed to notice it too, and gave Frank a brief look, _"er... Are you sure? I don't want him to think it's okay to be jumping all over people. He's sweet, but he usually doesn't do this."_ He said.

Kushina simply patted her lap, Dai saw her swallow down what likely would have been a tear-filled response. The man let some slack up on the leash, and Frank immediately went back to Kushina, who hugged him tight.

The man was starting to notice something was wrong, so Dai supplied him with Hibiki's patented half-truth. _"Our friends died."_ She said, _"and..."_ She nodded behind her, to the sleeping Inuzuka pair. _"They are not the only ones."_

She saw comprehension dawning in the fireman's eyes. _"Oh... Oh, holy shit you guys are terminal - I'm sorry, I -"_

_"You did not know." _Dai interrupted him. _"Why are _you_ here?"_ She asked, to deflect back to him and get him to stop asking about them.

The man grinned, _"what, the whole get-up wasn't an indication?"_ He asked, indicating his sweaty clothes. _"Saturday, I'm off today. I try to get out with Frank on the weekends, get some running in. He likes this_ _park." _He chuckled, _"So... What's your guys name?"_ He asked, swapping his curious glance between Dai and Kushina.

_"Er - Risa."_ Dai gave him a light bow.

The man nodded, _"nice name."_ He said, with a kind grin. _"And how about you? Who's Frank's new friend?"_ He leaned down and ran his hand up and down the dog's back.

Dai saw Kushina's head buried in the nape of Frank's neck, so she answered for her. _"She is..."_ She paused, something in the back of her mind nagging at her, a strange feeling, like deja-vu, but not quite there.

The man picked up on her hesitation, and gave her a knowing glance. _"Red?"_

Dai looked up to him, and saw he had an eyebrow arced. She realized what he was doing - he was giving her an out. He knew she was hesitating with the name, and was simply giving her one.

She nodded. _"I am sorry."_

_"Ah, don't worry. I see a bunch of kids standing around burning shit, I can keep a secret."_ He said, with a nod, as he knelt down. _"Hey, Red."_

Kushina's head lifted just an inch, still buried in the dog's fur. Her eyes were almost as red as her hair, she was crying again.

The man grinned, _"was it someone important?" _Kushina lifted her gaze more, looking to Dai, who knelt down and nodded. Kushina turned to the man and nodded as well. _"Well... Here's what I can do."_ He said, _"I'm no good at funerals. Been to two, they both sucked. I cried - and let me tell you, there's not quite anything like seeing an ugly man weep."_ He grinned, it turning to a smile when he noticed the fringes of one pulling at the corners of Kushina's lips. _"Haha, yeah! I get all blubbery, and stuff. You see -"_ He gestured to his face with his free hand. "- _you see snot all dribbling down my face. I'm just up there on the microphone, crying, can't hardly get two words out... But you know what I learned?"_

Dai could tell Kushina was only getting half of what it was he was saying, but she also respected the man for not dumbing himself down to try and get over the language barrier. _"What?"_ Kushina asked, as the dog extricated itself from her and slumped over to its side, leaning against her lap.

The man spared him a glance and chuckled, _"big ol' lap dog."_ He looked back up to her, _"I realized... God, _dayumn,_ I do not want that to happen at my funeral. Me - I never wanted folks to mourn my ass. When I die, I'd want them to throw a fuckin' party."_ He drifted off.

Dai blinked. _"What did you say?"_

The man looked up at her, _"said 'd want folks to throw a party when I die. Lot of alcohol, lot of noise... Amazing Grace and Bagpipes, all that stuff."_ He grinned.

It had the desired effect, and as Kushina continued petting his dog, she tilted her head. _"Why?"_

_"Well, you mean _besides_ the fact that I'm pretty sure that's a natural reaction to a chaotic little fool like myself dying?"_ He chuckled, turning his blue eyes back down to hers. _"Death isn't a bad thing."_ He said, _"me, I'd want folks to have good final memories... Not just to be sitting around, bawling their eyes out as I'm lowered into the ground. I don't want that to be their last memory of me - sitting around, everyone in stuffy black suits... Hell no. I want them to throw a party. I want the embarrassing stories told, I want folks laughing, having a good time, remembering the good times and making one last."_ There was a pause, and then he said_, __"and, you know. Always wanted to be cremated, that way I could have my ashes shoved into an urn and blasted into space. Want to know why?"_

Kushina gave Dai a look, Dai, after wrestling with those feelings of deja-vu again, quickly signed out that she would explain it to her later. She turned back to the man and baded him to continue.

The blue-eyed man's smile grew wider, and seemed as warm as the fire. _"That way, I can have the urn get loaded down with every deadly disease known to mankind. Because - the universe is as vast as it is infinite, which means anything and everything is possible. Eventually, my virus-ridden urn would reach some planet, preferably with life, and break apart in atmosphere and infect everything with the alien viruses. Then, that way, even after death I will ruin __at _least_ one more poor person's day."_

Kushina didn't understand the context of a word he'd said, but at least understood the last sentence, and was able to smile at it.

The man clapped his hands with a jovial laugh, _"ah, there she is! So it's mass genocide that gets you smiling, huh?"_ He pointed at Kushina, _"let me tell you, you've got a nice smile there, Red. Now, it may be surprising, but I do have a point to all of this."_ He said, leaning back until he was sitting down. He crossed his legs, and gave the two of them a warm look. _"Now... You two ever heard of the phrase one in a million?"_ He asked.

The two nodded to him, before Dai cast another look over her shoulder. She could see that Akane, while still looking after and caring for Aoi, was listening to everything being said.

_"Well, then numerically speaking, that means there's just about seventy other folks _just_ like you, floating around somewhere on this earth alone. Following?"_ He turned up to the darkening sky above them. _"Now... That vast and infinite universe I said I wanted to ruin? Consider that in our galaxy alone, there's a few hundred billion stars. Even if you say that only half of them have life, and half again have _sentient_ life, just like us, that's still billions and billions of stars out there, with a billion billion people floating around."_ He turned his gaze back down to the two of them.

_"So, with that kind of math floating around... That means it is a statistical inevitability that somewhere out there, there is someone literally **exactly** like you guys."_ He said, his warm smile painted by the orange flames. _"Like, down to that red hair -"_ He nodded to Kushina, _"or those wicked-awesome sunglasses."_ He nodded to Dai. _"And, yes, the idiot white-man trying to give you a pep talk."_ He chuckled, _"seen all the same stuff, thought all the thame - uh, thought all the same - _**same**_ thoughts, tongue twister, exactly like you. So that means you guys aren't alone in this, yeah?"_ He arced an eyebrow and gave the two a look. _"You're not alone in all this. Yeah, things are tough now... Yeah, it all sucks... But you're not alone in it. You've got folks to help you, you've got - "_ He pointed to the two of them, and Aoi and Akane behind them. _"Friends who are willing to go out and set fire to a public park... You've got strange men in their mid-twenties willing to see what's all wrong..."_ A pause, _"you've got family... Prooooobably worried sick that you're all out so late, especially if you've lost some folks recently."_ He itched at his short, brown hair. _"You're not alone. Ever._

_"So... Once you guys are done here, why don't you head home? Go see your folks, give 'em a big hug..." _He gave Kushina a conspiratorial look, _"tell 'em to get _you specifically_ a dog, 'cause you look like you're good with 'em."_ He and her shared a brief laugh. _"And... You know, I'm in the Fire Department, so I've gotta say it - stop lightin' shit on fire, yeah? God knows what'll happen if that stuff gets out of control."_ He grinned sheepishly. _"I'm not on duty, so I won't say anything to anyone, but still. Have to be the boring-ass adult."_ He shrugged his shoulders and raised his hands in a surrendering fashion. _"Don't want you kids burning the place down and being all - 'But there was a fireman here and he said it was okay to set stuff on fire!' - that's not what I said."_ He laughed, lowering his hands and giving his dog a pat on the back. _"But... You guys get what I'm saying?"_ He asked.

The two nodded. Kushina, having at least understood the gist of what he'd told her, and Dai, looking at him in a state of abject awe, as pieces started to fall together in her head.

_"Goody. Then, I'll be off."_ The man grunted, as he got to his feet. _"Let you guys be with your tribute pseudo-funeral pyre."_ He patted his rear end of the dirt and rocks that had gotten stuck to it. _"Keep what I said in mind, alright?"_ He looked up, and saw Dai just in time to be brought into a bone-crushing hug. Even if she wasn't Tsunade, compared to this man, she was a superhuman, so she may have well been. _"Whoa!"_ He grunted, as he felt his back crack. _"Alright!"_ He laughed, giving Dai a pat on the back, as she pressed her head to his chest. _"Eh -"_ He cleared his throat. _"Okay."_ He gave her another pat. _"Good talk."_

_"_Goodbye Hibiki..." Dai whispered into his chest, before she let go of him, and nodded, frowning and trying to keep the tears from falling. _"Goodbye, sir."_ She said with a nod.

_"Geeze..."_ He said, stretching his back. _"Got some arms on you... What dialect was that?"_ He asked, _"I've been learning up on my Japanese, going to be heading there here in a few weeks, but I didn't recognize that."_

Dai shrugged, _"I... I came from a village. Ours is not a language spoken often, in this time."_

The man frowned a moment, before he shrugged. _"Hm... Ah well, it was cool anyway. You take care, yeah?"_ He waved to the two of them.

Dai watched him descend the cliff and leave the light cast by their fire, a part of her wondering if this truly had been who she thought it was.

* * *

He'd smelled burning bodies before.

In his line of work, it was almost impossible to go one's entire career without smelling it, and it only ever took experiencing that once to never forget it. Him, he'd smelled more than a few in his life. He would never forget the smell, and walking up on what he now knew to be a funeral pyre, the smell of roasting flesh had been his first clue. Then he'd seen the multitude of bandages and injuries all of the girls had been sporting, clue number two. What sold it for him, however, was Red the red-head. She looked exactly like she had, on TV. He didn't know what those girls were up to, but once one started mercilessly slaughtering soldiers and folks just trying to do their job, a lot of of his age-related sympathy evaporated. Sure, they'd just lost friends, but those friends apparently had been instrumental in destroying a warship, crippling a second, and tearing the hell out of a few city blocks on Tokyo. All that _before_ they'd gone on to kill a little over two dozen soldiers in the middle of Georgia.

Some small part of him would feel bad, they were certainly younger than they looked on TV, but, again, consider the lives they'd ended, and for what? Some dumbass religion? They didn't like people? Maybe he was rationalizing it to himself, but he knew he'd do it anyways. If he let them run free and more people died, then those lives would be on him. He had the power to stop it, and it may be a cliche, but everyone knew what came with great power. No, he had to do this. Once he was out of earshot of the group of girls, he pulled out his phone, now very thankful Jacob had dropped by earlier. Not at all like him, Jacob had always had his finger on the pulse, he'd know who to get in touch with.

After a few buttons pressed, he held up the phone to his ear. A few seconds passed, as he continued walking away from the funeral pyre, praying one of them wouldn't try to take him down to cover their asses.

Someone picked up, _"dude, I'm on duty. I literally just told you this."_

"Shut up, Jacob." Said the man, the grin only lasting a moment, "now listen, 'cause this is probably the only time in either of our lives that I won't be joking. Can you get in contact with that CIA dude you told me about? Hanging around your station?"

Jacob was silent a moment, before he drawled, _"y -... Yyyeah. Why?"_

"Answer another question - did they get any of the terrorists' bodies, after the motel?"

He could imagine Jacob frowning, now. _"No. Dude, don't fuck with me, now."_

"I'm in Hidden Valley Park, over in Henry County, just got up on a gaggle of girls burning a couple of bodies. One of them looked just like the red-head they put on TV, the one they said had escaped the motel. Same age, height, hair, even had injuries I'd expect to see in a shootout like that. It's _them,_ I'm almost sure of it."

_"Dude, I'm serious - you mess with me and I go up the chain with this, I could lose my job."_

"I'm not goddamn kidding." He said, briefly casting a look over his shoulder, keeping his dog close to his side. They had all gone back to the pyre, none of them were looking his way, and were about to go out of eyeshot. "And worst case, I'm wrong about it being those guys from the motel - but at the very least they're burning _bodies_ out here. Christ I saw a boot in there - that alone warrants a few cruisers up here, no?"

_"Alright, alright. I'll send it up the chain, see what happens. Are you still there?"_

"Hell to the hell no, I'm getting out of here. If I'm right? Shit, this park's going to become a freefire zone and I am _not_ going to risk my ass before I get to go to the land of the rising weeaboo."

Jacob chuckled, _"alright, get back to your car and get out of there. I'll get in touch if we need you."_


	85. Loop: It Was His Sled -IX-

Chapter 84

* * *

Kushina Uzumaki was, in a word, _not_ Hibiki Senju. Of course, that much was obvious - he was him, she was her, they were two different people. If she were to be honest with herself, a part of her wondered if he would have ever become her friend if they hadn't spent so much time together under Lady Mito. They shared their sadistic sense of humor, and an interest in fuinjutsu, and while it wasn't nearly as much as him, she, as did many kunoichi, enjoyed fighting, but beyond that, there wasn't much to stand as a comparison between the two. Perhaps it was because she was so exhausted, and added onto the weight of his and Minato's deaths, she couldn't think straight. _Or,_ perhaps more accurately, she had these thoughts because she was trying so hard to replicate the 'Hibiki Method' and founding herself just plain unable to do so.

Truly, Hibiki had a way with knowledge. It was something many people noticed, after the clear desire to fight and better himself, of course. When Hibiki encountered something new, he didn't stop until he learned everything about it: what it was, what it could be, what made it, anything and everything within his power to learn, he did. Many people tried to figure out how he could do this. Many people wanted to know the why of the 'Hibiki Method', but whenever asked, he always simply told them that he did the same as them: Asked _why._

There was no secret, he would always say, first he would ask a question, then he would do research and construct a hypothesis, and after that he would test this hypothesis, usually multiple times so as to eliminate the possibility for error on his end. After testing, he would either change his hypothesis if it was wrong, and then continue testing until he was right and could thusly explain _why_ he'd been wrong; or, if the hypothesis was right, he would draw conclusions based on his experiments, and then declare them to be fact. The point, he always stressed, was to ask why, and not stop until one _knew._ Kushina had even had a side-seat to Hibiki in the midst of his method, had been there for _weeks_ as he, Minato, and her swapped an endless deluge of notes and tests for the Flux Capacitor.

Despite this, despite an earnest and simple explanation and then experience by proxy, nothing Kushina could do could quite replicate the method the way Hibiki did. She just couldn't do it, not the way he did, and not at the speed he did it. Even Minato seemed to have been catching on faster than her, and Minato hadn't been trained by Mito! Perhaps therein lay her weakness when compared to the Thunder God and the Yellow Flash. Yes, she was an Uzumaki and thus had an approaching-instinctual skill with seals and the like, but her skill had always been in looking at ones that had already existed. Whenever Hibiki came to her with a brand new seal he'd made, it wouldn't take her more than an hour or two to figure out everything that made it tick, and the same went for Minato. But, once again, therein lay the problem - she could study seals that already existed, whereas they would constantly give her a stream of seals they'd made on their own to study in the first place. Those two could make new seals practically on the fly, but her? It took her months to do what they could in days. She, in a way, fed off of them, just as they fed off of her.

Alone, any one of the trio could surpass the other. Hibiki was far better than Minato and Kushina with storage seals, and the 'Hibiki Method', and probably what little Uzumaki blood he had running through his veins, allowed him a more than functional knowledge in many other disciplines. Minato far exceeded the both of them with space-time seals, and he had an ease of information retrieval that allowed him to remember nearly anything that he was given with perfect clarity; it was something she grew to hate to love, as he constantly used it to tease her as their relationship grew. Kushina, meanwhile, she could take apart and find the function of any seal placed in front of her and could summarily find ways to make it more powerful with less work. Sure, together they were unstoppable, but alone? Not so much. Hibiki cared not for disciplines beyond what concerned him, Minato was over specialized, and Kushina was creatively sterile. The former two could make new seals until the cows came home, but until they brought them to her, it would take them several times as long to make them as efficient as they could be. The lattermost, however, _could_ make new seals on her lonesome, but it took exponentially more time. Weeks at the lowest estimate, and months on average.

Months she didn't have.

Perhaps that was something they all shared - a general understanding that there would be more time with which to operate. Hibiki didn't care for disciplines beyond him, because he knew that he had the time to learn them if he had to. Minato was overspecialized, but that was because he knew he had the time to make new seals or force a better knowledge into him. Kushina was creatively sterile, but that was because she thought she'd had time to get that 'spark' that would make her her masterpiece - her Hiraishin, or Ninth Gate. They all operated under the assumption that time was an ally, with the reality being exactly the opposite. Time wasn't their friend, it was an enemy.

To make matters even worse was that Minato and Hibiki also had experience with spacetime seals she couldn't hope to get. Yes, she was experienced in the subject - having Minato as a boyfriend made the possibility that she knew nothing about it... Well, impossible - but it was a theoretical experience versus a practical one. Hibiki and Minato, however, they had a practical experience with spacetime seals and the Hiraishin. Both of them used it extensively, and it was they who provided most of the leg work in this phase of the operation. She had been there to keep the two focused and to find shortcuts in their inefficient - dare she say non-Uzumaki - scribing methods.

All she had was a half-finished seal only empirically capable of sending a knife five minutes in the future, and one _hell_ of a choice to make. 'Go home' had been the strange man's words. Go home to where their family was that loved them, and was worried for them. Kami, how she would love to do so. But home, now, was a place without Minato. Home now was a cold apartment, a village where her seals malfunctioning wouldn't herald a yellow flash and a terrified Namikaze praying he wouldn't find an obliterated Uzumaki. Home now was a place where the ground wouldn't infrequently shake when Hibiki would blow himself up at the lakes, or where she would infrequently see a blood-soaked Hibiki casually eating lunch with a similarly gory Arjuna, smiles on their faces and the satisfaction of a good fight well fought in their eyes. Home was a place where both of those two were dead, where they had been shot to death by the very weapons that provided Hibiki his bingo book name. Where they were now nothing but ash in the air and memories in the mind. Home wasn't a place she wanted to be, not without Minato, a man she loved, or Hibiki, perhaps the closest thing to a brother she would ever have. This new place, however, it wasn't any better.

On Terra, as Hibiki called it to differentiate his ancestral home from theirs, it was a place where she actively watched the life force drain from the bodies of two mutual friends through Dai. It was a place where everything was loud, where Jonin-killing power was held in the palm of _anyone's_ hands, where gigantic metal tubes flew through the air, with flashing lights, and death. It was a place where she was suddenly coming to the reality that she may outlive all of her friends, and imminently at that. The Kyuubi was, however unwillingly, helping to stabilize her life force, but even Hibiki hadn't thought it likely for her to survive long enough for chakra to enter the world and grant them all continued life. With how much chakra the Kyuubi was shunting into her daily, she couldn't say she disagreed. This place, this hell, this was a place where Aoi and Kyo were but minutes from passing away, and where Dai and Akane were desperately trying to wake their friend, as the Hyuga burned her own precious chakra to fuel her Byakugan and try closing tenketsu to force Aoi's chakra to her core, buying her not minutes, but seconds.

Kyo had already stopped breathing. Seeing him crawl so weakly underneath the comatose Inuzuka's arms, to pass in his partner's embrace, it had brought forth tears Kushina hadn't known she'd still had left. Hibiki said that the human brain couldn't last longer than six minutes without oxygen, without courting permanent disability. Ten minutes and it was complete brain death. She was willing to place a healthy amount on the reality being different for animals, in that they had less time for both outcomes. She could even see Aoi's breaths slowing down. Dai and Akane were sobbing together, the two of them holding Aoi to their chests and embracing eachother tightly, as the Inuzuka grew more and more limp and weak.

_It'll be okay..._ Minato had said. Damn it, if she could strip away everything and pick one thing she loved about him more, it was his endless hope. If Hibiki was an immovable object to which all could cling during a storm, Minato was the bright and shining sun to which all would flock.

Even the strange man had parted a few words of wisdom, and that was where Kushina found herself, digesting them and facing herself with one hell of a decision. The weight of it idly made her wonder if this was the feeling Hibiki, who currently was burning to ash less than a few meters behind her, had felt in any of those myriad of times he had killed many, to save many more. If this wasn't the weight he felt when he laid out his Plan B.

_You're not alone._ The man had said. He'd said that there were people exactly like her, going through exactly the same things. Put together with what Hibiki said, she had an epiphany.

Hibiki had told them that time was, in a way, non-linear. He had explained it by grabbing a straw and filling it with water, before capping off both ends with his fingers. He then explained that, to them, living in the 'third dimension', they saw time as a straight line - going from one end of the straw, to the other, with no backtracking or diversions. Point A to point B. He then explained how, in this 'fourth dimension' of his, time wasn't so clear-cut and linear. To experience or even think of time like that, it was like trapping water in a straw and picking and choosing which points to visit in between A and B. They could start at the end, skip back to the beginning, go forward a bit to the middle, and then right back to the start. Like a book, he said - before abandoning his first metaphor for this new one. One could open a book midway through and start reading, they could skip to the end, or they could start at the beginning. That was experiencing time nonlinearly. When the strange man had told them the story Dai had had to repeat to her and Aoi later, Kushina had had her eipiphany.

Like he had said, she wasn't alone. None of them were, not really. They had people to help them, and again, they were right. She had said it herself - together, she, Minato, and Hibiki were unstoppable. They could create a seal that could do anything. They just needed time - and the Flux Capacitor seal _broke_ the linearity of time. It was Hibiki's plan B. Strictly speaking, they each all had an entire lifetime to fix this problem. The challenge was in presenting this problem to them in eons, when they would be born. There was no conventional way to do this, they had to use the Flux Capacitor.

Kushina lowered her gaze to the book in her hands. Dai had dropped it when Akane had said Aoi's condition was deteriorating. It was wrapped up brown paper, with a note on it written in Common. She'd had to unwrap it to get at its insides. Its cover had written upon it _"In Case of Runaway Butterfly Effect: The Life and Times of the Child of the Sannin (New Name Pending)",_ and inside Kushina was just able to discern Hibiki's general intent for the book. He had at some point dropped a Hiraishin at a shinobi messenger's office, and he'd scribed a Flux Capacitor onto the back cover of the book, linked to this Hiraishin. It would be seen and mistaken by the messengers as a parcel, and they would send it to Hibiki on a day of his choosing, which would, as he'd said, 'destabilize the loop' and give them their shot at fixing this mess. At the end of the book, Hibiki had written - in English and in Common, for redundancy's sake - everything he, Kushina, and Minato had concluded and designed about the Flux Capacitor. His last entry on it seemed to have been written immediately before their first 'live fire' test. After that, nothing. No results, no conclusions, nothing. She knew why. She decided to leave a small inscription, simply telling the Hibiki of the future what happened, before she closed and wrapped up the book again, just as Hibiki had had it earlier.

Now was when she had to make her horrible choice. There was no surviving this, not for them, not like this. Looking up, she saw Dai and Akane in tears, and it wasn't hard to see why: Aoi was turning blue. Her lungs had shut down, her body prioritizing her brain over obtaining the oxygen that would fuel it.

_"Once someone's lips go blue, high-flow diesel... Uh, sorry - get them to the hospital, because there's not much you can do, they are _at_ the point of no return."_ Hibiki had once said, when Kushina had found one of his clones working a shift at Tsunade's hospital; the man he'd been treating hadn't made it.

Much like the man he'd failed to save, Kushina and the tracker trio were at the point of no return. They could either spend their time on Hibiki's Plan A, and die, or spend it on Plan B, and maybe, _maybe,_ survive. Hibiki had died once, after all - and he'd bounced right back. At least they had the advantage of knowing when and where they would come back. Kushina just had to tell them what needed to be done. Considering recent events, she was certain they would reject A, in favor of the opportunities B provided. The lone Uzumaki could only pray that Hibiki would be strong enough to weather this ordeal. She didn't know if he would keep it to himself, or let those few he trusted in to help him with it. Either option was possible.

She noticed the uncontrolled sobs of her friends dying down, but it took her a moment to realize that it wasn't because they had ceased crying. No, when she looked up she saw them still bawling, but it despite this it was still getting harder to hear them. After a moment, she realized why - a steady, rhythmic throbbing in the air. She turned around and looked over her shoulder, and blinked as she saw lights in the sky, a dozen of them, all growing closer. The Uzumaki frowned, but then the sounds of spinning metal wings were drowned out by a much closer sound - the very same thunderous roar she had heard days ago, after they had activated the Ryumyaku. Hibiki called them Cars. Before she could even question it, however, a voice she _never_ heard during her waking hours, suddenly pounded at her ears with the intensity of a thousand lightning strikes, with three words that a shinobi couldn't ignore even if they tried.

_**"GET DOWN, NINGEN!"**_

Kushina cast herself forward, and hardly a second later a bullet blasted through the air and buried it into the stone ground in front of her. It hit so hard that it tore a small crater out of the ground, Kushina knew that, had it hit her, she likely wouldn't have had a chest anymore. But she didn't dwell on that, as she scrambled to her feet and sprinted towards Dai and Akane.

Hibiki's people were here.

_"RUN!"_ She screamed at the two, grabbing at Akane's arms with one of hers, and keeping Hibiki's book clenched to her chest with the other.

She saw, as Dai scrambled to her feet, a brief hesitation, before the once-Aburame leapt away and retrieved a set of explosive tags from her weapons pouch. One was thrown to the funeral pyre, and two, to Aoi and Kyo. When they landed, however, and as Dai hit the apex of her leap, there was an explosion - just not of the tags. She had been right, Kushina realized, as Dai's body tumbled through the air and into the lake they landed upon and were sprinting across. Getting hit with whatever weapon the Terrans were using, it simply obliterated whatever part of the body it hit.

Dai didn't have a chest anymore. The lake turned red as Dai's blood leaked into it, spreading through it like ink.

Kushina didn't realize Akane was screaming until she felt a palm hit her in the stomach. Kushina fell to her own and slid across the surface of the lake, as she saw the Hyuga sprinting over to the sinking corpse of her squadmate. Kushina scrambled to her feet, but she found herself blinded and stunned by the spotlights of the flying metal monsters above them. She tried reaching out with what paltry sensory abilities she had, to find her way to Akane, but the voice of the Kyuubi returned to her, bringing with it such a pain to her stomach that she nearly doubled over.

_**"FORGET HER AND RUN!"**_ Each syllable sounded as a thunder strike, but Kushina refused to heed it.

Through squinted eyes she tried to find Akane, and saw her just after she dove under the surface of the lake to go after Dai's body. A moment later, Kushina saw men in the same green uniforms as from the motel appearing on the cliff they had leapt off of, and the shore of the lake. To her, it wasn't even a choice. That which was wise, said to run. But she wasn't one to abandon her friends, even if it meant her life.

With an enraged growl, Kushina stuffed the book into a weapons pouch and then leapt at the men surrounding the lake. The Kyuubi tried valiantly to deny her its chakra, but Mito's seal and her and Hibiki's training overrode its free will and Kushina felt that intoxicating power coursing through her veins again, and as she was enveloped in red fire, she heard the men screaming in fear. She felt bullets hit her in the chest as she flew towards them, but the healing abilities of her unwilling tenant gave her longer to fight. She landed on the ground and threw her hand forward, her fist going straight through the armor and chest of the poor soldier that she'd landed upon.

More bullets, but now, a cloak was forming around her, protecting her from that physical harm. The struggling of the Kyuubi and poor mastery of anything beyond this meant she wouldn't get much more out of him, but that would be just fine. With every soldier she tore apart, more than a few bullets grazed her arms and tore through her chest, but the chakra fought against these injuries just as she fought against these men. She tore through a dozen of them, by the time Akane, in her shared rage, joined the fray. Kushina physically tore men apart and Akane crumpled ribcages, and for a few minutes, as the bodies and the blood piled up, Kushina, in her partially feral state, thought they could win.

Then, though she wouldn't know the significance of it, she heard the words. _"Air support authorized! Danger close - cut those cunts in half!"_

Mere seconds later, the same metal beasts hovering and screaming above them, reoriented. Now, with the previously jet-black area around them alight with the bright blue spotlights of the helicopters and the red fire radiating off of Kushina, new light joined it. Not the bright yellow gouts of gunfire and bullets, but the harsh, red-orange light of explosions.

The helicopters were packing missiles, and the instant the word was said, the soldiers began fleeing, and the helicopters took aim.

Akane wasn't remotely capable of fighting them in the air like they were, but Kushina was. With the strength of the nine tailed beast inside of her, she launched herself into the air. The unfortunate helicopter she'd chosen as her target tried to backpedal, but she caught it by its nose and began tearing into it, the sound of its rotor-blades deafening her to everything else. The glass canopy shattered, the metal tore, and she found the men inside, both of whom were dead in seconds, covering her and the cockpit in blood. She rode this helicopter, the both of them screaming, to the ground, before leaping off at the last minute and letting her cloak take the brunt of the impact. It shattered from the stress, and a second later, she was sent flying forward again - this time by the combined shockwave of an endless barrage of missiles blasting Akane to smithereens. Without anything to assist her durability, Akane didn't last a second before the pain, anguish, and exhaustion ended.

Kushina would only last five more minutes. Knowing Akane couldn't last, Kushina, screaming as the terrifying metal monstrosities of Hibiki's past world turned their angry, blinding eyes to her, sprinted away. Her injuries, steaming away as they were, meant she hardly made it a few hundred meters. Out of their eyes for now, but not for long.

She had to pray the half-finished seal was good enough.

But they wouldn't be answered.

They wouldn't even be finished.

There was often considered to be one attribute more valuable in a battle than skill, something more powerful than strength, more expensive than time. Just as valuable as the battlefield's gold, was luck. One could be facing their absolute, true, incomparable equal, and through solely numbers it should be impossible for this person to win a battle against them, but if they had luck, then suddenly their victory would be assured. Many people, from the ancient times from which Hibiki Senju had originally been born to, to the modern wars fueled by the literally other-worldly chakra, attributed their very _survival_ to being lucky. Others, though they obviously could not speak of it, could contribute their very deaths to the lack thereof.

Kushina's luck ran out when, by chance, the snipers in the distance, those that had begun the battle in the first place, just happened to see her escape the bomb blasts and missile launches. The spotter had been watching the helicopters shoot Akane, but the shooter, he had in his peripheral vision seen something move off of the wreckage of the helicopter that one of the insane super-men had tackled out of the air. When he checked on it, he saw Kushina ripping the book out of her weapon's pouch. Without a moment's hesitation, he lined up a shot, and barely an instant later, her chest was blown apart by an anti-material round.

Considering what he'd seen from the footage from the aircraft carrier, he hadn't expected it to work. One of these people had taken a shot from a railgun, point blank. It was like playing chicken with a missile launcher, one didn't just _survive_ that, and if they did, without a scratch no less, one could be forgiven for thinking that a measly anti-material round would fail to kill them. But Kushina's jinchuriki cloak had been shattered beforehand, sending her entire chakra network and that of the kyuubi inside her into flux. Even if she had been at full power, the wound inflicted upon her wouldn't be something that she could heal from - her healing abilities were not nearly as effective as Hibiki's, or a Kaguya's. They were perhaps the closest one could get without a mastery of medical chakra, but they still were second best, and that was on a good day.

This was not a good day.

Kushina was lucky that the top half of her body hadn't been completely separated from her bottom half. It was connected only by bits of skin and muscle, with the odd rib being visible even from the sniper's great distance. The book she had in her hands had been thrown from them, barely avoiding the pile of gore or the pool of blood that began spreading out of her body. With but the pull of a trigger, the twitch of a finger, the last of the most powerful people on the Earth had died, and with them, the hope to break out of the loop.

* * *

These must have been the thoughts than ran through their heads.

Had he known, had he even been in something _approaching_ a position of power at the time, had he even had the smallest inkling of an idea, a suspicion even, that there was something going on that was so far beyond them that they couldn't even comprehend it, perhaps he could have done something. Perhaps he could have ordered them captured instead of his predecessor's kill-orders. Perhaps he could have striven for peace instead of cowering behind fear. They were not gods, but people - people from their own world, so far beyond in the future that none who were alive now could even hope to see it.

He understood why the Book had been declared a national secret, and why no one but those with the proverbial need to know could even think about looking upon it. Had the travellers, the 'Homo Novus', New Man, not proven to be so godlike in their abilities, it may have been thrown away as idiocy, but instead, it was believed, and taken as _fact._ His predecessors had thought they could use it to win the war - it may have lacked specific dates, but it was enough such that they could make correct assumptions. When the meteor would fall, they would send a fleet of their mightiest ships to find, capture, and kill Otsutsuki before she could ever rise to power. Little did they know that these decisions would not 'break the loop', as the book had coined, but would instead entrench them firmly within it.

Their best soldiers, their most powerful ships, their biggest bombs, and mightiest weapons. It was one of the biggest coordinated military operations since D-Day. Weeks had been spent with their best strategists planning every possible way the battle could go. Every time something new was discovered from the corpses recovered from Homo Novus, it was sent straight to them in an attempt to give them as good an edge as possible. When the energy that fueled their bodies finally leaked away, the strategists had thought they'd had everything they needed. They thought they were ready - they thought that the might of a modern nation could do the unthinkable, and change time itself.

They had been inconceivably wrong, and the resultant destruction had, in its own way, sealed their fates.

They couldn't change time. They had stolen that ability from perhaps the only people alive, or _to_ be alive, that could feasibly do it. They had stolen the ability to change time from the only _man_ capable of doing it. Robbed it from him just as easily as they had robbed him of his life. He had shown them that it wasn't impossible to change time, but rather, difficult. They had not the tools, nor the experience, nor, ironically, the _time,_ the same weaknesses as those whose lives they had stolen. They had only zeal, and that would have to do.

They had stolen from Hibiki Senju, his ability to save his people and inevitably avenge the human race.

They had to give it back.

Now, sitting in the ancient office utilized by dozens of his country's leaders, and now to be used by its last, as their last battle raged right outside his door, the last leader of Homo Sapiens as a species, leaned back in his chair. Outside he could see the nine tailed fox blasting apart his lands, there were shells being fired from tanks and even mortar cannons, pointed straight out, attempting their everything to kill it and its other lesser-tailed allies. In the midst of them, slowly approaching, he could see the man who had sealed the fate of his entire species. Jet black orbs hung in the air behind him, bullets tore into him and the wounds simply stitched back together in seconds, hardly impeding his advance. His species, every person even remotely capable of fighting, even the sick and injured, the young and the old, they all were throwing everything they had against this man, some even throwing _themselves._

But just as the Book said, he would remain uninhibited.

Richard Ellis, among the last of his kind in more ways than one, turned back to the single camera in front of him. They were all dying, whether they knew it or not, to give him this chance. His _last_ chance. He had to help this man, this reborn, displaced man, to break out of his loop. The Book itself had even expressed doubts as to whether or not all of Otsutsuki's heirs had been ended with this 'Nagato', and whether or not the Zetsu was truly the end of it, or simply the first in a long line of contingency plans.

After all, there was still the Otsutsuki on the moon, a threat _none_ of them, from this era to those that would follow, knew what to expect from.

The only way to win this war was to give back that which they had stolen. To End Kaguya and her spawn's reign, they had to send Hibiki Senju his book.

"Is it rolling?" Ellis asked, his voice rumbling deeply, as the ground outside shook, and the nine demons and their sage came ever closer.

"Connection's weak, sir, but it'll hold." The soldier nodded to him.

Ellis gestured with his hand, it was time.

Time.

It was what it all boiled down to.

Some of the world's best linguists and analysts, from the literary sector to even intelligence, had poured over Hibiki Senju's book to try and decipher the time in which it had been written. Not, as in, the years _ago_, when he had visited their time, but rather the years to which it needed to be sent. The best and brightest of their survivors had all contributed. It was thusly determined that the time elapsed between their downfall here, and when Hibiki would be born again, would be in the vicinity of one thousand four hundred years, with a margin of error of at least two centuries.

This, however, was unacceptable - they quite literally could not operate with such a margin. However, with his word choice and as detailed an analysis of his minor memoir as they could get, they concluded that the time elapsed between his first discovery of the NORAD Arc, and the death of his unborn child, would be six years. It was determined that he would leave in NORAD no copies of himself, no 'Shadow Clones', for a long period of anywhere between three to six months, after the fake abduction of the red-haired Novus, Kushina Uzumaki. His visit with the blonde, whose body had been burned, would mark the last one, until his child died and he dispatched the Undead.

This was a margin they could work in far easier, because this had variables they could account for and flag.

They had only to program NORAD's computers to start a six year timer, following its first access. At the end of this timer, then three very important variables would have to be met. The first being the usage of its showering facilities, the next, access of movie files - they couldn't completely ascertain _which_ ones, but they could at least generalize to motion pictures. The final variable, the shut down of its systems. When Hibiki would abandon this facility, all of the variables would be met. Their last bastion of human civilization, and, it seemed, their most tireless, loyal worker, NORAD would, upon the execution of these variables after this six year timespan, realize that it was finally _time._

The terminal they would leave outside, the first of their 'tests'. The mountain would open to magic formula.

But not just _one._

Ellis cleared his throat. _"Wait."_ He voiced, praying it would be enough to catch the attention of the mourning, ailing man. _"Hibiki Senju... Please. Wait."_

* * *

Whenever Hibiki found himself in America, these days, he found himself never able to get used to the silence that had settled upon the post-human ruins of the formerly modern world. It was an unnatural stillness that permeated the air, only broken sometimes and only briefly by distant animals or the sound of the wind blowing. Before, and even now where the last vestiges of human society picked themselves up from rubble they knew not even existed, there was a white-noise that signaled something perhaps beautiful, in its own right: Civilization. The sounds of commerce, people talking, goods being exchanged, animals calling, there was a comfort to knowing that somewhere nearby there were people living their lives, but here? Not so much.

Hibiki and Dai spent the rest of their day finishing up their shower and using the once proud military base for completely inappropriate uses: Ancient movies and, a new addition to the routine, Hibiki coaching Dai on her English. She surprised him at how much she absorbed in just short of a dozen hours instruction, going from just one sentence to being able to follow along, somewhat, to the conversations being played out on the big screens in the command center. She still wasn't anything even approaching conversational, but she knew exponentially more now than she had when she'd woken up that morning.

The both of them enjoyed their night together. Dai liked seeing Hibiki smile in fond memory, at the moving images playing out on the screen. The 'classics', he called them; they played some of his favorites and he showed her things he was certain she would have liked. There was a movie about a man who thought he was in a storybook, and heard voices in his head, and one where nearly a dozen people in colorful attire beat eachother senseless in an airport, and another one about two men, one old and one young, that ended with the elder donning a suit of armor so they could beat eachother to death in an alley. Dai had no problems admitting she actually found herself enjoying more the films about the man who went on a global killing spree because some arrogant fool killed his dog, he reminded her of Tsume. When she told this to him, Hibiki immediately leaned forward onto the console and started searching up something new, and the two found no small amount of amusement when he pulled up a series of movies about people who all lived under a shared genjutsu, fueled by some sort of a machine that was also out to kill everyone not in said genjutsu. Pointing out the innumerable errors and fallacies in the movie's fight scenes, as compared to how they would have happened were it a real encounter. Even Dai found herself laughing more than once, a rarity, in these increasingly trying times. As the night drew to a close, they ended on what he claimed to be the end-all, his most favorite, a movie about an ailing old man with claws in his hands.

Now, however, they found themselves standing in the tunnel that led deep into the belly of the mountain. Hibiki was standing in front of the console he had once stood in front of, years ago, the very same console that had led him inside, that would also lock him out. He leaned up against it, turning his gaze from the dimly lit screen, to the opened, dark tunnels leading back inside, their enormous metal doors sitting wide open. That he was even considering this meant, to Dai, that he wasn't even near the point of no return, mentally speaking. He was more than willing to try to fix himself, to work for it.

All he had to do was move on, no matter how painful it was. His world was gone, and dead, and torturing himself by inhabiting its still corpse would not help him at all. She understood why he wanted to hold on - this mountain and everything in it, it was all he had of his old world, no one in their right mind would spurn that - but what it was doing to him was unhealthy, it was leading to these increasingly common moments of mental breakage. He was holding himself to their standards, was obeying their morals, and was trying to live a life by their rules, when all three were inadmissible in the modern world. Their standards didn't apply when a 'global scale' hardly even stretched across an island-nation, let alone the planet. Their morals weren't proper when the world at large had regressed to a feudal system, and had to deal with increasingly larger and larger scale wars and more powerful people, coming closer and closer to home with every generation. Their rules couldn't be heeded when people could crack the earth with a finger, and similar people were needed to defend against that, and to kill if need be. If Hibiki continued living by his people's standards, it would do far worse than kill him.

For this reason, Dai placed her dainty hand on his shoulder, prompting him to look at her. She didn't say anything - if she were to be honest, a part of her would come to miss their ancestor's miracles. Technology and hot water, chief among them. But for Hibiki to improve, he couldn't even bring those home with him. They all had to stay - every book, every ancient device, every scrap of his old world. He had to heal himself, and to do so, he had to move on. Maybe one day they could come back, maybe one day when he wasn't hounded by Katsuo and beaten by his guilt, but until then, to heal him and to help him finally, after sixteen years, begin the process of moving on, they had to leave the lonely mountain behind. They had to allow America and his ancestors to finally let go of their last breath, to bequeath the earth not in memory but in spirit. The only thing she felt was appropriate for him to keep, was perhaps the only thing he would have outright refused to drop: His language. He had told her that a person had once said that it was no nation people inhabit, but a language; that one's native language was their true fatherland. Dai felt it appropriate for Hibiki, and knew speaking English to him could potentially help. It would bring them closer, would link them in a way that no one else could share. He would have fond memories, and they, something that no one else had.

Dai nodded once, and Hibiki, lips pursed, clenched his chest and turned his head to the console. He tapped a few buttons, and stood up straight as the winding gears and massive steel doors began to grind. Hibiki took a few steps back and watched as the doors ground shut, placing his hands in his dark coat, his brow furrowed as the ancient steel doors sealed off the mountain. Dai hooked her hand through the loop of one of his arms and leaned against him, reminding him of her presence, as he allowed the ruins of his old world to seal themselves away for the final time.

The mountain finished closing with a loud, final-sounding thump of metal against stone. There was the sound of steel rolling as enormous bars stuck firm into the base of the mountain and fortified the entryways, and finally, the silence that pervaded almost the entirety of the modern world. The mountain settled, the base sealed, and the first humans to have beheld it in centuries took just a moment longer to take it in.

After a while, he nodded once, prompting Dai to straighten up. "Are you ready?"

"Almost." He said, "if... If I'm closing the door on this chapter of my life, there's one place I want to go, that I've been putting off for a long time."

"And where would that be?" Dai asked, as she pushed the glasses up the bridge of her nose.

"Scariest place on planet earth." Muttered Hibiki, as he braced his hand on the back of Dai's head, pressing it against her hood. "Hold your -"

_"Wait."_ Said a tired, rumbly voice, halting Hibiki's progress.

Dai noticed it too, and they both shared a glance, before they turned their heads, trying to locate it. A light heralded the speaker's location, and attracted Hibiki's attention - he found himself staring at the very computer he'd just stepped away from, but now showing the visage of the Terrans' last leader, Richard Ellis. He looked far more exhausted and weary than he did in his epitaph.

But his words were what stole Hibiki's attention. _"Hibiki Senju... Please. Wait."_

What the _fuck?_

The Senju head let go of his fiance, and the two approached the terminal, and the man speaking directly to them from thousands of years ago.

_"Hibiki... I pray we were able to get this message to you."_ Said Ellis, as, behind him in the background, the battle the epitaph had only shown the beginning of, continued to rage. The Kyuubi took and shrug off enormous slugs from tanks, mortar cannons, and rockets. The Ichibi swiped its massive hand one direction, and its tail in another, sending people and vehicles flying in all directions. _"You have very... Very little time... And we've..."_ He indicated the battle outside. _"Even less. As I speak, the man you know as the Sage of Six Paths approaches. The moment this broadcast to NORAD ceases, the files will be uploaded... Such that even if I cannot finish what it is I need to say, the point will be made."_ The ground shook, and dust came streaming down from the ceiling above Ellis.

_"What the fuck?"_ Hibiki breathed, his brow furrowed and his jaw slack, as he leaned forward on the computer terminal. _"What the fuck... what the fuck what the fuck what the fuck..."_

_"In the interests of time... I shall make my point, before I tell the story."_ He raised his briefly lowered gaze, locking his gunmetal gray eyes to the camera in front of him. _"Time travel is not impossible. One month after you see this, you yourself will prove it."_

Hibiki's head suddenly felt very light, and it was only Dai who managed to keep him on his feet, as she looked from his paling face, to the computer in front of them. In the background, the Hachibi came flying into frame, a fighter jet held in its hand, the afterburner still burning. It made a show of taking a massive chomp out of the canopy, before spitting it and the body within it out, and then throwing the jet at the White House. The entire building shook from the impact and explosion.

_"You will be called to a mission in the deserts of the Land of Wind. A boy by the name of Sasori, and your squadmate Suboro Kurama, will arrive. Katsuo and the Undead have discovered the ruins of Tokyo - known to the humans of your time as Roran. It has within it a place known as the Ryumyaku, which has been absorbing E-Radiation... What you know as chakra... Since the moment the meteor landed. Only drawing in more, and more, and more, as it _has_ more, like a solar cell that gains a larger surface area as it takes in more energy. __You will fight the ones known as Yui and Aojiroi here, and the stress of this battle will activate the Ryumyaku, sending you all back to this time... To your home."_

Dai saw Hibiki's grip tightening around the edges of the terminal, the metal bending under his strength. She could feel his heartbeat picking up, and even through her broken English, knew what the man was saying, and couldn't fathom what it was her Senju was feeling.

_"Let me preface this by saying no one here had all of the facts. Not you, not us, not anyone. You will take Aojiroi to sea, and your allies will take Yui to the forests. You will drown Aojiroi, but Yui will escape, and your group will retreat here to treat your wounds... And it is here we first discovered the existence of E-Radiation. The boy, Sasori, he was taken too, but you didn't know. The Japanese government recovered him, and was able to dissect him before he died and ran out of energy. He put up a very good fight... They reported more than three dozen fatalities before they could incapacitate him and begin conducting tests. Through the tests they conducted we were able to expand the spectrum of radiation which we can detect."_

_"Oh God no..." _Hibiki whispered hollowly, as he realized what was about to happen.

Or... Already _did_ happen.

_"We found you and your allies. Still recovering from your battle..."_ Ellis was briefly thrown off by another, larger explosion. The battle was growing ever closer. _"Our Special Forces had orders to capture you dead or alive. We did not capture any of you alive._

_"Any of you."_ Somehow, despite the impossibility of it, Ellis shifted his gaze to Hibiki's right, and was able to make eye contact with Dai, from more than a thousand years ago. _"I am sorry... To you, to Dai... To all of you."_ He turned back to centering his gaze on the camera. _"We didn't know. We only knew that you had killed many of our own people... Caused damage we didn't think was possible. When we recovered your corpses, we discovered you had been in the middle of -"_And then, the inevitable happened.

The windows behind him were torn from the walls, Ellis whirled around. A soldier sprinted into frame from behind the camera, hoisting his weapon to bear upon the man floating in the hole in the white house. With several large black orbs hovering behind him, his skin as gray as iron, and his eyes purple and ringed with dark lines, his visage was unmistakable. It was him.

The Sage of Six Paths.

The bullets fired from the soldier, and the many other soldiers streaming into the room, were all halted by the man's raised hand, before they fell to the ground. He splayed open the fingers of one hand and it radiated with dark blue chakra. The chakra reached out and wrapped around all of the soldiers like tendrils, before he wrenched his hand back. All but two of the soldiers screamed in great pain and fell to the ground, dead, whereas the two, they collapsed to their knees. The Sage made eye contact with these two specifically, before he clenched the fingers on his hand, and they vanished.

The gunfire, missiles, and sounds of war vanished with them.

It was just the Sage, the President, and the camera now. How the camera stayed upright, and whether the Sage knew of what it was doing, Hibiki didn't know.

The Sage lowered himself to the ground, his ringed, purple eyes locked onto Ellis'.

_"I told you."_ The Sage said, his voice deeper than the President's. _"I told you how many would die if you resisted, versus those that would die if you did not. I **told** you this."_

Ellis' face was hidden, as he faced the Sage and not the camera. _"We're a strong people."_ Said Ellis. _"We're everywhere, hidden in places you'll **never** think to look."_ Ellis' fists were clenched and shaking.

_"I sense them all."_ Said the Sage, frowning at the man. _"Even those few you squirreled away with my brother. Fewer than six thousand in total. None in groups larger than_ fifty!_ I will find them all. What I do is necessary... What you do is _not."

Ellis decked the Sage with a right hook, but the Sage's head didn't even budge.

_"And I've told you this."_ Said the Sage, unperturbed. _"What I do, I do for everyone. You are all that is left. Of your people, and of your world."_ He grabbed Ellis' fist, and slowly, painfully, twisted it from his face. _"All that is left for you is death."_

Ellis wrenched his fist out of the Sage's grip, a scowl briefly visible on his face before he turned back to the Sage, rubbing his wrist. _"You _damned_ everyone. Made it so we can't live _without_ E-Radiation. You destroyed your species and poisoned what was left."_ He sighed, _"but I want you to know there's hope. It's always there, it's always been there... Hidden in the darkness."_ He straightened his back, and squared his shoulders. _"We _will_ undo this hell you've made. We _will_ win this war."_ He reached inside his coat. _"And for the record..."_ He pulled out a small device, Hibiki and the Sage's eyes turned to it in unison. _"If I am all that is left of my people... Of my world... As you say."_ He looked up at the Sage, _"then I am **become** death. The **destroyer** of worlds!" _His thumb slammed down on the detonator in his hand, and the video cut out with a loud shriek and a brief white flash.

A moment later, there was the noise of metal striking metal, below the computer terminal. Hibiki turned his gaze down, and found that the bottom half of the terminal hadn't been where the computers were held, as he'd thought so long ago. It was a drawer, and within this drawer, he found a thick, leatherbound book, and a bundle of letters wrapped in a rubber band.

On the cover of the book, was written, in a terrifyingly familiar hand: _In Case of Runaway Butterfly Effect: The Life and Times of the Child of the Sannin (New Name Pending)_

But what made him fall to his feet, in the kind of existential terror a person may feel when they were being leaned upon by not just death, but the realization that it was the entire universe attempting to do nothing but orchestrate their death, was when he saw what was written on the first letter, the top of the bunch. Dai watched as he dropped the book and slipped the letter from the rest of the bundle, tossing the rest of them away as he carefully ripped into the envelope, his hands shaking as if he were freezing cold. He dropped the envelope, which Dai picked up.

She covered her face, and quickly fell to her knees next to Hibiki, when she saw what was written on the envelope.

_To our son._

Dai looked to Hibiki, whose entire body was now shaking and convulsing as he read the letter that had been contained within. Tears were welling up in his wide, shell-shocked eyes. His hand shook so much Dai wasn't even sure if he could read it right.

_David, we didn't know what to believe when we were shown the footage of the attacks in Japan, and the destruction of the Ford. Your father thought it was from a movie, until they showed us the helmet-cam footage from the hotel in Clayton County_

_They really don't want us writing this next part. They said they were able to analyze your mental state, from how you wrote your book, they don't want us doing anything to damage it, but then your mother called them a bunch of shitheads. We know you, you're our son. They may have rooms and rooms and rooms of men and women analyzing your every word, but none of them raised you._

_To be honest, we **didn't** believe it all. Your father said he was full of shit.  
_

_But, after they showed us the footage, then they gave us your book. They showed us the bodies. The experiments, the things they were able to do when they drew your energy out of your bodies and manipulated it before it ran out.  
Then we believed them. We couldn't _not.

_We read your book, your 'minor memoir', your message to yourself. The more we read it, the more we realized it **was** you. We liked the part about the Chakra Fart, and are very happy you found Dai. She seems like a hell of a woman. We both approve, we wish we could have met her.  
_

_So now we're here. ___We've seen the things you've been through, we've seen the heights you've reached and what you've struggled through._ We know what you're trying to do, to get yourself out of this time loop. It's beyond us, but we stopped trying to understand most of your stuff once we weren't able to help you with your math homework, and all this chakra stuff, they had people like Stephen Hawking looking at it, and it's beyond **them.** That you're able to figure all of this out, they think it's amazing. They think _you're_ amazing.  
_

_Don't ever disagree with them, David. We're proud of you now, and we always will be. We know that if there's anyone who can do the impossible and time travel, we know it's you. _

_We love you, David. _

_\- Mom and Dad_

_"No... No, no, no, no..." _He dropped the letter and snatched up the leatherbound book. _"No no no no no no..."_ He opened it to the first page.

_David._

_First of all - This Is Heavy, Doc. You and I both know the Polyjuice bloodline can't draw memories from before Undead got their chakra._

_You almost got arrested in highschool because people thought you were smuggling guns in your trench coat. _

_Your first EMS call was an old man whose ass was so badly infected with god knows what that the smell didn't leave the ambulance until you disinfected it three times. _

_You kept the rearview mirror of the first car you tore apart during Vehicle Extraction training - you even took it with you when you moved out._

_There is no way this can be faked. _

_Time travel is possible. It's possible, and it happened, and now we've got to figure out how to replicate it in a way that doesn't kill us. _

_If you're getting this, then you have a chance. The time loop isn't stable anymore. You can fix the whole thing. You can change history. _

_But with the nature of this Loop, there comes the chance for changes. A butterfly effect, small things we do here, that result in drastic changes there. _

_To that end, inside here you will find **everything.** From the moment we were reborn, to the moment we went back in time. Since I'm too fucking tired to come up with a better name, I'll just call it 'The Life and Times of the Child of the Sannin'. Everything that happened, the way it happened, the **first** time it happened. This is pre-Crisis on Infinite Earths. This is before Marty and Doc Brown went and got the Confident George timeline.  
I'd make a Bill and Ted joke, but to be honest? I think that was a stable loop from the word 'Go', so that doesn't apply here. Bill and Ted didn't exist without Rufus and the time machine. They were both self-fulfilling, but I digress. _

_This is my life. _

_This is **your** life. _

_Thank god for the Sharingan's eidetic memory, or else this would be much more difficult._

_If there are changes, **write** them. Every single attempt, from this first one, to the last one. Everything that changed needs to be noted, for clarity's sake.  
Every attempt written here, if it's been written and you still get the book, that means it didn't work. You need to either make it better if it was unfinished, or move on and try something else. _

_To that end, this first attempt... I don't think it will work in the first place, but it will be your job to prove it. The Flux Capacitor - the seal you'll find on the end of this book - that's my Plan B. It will send this book forward in time, to the seal you dropped in the Shinobi Messenger's office when you and Dai started filling out paperwork to get her out of her clan. If all goes well, it should be delivered to you exactly seven days later. You'll find all of my notes on the Flux Capacitor after I reach modern times in the minor memoir. _

_This go, this loop, it will officially be Loop One. _

_After this, will be Loop Two, and three, and four... And so on. _

_Given the nature of the situation... There are no rules. We can't do anything but control as many variables as we can. If that means the only way to solve this is to blow up the Ryumyaku before we even reach it - then fuck it and nuke the bastard. It can't possibly be worse than what we've got now._

_But this is **it.** _

_Once we fix this... This is proof that Katsuo is right. This is proof that what he wants is possible. And if we find out how to make it practical, that means he will too. _

_Once you break the loop, David: You have to find him and **end** him. If we break the loop, he'll find out how to go back and set up another, worse one, and he may ruin the world as we know it, in so doing. We cannot let this happen. _

_You have to **kill** Katsuo._

_Now... My earliest memory. _

_Back to Life._

_I was in such an indescribable pain that I can't, in any language, explain how much it hurt, to the point that even the raw, animal-instinct every human being has, could not properly comprehend or describe how much pain coursed through my body for those first few eternities what was my new life. Even comparisons, which is among the easiest ways to describe something, and if integral to human understanging, fail to describe it. The closest possible comparison I can make is when I got brained by the drunk driver behind the semi-truck, but even that hadn't hurt as much as the act of coming back to life. For three months..._

It was there, it was all there. He skipped dozens of pages, it was all there, his entire second life, exactly as it had happened. He saw his account of first meeting Dai, fighting Katsuo the first time, the very things he had thought after he'd learned to fly, exactly what he had said when they had discovered NORAD, it was _all there! This was real!_

Then, at the end.

_Loop One: Everything beforehand._

**_Everything._**

_Made every mistake possible.  
Accidentally blew up an aircraft carrier, got shot by a railgun, and damaged a destroyer. _

_Accidentally tore the shit out of a few streets on Tokyo and may have broken some poor guy's nose._

_Aoi sustained critical injuries, chakra levels in free-fall. _

_Created the Flux Capacitor. _

And written in Common, in a different hand, added on to the end.

**_Um, Hibiki, I don't know how to say this, so I'm just going to: You and Minato died. _**

**_The seal worked, it sent one of Dai's knives forward five minutes, but then your world's shinobi came. You and Minato are dead, and I'm going to try to use the seal to send this to you._**

**_I'm so sorry._**

**_-Kushina_**

And -

_Oh god..._ He thought, turning the page.

There was more.

_Loop 2_

_Found book in NORAD.  
You know, technically, **this** is the first loop, but I digress._

_Possible (?) Change: Checked DC after receiving book. Radioactive.  
Ellis nuked the Sage._

_What a badass. Probably would have voted for him if I had the chance.  
_

_Anyways, this could have happened the first time, it could not have, I'm not sure._

_Considered avoiding Roran mission, realized would be detrimental and no one would be capable of unfucking it. _

_Used Shadow Clones to fight Yui/Aojiroi. Disentegrated Yui, Drowned Aojiroi, terrorist acts avoided.  
Sasori survived this time.  
It is now empirically possible to change history._

_Notes on completed Flux Capacitor (delivery) seal in back of Book._

_Did everything possible, and was able to make us all survive until after the meteor strike. We got time back on our side.  
_

_After discussing it with everyone - and I mean actual, literal, **days** discussing this - we decided that, since we were all (barely) alive, and it was possible to change history, but not feasible to travel through time - at least, not for us, with the resources we have and what little chakra we have - that, if it meant a better world, we would stay in this one.  
_

_So before she found and ate fruit of the meteor's tree, I killed Kaguya._

_Christ I hope I didn't make a mistake. _

And_ more:  
_

_Loop Three_

_Holy fuck **did** you. _

_Let me - let me honestly ask you something, because I have to know. From what I've read in your little 'Life and Times', which fucking one convinced you this was a good goddamn idea?! Was it Minato? Kushina? No - NO! I bet it was the damn dog dame, wasn't it?! It'd fucking fit, let me tell you!_

_What the fuck were you even thinking?!_

_What the actual fuck were you thinking? That you'd just kill **God** and the universe wouldn't slap you silly because of it?_

_Christ Alive, here's what happened after your royal fuckup:_

_Loop 2 killed Kaguya alright, but then the Navy showed up to find the meteor, and like a couple of assholes these two dickheads decided to eat the fruit. Names of Momoshiki and Kinshiki._

_The result?_

_A completely different fucking war. _

_They weren't even killed - only locked in a fucking space ship and sent to the sun. _

_It's been ten years - not since I found the book, **SINCE THE FUCKING WAR!**_

**_THE WAR!_**

_**WHAT THE FUCK, DAVID?!**_

_There are literally one thousand human beings left alive now, you complete dumb fucking asshole! Right now they're trying everything - leading prevailing plan is to get as many fertilized embryos, load them onto two spaceships, and shoot one to mars, and the other one to another solar system. One will make a colony on Mars - without any good pre-supplies or even bases to operate out of - one will be a generation starship.  
_

_With no (good) radiation shields. _

_Or artificial gravity. _

_Or stockpiles of replacement parts. _

_Thank fucking **god** we had a Plan B, or else we'd be **FUCKED**, now wouldn't we!?  
_

_ **One** of these one thousand remaining has minor chakra control abilities, but to him using it is like putting a cheese grater to his internal organs. He hospitalizes himself to do things your first loop described as common place._

_They tried using science and chakra to build a body, to try and create humans immune to 'E-Rad Poisoning', and **my** ass came out.  
And in case you haven't fucking noticed yet, I am **not** David Semloh. I'm just what would qualify as the newest Hibiki. _

_And I am in pain **all the goddamn time.**_

_Have you ever experienced that? No, let me answer that for you - **NO** you have not!  
Your stupid fucking ass got the **nice** Frankenstein body, and with it you decided you'd assassinate Hitler and thought everything would be fucking fine afterwards!_

_Fuck you!_

_And this isn't the kind of pain you can take the major hardcore morphine oxycodone drugs for, either. Constant goddamn existential IWantToDieRightNow pain._

_**Fuuuuuuuck** **youuuuuu**, David! _

_What's that?  
What happened to Loop 2 Hibiki?  
_

_Well I'll give you some fucking credit - all of you did your part, you **tried** 'Killing the Batman', but then those assholes **absorbed** the whole planet-killing mega blast fuck beam you sent their way, turned right around, shot Russia - all of it - with it, and sent the entire planet into nuclear winter. _

_Then they started actually fighting._

_Now, you all actually managed to kick ass on more than one encounter, but once Loop 2 Hibiki got desperate enough to use the Eight Gates to try and take down Momoshiki, fucked up, failed, and **died,** that signaled everyone else's downfall. Minato tried warping them to space, some sort of fallback plan they'd come up with, but as it turns out - those two can warp too!_

_They dropped Minato's ass off on Mars, and when he tried to warp back, he burned out all of his chakra and died of any combination of chakra exhaustion, asphyxiation, radiation poisoning, and the fact that Mars' atmosphere is so much less dense that he was pretty much exploding the moment he showed up without protection._

_When they came back, they came back to steal the chakra from Kushina. Your tracker trio didn't stand a chance, and that red-head kid with the puppets, he survived the longest, and they rewarded him by chucking him into the **sun.**_

_No, those two assholes, but the humans! Terrans! They used him as **bait** to get those two on the spaceship, lock them all in it, and launched!_

_Turns out? Kid's a pretty good tinkerer. **He's** the entire reason they were able to lock those motherfuckers on a spaceship in the first place. He put durability and chakra suppression seals over every available square inch of surface - they launched one of your bijuu-damas, from the **inside** no less, and didn't so much as **scratch** the thing.  
_

_Now they're on a one-way trip to the sun, and everyone they left behind - all **one fucking thousand** of us - are dying._

_Fortunately for **you,** I found the Ryumyaku - turns out that shit's naturally occuring. It just takes time, I guess? I don't know, I didn't graduate college - unlike you, trying to wreck the world, I died in Afghanistan trying to save it. Point fucking is it worked. I'm back before the human race went extinct, but my ass is doing **nothing.** Let time go the way it was supposed to for once. Resetting shit - I ran into **your** candy ass, somehow, followed you until you and your group died. Looked like exactly what happened your first go-round, maybe I went back before you even went **forward** the first time, but I don't fucking know. I swapped out the books.  
_

_My job's done._

_Fuck you._

_This is **your** problem, David. Don't fuck it up._

When Hibiki finally dropped the book, his shaking hands went to his head, tangling up in his raven hair. His screams, loud and guttural, shook the very dust from the caves in which they sat.

Hibiki was going to throw up.

No, wait, check that - he _did_ throw up.

Hibiki collapsed to his hands and knees, heaving, hyperventilating, gasping for air, his entire body shaking and caked with sweat.

_This is too big._ He swallowed, gasping for as much air as he could physically supply, his head feeling light and fuzzy, his entire body tingling. _This is... Jesus Christ... This is too big._

"Hibiki!" He felt a pair of hands grasp at the sides of his face, Dai pulled him up to look at her. Her sunglasses were gone, and her big amber eyes were locked onto his shaking onyx orbs. "Hibiki, calm down!"

_She's... She die - Dai, died. Die's dea - but, I..._ Hibiki could hardly even hear her over the growing ringing in his ears. _Minato and Kushina... Aoi and Akane, Jesus Christ!_ He could hardly comprehend it all, he _couldn't_ process it - it was all just bouncing around in his head. He and everyone he had cared about had _died! Three goddamn times!_ And he'd nearly destroyed the whole planet, one of those times! Rendered his species extinct! He was in a _time loop!_ Sixteen years and this was the fourth loop was more than_ sixty fucking years!_ He and everyone he had cared about had been dying constantly for _over a half cent -_

_SLAP_

The numbness in his head was wiped away, to be replaced by a stinging sensation in his cheek. When his head recoiled back to its neutral position, he saw Dai looking at him, expectantly.

He blinked, "did..." He gasped, "did you just -"

And she did it again.

"Why'd you do it _that_ time?!" Hibiki looked up at her.

Dai shrugged, "I had to make sure it worked." She said, "did it? There are not many people who can beat you and survive to live about it. I would not object to being the reigning champion." She leaned back on her haunches and held her hands out, "let me hold you."

Hibiki couldn't help but chuckle, "are you going to hit me again?" He asked, as he leaned forward and fell into her arms.

_"Only if you make me..."_ Dai muttered into Hibiki's hair, as she held him close to her chest. "Hibiki... This will be fine."

Hibiki had to physically treat her as an anchor, holding onto her as if her presence and his clinging to it could keep him from losing it any further than he had just a moment ago. "You died, Dai." He said. "We _all_ died, _Jesus Christ, we've died three times!"_

She held him tighter, "Hibiki, it will be okay." Her voice shook with compassion, "I couldn't understand it all, and you read very fast... But I knew what it was saying." She held him as tight as she could, there was a tremble of fear to her own voice, but she squashed it down with hope, trying desperately to pull Hibiki from this pit. "The book is here, Hibiki. That means..." She swallowed, "that means you have a chance, okay? That means you have time, now. You can work this, you can fix it. You have that chance."

Hibiki tried to pull away, but Dai held him firm, not willing to let go of him for even an instant. "But Dai... This... This is _big."_ He breathed. "This is... I..." He shuddered, "_oh Jesus Christ Dai..."_ He sobbed. _"You died!" _

Dai held him just as he had held her not days ago, in the hospital. She ran her hand through his hair, cooing to him. "It will be okay, Hibiki."

_"You all did..."_ He choked out. _"You and Minato... Kushina... Aoi and Akane - god damn it even Kyo died!"_ He took in a deep breath, _"three... Fucking... Times!"_ He tightened his own grip around her chest. _"What the fuck do I do?!"_ He begged her.


	86. Loop: Eureka -X-

Chapter 85

* * *

It took Hibiki more time than he would have liked to reconcile Loop Three with everything that came before it, and his conclusions weren't uplifting.

Fortunately, a lot of the blanks were filled in by the stack of letters and other documents that came from the Open Sesame letter from his parents hadn't been the only one - Hawking-level scientists, world leaders, military Generals, anyone important had left him records of history, words of encouragement, and as much scientific notes as they could give him in regards to the relevant topic. He'd even gotten a letter from Hawking himself, which surprised him - he hadn't expected the man to survive so long, but it was entirely possible that he'd written it before the war had gotten close enough to affect him.

From what he was able to make out, Loop One was the first one that happened. He got the mission to Roran, shit went sideways, and everyone died. But, instead of being stuck in a stable time loop, the United States recovered the book and attempted to use it as a means of eliminating Kaguya before she became a threat. However, this didn't break them out of the loop, rather it stuck them firmly within it - the fleet they sent was destroyed and then Kaguya smashed Japan, leading to the war. Then the subsequent leaders, ending with Ellis, decided their best chance at victory wasn't to win the war, but to do as Loop One Hibiki had attempted to do: Destabilize the time loop.

To do this, they buried the book where they buried everything else that contributed to Terran history, and programmed NORAD to give it to him when he met a certain number of criteria. In other words, where L1 Hibiki had intended to use the Flux Capacitor to send the book to the Shinobi Messengers during his and Dai's attempts to get her legally seceded from the clan, the United Nations scuppered that plan by killing him, and replaced it by burying it like a time capsule. They then stored in hidden folders on NORAD's computers all of the data regarding his visit to their time, such that they wouldn't reveal to Hibiki that something was amiss, before he got the book.

This led to L2 Hibiki discovering the book in NORAD, and deciding to kill Kaguya to avoid the war ever happening in the first place. From the notes written by L2, after they finished and began testing the Flux Capacitor with organic matter, they found that L1's theories on organic matter taking leagues more chakra to send through time was correct. The same amount of chakra that could send a knife five minutes into the future couldn't even send a person one microsecond. The closest they had ever gotten was sending a shadow clone eight seconds into the future - but it came out as a pile of steaming gore that dispelled in seconds.

So instead, they made a new plan. They made their arguments and discussed it to death, and decided that, if it was either live in the past or die going to the future, they would be willing to live in the past, so L2 Hibiki killed Kaguya. Then, however, was when everything went to shit - because instead of her, two different people found and ate the fruit of the meteor, and the war that led to was even worse than the one with Kaguya. Ten million had died in the first hour, and by the time the first day was done all of Japan was glass, fewer than a dozen groups of survivors, and none of them numbering higher than fifteen people.

Of course L2 Hibiki and the Konoha group immediately rallied and brought the fight to Momoshiki and Kinshiki before they could get out of Japan, but L2 wrote that these two were like Katsuo if he went Super Saiyan. It took L2 Hibiki, Minato, and Kushina just to _match_ Momoshiki, but when the elder of the two rolled in, they found themselves steadily and consistently losing ground. After seeing that fighting got him nowhere, L2 tried to just kill the Batman, but their enemies took his attempts head on, and used it to obliterate Russia, the entire country turning to ash inside of a few minutes. In hours, the entire planet was blanketed in the ash cloud, and Hibiki knew his only chance was to try to fight them. His plan had been simple enough: He had _everyone_ else go after Kinshiki, while he untapped the eight gates and fought Momoshiki.

The next entry was then written by Dai. She explained how L2 Hibiki failed to kill Kinshiki and died in the attempt, and when Minato tried their backup plan, both Momoshiki and Kinshiki killed _him._ Kushina lost control of the Kyuubi following this, but the two absorbed its power into themselves and turned around to begin blasting their way through China. As the only shinobi left alive, and the only ones remaining and even capable of fighting them, though knowing that they were no match, Dai vowed to do what Hibiki would: _Try._

Then it was written by Sasori, explaining how the Tracker Trio was killed after an hour's combat. They turned an entire city into a kill-zone, layering it with traps of such lethal design that even Sasori voiced a wavering doubt as to whether or not he could have ran that gauntlet and survived. Momoshiki and Kinshiki definitely had trouble and were each wounded by the attempts - for a while, Sasori wondered if it wasn't working. But then the Terrans decided this was their one, only, and best chance to be rid of this threat, and launched _everything._ Every nuclear weapon, every missile, every bomb, it was all launched and the area was bombed consistently for eight hours.

The tracker trio didn't make it, but Momoshiki and Kinshiki certainly did.

The next years were written by as a simple catalogue of the countries as they fell, before finally syncing up with the scientists attempting to create artificial life, and being written by L3 Hibiki. Hibiki decided to call him Richard. Richard told of the plan to lock the two in a spaceship and launch it at the sun, and remarkably it worked, but then he described of other problems facing mankind, things Sasori hadn't written about because he hadn't been affected by it in the first place. The chakra in the atmosphere was actively poisoning everyone, and Richard was the attempt to create a human being immune to it. They used Hibiki's book, the seal on his chest from his recovered corpse, and Sasori's assistance to create Richard, but it wasn't done nearly as well as it had been by Kenichi. Then, with the human race an endangered species, Richard concluded the only way to save it was to find the Ryumyaku, go back as far as he could, and pray he could undo everything. He was able to find a much younger well of chakra, and when he cracked it open, he found himself in the past.

This was when Hibiki began to become unsettled. Somehow, Richard found Hibiki's group, but instead of the events he described following Loop One, the events he described didn't match any loop described in the book. Richard then swapped out their book for his, and Hibiki assumed went to find a place to die. This implied to Hibiki something that filled him with terror, as he realized this time loop could potentially be far larger than it seemed to be.

If Richard had gone back in time, but the events he described matched up with neither Loop One or Two, that meant there could have been _many more._

More loops. more failures, more deaths, potentially more apocalypses, anything was possible. The problem then, however, was that Richard had swapped that Hibiki's book with his, wiping out any records of further loops. This meant Hibiki couldn't use their knowledge or their notes. He couldn't try to spend this month tinkering with the Flux Capacitor, with what previous loops had learned.

There was, however, a potential silver lining: Ellis' message.

Ellis had described in detail a lot of the events that had happened specifically in Loop One, that by design couldn't have happened in any other loops. The aircraft carrier getting destroyed, Tokyo getting attacked, their efforts in fighting Hibiki and Co., the message's story matched up exactly with L1. So this could verily mean that, Richard going back in time had 'reset' _everything,_ such that he'd gone back to Loop One, instead of Loop Two. How such a thing was even remotely possible, Hibiki didn't know - he would have assumed that going back in time would have led him to go back to Loop Two's time, and thus led to a repeat of Momoshiki and Kinshiki. But even that silver lining failed to reconcile Richard's accounts of Hibiki and Co. as he'd followed them.

This all primarily served to give Hibiki one monster of a headache. Dai, bless her, definitely tried everything she could to help him, but the best she could do was provide emotional support. Hibiki was trying to reconcile massive amounts of theoretical physics with one hand tied behind his back and the other cut off at the shoulder. The notes and letters from Terran Scientists helped, but did absolutely nothing to explain the potential paradox that was Richard going back.

After a few days of doing little more than pour over the book, the letters, and the documents, Hibiki finally reached two conclusions, but each had problems. One was that the Ryumyaku wasn't really something that turned the clocks back, but rather something capable of opening a wormhole to another universe, albeit one that was in a position in time earlier than the first one. This explained how Richard was able to go back and find a timeline that didn't just repeat Loop Two, but flew in the face of _everything_ Loop One had managed to conclude about the nature of the Ryumyaku, and the subsequent extrapolations that had been made to lead to the creation of the Flux Capacitor.

The second conclusion had been that Richard's mere presence going back in time had had a butterfly effect. Somehow, some way, him simply existing had caused a series of events that led to a different loop than was described in L1 or L2, but still somehow managed to end in a way that synced up with Loop 1. The problem here, however, was that it relied on chaos theory, and that meant that there was no way in _hell_ the end of the loops could have aligned so perfectly, despite different start conditions. In addition, this still failed to explain how Ellis had left a message explaining the events of Loop One that _didn't happen_ in Loop Two or Three.

Hibiki was starting to understand why Doc Brown was so enigmatic. The man had probably gone mad from the revelation, understanding time travel as he did.

In the end, Hibiki decided to take his paltry earnings and shelve the topic for the time being. He wrote down his thoughts in the Book, just in case there came the need for another Loop. After this, he split his time between two shadow clones. He, the Alpha, worked with Dai and followed time as laid down by the first loop: Helping her break away from her clan. The clone, meanwhile, continued studying the notes left behind by the previous loops and attempted to come up with some sort of strategy for when the time came.

Yes, the easiest option was to avoid Roran altogether, but that also meant that Aojiroi and Yui would discover it on their own. If by some miracle they didn't crack it open and get sent back in time, Katsuo _would_, and since its maximum limit seemed to be just a few months before chakra got introduced to Earth, that meant Katsuo would have failed, and in his rage would change so much that the resultant timeline would be unrecognizable. Provided he survived until the meteor came, which was as likely as it wasn't, he may even kill Kaguya, which Hibiki already knew was a horrible idea. It did prompt him to wonder if Katsuo could have lasted longer against Momoshiki and Kinshiki, but he threw out that thought experiment after he concluded he didn't know exactly how much stronger Katsuo was than him; only that he was.

So they had to take the Roran mission. That had to happen. Anything else ran too many dangers for time paradoxes and butterfly effects. Best case scenario was they went back in time, killed a few people, died from chakra depletion, and then everything else went as it should have went. But the worst case was Loop 3, and he _did not_ want that. This meant that the only one remotely capable of breaking out of, and restabilizing, the loop was Hibiki. This meant he had to do _something_ that would guarantee his and everyone else's survival for more than a thousand years, until they reached the time of the Elemental Nations, and were able to transcribe the method of time travel, such that the past Hibiki could use it, and keep the loop stable.

Problem: He didn't know how to do that.

The Flux Capacitor was a good place to start, but he sent a shadow clone to America to try and test it out. All eight gates, the cursed seal, everything he could possibly do to give it as much juice as it could get, and the clone he sent forward only went forward three seconds. Worse was that the clone that opened the portal, the clone that laid down the seal, and the one doing the traveling all died of chakra depletion. Gathering more and more clones to give the Flux Capacitor more and more fuel would only net them handfuls of seconds; in other words he just couldn't generate the 1.21 gigawatts of electricity to power the Flux Capacitor, and anything less just netted diminishing returns.

He needed a new plan.

But as time continued running down, he found himself running out of options. The Flux Capacitor, while it _worked,_ just required entirely too much chakra to fuel, and it was the only option he had in regards to replicating the Ryumyaku. When the time came for the Roran mission, the only thing he could do was go forward and pray he could figure something out once they went back in time. Dealing with Yui and Aojiroi had, ironically, been the easiest part of the whole deal - one Hibiki clone kept the two of them engaged and distracted, such that another could blast the hell out of them with the Dust Release Kamehameha. This cracked open the Ryumyaku, and when the light faded from his eyes, everyone found themselves in the twenty first century.

Aside from receiving the book and making the plans, this would be where the first major divisions from the previous loops came into play. Since there was no combat whatsoever, the people of little Tokyo didn't get a gigantic Godzilla battle, but instead a huge flash of light and a sound akin to an explosion. All of his group was as fresh-faced as they could be in regards to rest and chakra, and Sasori was alive this go-round, once again hammering in that it was more than possible to change time, it was just the difficulty of such a thing that was the problem.

Hibiki wasn't the first to recover - Minato and Kushina took that honor - but when he did, he quickly evacuated everyone, stole some money, and got everyone set up in a hotel in Ohio. It took a few hours to explain to everyone the gravity of their situation, and fortunately Dai was there this time as opposed to previous times, to act as a go-between for Hibiki's science talk and the layman's terms. She hadn't spent that month before the mission slacking of, of course - what little time they didn't spend on her clan was spent bringing her up to speed on what all was happening, and how Hibiki thought it was happening in the first place.

By the time the moon was in the sky, Hibiki found himself outside. Their hotel room was on the top floor, towering over the ground below and the small town beyond. It was strange - Hibiki knew he was going to see it again. The book told him as much. He'd seen more than his fair share of pictures and videos from NORAD, but none of it could compare to the nostalgic feeling of actually being here. He smelled the warm air, saw the golden glow of the lights, heard the distant roar of airplanes.

He was _home._

And it was trying to kill him again.

_Or... Well... For the first time?_ What, was he in a race to die first before David?

He heard a door open behind him, and a moment later, Minato leaned against the railing next to him. "You doing okay?" He asked, giving Hibiki a concerned frown.

Hibiki shrugged, "time travel, Minato." He drawled, "I don't think I'll _ever_ be okay." He hadn't ever put any real thought into it, but the book, L1 Hibiki, he did make a very good point: Once they broke out of this loop, they _had_ to kill Katsuo. The stakes were just too high to keep letting things drag on, like he had been doing.

Minato gave him a light shove, "we'll figure it out, man." He said, turning around and leaning his back against the railing. "You're one of the smartest guys I know."

Hibiki shook his head, "I..." Fuck it, of everyone in there, Minato probably had the biggest right to know. The things they had done together, the only people Hibiki would trust in combat more than Minato, would be Suboro and Noboru, and according to the book, Noboru was dead, and since Yui had Rinha blood, Suboro may very well be too. Minato was all he had. "I don't know." He reached into his coat and pulled out the book, "I really don't know." He handed it to Minato.

Minato frowned, turning his deep blue eyes to the book. He spent the next quarter of an hour flipping through the pages, finding the parts L1 had copied down in Common for redundancy's sake. He heard light chuckles, until the Yellow Flash reached the end and got real quiet. Hibiki let his head hang, but the response he had been expecting didn't come.

"So?"

Hibiki blinked, and peered at Minato from the corner of his eye.

"Hibiki - that this thing is here means we've got a chance. It only proves that we're both right - it's possible and we _can_ do it." He casually tossed the book aside, it hitting the wall with a light thump. "Doesn't change anything." He insisted.

"Dude, we died three times." Hibiki deadpanned.

"So? We're alive _now,_ that's what matters." Minato stressed, "Hibiki if I didn't know any better I'd say it sounds like you're giving up."

Hibiki frowned, "that's not -"

"Because I'd have to beat your ass if you were." Minato deadpanned, his own frown matching Hibiki's. "I know you, you're not the guy to give up. You see a challenge, you _meet_ it. But what you were just saying? What you just showed me? That sounds like someone else. Sounds like someone who gives up."

Hibiki began to straighten up, "Minato..." He warned.

Minato matched him, "and let me be honest - you don't know Aoi and Akane too well. You care about them, but they're your allies more than they are your friends. I'm not ashamed of that, because I know you'd still give your life for them _because_ they're your allies. No Hibiki, what I'm ashamed of is that it sounds like you're giving up on Dai, your _fiance_. On Kushina, the woman who considers you a brother. Our _friends. _On _me, __your friend."_ He stepped in close, his blue eyes locking onto Hibiki's onyx orb. "On _you."_

Hibiki could feel his blood boiling, and while there was a small part of him that was wondering where this hostility was coming from, it was being overridden by a more primal, proud part of his brain. "Minato. That's not what I-"_  
_

Minato gave him a shove, "what're you saying then, Hibiki?" He demanded, low enough that his voice wouldn't carry. "That you don't think it's possible to save us? That you think we're doomed to die, over and over again, _forever?"_ He urged, "or that you think you're so out of your league that you'd rather whine, complain, and curse the heavens and _let Dai die **again?!"**_

Hibiki swung first.

Minato palmed the fist aside and lunged forward, burying his shoulder into Hibiki's chest and then pushing him into the railing the two had been leaning on just a moment earlier. He had pinned against Hibiki's chest his right arm, and when Hibiki attempted to throw a left cross, he caught it with his own, the two now struggling against eachother.

"Hey!" Minato grunted, as his arm shook against the strain of Hibiki's, "uh, I just thought about this -" He nodded to the rooms behind them, "they're, they're kind of asleep right now. We get going like this, they'll wake up. You wanna go downstairs?"

_Wha -_ Hibiki blinked.

"Oh... You bastard." A wide, toothy grin stretched across his face as he realized what Minato was doing.

The blonde blur was _specifically_ baiting him - trying to piss him off, such that he and Hibiki would fight. It was perhaps the only way they had available to work out all of the stress, frustration, and anger welling up in Hibiki's and, even to some extent, Minato's mind. Yes, revealing the fact had the side effect of eliminating any if the potential pride of the two fighting eachother 'for real', but then was Minato's genius. He had to piss Hibiki off and get them fighting, but simultaneously defuse it such that the fight still happened, but it didn't escalate to explosive, potentially lethal levels. Hibiki wondered for a moment when Minato had reached these conclusions, and how quickly. Yeah, his optimism was grating at times, but damn if this man wasn't a good friend.

That didn't mean Hibiki couldn't still fuck with him, though. "Sure." And with a grunt of effort, he bodily hauled Minato over his shoulders and pitched him over the railing.

Perhaps if they didn't have the girls to worry about, Hibiki would have heard Minato laughing on the way down. By the time Minato was halfway down his express trip to the ground, Hibiki hopped over the railing as well. They both fell the four stories to the ground, with Minato flipping end over end to land on his feet, and Hibiki slamming into the ground, falling to a knee as his coat billowed in the wind. He stood up in turn with Minato, and as the two smirked at eachother, he let the cloak slip from his shoulders.

The two sprinted across the parking lot, Minato hopped into the air and spun around, Hibiki caught his foot and swung him into his momentum, smashing him into the ground like a wrecking ball. The Yellow Flash hit the concrete with a light, fleshy-sounding 'thud', and immediately threw both of his hands up in front of his face to block Hibiki's follow-up strike. After two punches, Minato then threw up both hands and then swung them out to the side, breaking Hibiki's guard and giving him time to wrap his arms around Hibiki's head. With a tight grunt, Minato them yanked down on Hibiki's head and slammed it into his own.

Hibiki stumbled backwards as he recoiled from the blow to the head, giving Minato the time he needed to hop to his feet, then drop to his hands and, in a wide, spinning motion, swept the legs out from Hibiki. Hibiki hit the ground with a grunt, and rolled out of the way of a dropkick from his opponent. Minato tried three times to stomp down on Hibiki's head, but Hibiki rolled out of the way of every one, finding the time to spring back to his feet and throw a right uppercut Minato's way. It surged upwards and through Minato's raised defenses, clocking him in the jaw and causing him to stumble backwards.

Now with a little space, Hibiki darted forward and hopped into the air, managing to connect three kicks to Minato's chest before he flipped away. Minato fell to his knee, but this was a ruse to disguise him drawing a kunai, which he threw to Hibiki. However, Hibiki was among the few people alive with reflexes comparable to his, and he was able to lean backwards almost at a ninety degree angle, his hand shooting upwards and closing around the hilt of the knife. This proved to be a part of Minato's plan, however, as he used the distraction to charge Hibiki. Hibiki lunged backwards onto his free hand to dodge a wide right cross, and then sprung back forwards, burying both of his feet into Minato's chest. Minato used this to lock both arms around Hibiki's legs and then swing him around, making three full revolutions before he let go and sent Hibiki flying.

Hibiki hit the wall with a loud grunt, the impact sending the knife clattering away. However, before they could continue, they heard a shrill whistle from high on up, causing Hibiki to look up, and Minato to turn around, both with arced eyebrows.

Barely audible from the distance, they saw Kushina leaning over the railing, "what are you two _doing?"_ She echoed out from the top floor.

Both of them just barely breathing faster than they had been at the start, Hibiki and Minato exchanged glances, before looking back up to the Uzumaki. "Uh... You know." The Senju head called out.

"We're just working stuff out, Kushina!" Minato waved his hand, a wide smile on his face. "Go back to bed!"

"You two are _stupid,_ you know?!" They heard, before she turned back to their rooms with a whip of red hair.

Unfortunately, that brief little encounter had taken a lot of the mojo out of Hibiki and Minato's stress relief. "So..." Hibiki sighed, "I guess we still woke 'em up."

Minato shook his head, "nah, she's always been a light sleeper."

Hibiki gave Minato a sly grin, "and how do _you_ know this, Namikaze?" He asked, as he accepted Minato's outstretched hand and hauled himself to his feet.

Minato laughed sheepishly, "yeah, yeah." He sighed, "you understand my point, though?"

Hibiki nodded, "I do." The problem wasn't the problem, it was his attitude about the problem. "Still doesn't solve the problem, though." He groaned, stretching his back.

Minato shook his head, "man, you figured out how to fly. Flying though space and time, this is just the next step up."

Hibiki laughed as he straightened up. "Were it so easy." Hell, the _moon landing_ would probably have been easier, and most of the technology for that hadn't existed in the eight years they'd had to do it. Slowly, however, a frown wrinkled his face, as something Minato said began to register with him.

It could _not_ be that easy.

Minato recognized the look on Hibiki's face, and smiled, "that's it, let the punches work!" He leaned in, "what're you thinking?"

"I think I've been looking at this problem backwards." Hibiki looked up to the starry sky. "It's what you said... _Space_ and time. _Space."_ The corner of his mouth began to drag upwards. "Minato... I think you just saved us all." He nodded. "What I'm trying to do... It's something I've proven is largely fucking impossible. I'm trying to apply order and rules to chakra, I'm trying to understand it, when... Chakra by its very nature _breaks_ those rules. It _can't_ be understood... Or at least, not without a lot more time than I have. But something that is _empirically_ possible... You can apply _chakra_ to order and rules. Do the exact opposite... Because that opens up a much wider and bigger universe. Theories, areas of science, things considered _solely _theoretical until you can bend the rules a little to get what you want.

"Minato, I've been trying to use chakra to circumvent science, and that's failed me three times, now. What I should have been doing is use chakra to _prove_ science." His eyes rested on the moon. "I don't need to build and sustain wormholes, I don't need to connect to Hiraishin a thousand years in the future. I just have to _fly_ through _space_ and _time." _He smiled, a foreign feeling entering his chest, as he felt hope again.

Minato, however, stared at him blankly. "I don't follow." He deadpanned.

"Relativity." Said Hibiki, "that's how we get out of this." Hibiki shifted his weight from one foot to the other, and raised his hands. "So, you know how when you use the body flicker for as long as you do, and the entire world slows down?"

Minato nodded, "yeah, Jiraiya-sensei said something the same."

"Good." Hibiki said, "it's... Complicated like hell, but the basic gist of it is if you can get going close to the speed of light - to relativistic speeds - time, relative to you, slows down. Everything from your aging to the world around you just slows down."

Minato frowned, "wouldn't that just mean that we spend longer, at that faster speed?"

Hibiki shook his head, "as I said, it's complicated... But put it like this: If everyone around you sped up to lightspeed, and you threw a punch. They'd see it all going in slow motion." Hibiki demonstrated, throwing up a fist and then slowing it down, miming a slow motion effect. "So to them, it would look like you're moving incredibly slow, and wouldn't hit harder than a toddler... But in reality, it's all relative. They're still moving at the same speed, you're just viewing it all faster, processing and reacting to the information at a faster rate. So they'll still hit you with the same force." He dropped his arm.

Minato slowly nodded, "I think I understand... So even if you were using your Swift Release, and I hit you, I'd still hit you just as hard?"

Hibiki nodded. "Yeah. I know I've said the word so much it's lost its meaning, but it's _relative._ So... Put it to numbers: If we accelerated to relativistic speeds, and then spent a year at those speeds, one year wouldn't pass by for everyone else, but rather a hundred. So where we aged only one year, everyone else aged a hundred."

"Okay... So all we have to do is just get moving at these relative speeds and then we can get home?"

Hibiki waved his hands in a 'so-so' motion. "Kind of... That's some crazy complicated math that I can't do on my own, and there's a lot of variables to consider." He grinned, "but I don't think I'll have to do it alone."

* * *

All of a sudden, this entire venture seemed much less impossible. Ironically, the idea that would most likely save them came from multiple and repeated instances of head trauma, the fact of which Hibiki found hilarious. Nonetheless, now he wasn't trying what he had failed to do three times, and had potentially failed to do many more than that. He wasn't trying to work with the difficult, physics-defying bitch that was chakra, he was working within something more concrete and absolute: _Physics._

Physics had laws that chakra broke, and trying so much and so often to apply rules to something that wouldn't obey it in the first place had been what had killed them so many times. He'd spent sixteen years trying to find some kind of rule set that chakra followed, but sixteen years had only seen fit to show him that chakra _had no rules._ Want to evolve eagles to grow to the size of mansions? Chakra could do that. Want to create something out of literally nothing? Chakra could do that. Want to break every known law of physics and accelerate to speeds faster than light itself? Boom - chakra. The only way he had ever found to apply rules to chakra was through fuinjutsu - but just like computer programming, then chakra would only do what one _told_ it to do, and not what they _wanted_ it to do.

However, the reverse was not true at all. Applying _chakra_ to _physics,_ suddenly made chakra able to validate so many areas and prove so many things that had once existed solely in the realm of theories. Endless numbers of 'if/then' statements and hypotheses that were considered fact but otherwise untestable. Did accelerating to lightspeed slow down the rest of the world? Well with chakra, that certainly worked. Could information be transmitted through quantum mechanics? Crack open a shadow clone and find out. From the start, all Hibiki had had to wasn't to try and use chakra to disobey the world, but do exactly as he had always done, and use chakra to _strictly obey_ the world, as he'd done since the day he'd come back to life.

In hindsight, it should have been obvious, and it prompted him to wonder if he couldn't use chakra to build a tesseract.

_Questions for later..._ He thought to himself.

The question now was, now that he'd gotten a gameplan, how would he go about executing it? This kind of math was beyond him, and even if it wasn't, it was the kind of math one would need a supercomputer to functionally simulate and map out, and he didn't have one of those, nor did he have the time nor the resources to figure out how to build one.

But fortunately, he didn't _need_ to figure out. The stack of letters he'd been given in NORAD, it hadn't just been well wishes from his parents and congratulations from physicists. In that stack had also been points of contact - some of the physicists had been well aware of what the Loop constituted, and had given him instructions on how to convince their past selves of what he was, where he came from, and that he needed their help. After all, what one man couldn't do, perhaps an entire _planet_ could? So, after searching through the stack, he found one name that could perhaps help him the most with his current goals.

And that was how he found himself sitting in the office of the Director of NASA. Getting in had been the easiest part, just a little swift chakra and he was past everyone before they could blink. It spent chakra, but even if he low balled his estimates, it wouldn't take but a week for him to get the math and the materials he would need to pull this stunt. They could survive a week, especially with them being full on chakra and rationing it as best they could.

So, leaning back in the leather chair in front of the Director's desk, Hibiki waited, bringing to mind what his letter had said, the how of convincing him. When the man entered, Hibiki looked at him from over his shoulder.

"Yes, Martha, thank you." He said, in an annoyed tone, as he let the door swing shut in front of a haggard looking secretary's face. "I'll look at it when I have time, thank you." And it clicked shut.

"Now, before you freak out." Hibiki said, in a neutral tone. "I want you to know I do have a gun."

The man turned around, a bemused expression on his face melting into one of confusion and fear when he saw Hibiki, a gun in his right hand, and a light, apologetic frown on his face. "I don't know what you... Expect to happen here, sir, but -"

"Oh, I promise you - I don't really intend to use it." Hibiki said, gesticulating with the weapon. "But it's mostly here to keep you from kicking me out until you've heard what I need to say." He flicked the barrel at the desk, "please, Mister Davir, sit."

Davir cautiously approached and circled the desk, before sitting down. "If it's money you want, sir, I'd remind you that this is _NASA._ We've hardly any to begin with."

Hibiki chuckled, "ain't that the truth? No, it's less money than it is math, but I'll get to that." He placed the gun on the desk, "see? We're friends, here. That's just a time keeper." He said in a neutral, non-hostile tone.

"May I ask what it is you _do_ want, then?"

"Well, I already said it." Said Hibiki, giving the strong-jawed man a once over. "Math. But, let me tell you a story. So, humor me for a few moments, because I do have a point - your wife." He saw the man's guarded expression turn sour. "Died... Just a few days ago, right?" He asked, "brain tumor, fought it for a year, dreadful story..." He looked up, "but if I recall correctly... No one actually _knows."_ He said, "right?"

"Apparently not." Davir drawled, his green eyes locked onto Hibiki's onyx orbs. "How do you?"

"Well, let's be honest - it's not hard to hack someone's phone, you were talking to the funeral director just a few hours ago, so I could've figured out then. But what _no_ one knows are her last words, am I right?" He didn't let Davir respond, "she said, 'Don't worry, it's just one small step', in reference to a little inside joke between you two, when you proposed her before the first American moon landing in decades."

Now his frown was fierce, "alright, kid, I'll bite. _How_ do you know all this?"

"Well..." Hibiki raised his hand, palm facing the ceiling. "Look at this." And with a thought, chakra began to radiate out of his hand, filling the air around it with its light blue fire. Davir's eyes grew wider than dinner plates as he beheld Hibiki's chakra, and after he let it sit for a moment, Hibiki then added on the final layer, making the seal for the shadow clone technique.

With two of Hibiki now sitting in his office, Davir shrank down, leaning back in his seat, shock evident in his eyes. "I..." He murmured.

"It's a lot to take in... But here are the basics." Said the clone, before it vanished.

"In about... Two, maybe three, months, a meteor's going to hit the planet. You all actually discovered this meteor a while ago, because it had a strange, heretofore unseen radiation on it. You projected its path and it will come to hit the earth, but on an unpopulated island off the coast of Japan. You're working with the Japanese government to be allowed to run tests on it... It's called DR-71. How close am I?"

"We've kept that under wraps..." Davir whispered.

"You did, yes." Hibiki said, "now, what it does and how it does it is a long story that, to be honest, I don't even have all the pieces to. But, what I can tell you is that when it hits, it will cause a paradigm shift, and everyone left will be able to do _that."_ He let a little more chakra out of his pores, securing Davir's rapt attention. "And so much more."

Davir's eyes narrowed, "wait... _Will?"_ He leaned forward, a light in his eyes that hadn't been there before. "Are you telling me -"

"I'm from the future, mister Davir. That stuff I just told you, about your wife and the meteor, _you_ told it all to me in case I needed your help." He pulled out the letter and slid it across the desk.

David unwrapped the letter and scanned over it, "this is in my handwriting..." He gasped. "What is it saying about a war?" He looked up.

"That's the paradigm shift I mentioned." Hibiki nodded.

Davir went back to the letter, "you're in a time loop?" He finally surmised, after setting it back down. "How is that even possible?"

Hibiki shrugged, "my working theory is that the... We'll call it a device... That sent us back, managed to use a _surplus_ of the very same radiation you detected on the meteor, to open up a pair of wormholes. It then used _all_ of its energy to send us as far back as such a surplus could... And I use the word surplus specifically, because it sent us back before that energy even existed on this planet. I think that it was overcharged, in a sense, such that such a thing was possible."

Davir shook his head back and forth, "that - you can make _wormholes?"_

"I just created a perfectly functioning clone." Hibiki jammed his thumb over his shoulder, "if that's not enough..." On went his Sharingan, causing Davir to sit back, "I could run to a fast food joint and get you some food. I'd be back in a microsecond, before you even realized I was gone. Or..." He picked up the gun, and with a flourish and a plume of smoke, it vanished. "I could do that." He slid his coat off, and lifted his hand over his shoulder, where out came a rifle, which he leaned against Davir's desk. "This energy, we call it chakra, it _breaks_ the laws of physics, Mister Davir. With it I can travel faster than light, create something from nothing, wipe out cities with my mind..." He paused, before he raised his fist, and out from between his knuckles slid three long, sharp claws. "And a _lot_ more." They vanished into dust, and Hibiki made Davir watch as the puncture wounds on his knuckles sealed up before his eyes.

Hibiki's Sharingan flipped off, and Davir ran his hand through his immaculately brushed dark hair. "And... And you need my help?" He asked, disbelievingly.

Hibiki nodded, "we've been stuck in this loop for at least three iterations... And I hesitate to say it but I think we may have been here longer, but I don't have proof, as the evidence may have been wiped out." He explained, "three loops that have played through - this one being the fourth. That's over sixty _years..._ And not counting the time between my dying here and being born again in the future. You count that in and it's been closer to _four thousand_ sixty years." He explained.

"You're from..." Davir frowned, "four thousand years in the future?"

"Before you ask, I can't and won't tell you much more than I've done. But suffice to say, yes, I'm from a very long time in the future." The Senju head explained. "But that's neither here nor there, because I need your help."

"What could I possibly do for you?" Davir asked. "If it's time travel you're after... You'd just need to open yourself another wormhole. Go through that way, they're -"

"Bridges between two points in spacetime, I know." Said Hibiki, "but the problem there is that I'm not physically or metaphysically capable of doing such a thing. I've proven that three times now. I have to try something else."

Davir cast his gaze down to the desk, thinking a moment, before he blinked, and his head snapped back up. "If you can travel in microseconds... You intend to go back the _long_ way." A pause, "relatively speaking."

This made Hibiki smile, and he nodded. "Einstein was more than right, sir, he was _spot on._ The theory isn't a theory, it's a damn fact. But the problem is, I don't have nearly the resources I'd need to do the math or survive the space travel. So that's what I'd need from you, sir. It wouldn't take long, I would hope... But I'd need some kind of relativity equation, to tell me how long I would need to spend traveling at what speed to go roughly one thousand years in the future, but also to change dynamically, such that, if I come out too soon, I can just go back up and tick off another decade or two.

"Then, I would need space suits. Things that can keep me and my companions -"

"There are more of you?" Davir looked ecstatic, but Hibiki shot him down.

"Beyond what I've demonstrated, sir, we can't do much. Without that energy in the atmosphere, we're not regenerating it. It's a long theory, but the short version is we're dying without it. We need this to work or else we won't make it to the meteor's fall." He said, deciding a little white lie wouldn't hurt; perhaps they couldn't if they weren't absolutely full and well rested, but that was neither here nor there.

Davir nodded, "but even with the best suits we have now, you'd be spending _years_ at your relativistic speeds. Your life support systems wouldn't last that long." He pointed out, "and if you're on such a strict time-frame, we can't make something new for you."

Hibiki responded by shoving the rifle back into its seal on his back. "We can take care of that, sir. The same things I'm using to store those items..." He revealed to him the seal on his wrist. "We can use to achieve an effect similar to cryo stasis. With some backup oxygen tanks and supplies, we'd be able to survive more than long enough." And thanks to him having cut Nagato's fucking head off, he already had the storage seal he'd need; he'd just have to add a timer to one so it would pull him out and wake him up in time to keep his orbit stable.

To further display his _own_ intelligence, Davir made a similar conclusion. "But no orbit like the one you mention is inherently stable. If you just let your suit drift at relativistic speeds, it _would_ eventually fall back to the surface. Would you have a way to fix that?"

Hibiki nodded, "I'm certain I can come up with a way to set a timer on these cryo seals. Wake me up every 'x' years to fix my orbit, and then go back to sleep." He reasoned.

Davir slowly leaned back, nodding as he looked up to his ceiling, lost in thought. "I assume I can't bring many in on this?" He asked.

"As few who know would be best. Those you could trust to keep this kind of a secret, and wouldn't mind being put on a need to know basis."

He nodded, "I have a few people I can tap who won't ask questions." A pause, "I'll have to make some promises..." He looked back to Hibiki, "but if this paradigm shift is connected to the war mentioned in my letter... I get the strangest feeling they won't matter, long-term."

Hibiki shook his head, "I can't tell you that."

"Don't insult me, sir. I didn't get to the moon by looking good." He leaned forward, "how bad is it?"

"Ten... Maybe twenty million." Said Hibiki, bluntly.

"Dead?"

_"Alive."_ Hibiki kept his gaze locked to Davir's. "And that's _after_ the thousand year recovery period. No one even knows it happened, it was so bad." A pause, "will be... So bad."

Davir let out a low, hollow breath, "okay..." He swallowed. "Okay." He straightened up, "is there anything your people need? Food, a place to stay?" He asked, "I can get some strings pulled if you need to lay low."

Hibiki shook his head, "a phone would be nice, to keep in contact. But aside from that, I've got the shelter arrangements taken care of. What I'll do is, once you've got your think tank assembled, call me, I'll come back, and we can hammer out everything I need to make this work." Hibiki took a moment's silence, before adopting a softer tone. _"Thank you..._ Mister Davir." He said, breaking eye contact with the man. "My best friends and my fiance are the ones you're saving, here." He rumbled. "We've died more than once, doing this... This is perhaps the first tangible hope we've had in _decades..._ Relatively speaking."

Davir nodded, "this is... Perhaps _the_ opportunity of a lifetime. I'd be foolish not to take it... Mister..." He extended his hand.

Hibiki smiled, and shook it. "Hibiki." He said, "Hibiki Senju."

"Hibiki Senju." David stretched out his hand, "you've got a hell of a grip, son." He leaned back, "alright..." He clapped his hands, his tone sharpening to one of business. "You come back here in an hour, I'll have a phone for you. By tomorrow I should have that think tank, and we'll all get an idea of how to solve _time."_ He said, with a conviction that could be possessed only the man who led the organization that put men on the moon.

It was a conviction that filled Hibiki's chest with hope.

Maybe this really _would_ work.


	87. Loop: That's One Small Step For Man -XI-

_AN_

_This will be among the shortest chapters I've written for this story, but the ending - and the promise it makes - will more than make up for it.  
You've all soldiered through the Loop for this long. This is the final stretch.  
Just a **little** bit longer, I assure you. Your prize awaits.  
_

* * *

Chapter 86

* * *

The entire process with NASA had taken eight days, total. The first day, Hibiki had met up with the 'Think Tank' for their dubbed 'Project Wells', and it hadn't been until day five that he'd figured out that it was in reference to HG Wells' book The Time Machine. Despite having Davir's vote of confidence, many hours had been dedicated to convincing the Think Tank that the tale they were spinning was the real deal, Hibiki having to quite literally walk out of a window and hover for a second before the final dissenter came around. After that, they had been able to slip into the science.

Science.

Cold, hard, facts.

Right and wrong.

Yes and no.

It had been so long since he'd been able to slip into science with limited chakra application, and not chakra with limited science applications. It was strange, in its own way. He'd spent so long with the wishy-washy, 'maybe this will work', 'maybe that will work', nature of chakra that getting down to ironclad 'yes or no' had been, for a moment, jarring.

The hardest part hadn't even been solving the mathematical portion, that had only taken a few hours. Considering the time Hibiki wanted to pass, they assumed with all of their equations that he would be traveling at maximum velocity - just one percent under the full speed of light. Were he to be moving at that speed, they calculated it would take Hibiki one hundred and fifty years, relative to him, to pass a little over a thousand relative to Earth.

Now _that_ was getting somewhere.

In other words: When this baby hit eighty eight miles per hour, he would see some serious shit.

The engineering stuff he left to them. They'd said the biggest problem would be programming a speedometer capable of measuring those speeds, and finding a way to power a spacesuit for that long. Despite this being a problem, it had only taken them a day to work up a dozen workable models, from everything from bringing a dozen spare batteries he could swap out and hook up in orbit, to solar panels wired onto his sleeves. Perhaps appropriately, considering physics was what had brought him so far and not engineering, Hibiki left them to do what they did, only offering input when asked and engaging in the kinds of physics conversations he, quite frankly, had never had with shinobi, and _would_ never have with shinobi.

Leaving things to other folks was a similarly foreign. Hibiki found himself enjoying it as much as it weirded him out and set him on edge. Fortunately, he was able to put himself to work with his own contributions. His job would be creating a spacetime storage seal with a function mirroring that of cryo-stasis from sci-fi books; one with what basically equated to a timer, such that it would periodically pull him out of it, so he could keep his relativistic orbit around the Earth. It took him, Minato, and Kushina three days to make it in such a way that Hibiki could just add whatever number they gave him. NASA had told them that they would have to wake up every five years relative to them, to fix their orbit and go down for another nap. Five years under, five minutes awake, rinse, lather, repeat.

And what wonderful timing, according to their equations - done up in a nice little computer program so Hibiki could fiddle with the math - five years at his speed equated to just a _little_ over thirty years, relative to earth. A few minor adjustments to the seal, and he could go thirty years on the dot, to bring him out in time to take what was literally a once-in-a-lifetime chance.

The rest of the seals were regular versions of the same one, the difference being they would have no timer, they would be reliant on Hibiki to be pulled out. It actually made him smile, once he'd put two and two together. He would, in his own way, construct a new shape by sealing his friends in the scroll, and then himself _and_ the scroll, in the spacesuit. He wondered if this was how a tesseract, a fourth dimensional hypercube, could be made. When he got home, he'd have to put some thought to it. If he'd figure out how to build a tesseract, time would never be a problem again. He'd have his own personal doorway to a dimension higher than their own, a ticket to nonlinearity.

Regardless of his musings, the plan was solid. It would require a lot of trust on their end, but there were few things as concrete, hard, and resolute as numbers. Hibiki trusted numbers. There were few organizations as capable in a small amount of time as NASA. Hibiki trusted NASA. Akane, Aoi, and Kyo, they knew him through Dai's stories and some firsthand experience. Kushina had practically raised herself alongside him, under Mito. Minato had been there next to him since his first day in the Academy, and Dai was the woman to whom he had pledged his life, and vice versa. They all trusted him, as that was all they needed.

By the end of the eighth day, they were beginning to feel the effects of chakra deprivation, but Hibiki's rationing and treatments would keep them afloat until he could stuff them all into the cryo seals, where the draining process would effectively halt. Now, as they slept in the offices near a launch pad near Kennedy Space Center, Hibiki actually felt a smile tug at the corner of his face, his arms wrapped around Dai's stomach. A fact of which Dai noticed, and she drowsily turned her gaze up to him, an eyebrow arced. Hibiki just chuckled, wondering if she was keeping quiet because she could tell he knew what she would ask, or because she was that tired.

Regardless, he spoke up. "I've told you what college is, yeah?" She nodded, pressing her back against his chest. "You want to know what I went to college for?"

"Hm?"

"Space travel." Hibiki said, "my ass - I knew Mars was coming up, and coming up fast. I wanted to be one of those all-arounders, had a functional knowledge in enough to make me about as appreciable as a specialist." He said, his grin stuck on his face. "Fire Department was what was paying my way through it all... I'd _just_ graduated when I turned..." He paused, suddenly realizing he'd _forgotten_ how old he'd been when he'd died. "Twenty five? Twenty six? Somewhere around there. I'd gotten all my little details squirreled away, everything I needed, I decided - you know what? Gonna take a little vacation. Spend a month or two in Japan, get some miles on my soul... Then apply to NASA. Train to be an astronaut." He nodded, "maybe do a little time on the ISS... They'd probably be ready for Mars by then." He hummed, "that was the plan. And... _Technically... _I wasn't wrong." He chuckled.

"See... I never really specified _surviving_ Japan, and becoming an astronaut." Now with the punchline, he felt Dai delicately giggle, slowly drifting off to her slumber, the sounds of Hibiki's voice lulling her to sleep. "So, technically... This is kind of a dream come true. _And,_ I can claim to be one of the only men alive to travel through time both ways."

_"I always believed you..."_ Dai murmured.

Hibiki nodded. _Thirty years... Give or take maybe one or two..._ Hibiki looked to his side, out the window, in which the moon hung, lonely in the dark night sky. _Might be able to learn a thing or two..._

On the morning of the big launch, Hibiki stretched out the storage scroll on a conference room table, as he watched his friends ambling into their suits. They all had to be in one, NASA said it was precautionary, admittedly due to _their _lack of empirical knowledge on Hibiki's cryo seals. The shinobi had been apprehensive at first, but took to it after Hibiki assured them it would be fine. To them, they'd put the suits on, take a nap, and when they woke up, they'd be back home. He found Sasori to be funniest of the bunch - the young puppetmaster had been a trooper throughout the whole ordeal, but what finally made his stoic facade crack and show the nervousness and anxiety brimming underneath was when he had to amble into a spacesuit twice as big as he was. Obviously, Hibiki put him under first, promising to wake him up first once they got home.

After the sand shinobi was the tracker trio, each of them stiffly moving in their suits, the Hyuga having him assure her everything would be fine - that the seal would work as he'd promised. Following them, Hibiki stuffed Kushina into hers, leaving him and Minato the final two. Minato stiffly turned his upper body to his friend, sliding up the visor on his helmet, an eyebrow arced and a glint to his eyes.

_Will it work?_ He wasn't asking.

Hibiki nodded. _Of course._ He didn't say.

With a plume of smoke, Minato soon vanished, leaving Hibiki alone. He carefully wrapped up the scroll and placed it in his seals pouch, before he started donning his own suit. He checked the cryo seal inside of it, one last time, before assuring himself everything was good. That this was it. His final stop before he stepped out onto the launch pad was Davir, to whom he gave a thick, leatherbound book, bound together to a stack of letters.

Cradled under his arm was his suit's helmet. "Make sure those get to NORAD, no matter what." Hibiki said, his onyx orbs locked onto Davir's own. "If this doesn't work..." He paused, "that's the only way we'll get another shot." He pointed to it, speaking over a stiff breeze. "I wrote down everything you guys gave me. It's in that book. So if this doesn't work, the next loop - he'll come back armed with your knowledge. You'll make corrections, and then it _will_ work." He nodded fiercely.

Davir clenched the book tightly with both hands, "come hell or high water, Mister Senju." He matched Hibiki's determination, before he cradled the book under his arm, and reached out. "Godspeed."

Hibiki shook Davir's hand. "Godspeed." He said, before he slid on his helmet.

Considering the less-than-legal aspect of this 'launch', as much as Hibiki would have relished the chance to have one, he got no cool countdown from mission control. He simply walked out onto the concrete launchpad, and looked to the sky. A heads-up-display showed him everything from his current velocity, to his oxygen levels, to an altimeter. His spare supplies, everything from batteries, to oxygen tanks, to medical supplies, and even a few spare _suits,_ were in a seal strapped to his thigh. If he had to make a hard landing on Earth, before it was time to stop moving, he'd have everything he'd need to get right back to it.

He knew, though, he wouldn't need it. NASA made contingencies, but they were smart. Smarter than him. If there was one thing he truly had a ceaseless faith in, it was the science which had put a man on the moon, and would now send _him_ through _time._ With that, Hibiki placed his hands out to his sides, and pulsed his chakra through his hands and feet. With a loud, tumultuous roar, he slowly began to lift off, and as he climbed higher and higher, he nodded once, to himself.

_This will work._ He thought, with a determined frown. _This _will_ work._ He picked up speed, soaring higher into the sky, until the blue began to bleed away to black.

Higher, and higher he went, until he'd breached the exosphere. Higher still, until he was in outer orbit. The computers in his suit did a great deal of the work for him - instructing him on where to make counter thrust to slow him down, how to maneuver, everything. Machines he had spent so much time without, he'd actually forgotten how useful they were, and how heavily they pervaded Terran society. Something as monumentally - one could even say _astronomically -_ difficult as space travel, rendered trivial tripe by a few computers wired into an airtight kevlar suit.

When the computers told him he'd reached a proper height, and once he'd bled off momentum such that he didn't fly off in a random direction forever, Hibiki took a moment to himself. The weightless feeling, he'd only experienced it twice before in his life - and both times had been in stressful situations he'd never had time to appreciate. Throwing Zetsu into the sun and the Yuga-nin into the solar system hadn't afforded him the chance to turn his body, and look down to the planet below him.

He reached out to his left wrist, pressing a button on a touchpad, and letting play a small affordance he'd asked of the scientists, and as he floated there, in the black, null-gravity void of space, the words of a man long dead flooded his ears.

_"Look again at that dot. That's here. That's home. That's us. On it everyone you love, everyone you know, everyone you ever heard of, every human being who ever was, lived out their lives. The aggregate of our joy and suffering, thousands of confident religions, ideologies, and economic doctrines, every hunter and forager, every hero and coward, every creator and destroyer of civilization, every king and peasant, every young couple in love, every mother and father, hopeful child, inventor and explorer, every teacher of morals, every corrupt politician, every "superstar," every "supreme leader," every saint and sinner in the history of our species lived there—on a mote of dust suspended in a_ _sunbeam."_

It floated below him, just as he floated above it. The enormous, eponymous, pale blue dot. From so high up, Hibiki had never felt so small, as he looked down upon his home. The green lands upon which his people lived, the blue seas on which they sailed. There was perhaps only one beauty Hibiki had ever seen, that could quite match Earth from so high up.

_"The Earth is a very small stage in a vast cosmic arena. Think of the rivers of blood spilled by all those generals and emperors so that, in glory and triumph, they could become the momentary masters of a fraction of a dot. Think of the endless cruelties visited by the inhabitants of one corner of this pixel on the scarcely distinguishable inhabitants of some other corner, how frequent their misunderstandings, how eager they are to kill one another, how fervent their hatreds."_

In mere weeks, he knew, a meteor would come to impact the small cluster of islands to the west of where he floated. The chain reaction, the paradigm shift, that would occur because of it, the Earth would never be the same. His experiences in the past briefly made him wonder if his people ever really _could_ reach their old heights, if they couldn't even live in environments that had no chakra, but he shook these thoughts from his head. These were dark thoughts, something not appropriate for the bright blue majesty so far below him.

_"Our posturings, our imagined self-importance, the delusion that we have some privileged position in the Universe, are challenged by this point of pale light. Our planet is a lonely speck in the great enveloping cosmic dark. In our obscurity, in all this vastness, there is no hint that help will come from elsewhere to save us from_ _ourselves."_

He would have his work cut out from him, when he got home. He would never claim to be someone who could protect an entire planet, he would never claim to be a hero of such power, but he _was_ fighting someone of power enough to threaten it. When he got home, his first goal, his highest priority, would have to be killing Katsuo. His previous selves, older loops, they had been right. With time travel now little more than an equation, something empirically proven and capable of being done again, it would only be a matter of time until Katsuo gathered up the resources and the know-how to do it for himself. Hibiki would have to end such a threat, before it could become one.

_"The Earth is the only world known so far to harbor life. There is nowhere else, at least in the near future, to which our species could migrate. Visit, yes. Settle, not yet. Like it or not, for the moment the Earth is where we make our stand. It has been said that astronomy is a humbling and character-building experience. There is perhaps no better demonstration of the folly of human conceits than this distant image of our tiny_ _world." _

But, as he raised his gaze from the beautiful blue sphere below him, and settled his eyes on the bright white orb that hung above it, he knew he had one last thing to do, before he finalized Katsuo. Hibiki oriented himself at the proper angle, and began to burn chakra, picking up speed at a constant and increasing rate.

_"To me, it underscores our responsibility to deal more kindly with one another, and to preserve and cherish the pale blue dot, the only home we've ever known."_

With little more than a thought, Swift Chakra began flowing through Hibiki's body, and he jumped to relativistic speeds almost instantaneously. Then, with the final addition of his Sharingan removing almost all limits of the bloodline, Hibiki reached that maximum. The computer flashed green - he was good to go. With a pulse of chakra, Hibiki placed his life in the hands of science, and vanished into the cryo seal inside the suit.

* * *

It was instantaneous.

To Hibiki, he hadn't so much as blinked, before the display went from green to red. He blinked once, and looked down below him. His orbit had decayed so much that Earth was no longer a distant sphere beneath him but a close neighbor next to him. With a grunt, Hibiki thrust both hands below him and pulsed his chakra - instantly raising higher and higher into the void, silencing the alarms as he began to ascend. However, ascend wasn't all he did.

He also slowed down.

He wasn't anywhere near - even remotely approaching - his hundred and fifty years. Barely five had passed, but that near five was what he needed for this small excursion off the beaten path. When he slowed back down to normal speeds, he took a peek below him. He was orbiting over Asia at the moment, and he could see that time had indeed passed. Kaguya had already remodeled Japan into the Elemental Nations, and if his math was _right,_ the Sage of Six Paths should be rampaging his way to DC as he floated through the sky.

But it wasn't to DC that Hibiki intended to go.

No, he raised his gaze again, and set his sights on the moon.

It took him forty five minutes to accelerate and decelerate and reach the moon. He almost overshot it, but was able to stick the landing after bouncing off the powdery white surface a few times.

_A lot of firsts..._ Thought Hibiki, as he hit his touch pad a few more times. The suit had been drawing power from a few small solar cells on his back, and they were working beautifully, what with their constant access to unfiltered sunlight.

He gave the Earth another look, eyes briefly narrowing and his brow furrowing, as he wondered if he wouldn't see any of the fireworks from where he was, so far, far away. He lifted his hand, winking one eye shut, and placing in front of the open one his thumb. The entire earth was blotted out by his thumb. He didn't feel like a giant, as he did this. He felt very, very small.

He stood there a moment, blotting out his people's pale blue dot, before he lowered his hand and got to work.

_Ground control to Major Tom..._ He started humming, pulsing his Swift chakra and hopping about the moon.

It took a quarter of an hour to find what it was he was looking for: A lander, next to which an entire space ship had crashed. This wasn't an Apollo 11 lander, though - sentimental as he may be, he wasn't willing to deface such a monument by stepping all over it. No, this lander, it was newer - nearly a century newer. He stepped over to it, but found that the airlock was open. Strange - even if there wasn't anyone inside, protocol wasn't to just _leave_ the airlock open.

Curiously, Hibiki hopped up into the airlock, and peered inside the usually pressurized cabin.

Lights were on inside, but no one was home.

Hibiki frowned, still humming Bowie, if only to generate sound to drown out the muted nothingness outside of his suit.

_If the lights are still on... Then this is new. It's _still_ new. Still fresh._ Hibiki slid out of the lander, and placed his hands on his hips, surveying the ship in front of him, and the area around him.

The ship was _huge,_ a few times larger than a building, and it had an equally huge gash torn out of its midsection, as if a rampaging space monster had torn its way in, or out. Looking back to the Earth, Hibiki frowned, before he nodded. The time was right, and the numbers checked out. He was in the right place, and things were still too hot on Earth. He wouldn't be disturbed.

Hibiki walked alone in the silent white wasteland of the moon. He found footprints dug into the dust, leading towards the toppled titan that was a spaceship. They led to the enormous gash torn out of its center, and then a large, mostly flat groove was dug into the ground, as if someone had shoved a shovel into the ground and begun walking with it, taking some of the dirt with him and parting the rest. Hibiki followed this path, the world an absolute, stunning silence the likes of which he hadn't experienced before, even in the post-war American ruins. At least there had been wind and wildlife, just a small _something,_ but up here, on Earth's one and only moon, there was nothing. Outside of his small, pressurized sack, was the cold, unforgiving harshness of outer space.

It humbled Hibiki, in a way he never thought possible, briefly causing him to look back up to the Earth.

_That's here._ He thought back. _That's us._ He looked forward again, and then up, as he strode down the center of the flattened groove on the moon. _I'm here... _We're_ us..._ He frowned. _But is there anyone else?_ His eyes scanned over the stars, the fading pre-captured images, some merely dozens, others thousands, and others still _millions_ of years old. Some of those stars may be dead now, but light, and information, it all only traveled so fast.

Somewhere out there, there could be a people looking through a telescope, and seeing Earth when the dinosaurs roamed. Further still and they wouldn't see more than the primordial ooze. A little closer, just a few years away by light, they could very well be seeing Earth fall.

Humbled, but so too, lonely.

Even after the Sage would die and mankind would reach some semblance of normalcy in the post-war earth, his people would still be hanging on by a thread. What was their legacy? An arc entombed in a mountain? Pictures that could be taken a few lightyears away? A couple robots on Mars, and a few sun-bleached flags and some ancient landers on the Moon? His people were in a precarious position, perhaps now more than ever. A single nudge in either direction, and they would fall. Gone, forever. Nothing left but radio waves echoing out for eternity - the literal dead echoes of a species long lost.

It made him wonder if the rest of the universe de idn't look like Earth did now. If it was pervaded by chakra. If there was another species, older than his, watching with sorrow as his people all but bombed themselves to the dark ages and reduced themselves to infighting.

Humbling, lonely, and sobering.

Hibiki sighed - that light noise itself loud enough to him to be akin to a gunshot. He straightened out his gaze, and found himself approaching a cave mouth, an enormous one. He nodded once, and followed the tracks inside. It occurred to him as he descended into the depths that he may very well be the first human being in history to go into a cave on the moon.

_A moon spelunker... Moon spelunker... Melunker... Munker..._ He frowned. _I got nothing._ He shrugged, an action not simple in his thick suit.

After a few steps however, he froze.

He remembered once, reading a quote from an astronaut that had served on the International Space Station. It had been tongue in cheek, and obviously meant to be funny, but in a dark-humor kind of way. Hibiki didn't remember exactly how it went, but the general point had been that the scariest thing imaginable in space wasn't the sound of thunder, or an alarm going off, but having all of one's crew accounted for - and then hearing someone else knocking on the window.

Sound was defined as vibrations that traveled through a medium, such as air, or some other gas, or even solids. It was one of the reasons the saying went 'in space, no one can hear you scream' - because there was no medium for sound, in space. No air. No atmosphere, no gas. This was why, mere minutes ago, Hibiki had found himself thinking on how quiet the world - really, the _universe_ \- around him was, out here in space. Dead silent, in a metaphorical and literal fashion.

But as he descended into the cave on the moon, he began to hear things.

Not 'things' as in something whispering to him, or voices speaking to him, but 'things' as a general term. He heard rocks settling, air flowing, he heard his own footsteps, muffled though they were by his helmet. He turned around to the cavemouth. There wasn't anything there even remotely capable of holding a thick enough atmosphere to act as a proper medium for sound. It was an open entrance to open space - it should be completely depressurized. No seal, nothing to hold it in.

Yet, as he slowly, cautiously now, descended into the cave, the sounds grew only louder, as if this atmosphere that could not be, was growing thicker.

Hibiki frowned, _isn't there a..._ He started tapping at the touchpad on his wrist. _Here it is._ A small sensor, it could tell him if there was an atmosphere around him, and if it was breathable or not.

He hit the button and waved his hand around a bit, before his HUD flashed with a checkmark. A moment later, it displayed the results:

78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, 0.9% argon, and 0.03% carbon dioxide.

Perfect for human respiration.

_Holy shit..._ Hibiki thought, as he lifted his gaze. _I found it._ He clenched his jaw, and continued downward.

He continued walking for a quarter of an hour, until finally the ground began to even out. Another few minutes, and the tunnel widened out to an enormous cavern, and he saw something he sorely wished he could have gone the rest of his life without seeing. There, looming above him, was perhaps the perpetrator of his first go at war-crime levels of death and destruction. The object of more than a few nightmares and fever dreams.

The massive, towering, desiccated corpse of the Juubi.

And that meant -

He felt a hand on his shoulder.

Despite sixteen years - sixteen _long_ years - of so much experience that, in any other situation, he likely would have broken the arm and shoved a gun in the person's face, he froze. Because he knew who the hand belonged to. One of the two most dangerous men to have ever, ever, ever existed. The brother of the man, currently, tearing apart the remains of the planet floating below them.

Slowly, with a swallow through a dry throat, Hibiki turned around, looking up to the seven foot tall figure looming above him.

What he found was, in a word, _not_ what he expected. He had thought to see paper white skin, and Hyuuga-like eyes. He thought he would see fleshy horns and a hair so pale blue that it was closer to gray than it was blue. He thought - he had expected - he would see Hamura, the Otsutsuki who had fled to the moon, to seal the Juubi away.

But no, that wasn't the man at whom he was looking. That wasn't the man who knelt down to be eye-level with what, to him, was no-doubt just a space suit, and a person hiding behind its visor. It was as far from it as possible. He was staring down the _other _Otsutsuki. The iron gray-skinned, wrinkled one - though his skin currently had the suppleness of youth. The Otsutsuki with ringed, purple eyes, and a third orb of a distinctly blood red color. The spitting image of his mother. The Sage of Six Paths.

_Hagoromo Otsutsuki._

From his position, kneeling eye-level with Hibiki, the man, the myth, the legend, frowned with such a grim sorrow, and a kind of pain in his eyes, that Hibiki could say that even in him, when he had found NORAD, and even in Dai, in the hospital, he had never seen something quite like it. In his three wide orbs was the dull reflection of Hibiki's own visage, but beyond that was something else. Something soul-crushing.

Regret, of an unparalleled scale.

_"You have..."_ Said the man, in a voice deeper than any Hibiki had ever heard - and still clear enough that it was as if there wasn't a pressurized suit separating Hibiki's ears from that man's throat. _"No..."_ His voice shook, as he nodded his head, eyes locked to Hibiki's. _"Idea... What it means, that you are here."_


	88. Loop: One Giant Leap For Mankind -XII-

_AN:_

_Two fun facts of trivia.  
Three, actually.  
Those tests I mentioned awhile back, unbeknownst to me, all basically equated to trial runs. I'm not happy about that.  
As of this chapter's publication the real deals are... Oh... One day, and a week(ish) away.  
Fortunately I've been studying, but regardless: I'm putting this one up a little early, as I intend to do a whole lot of not thinking after the written test tomorrow.  
That was the first and second bit. _

_Third: This chapter was originally two, and you **may** see the dividing line. But after reading through this and the next two or three, I played a lot of literary musical chairs and changed up the layout. I did this primarily because the Loop arc has gone on **looooong** enough, and that bit here at the end, even if technically it wouldn't have expanded the arc if I'd left it in the next chapter, it still would have **felt** like it did, so that had to change. _

_And also because I didn't like the length of the chapters to follow, versus the layout and storytelling methods. _

_Anyways, here we are at the end of the Loop Arc and... Well, oooooooohh **boy,** I hope it works out well. I've been building this up since the very beginning of the arc, and have been planning, perhaps not this specific chapter, but this **reveal** since even before the History arc, fifty-odd chapters ago._

_So, enjoy the fruits of your labors, folks._

* * *

Chapter 87

* * *

Hibiki Senju stood face to face with the Sage of Six Paths himself, inside a cave on the moon, with enough oxygen inside to make one full atmosphere of pressure, in the wake of the corpse of the ten-tailed beast.

It felt as ridiculous as it sounded.

The problem was that Hibiki couldn't do much from a defensive, or offensive, standpoint. The suit was big and bulky, and while he may be able to summon his pistol, he wasn't sure he'd be able to pull the trigger with how thick the fingers were. Yes, the atmosphere outside was apparently good enough for the Sage to be standing there with no suit on, but Hibiki wouldn't put his trust in this. This was the man who'd taken what had been left of humanity, and shoved the knife right back in.

Hibiki would, however, raise his visor for him, revealing his face to the Sage, whose frown only turned deeper as he was beheld by Hibiki's blood red Sharingan eyes. "My god, you're so young..." The iron-skinned man said.

Hibiki frowned, though his was less from sorrow and regret, than it was anger and focus. "If you're up here..." He looked back to the tunnel leading up to the surface of the moon. "Does that mean it's done?"

Hagoromo, however, shook his head. "No." He breathed, "no... It's still happening. He's..." His breath got caught in his throat, prompting Hibiki to turn his gaze, and see that it appeared as if the Sage was holding back tears. "Got to finish it." He said, with a nod, and tightly clenched eyes.

Hibiki's brows furrowed, "are you not Hagoromo? The Sage?"

Hagoromo nodded, "I am." He said, "but... But there is so much you do not know." He said, slowly rocking back onto his heels, and then standing to full height. Hibiki now had a moment to take him in, and he found that, aside from a robe-like, billowing white coat, the Sage's image was far from what he had expected. He saw jeans and a plain T-shirt, gloves on his hands and what looked like a pair of dogtags hanging from his neck.

Hibiki's frown deepened, "are you saying it was Hamura that ended what was left of the world?" As a matter of fact, "how do you know who I am?"

The Sage nodded, "please... Would you follow me?" He asked, gesturing to the tunnel. "I feel... Ill at ease, in my mother's presence. And I would rather take a look upon our pale blue dot, before the light of my mother's generation is snuffed out."

Hibiki's frown didn't change, but he nodded, sliding down his visor.

"The easiest thing to explain to you... Is the nature of the Rinnegan." Hagoromo began, his coat flowing in tandem with his feet.

"I assume it will be what lets you survive out there without a suit." A pause, "and up here for so long, separated from Earth's chakra-laden biosphere."

Hagoromo nodded. "It is the progenitor of all of what you know as bloodlines." He explained, "and it allows such a minute... Intrinsic control over chakra, the likes of which few who do not possess it can ever reach." Said Hagoromo, as they left the cavern and began ascending to the moon's surface once again. "But more than that... It grants a skill, to those who have mastered it. A skill I only..." He sighed, "only recently learned, and only because of strict tutelage from my master."

Hibiki looked up to Hagoromo, the man illuminated by twin flashlights on Hibiki's helmet. "Master?" Hibiki idly wondered how the Sage would continue speaking with him once they left this atmospheric environment, but after a moment, concluded that it may be because he'd just bring the atmosphere _with_ him. Maybe he was capable of generating a magnetic field, too - such that he didn't get assaulted by the sun's radiation, enough so that his cancer's cancer would get cancer.

Hagoromo, however, ignored Hibiki's question, and continued on. "You know of M-theory." He said, "of the dimensions of the universe."

This actually got Hibiki's frown to drop, now to a look of barely contained shock. "You're not about to tell me you have foresight."

Hagoromo waved his hand in a so-so fashion. "Insomuch that... Seeing all things, the past, future, and present, is foresight." He said, "length, height, width, and time. A _mastered_ Rinnegan, allows such minute control over chakra that a person can exist partially in the fourth dimension. They can transcend death, can see all things, as they happened, are happening, and will happen. Time ceased to hold any true meaning for me."

Hibiki couldn't help but shake his head. "So you knew who I was... Because to you, you'd already had this conversation." A pause, "you could even just _look_ a thousand years into the future. Watch my entire life. Look back, watch my first one... All in the time it would take you to blink." If the Rinnegan was that powerful, Hibiki shuddered to think what that man's brain must look like, to be capable of processing all of that literally endless information. "You must have experienced exponential growth, once you got there." He drawled.

Hagoromo nodded, "breaking time... It granted me power enough that, alongside my master..." A pause, "alongside my brother..." His frown deepened. "My _friend..._ I and he were capable of defeating my mother... And for a time, it was good. But then, I took a look at a man's fate, in a hospital."

Hibiki's frown returned. "And?"

"I saw him dying of a disease heretofore nonexistant upon this Earth." He said, "a disease that rode along the wake of the same meteor that granted myself and my master our wondrous abilities. The very same source of power from which we drew. That man... Kenneth, G, Dohaney. He showed me that chakra was inherently poisonous to human beings."

"Then how do we still exist, in the future?"

"My master and I asked the same question, and our answer was... Disheartening." Hagoromo sighed. "Alongside many of the brightest minds of the Earth, we learned that the reason he, I, and my mother, were all so capable of using chakra as we were was because of the fruit of the god tree. It catalyzed it within her, changing her on a genetic level, making her capable of using it, and being immune to that which would poison the uninitiated."

"Like a person becoming immune to a disease after they contract it." Hibiki nodded, turning his gaze back forward, the twin beams of his flashlight lighting up the cave in front of them.

Hagoromo nodded, "without catalyzation, chakra is inherently poisonous to human beings. We cannot, on any level, handle its power, and our bodies begin shutting down. We die." He said, "the fruit of the god tree, however, it changed my mother and myself. It catalyzed chakra within us, changing our bodies in such a way that we could handle the power, survive the strain. Thousands of years of evolution in mere seconds.

"Left alone... It would take many thousands of years... And many billions of lives, for humankind to naturally evolve a form of immunity to chakra. To adapt to it. But then, we learned, that it would still prove inherently lethal to those who would use it - to them, the absolute height of their powers would put them on par with rookie academy students of your time, and they would still be risking their lives every time. It would burn us, from the inside out, kill those who used too much. It would take many _millions_ of years, and countless billions more lives, to finally reach a point where natural evolution would allow us to coexist with this alien influence.

"Time, and lives, we did not have."

Hibiki frowned, not liking where this was going. "I assume you figured out how to catalyze chakra in humans." He prodded.

Hagoromo's voice caught in his throat, but he nodded nonetheless. "I learned of a method... But it was not perfect. Not all humans can survive catalyzation. For every one that can, a thousand cannot."

Hibiki turned back to Hagoromo, as the light of the sun began to creep into the cave, signifying their nearly reaching the surface. "That..." He thought back to Ellis' epitaph, when he saw the sage pick up all of the soldiers in the room. Tendrils of chakra hit them all, and several of them had disintegrated, but two had not. Was that because they'd survived catalyzation? "How does it work?"

"Forced evolution." Said Hagoromo. "Human beings..." He paused, "the eight gates were not natural." He finally said.

And that was the piece that Hibiki had been missing.

The Eight Gates were touted endlessly as the only reason humans were able to even live, as without them the force of chakra running through their bodies would kill, or at least cripple, them. Hagoromo's description of humans without them matched Hibiki's knowledge and experience of himself having opened them - he could most certainly use the power, but it came at a great physical cost. If Hibiki understood Hagoromo correctly, it sounded as if the Eight Gates would _never_ form naturally, humans would only adapt and evolve to such a point that they could _survive_ living next to chakra, and even then, it would still prove lethal beyond reason for them to use. He hadn't once said that they could evolve to Elemental Nations levels - only to a point where they could coexist with chakra. That did not imply control and mastery, only survival.

So Hagoromo and Hamura took a third option, using the Sage's unparalleled mastery of his Rinnegan to change things. They forcibly evolved humans, changed them on a genetic level such that the eight gates would naturally form within them, and even pass onto their offspring. This would allow them both immunity to chakra's detrimental effects, and shinobi-like control over it to boot.

This also explained why Hagoromo was so powerful. He had a Rinnegan, yes, but it was what he _didn't_ have that was important. He _didn't_ have the eight gates - the fruit of the god tree had evolved him in such a way that his body was able to naturally process chakra with a one hundred percent efficiency. He didn't need the eight gates, and as such he could use _all_ of the power of chakra with no drawbacks, and added onto the control that he sad his Rinnegan allowed - enough such that he could experience time fourth dimensionally! - he was a being that was all but limitless.

And his mother was actively being implied to be _stronger_ than _him._

Hibiki had never felt so small.

"So chakra is inherently lethal to humans." He said, with a slow nod. "And you and Hamura..." He noticed a brief still to Hagoromo's step, as they approached the cavemouth. "You two catalyzed chakra in everyone. Built the eight gates and made it such that they could be passed on from parent to child. But to do so..." He looked up, flipping off his flashlight, and taking in the Earth once again. "You had to sacrifice the entire remaining population of homo sapiens. To create what they called Homo Novus. New Man." Hibiki turned to the Sage, seeing him in a new light, now suddenly aware that the bogeyman reputation he'd built for himself, that the Terrans had built for him, was anything but. "And you didn't tell them." He rumbled.

Hagoromo nodded.

"Hope, Hibiki." He said, "you know as well as I its unrivaled power and lethality. Truly, the mere hope of something being possible, can cause the miraculous. But the opposite is also true, and we couldn't let that happen. If we told them... If we told mankind that in order for a few to be saved, many would have to die, they would lose all hope. Without it, those few that survived catalyzation would simply... Lay down. Die. Hopeless.

"So my master came up with a plan. He sent me away to the moon, to store my mother's corpse, while he spoke with Ellis. He _told_ the man, but phrased it in such a way that he came off as arrogant. Haughty. He did so to imply to Ellis that he had the choice - lay down his arms and cease his fighting. Allow him to catalyze as many people as physically possible, to allow as many to survive as he could." Hagoromo explained. "You can imagine..." He rumbled, "that after being told that his only options were to lay down and die, or fight and die, Ellis grew angry; and that was exactly what my master wanted. Anger. Hate. He had to be a unifying presence - such that even those who survived catalyzation would, with their new power, have hope to fight, and an enemy to prepare against." He said, with a deep sigh.

At this, Hibiki turned fully to Hagoromo. "Explain that to me. Explain that - because this entire time, you've been implying to me that your master never had a Rinnegan." He said, "and then take into consideration NORAD. Everything that the Terrans recorded - every single everything - painted _you specifically_ as the Sage of Six Paths. The man who ruined the world and killed everyone. It was your picture, your face, your eyes. Not your master's. So how could he trick everyone - _everyone - _into thinking he was you, and catalyze everyone to boot, if he didn't even have your eyes to begin with? How is that possible?"

At this, Hagoromo shook his head. "He did have Rinnegan eyes, Hibiki... But he rejected them. Nearly died when they awakened, after his battle against my mother." He said, his sorrowful, purple, ringed eyes still locked onto the distant pale blue dot. "Truly, he was the first to awaken them... He was many firsts." Said the Sage, "he was first even before my mother to have chakra in a non-lethal capacity. He... He and his friends. But only he survived to meet my mother, to be the first to struggle against her."

Hibiki shook his head, "what kind of fucking sense does that make?!" He demanded, "how the hell could he even have chakra..." He trailed off, blazing red eyes lowering their gaze. "Before..." His eyes slowly widened. "Before..." Before everyone else. "Oh..." He turned back up to the world. "Oh my god."

There were only two explanations. That Hagoromo's master was an alien - an actual extraterrestrial alien - or he was something empirically more likely.

He was a time traveler.

Hagoromo turned his gaze now down to Hibiki, breaking contact with the Earth as the Senju fell to his knees.

"I can see all things, Hibiki Senju. Past, present, and future. My bloodlines stretch far, to the Uchiha, the Senju, the Hyuga, and the Uzumaki. They all herald back to me. The Rinnegan never ceased to exist, but was rather broken up into its constituent parts. The Uchiha gained its power. The Hyuuga, its all-seeing nature - for what is fourth dimensional awareness, but the ability to see _everything?_ The Uzumaki, its life-giving vitality. The Senju gained its unparalleled ability to grant chakra control. Unifying these constituent parts, could therefor reawaken it. Madara Uchiha learned this." Said the Sage, "and in his final battle against Hashirama Senju, was able to steal small portions of Hashirama's genetic structure and fuse them to his own. In so doing... He unified the bloodlines. When he was closest to death then, the Rinnegan awoke within him."

A pause, so pregnant that it nearly drove Hibiki mad.

"There exists only one other such unification of bloodlines." Said the Sage. "One unprecedented in its makeup. Of so many small parts of the whole that it ceased to be the sum of said parts, and instead became something else entirely. All that was needed then, was variables to be met. An experience, so close to death that they were closer to the other side than ours... Such a trauma would awaken it... But my master..." Hagoromo looked back up to the Earth. "He didn't know this. He knew only that he had to fight my mother, as it was all he had left. He survived an attempt on his life, not nearly close enough for someone such as he to reach such a level, and awoke mere days after the meteor hit this earth. He fought my mother with everything... _Everything."_ He stressed, "all of his power, and the eight gates on top of them.

"When he failed... He was brought so close to death that the Rinnegan awoke, and brought him back. But the cost... He was so drained empty of his chakra that his gates were empty. He was but a mortal man again, and the Rinnegan took chakra he quite literally did not have. So he rejected it, tore it out of his skull and had new eyes transplanted, such that he could do all he had left, and fight in the war that followed his failure. He _had_ a Rinnegan, Hibiki... But he couldn't use it."

"And... And how did you find him?" Hibiki breathed, numbly.

"He survived _decades_ of war... Until one day alone he found himself with no place to retreat. Even without chakra he was still superhuman... Muscles denser than most men, reflexes, speed, and stamina higher than all others... And with that power, as he would tell me, came a sense of obligation. An obligation that led him to trade his life for that of a train, filled to the bursting point with nearly one million people. It was he and he alone facing a horde of my mother's Zetsu... And he prevailed, buying time enough for the train and his allies to escape, but not him.

"But where he expected to die, he was instead birthed again with a power he had not tasted for decades. He regained his chakra, and I sensed his return. With his power, even just a tenth of it was enough to wipe out all of the Zetsu in the blink of an eye. I found him before he returned to his allies on the frontline... His and I's battle was biblical. It measured on the Richter scale, on the other side of the planet. But I was able, after so much struggle, to convince him of my genuity... Barely escaping with my life." He explained.

"He trained me, then. Helped me craft the story we would give to the world - of him being my brother. We crafted his image, chose his name, and allthewhile he trained me. Did everything in his power to make mine supersede his. I did not believe him, at first, but as the war grew to its twilight years, I finally grew the control over my Rinnegan, that allowed me the power I would need to join him in battle. Together, we made contact with Ellis... And rallied the world's armies. One final push... One final battle. Everything they had... Everything we had... Against my mother, and everything she had.

"I was able to steal fractions of her... Seal them into titanic bodies made of pure chakra. Nine attacks was what it took... Each more damaging than the last. Nine attacks, for nine beasts. When she was down, and weak, my master and I finally laid the finishing blow, sealing her within the desiccated corpse of the Juubi. He thought... For the briefest of times... That he had won... But then, while helping the wounded... I peered into the future to see a man's fate."

"He..." Hibiki breathed.

"He knew what had to be done... Why it had to be done. I begged him to allow me. He had experienced and seen so much... So many things had happened to him. So much trauma, trouble, and hardship. Even, at points, death. He deserved a rest, he deserved peace, he deserved so much more than I could give him... But he refused. He said, let him bear that hate, let him take that weight, so as to not burden me with the guilt of having exterminated an entire species. He would take that on him, and I would remain... Innocent, as it were. My hands clean. The image of the sage had to be corrupted... It had to be turned to a unifying symbol of anger and hatred... But the person, but I... did not have to create such an image. I did not have to commit this atrocity.

"So he used his abilities, to take on my form. To briefly adopt my power, and set to work."

"But..." Hibiki swallowed, "how did he..."

"Time, Hibiki." Said the Sage. "It is relative, and it is nonlinear. Even for such a little length, he possessed a Rinnegan. And through it, he, as are all who do, was... Precluded, in a manner of speaking. Protected, from changes from time. He would always exist, even if such a change were to happen that would eliminate the possibility." He paused, "all who gain a Rinnegan obtain such an ability. So even in what you recorded as Loop Three... I still existed, in my exile here, upon the moon. And even now, despite their timeline having been erased by the changes of the man you called Richard... So too do Momoshiki and Kinshiki exist, still entombed in their ship and still hurtling towards the sun. As they and I did, and do, so too will my master always exist, to take my place. To spare me this horror."

Hibiki felt as if his head were in a vice. "Is... I hope you're generating an atmosphere?" Hagoromo nodded. "Good." He gasped, tearing his helmet off of his head and falling to his hands, standing in open space in a fully exposed suit, his face covered his sweat. It sounded suicidal, but at the moment he'd stopped questioning these kinds of things. He just needed to be out of the suit.

After he took a few minutes to get his heart rate back under control, he asked, "how... If you can see everything, tell me. How will he reconcile his loop and mine?"

"You have data. Ellis' epitaph, from the first loop. He did too." A pause, "give it moments... You will see the end of that conversation play out." He held out his hand, chakra flowing out of it.

Hibiki didn't even bother to question how the image of the Earth seemed to expand, centering on the United States' East Cost. Seconds later, an enormous ball of light suddenly bloomed into being near the middle of the coast. Hibiki knew what it was, as the shockwave spread out, parting clouds. It was the nukes, Ellis had packed into the White House, to try and kill the Sage.

"He will survive." Hagoromo said, needlessly. "And in days, he will find the last vestiges of human civilization. His goal complete. I shall return to him. I will tell him of what happens. Of Richard's exchange of his book for Loop Three's. I will tell him what it will lead to, and the conversation taking place right now. Together, we will enter the bunker and make the necessary changes, such that you, in your time, you will ask so many questions... So many small ripples, so many beats of the wings of a butterfly will inevitably lead you to concluding that the study and use of chakra is not the path to the solution to which you yearn, but science. Leading... To the closure of the loop."

Hibiki hauled his head back up, staring at the image of the Earth being superimposed in front of the distant blue marble. The mushroom cloud still spreading out. It felt as if, despite the decreased gravity dragging at his body, it took all of his strength to get to his feet, to pick up his helmet and clap the lunar soil from his hands.

"And after that?"

Hagoromo was silent a moment, before he whispered, "the headstone."

Hibiki let out a shuddering laugh. "Must've not wanted to... Die alone." He gasped. "He... He picked a hell of a place to sit and rest."

"If you've the decision... I've just a slight more to show you." Said the Sage.

Hibiki let out a genuine laugh, this time. "You've pretty much shattered everything I thought I knew since I came back to life, Hagoromo. What else do you have to show me?"

From a pocket in his jacket, Hagoromo pulled out a small cube. When Hibiki looked at it, he saw the Flux Capacitor, the ink covering every available surface of the cube.

"Context." Said Hagoromo, as he poured chakra into the cube.

The change was instantaneous - one second, Hibiki was on the moon, and the next, in an environment he couldn't quite explain. Just looking around, it made his head hurt. Geometry of a mind-bendingly alien design. Long, square corridors stretched endlessly in all directions, windows covered the walls at regular, endless intervals. Every corridor was its own world, and every corridor branched out into endless more, which themselves branched again, and again, and again, ad infinitum.

"Where did you bring me?"

"To the culmination of three thousand loops of work." Said Hagoromo. "This is how I see the world." He said, as he bade Hibiki follow him.

The ground shifted underneath them at blurrying speeds, going from the white dusty surface of the moon to the green grassy earth in hardly a handful of seconds. As Hibiki looked around, watching the sun rise and fall in reverse, Hibiki realized what this was.

"It's a tesseract. A hypercube... We're in fourth dimensional space." They were in a dimension where space and time were nonlinear. Dozens of years were passing by in reverse as they crossed the distance between earth and the moon in seconds. "But... Why?"

"To give you context." Said Hagoromo, "conviction." He explained. "While those with a Rinnegan do become separated... Displaced, from time, time itself can still affect them. Nonlinear though it may be... There is an endless number of ways the history of things to come can play out. Endless worlds, endless possibilities."

"Every future is possible until it's not." Said Hibiki. "You're trying to tell me that a tesseract is... What, a portal to the multiverse?"

"In a manner of speaking." Said Hagoromo. "Imagine a box. Place an object in that box and then close it. Quantum mechanics dictates that, until such a time as you open the box again and observe what is inside, theoretically, _anything_ could be inside of it. From a baseball, to a stick of dynamite." He brandished the cube. "Now imagine the tesseract as the box..."

"And time and space as the shit you put in it." Hibiki breathed. "And because you stuffed in it a dimension where both of those things are nonlinear... You can see all of those infinite possibilities."

Hagoromo nodded, as they rewound to before Kaguya. "This time we are in now... This path we shall follow... It shall lead us..." And forward they zoomed, until they were in the deep, dark, gray lab of a shinobi unlike any other. "To your rebirth."

Through the window they peered through, they were looking down on the lab from above, its lone, elderly occupant couldn't see them from their higher dimension. Hibiki pressed against the window, and found the perspective shifting, almost like changing the view of a camera in a video game. They rotated around the man and were now resting in front of him, as he poured chakra into a familiar looking body. Hibiki had to let go of the window and clench his suddenly queasy stomach, his mind still bending from experiencing so intimately a dimension he was, quite literally, not built for.

"Is that... That's Tarzan." Hibiki said, frowning, as he looked at the gray-skinned body. "So..." He looked up.

"Kenichi the graverobber." Said the Sage. "This is the moment that defines this timeline. His success here..." A bright green pulse of chakra, and the body lurched, suddenly filled with life as it took its first breath. "Leads to your rebirth." They slid to the side, dozens of years passing by in fast-motion until they found Kenichi coaxing a soul into an infant body.

Moments later, after a pulse of blue-white light, the infant began wailing, and then a moment after that, several Anbu, one in a familiar looking wolf mask, burst into the room, and perforated Kenichi with dozens of kunai.

"And this, to everything you've seen. But..." Time reversed again, they slid along the barrier until they were back to Kenichi animating Tarzan. "If he failed..." And nothing happened. No pulse of light, no lurch of the corpse, nothing. "It would inevitably lead elsewhere. This failure would lead to another... To another, to another, and you, Katsuo, the Undead... None of you would exist."

After another flurry of motion, they now stood in a place Hibiki knew all too well: The valley of the end. On the two statues, neither having been destroyed due to Hibiki not even having existed, there stood two boys, each hardly older than Hibiki. One wore robe-like vestments with an Uchiha crest on his back, the other in an orange jumpsuit. The two crossed the distance between eachother in seconds and clashed in a furious duel. It stretched on for hours, turning titanic in its scale before it obliterated the valley and left only two exhausted boys - but they carried on regardless, deprived of their chakra but not their desire to defeat their opponent. By the time they were finished, they hardly even had energy to breathe, let alone continue punching, but still they went, their blows reduced to light taps against the bodies of the other.

Hibiki turned to the Sage, "what context is this supposed to give me?" He asked, as the two engaged one final time, one carrying in his hand a bright blue sphere, and the other, jet black lightning.

Hagoromo nodded, "all of it. Zetsu is not, as you have thought, _my_ agent, but rather one of my mother's. In this time, he succeeded in bringing her back to life, but these two dealt with her." He explained.

"And _I_ dealt with _him."_ Said Hibiki.

Hagoromo sighed, "after this battle... In this time the world will finally know peace." He said, resting his hand against the barrier between their endlessly stretching tesseract and the world he was showing him. "But... With the changes made by your presence..." They slid back along the walls of the tesseract, going back along the endless, omnidirectional corridors of the hypercube. "There exists a new threat. Just as great as she."

Hibiki frowned, "Katsuo." He grunted, as they slid to a halt, now staring at a world that was dark and enveloped by deep clouds and an endless monsoon. "What happened?"

"This is time as it passed, whilst you were in the loop."

"The clock in San Dimas was still running." Hibiki surmised, as he watched Katsuo, his face full of rage, hover above Konoha, the only other surviving Undead, Aeneas, right next to him.

His eyes flashed the same vibrant green that radiated around his body, and in the blink of an eye, Konoha was burned off of the face of the Earth. Hibiki didn't even need the Sage to tell him why. Just as he'd concluded in Iwa, Katsuo wasn't being a good supervillain - but instead of training, he'd _learned._ Just as Hibiki had demonstrated it being endlessly easier to just kill the batman, Katsuo turned around, took that lesson, and taught it again, using his strongest attack to wipe out Konoha, in his rage at being denied his chance to go back through time.

Hibiki watched as, in the settling smoke and ashes, fewer than five people were able to dig their way out of the rubble. Dante dug out of the Hokage's office, one eye a milky white and the other blazing red, bleeding freely. Tsunade pushed a mountain of rubble off of her from the ruins of the hospital. Even Noboru and Suboro revealed themselves, but the latter having a bloody stump where his arm was, and the former nursing horrendous burns across half of his face.

All of them, grievously injured, the remainder of Konohagakure, versus two Undead, both enraged, fresh-faced, and ready for battle. It took less than ten minutes. They managed to kill Aeneas, at the cost of Noboru and Suboro. Dante attempted the Izanagi against Katsuo, but was burned to death before he could summon up the chakra he'd need. Tsunade lasted the longest, she being the only one even remotely capable of generating enough force of impact to break his durability and leave lasting injuries. But even with her Strength of a Hundred seal, and her _immense_ raw physical strength, she'd burned a great deal of chakra to survive Katsuo's opening volley. Their one-on-one duel lasted forty five seconds, before Katsuo ripped her head from her body.

As the sole surviving Undead, Katsuo turned his eyes on the rest of the world.

All of the villages united couldn't stand against him, as he tore through them with reckless abandon. All of the surviving Jinchuriki and their Kage only slowed him down. Hibiki was gone in this time, stuck in the Loop, and Teague, without the Alpha, had vanished alongside him. By the time Katsuo was done, only Tarzan was left, but he, having never fought a day in his life, had not the experience to stand up to the more monstrous of the two. He had the nature energy, but not the fighting strength. The last battle of the human race began and ended within an hour.

"You see what I try now to tell you."

Hibiki nodded. "I _have_ to kill Katsuo." Just as L1 Hibiki had said.

"I can assure you, Hibiki... Once Katsuo is well and truly dead, your world will see a peace the likes of which it has not experienced in its entire history." The Sage promised, as the tesseract collapsed around them, the tunnels folding in on themselves before they finally found themselves on Earth.

Hibiki looked around, cradling his helmet under his arm. "Are we home?"

The Sage nodded. "The loop has closed."

"I need something from you." Hibiki said, slowly. "I have no right to ask you of it... But I need it nonetheless."

In response, the Sage placed the Flux Capacitor in Hibiki's hand. "It was yours to begin with, Hibiki." He rumbled, as the grass around them billowed.

Hibiki lowered his gaze, finding himself standing a few feet in front of a headstone. Upon it was written the name _David Semloh,_ and against it, was leaning a skeleton. Hibiki knelt down in front of the skeleton, brushing aside the grass. The skeleton's head had a hole in the top of its skull that L1 had never noticed, and on the ground, in its right hand, was a pistol half-buried in the grass that had grown around it.

Around its neck, however, was an ancient, green gemstone. Hibiki frowned, and twisted off the glove of his suit. Once he'd freed his hand, he reached the neck of the suit, fingering the necklace given to him by his mother. The green gem of a brighter luster and less weathered, but otherwise completely identical.

He turned to the Sage, but found he was alone.

_Yeah... That figures._ Thought the frowning Senju. _He did what he had to... And he was needed elsewhere._ He thought, turning back forward to the ancient skeleton.

He reached forward and fingered the gemstone hanging from its neck. He could feel something, faintly, pulsing within it. It was chakra, a small string of it, but familiar nonetheless, and held in place by fuinjutsu. With a swallow through a dry throat, Hibiki pulsed a tiny bit of chakra into it, feeling as if he already knew what would happen. A moment later, the chakra fizzled out from inside the gemstone, and he felt a hand rest on his shoulder.

Looking over it, he found himself looking at a tall, tanned man. A scar ran down his face, bisecting one of his eyes and ending at the right corner of his mouth. The man looked down to him with two onyx orbs, the light within them dulled with age. His muscles were denser than Hibiki's, his body just as lean, and garbed from the waist down in the uniform of a soldier, and from the chest up in a familiar looking overcoat. His hair, however, he'd cut his hair - likely having gotten sick of it getting in his eyes during firefights. His previously raven hair was now shaved to his scalp, giving him a buzz-cut after Suboro's own heart.

There were no words exchanged between the two of them. There didn't have to be. They were, after all, the same person. They always had been. They always would be. The Sage of Six Paths was not one man, but two, each temporally displaced, immune to the easily and wildly changing annals of time. This man, standing above him, was just as much the Sage, as Hagoromo Otsutsuki was.

He had taken onto him an evil heretofore unrivaled, and likely never again to be. He had done so, drawn the ire of the entire human race, and even himself, to save them all. To instill an anger in a man, and a hope of a victory eventual. After all, what drove progress faster than conflict? What was more necessary than solving a problem, given in challenge? Progress stagnated without conflict. Necessity was the mother of invention. Both of these together were what had driven the growth his own strength, and even the growth of his entire species, both before, and after, the loop.

He knew all of this, the first Sage. He took on this responsibility because only he could shoulder it. He took it on to spare the second Sage, the 'true' Sage, of that guilt, of that filth. To even go so far as to damn himself, separating himself from time such that he existed in a way that even time changing would not erase existence. He chose what could be defined as _hell _eternal, because he knew he could do it. Because he was the only one he could. He did so with great humility, but also a grim decades, and decades, and decades of fighting a war he could not win, it wore at him. The brief glimmer of hope when he regained his powers, the glimmer growing to a fire when he joined forces with Hagoromo. The hope that was nearly snuffed out in its entirety when he realized what he had to do, after Hagoromo came to him with his prophetic vision. This hope, and even the lackthereof, it drove his every action.

Because he knew, that as long as the loop existed, eventually, while not released from his hell, his work would inevitably bear fruit, and his sacrifice made worthwhile. Eventually, so long as he continued on, he would see it - the loop that was successful. The restabilization of it all. The closure of the Loop. It was why he sealed such a small portion of chakra into Tsunade's necklace, so he, for himself, for just a few minutes, could actually _see_ it.

Hibiki stood to his feet, turning to face himself. The ancient, elder Hibiki looked down at him, standing a foot taller than him, a light smile playing on his scarred face, but not one that reached his eyes.

"Do you want to see her?" He asked.

Longing entered the elder dead man's eyes, as he briefly looked down to the younger of the two's legs, knowing that was where he kept his scrolls. "It's been so long." He murmured, in a deep, rumbly voice with an aged tremolo.

"You know she'll do it." Hibiki told himself. "Not even a second's hesitation."

"Heh..." The elder Hibiki huffed, dryly. "Yeah... I guess she would." He said, as the younger of the two began disassembling the space suit, sliding out of it and dropping the heavy pieces to the ground.

Soon, he had the cryo seals arrayed across the ground. But when Hibiki reached for Dai's seal, the elder of the two grabbed his hand, stopping him. Hibiki looked up to himself, but the elder of the two's arm was shaking, his face set in a neutral frown, as he stared at the seal. He swallowed thickly, before he nodded and let go of Hibiki's arm, backing up.

With a pulse of chakra, and a plume of smoke, Dai appeared. She stumbled back a step, having lost her balance, but Hibiki was there, keeping her steady.

"Hey..." Said Hibiki, "it's the vertigo, just breathe." He said, "let me help..." He reached up to her helmet, and with a light click, twisted it off of her head.

Dai blinked, as the light of the sun hit her amber eyes. "It... Really was, just a blink of an eye." She said, with a light grin. "Are we home?"

The younger Hibiki nodded to her, humming in the affirmative. "Yeah." He said, "now, there's someone that needs to see you." He said, as he helped Dai slide the upper half of the suit off of her.

Dai frowned, as she slid off the suspenders holding the pants up, and stepped out. "Who?" She asked, as she reached inside her hoody and pulled out her sunglasses.

Hibiki simply nodded over her shoulder. "Someone who hasn't seen you in entirely too long."

With a tilted head, she turned around, finding the elder Hibiki there, leaning against one of the ancient headstones. She blinked once, her neck straightening up as she took him in. Her eyes slowly widening, her brow furrowing, Dai turned her head to the younger Hibiki, then to the older one, recognition dawning in her eyes, just as he had hoped would.

"What..." Dai breathed, weakly. "What have you seen?" Her eyes were locked to the elder's scarred onyx orbs.

"It's..." The older Hibiki's voice shook, as he slid off of the headstone, and to his knees. "It's a... A very..." His voice hardly more powerful than a whisper. "A long story... I - he'll tell you." He rumbled, as the glasses fell from Dai's hand and to the ground. "But... Please give me this." He begged, holding his mostly limp arms to the side.

Just as he'd said, there wasn't a second of hesitation. Dai crossed the distance between her and the elder Hibiki in a second, providing him perhaps the only thing he'd yearned for in the entirety of his war against Kaguya. The one thing that would make his temporally displaced hell worth it.

She embraced him as tightly as she could, and said, _"you need only ask."_

The elder Hibiki let out a single, rasping breath, as he wrapped his arms around her. His breaths came faster, as he held her as close to him as possible. Unable to speak, he simply knelt there, holding, and being held by his very reason to fight, personified. Whether it was minutes, hours, or years, it didn't matter. He held her as long as he could, before, as if they'd coordinated it, they let go.

Dai looked down into the elder, mostly dead Hibiki's eyes, and ran a finger over the scar that traced across his face. "I told you, Hibiki." She whispered, "I always believed in you."

There was another near-sob from the scarred Senju, as he nodded, "I missed you so much." He breathed, as if putting any strength or volume to his voice would cause him to lose what little strength he had left.

They stayed like this for another minor eternity, before the scarred Senju got back to his feet. He looked to his younger counterpart, and approached. As his feet propelled him forward, his body began to evaporate, like a fire dying and sending its last shower of embers into the air. The small sliver of chakra he'd donated so many years ago, only able to keep his image afloat for so long. There was only thing one left to do. Only one thing the elder Hibiki needed to hear.

When the scarred Senju reached his younger counterpart, he looked down, seeing the cube at Hibiki's feet. He stooped down to pick it up, as the younger of the two held out his hand, which the elder grasped,

"I'm..." He grunted, "I'm sorry I hated you for so long. I didn't know, but now I do, and... I forgive you." He looked up to his elder self.

Hibiki looked at himself, a single, lone tear welling up in his eye, as he frowned, and clapped the cube into his younger self's hand. "Earn this. _Earn_ it." Was what he responded with, before he evaporated in a shower of blue embers, them all spreading out into the air and getting caught on the breeze, before they too finally vanished, and this Hibiki, the Sage of Six Paths, was finally, and truly, put to rest.

* * *

There was a long silence following the elder, scarred Hibiki's departure. Knowing, however, that he owed Dai an explanation, the first thing the younger, now sole Hibiki did was to explain to Dai exactly what had just happened.

"It's... _Really_ goddamn complicated, and I can hardly understand it myself." Hibiki said, storing his and Dai's suits in a seal. "But the easiest way I can think of to explain it..." He drawled, "is... We've got the loops, yeah?" He said.

Dai nodded, "yes."

"And I spent a few days trying to reconcile Dick - uh, Richard's loop with the ones before it."

Another nod.

"Well, I figured it out." He said, simply. "When Richard went back in time, he swapped out the books after that Hibiki and his group died. But... As it turns out, that Hibiki had enough chakra to survive the gunshots, and stayed under long enough to survive until he could start generating chakra again. After that, he fought Kaguya after she ate the fruit." He leaned back against his headstone. "If I had to guess, he assumed that because he'd waited until she ate the fruit, that he could avoid Loop Three.

"But, he didn't win. She was too strong. Even with the eight gates, he couldn't beat her. He _barely_ survived the gates, and the trauma of almost dying awoke a Rinnegan - the Sage of Six Paths' dojutsu." He explained. "Problem, though: He was drained dry. If he even opened his eyes, the chakra the Rinnegan needed to spend to work would kill him, so he ripped 'em out and had them swapped out." He shrugged, "exactly how, I don't know, but apparently it worked. So, after that, he did the only thing he _could_ do, and fought. Picked up a gun, put on a uniform, and fought all over the world. Fought Kaguya's army. After a while, he refilled his eight gates naturally, and got his power back, and after _that,_ he found Kaguya's son, Hagoromo."

Dai frowned, sitting cross-legged in front of her fiance. "I cannot imagine that ended well."

Hibiki chuckled, "nope." He said, shaking his head. "Don't know how big it was, but the Sage said it was 'biblical', their fight. So I assume it was fucking _huge._ But, the Sage convinced that Hibiki he had genuine intentions, and Hibiki chose to train him, so they could fight Kaguya. Here is where they came up with the story of Hamura... Probably to avoid explaining time travel." He said, "though, they swapped that out for something even more complicated. Have I ever told you about the theory of temporal displacement?"

Dai shook her head.

"Simply, something from one timeline exists in another. Anyone who possesses a Rinnegan, and properly masters it, becomes temporally displaced such that, even if they technically _shouldn't_ exist in a timeline, they still will." Chakra just grew more and more impossible as time went on. "Give an example - if I was temporally displaced, and someone went back in time to kill Kenichi the graverobber... Technically I shouldn't exist anymore, but due to my displacement, I still would."

"Okay." Dai nodded, "anyone with a Rinnegan becomes displaced, such as this?"

"A mastered Rinnegan, yes. Hagoromo learned this when he, under that Hibiki - I'll call him Hamura, to avoid confusion - mastered his Rinnegan. After he mastered it, Hagoromo and Hamura fought Kaguya, defeating her and sealing her away." He pulled out a pair of canteens from a storage scroll, and handed one to Dai. "But, they _then_ learned that chakra is, in and of itself, lethal to humans. The eight gates? People didn't evolve those naturally. They had to be created from scratch and put in people." He indicated her, "so, you know, you, with your Kikaichu eating away at them, you could technically be closer to regular humans than anyone else."

"Bow before me." Dai deadpanned, nodding to the ground. "Perhaps I shall choose to bless your presence."

Hibiki rolled his eyes, "so Hagoromo learned this, and used his Rinnegan to look into the future. He learned that, while we could evolve a natural immunity to chakra, the use of it would still be incredibly lethal. Akin to someone opening all eight gates. The chance was higher that someone would die if they tried, than if they just let it be." He took a swig of water, "but the _next_ in the endless line of problems, was that it would take a lot of time, and a lot of lives, to reach this point. Both of those things were things humanity didn't have. They would all die out before the problem fixed itself.

"However, Hagoromo learned that, with his mastery of chakra, he could catalyze a much higher form of evolution into human beings. He did this by creating the eight gates to provide them their immunity and the ability to control chakra, _and_ making it such that the eight gates would be passed on from parent to child. But he solved one problem to make another: For every one person who would survive this process, a few thousand wouldn't."

Dai frowned, briefly turning her gaze to 'Hamura's' skeleton, realization dawning in her eyes.

Hibiki nodded, "yup. Hamura knew, then, that Hagoromo wasn't a villain... Just a man, a good man, with a very bad image. They had to sacrifice hundreds of millions, just to save a few tens. But, Hamura didn't want Hagoromo to bear that burden. He wanted the man's conscience to remain clean... So if I had to guess, he used his Rinha blood to take on Hagoromo's appearance and powers, and..." He waved around him. "Finished the job."

"Oh Kami..." Dai turned to Hibiki. "Are you okay?"

Hibiki shook his head, "my life is more complicated than a comic book superhero's, Dai. I'll never be okay." He deadpanned, his voice briefly dropping to a rumbly tone. "But... To finish the story, Hamura took on Hagoromo's form and finished the job. He catalyzed as many people as he possibly could, knowing full and well that the survivors would come to hate him, and that _he himself_ would come to hate him for what he did. But he did it anyways, because he had to. Because he wanted to spare Hagoromo that pain.

"Then, when he was done, Hagoromo came to him and told him that he saw the future. He saw me - this me." He patted his chest. "This loop. He saw that it was bound to close, that it was stable now. That the only ones who died in it were Aojiroi and Yui. Hamura realized, however, that he had a chance to play his own hand. The Flux Capacitor - this cube, here." Hibiki tossed it up in the air, like a baseball. "He and Hagoromo, I guess, perfected and fixed it with their Rinnegan knowledge. _Then_ he went to NORAD, to change the logs to more accurately reflect the very first loop."

Dai leaned back, "he wanted to get you thinking." She said.

Hibiki grinned, "you know me so well." He nodded, "he knew that I would notice the discrepancies. That eventually it would lead, someway, somehow, to me questioning whether or not chakra could save us; and that would lead me to looking to science, instead." He then nodded to the moon. "Sync up with us for a bit, and then after that first five year nap, I went to the moon. I'd expected to find the brother of Hagoromo Otsutsuki... But instead I found the man himself, and he told me everything I'm telling you now, and gave me the cube." He explained.

"Then he used the cube to bring us here. The Flux Capacitor, as it stands, makes a tesseract, and the easiest way to explain that is to just say that, when I open this, and walk inside, time becomes nonlinear. I can hardly describe what it all looked like..." He frowned, "imagine... A square corridor, yeah? It goes on endlessly, in all directions, branching off into more corridors, which themselves branch off again, and again, forever. In every corridor there was a window, and looking through it, I saw one point in time, and focusing on it, I saw that point play out, like a movie." He explained, "in there - in here -" He indicated the cube. "I can go anywhere on Earth... In the universe, if I wanted. I can forward in time, backwards, Hagoromo even showed me I can go sideways, to other timelines entirely." He leaned forward, "saw a timeline where I never existed in the first place. Where Kenichi failed. There, Kaguya returned and these kids - an Uchiha, and this one kid the spitting image of Minato - kicked her ass and saved the world. _We_ found them fighting, but why they were I don't really care. It's not our timeline.

"Then there was the timeline in which we were stuck in the loop. Katsuo... Long and short, destroyed everything. He and Aeneas, the last of his Undead. They were angry beyond reason, that I activated the Ryumyaku."

"No one defeated him?"

"Lady, he fought through two boss summons, two sannin, the fourth and later fifth Hokage, a Jinchuriki, _me,_ and an anbu, and didn't die. I'm pretty sure at this point the only reason he didn't come back in the first place was because he saw _me_ and knew he had to change his plans. He wanted to get the last of Kenichi's Undead in his faction." Hibiki explained. "After we looked at that, then we came back here, and I found that Hamura sealed a small amount of his chakra in the necklace Tsunade gave us, a long time ago." He said, hooking his thumb under it and brandishing it for her. "Somehow, someway, when I released it, he came back, temporarily. And... Well, you know me." He grinned, "I can't hardly stand to be away from you for a _month,_ let alone thirty fucking years. When I saw him, I knew he wanted two things." He said, "to see you, one last time..." He held up one finger. "And to be released from his guilt."

Dai looked again to Hamura's skeleton. "I cannot imagine what he must have gone through. What he saw." She murmured. "So... You are he? You are the Sage of Six Paths?" She asked, turning her wide amber eyes to him.

However, Hibiki shook his head. "I, personally - me here sitting in front of you - no." He indicated the skeleton. "That is. He is." He trailed off. "And... Thank you, by the way."

Dai blinked, tilting her head to the side.

"I kind of _dropped_ that on you." He said, nodding to the skeleton. "I was pretty sure you wouldn't understand what was going on, but you _always_ seem to know when it's me or a shadow clone, so I hoped you'd be able to tell who he was by looking at him." He said, "it wasn't fair to drop that on you, but... He's -"

"Hibiki, no."

Hibiki blinked, turning to her. "Hm?"

_"No."_ She pointed at him, "don't feel guilt over this, I can see it in your eyes, and I swear, I will bring you within an inch of your life if you do." She threatened, "no, I didn't know what was happening, but that doesn't change the fact that I recognized him. I knew something had gone wrong, and with all of this nonsense with the loops, I feared for a moment that something had gone _wrong,_ or perhaps something we had failed to consider. All I _needed_ to know was that you needed help." She dropped her hand, "Hibiki, I love you, but you and I really need to do something about your guilt complex."

Hibiki chuckled, "well damn, Dai." He shook his head. "Hopefully, soon, we'll get that chance, actually." He said, briefly looking down to the Flux Capacitor.

"How so?"

Hibiki indicated the cube. "I've got something of an idea forming. The long and short of it is I'm going to get Minato, Noboru, and Suboro, and we're going to kill Katsuo."

Dai frowned, "I thought Yui said -"

"Ten to one is that she was trying to rile me up. In that timeline I mentioned, I saw those two fighting Katsuo." Said Hibiki, "the plan here... Is I'm going to grab those two, sic 'em on Aeneas. They'll kill him, because he should functionally be _me,_ with or without a few extra bloodlines. I'll distract Katsuo while they do this, and when they're done, the three of us can kill him." He nodded to the cube, "the cube will tell me where he is."

"And Minato?"

"Minato's the backup option. It's unlikely... _Very_ unlikely, but if we don't work, he'll use this to trap Katsuo, and then he'll destroy it. Katsuo won't survive the collapse of the tesseract - it would functionally be infinite amounts of mass and energy dropping on him. Even he won't make it through that." He raised a hand, placatively. "But while that's a last resort, I also think it won't be needed. Suboro and Norou are _my_ squadmates. Just like how there isn't a single thing you and your team can't find, there isn't a single person my squad can't defeat." He let a smile grow across his face, "and once we come back, I'll have Minato destroy this anyways... And then we can get to work fixing my fucked up little noggin."

"Destroy it? Why?"

Hibiki hummed, "Dai, you know how the third Hokage was rumored to keep a crystal ball in his office? It could see everything in the village's protective barriers?"

Dai nodded.

"Imagine if that crystal ball could instead see all over the world, the past, and the future." He picked up the cube, "this is probably the most dangerous thing on the planet, right now. In the wrong hands - hell, even in the _right _hands - it's a weapon of such lethality that even all nine bijuu are chump change in comparison." He explained, "village locations, army movements, tactics, bloodline possessions, ninjutsu secrets, the _entire universe_ is in this cube."

Dai found that concept hard to wrap her head around, but she nodded nonetheless. "I see."

Hibiki chuckled, "code for - okay shut up." He stuffed the cube in his seals pouch, and Dai rolled her eyes. "So... I guess it's time to wake them up." He shook his head, "Sasori's gonna be _pissed_ I pulled you out first..."

The next hour was spent waking everyone up and extricating them from their spacesuits. Hibiki kept them all, stowing them in a storage seal, he never knew when he'd need them again. Everyone took different times to recover from the sudden onset of vertigo, as he pulled them out, but after a few hours had passed, everyone was back in shape. Dai and the tracker trio embraced eachother tightly, all of them ecstatic to have survived a venture Hibiki had warned certain death in. Minato and Kushina shared a deep kiss almost as soon as they were physically able, and Hibiki found himself sitting on a headstone next to Sasori.

"I cannot believe we used the Ryumyaku and survived..." The young chunin voiced, airily.

"Kid, you ever work with us again, you'll find strange shit happens on a daily basis. Surviving it feels a lot less monumental after a while." Hibiki patted him on the back. "I hope... Er... I don't have to say -"

"I will keep our trip, and our history, a secret, Hibiki-san."

Hibiki sighed in relief, "thank -"

"But I have a request."

_Of course._ "Oh?"

"Fuinjutsu." Said the puppet user. "The greatest master in my village is my grandmother... And I fear her at her best is not equal to you at your worst." He nodded to the cryo seal, now emptied of its people. "You and your allies made that and more while half exhausted and burning through chakra."

"You want us to teach you some tricks of the trade?"

Sasori nodded. "Even if you kill Katsuo as you claim to intend to do, and even if _half_ of the villages he recruited drop their arms on the spot, the war he started will still rage for some time yet. We will need as many advantages and as much power as we can get."

_Well, that's where Teague will hopefully play into things, but I see your point._ Hibiki nodded, "I can talk to sensei. See if we can't get something worked up. Your village might have to trade for it, I warn."

But Sasori nodded, unperturbed. "A small price to pay for the utility." He looked up to Hibiki, "thank you."

Hibiki shook his head, and extended his hand as the others' celebration died down. "Nah, kiddo. Thank you. As much as I think the nations would benefit from old-world knowledge... I don't think any of us are ready for it. You keeping this secret, it helps a lot."

Sasori shook his hand, "you are welcome, Hibiki-san."

They all made light conversations and celebrations for another short hour, before they all finally departed. Sasori, assisted by Hibiki's swift chakra, made for Sunagakure, and the rest, to Konoha. All happy beyond words to be alive.

The Loop was finally closed, completely stable; and in Hibiki's hands, the tool that would allow him to end far more than the Loop.


	89. Never Forget This

_AN:_

_Hoooooo boy!_

_You all have no idea how happy I am to see last chapter's twists being so well received. _

_Let me tell you: The whole point Hagoromo made, about chakra being poisonous without catalyzation? And him being the anti-villain of sorts? I've had that planned ever since the History arc. I had all of the explanations and 'science' ready to go. A mastered Rinnegan being a means of experiencing the fourth dimension, Hagoromo and Kaguya both being so powerful because they have no eight gates? It was all prepared fifty-odd chapters ago. _

_What I was **worried** about was something I came up with during the Hot Water arc: Hibiki's involvement in the whole thing.  
Originally, it had just been Hagoromo. When Hibiki got to the moon, he would have met canon Hamura and then got the beans spilled. _

_But then I realized I could go **so much further**, and to be honest, my original intent for the Loop arc had been to tell that story - to show Hibiki fight the War of the Rabbit Goddess and end up having to take on that duty... But then I realized that doing something like that would make an already monstrous arc doubled in size. It would be an entire fraction of the story by itself. An important fraction, yes, but still: **Long**._

_So instead, I thought perhaps the more tragic option would be to not even cover it at all, for Hibiki to realize he'd been stuck in the loop and to imply that the entire story of Illimitable was a framing device for the journal he wrote to keep the facts straight. Much like how Logan never showed the death of the X-Men in Westchester, it was merely said to have happened, and we saw the aftermath, never really getting to see it happen, and making it all the sadder as a result._

_Buuuut, despite how excited I was to try this out... Oh man, I hopped back and forth on whether or not I should go through with that particular twist pretty much up until I planted the skeleton on David's grave. I was **soooo** worried the reaction would be terrible, that people would hate it, you have no idea how many drafts exist of the last chapter, I had to get it **perfect** in order to not fuck it up. _

_For Chrissakes, there are probably twenty different versions of Hagoromo's explanation of time **alone**. The bit where we got to see Old Man Hibiki? You don't want to know how many times I had to change and tweak that._

_Seeing everyone's reactions to it... Oh man, passing my written EMT exams (I passed those, by the way) only felt **half** as good as that. That's something I've been working on for **months **(years, now, actually... Holy shit this story is two and a half years old), paying off beautifully._

_Ho man.  
Sorry for that. I try not to indulge myself too often. Myself and Hibiki are polar opposites in that. He's a creature of pride, I try very very hard not to feel any, lest I get a big head, but this? Working out the way it did? I can't help but feel a little pride in it. It warms my heart._

_Moving on:  
Considering their short length, I actually did think about merging this chapter and the next to make them a bit longer. _

_But I also figured we'd need one hell of a breather after the Loop arc. I just dropped Bruce Willis was Rosebud on the Planet of the Apes was earth all along. We need a breather, or two. So if that means a couple of short entries before we deal with Katsuo, I think it's warranted._

_And, in case you folks are worried, there's still a lot of story to go through. I'd say we're **almost** three quarters through... Like, next time we see Katsuo, that'll be the 3/4's mark. _

_I've still got some stuff planned. Some epic battles (Hibiki and Minato getting interrupted was totally on purpose. ;) ), some heartwrenching moments, I'm working on nailing down the squad layouts (You'll love Dai's, I can't wait to play with it.)... We are coming up on the end, but it's still a ways away._

_So, let's get on with it._

_Oh, and in case all of the above sounded nonsensical, I hammered it out in five minutes. Like I said, I passed those tests, only the practical ones now and I'm not worried about those. But I've had some laaaaate nights working on another story, so anything I'm doing now is operating on said lack of sleep._

* * *

Chapter 88

* * *

Now all but firmly beyond the realm of time traveling terror, the group soon returned to their respective villages. Hibiki gave Sasori a hand with his Swift Release, and Minato took the rest of them via Hiraishin. Hibiki, unfortunately, got little time to try to recover, as he was summoned to Dante's office mere hours after he returned home. Entering it, he whistled, noting how the place was brighter than it had been under Danzo.

"Enjoying the hat, sensei?" Hibiki smirked, with a respectful nod of the head, the scent of mints flooding his nose.

Said hat was currently hanging off of his chair, and said sensei took the opportunity granted him to lean away from the pile of paperwork in front of him. "As my first decree, I sentence you to death, for reason of damning me to this paper-filled hell." Dante said, in as serious a tone as possible. "Ghost."

An Anbu in a ghost's mask appeared in front of him, causing Hibiki to briefly frown, as the tanto came within inches of his throat. A moment of silence, then Dante released Ghost from his orders, and Hibiki, now smirking, took a seat in front of Dante's desk. He noticed how the Konoha symbol took up a much greater space on its front than the Uchiha crest, which hung from a napkin-sized flag off of its corner.

"How did it go?" Dante asked. "I was expecting you back in a week." He leaned forward, fingers interlaced in front of him.

_Ohh... Shit._ Hibiki held up his hands, "I invented the Pizza Pie." He said, clearly.

Dante was silent, regarding him with blood red eyes, before he nodded. "Okay." He sighed, leaning back in his chair. "I was worried. Considering the nature of the mission, such a fast return was... Out of the ordinary."

Hibiki shook his head, "sensei... You would not believe me if I told you what happened on this mission."

"Keep in mind you're talking to an Uchiha wearing a hat that no Uchiha ever thought they would wear." Dante said, nodding to the red and white hat.

Hibiki gave a sidewards nod of the head, "good point." He shifted position in his chair, grunting. "It could do exactly what the shinobi said it could do. The team and I were sent a very long time in the past, and had to work our way back."

Dante frowned, "and the Ryumyaku?"

"Completely drained, according to Sasori. Any further uses won't send them any further back than just a few days ago." And it was true, too. Sasori had explained to him that, having spent all of its chakra like they had, it would have to fill up again for it to be used in such a way, and even then, it may never send people back as far as it did.

Dante nodded, "and what of the Undead?"

"Both _re_-dead. The battle against them was what spiked the Ryumyaku."

Dante hummed, "that leaves two, then? Katsuo and... Aeneas, is his name?"

Hibiki nodded, "I had an idea about that, actually. If I may."

The Uchiha tilted his head, "okay."

"I think Katsuo's group has become too big of a threat to allow to continue to live, sir. I want to gather Suboro and Noboru and hunt him and Aeneas down."

Dante leaned forward, "that's a tall order to be making of your squad, Hibiki." He warned. "I understand what it is you want to do, and why... But do you think you're all capable of such a thing?"

Hibiki nodded, "Noboru fought a Kage in pitched combat and won. A weakened Kage, but a Kage nonetheless. Suboro can and _has_ slaughtered entire armies with his mind, and I've fought Katsuo before." He explained. "I think, together we can do it. I can distract Katsuo, fight him alone, while Suboro and Noboru gang up on Aeneas. They take him down and join me against Katsuo, the entire thing can be done inside an hour.

"Then, with Katsuo and the Undead wiped out, the only major resisting force against us will be Kumo." Hibiki continued. "Alone, we can keep them from advancing any further than they already are. With help from the other villages, we can have them down in... A few years. Five, six at the most." He stressed. "We take down Katsuo now, a war that would otherwise continue well into the next generation could end before mine even starts popping kids."

The Uchiha Hokage was silent as he leaned back in his chair and swirled around, looking out the window.

"If I tell you no, will you go anyways?" He asked.

"I think my reputation should speak for itself, sir." Hibiki responded, neutrally.

Another few moments of silence, "if you think you can do it, I can have Noboru back here in two days. Another two for him to rest and recover, a fifth for you all to make a plan." He turned back to face Hibiki. "But I want to make myself clear, your lives are worth more than his death." He rumbled, "if you find you can't finish him, you retreat. _No_ eight gates, no sacrifices. Am I clear?"

Hibiki nodded, "crystal, Sensei."

* * *

The next night, after some well deserved sleep, Hibiki began his work to end Katsuo.

First on the list: Minato.

"So, what is it you needed to talk about?" Minato asked, a concerned frown on his features as they sat down in a corner booth in a quaint, warmly lit teahouse, itself covered in loads of faded secrecy and privacy seals.

In response, Hibiki pulled out the cube, and set it on the table with a light thunk. "The Flux Capacitor seal I showed you? From the book?" He nodded to the cube. "That's it. Finished."

Minato, intrigued, picked up the cube and inspected it. "It feels like it's paper." He noted, as he looked at the fuinjutsu scrawls.

"I took a look at the inside, and it is literally three dozen layers of individual sheets of paper, separated by thin sheets of wood. The paper _and_ the wood are all covered black in fuinjutsu. I think this is the single most complex seal ever made."

"I'll second that... Kushina's container seal isn't half as complicated as this." Minato murmured, "what does it do?"

"The long and short of it is that it lets us go _anywhere._ Anywhere in space, or time. It creates what is known as a Tesseract -" He looked up to the kind old woman, who brought them their tea. "Thank you." She bowed away. "- and, entering that, you see space and time nonlinearly. So you can go literally anywhere and anywhen you want."

"I didn't understand a single word you just said." Minato deadpanned.

Hibiki didn't blame him, he had a hard time wrapping his _own_ head around the concept. "Basically, it can go forwards and backwards in time, and to other worlds."

"Oh... Okay." Minato whistled, "how'd you get it?" He asked, briefly turning his eyes from the cube, to Hibiki.

"It's a very long story... And I'll give you the full version later, but the short version is, you know how the Sage of Six Paths left artifacts everywhere?" Hibiki asked, to which Minato nodded. "This is one of them... Technically." He waved his hand in a so-so fashion. "I got it when we landed. It was... Waiting for me." He said, settling on the simplest possible explanation.

"Okay..." Minato drawled, nodding his head. "So what do we need with it?" He asked, placing it back between them, and exchanging it for his cup of tea. He fanned the cup with his hand, dissipating some of the steam that was wafting into the air.

"I wouldn't take a sip, if I were you, you're going to spit it out." That got Minato to pause, an eyebrow arced. "The long and short of it is I'm going to gather Suboro and Noboru to kill Katsuo. If we fail, I want you to use this to do the same thing."

Minato blinked, his blue eyes turning wide; set his cup down with a light thunk. "Thanks for the warning." He sighed, "so you're really going to do it?"

Hibiki nodded, and took a sip of his own tea. "It's gotta be done." He said, "I tested this thing out, and saw the future where none of us came back. Where we were still stuck in the loop. Everyone - and I do mean _everyone - _died. Katsuo killed them all, he was so mad."

Minato frowned, "okay... So how does it work?"

Hibiki picked up the cube, "give me your hand, I'll show you." This was something a practical explanation was required for.

Minato grasped Hibiki's hand, and with a pulse of chakra, the two vanished. They reappeared inside the 4D space of the tesseract. Minato's eyes grew wide as he took in the endless corridors, and the windows affixed to the walls.

"Whoa..." He breathed.

"Yeah." Hibiki said, "whoa." He nodded, "it's hard to keep your head straight here, but the theory behind navigating it is simple." Hibiki explained, "if you walk - physically move your legs - you'll get lost. You could find yourself displaced ten worlds and three million years... But if you _think_ it, if you focus on where and when you want to go, then things become easier, and you won't get lost." Hibiki was pretty certain it had something to do chakra, simplifying things, or it could have been the way the tesseract had been built. He pointed down a corridor, "lets go this way." And as he spoke, the floor beneath them began to shift.

Minato swayed on his feet, holding his head as he grew dizzy, watching as dozens of years passed by in the blink of an eye, and the world beyond the windows shifted and changed, until they were no longer in the teashop, but were instead looking out at a massive gray wasteland.

"Now, this'll be the fun part, because I haven't tried this yet." Hibiki said, briefly frowning at the cube, before he looked up and pressed it to the window.

Another pulse of chakra, and they were out, now standing _in_ the wasteland. It was cold, and the sound of lightly blowing wind filled their ears.

Minato shook his head, "whoa, what - what just happened?" He asked, running his hand through his spiky hair.

Hibiki grinned thinly, "we just hopped into the future, my man." He clasped Minato on the back.

"It's _that_ simple?" Minato asked, taking a few steps and looking around the wasteland.

Hibiki hopped up on a large, spiked boulder, jutting up from a fissure in the ground. "Looks like it." He said, turning down to Minato. "If I fail, Minato, all you need to do is use this, find Katsuo, and trap him inside." He explained, "then you get out and break it." The wind picked up as he spoke, causing his coat to billow like a cape.

Minato looked up to Hibiki, "that'll kill him?" He asked, raising his voice to be heard over the wind.

Hibiki waved his hands around, "I will or it will." He said, "this timeline wouldn't exist if it didn't. I specifically asked for where and when Katsuo died."

Minato gave the wasteland another look. "Is this where you two... Or... Four... Will fight?"

Hibiki shrugged, "fuck, maybe?" He hopped down. "Could just be a battleground from the war." He said, bending down and ripping a kunai out of the stone ground. "I don't intend for our fight to be very long, or explosive."

Minato laughed, "now I _know_ you're insane. You, not -"

_"Hey!"_ A brash, feminine voice shouted from a distance away.

"Oh shit, locals." Hibiki muttered, turning as one with Minato.

In the distance, at the top of a steep cliff was a woman in a thin windbreaker. She leaned off of the edge of the cliffs, growing closer as she did so, revealing her to be wearing dark clothing. Dust and debris following her as she slid down to their level, her arms held out to the side to balance her, her eyes locked onto Hibiki and Minato.

"Shouldn't we leave?" Minato asked.

"Going forward isn't nearly as confusing as going back." Hibiki responded, "much less possibility for butterfly effect chaos theory nonsense. Should we? Probably... But she might be able to tell us if this works." Hibiki shrugged, "worst case scenario, she's hostile, we retreat, vanish, she'll never find us again."

Minato nodded his head to the side, a brief, thin frown playing his features as he conceded Hibiki's logic. "Good point."

The woman approached them. She was a good foot taller than the two of them and had pale skin as opposed to both of their healthy tans. She had a Konoha hitai-ate tying her hair into a ponytail, and large, dark brown eyes locked onto Hibiki and Minato, a frown playing her features. Her face and lips were thin and her cheekbones high. She lowered her gaze, looking at the two from over the rim of her circular sunglasses. "Who are you two?" She demanded, her tone as brash as her words, as she rested one hand on her cocked hip, and let one hand hang limp.

Hibiki shrugged, "I'm Bill, this is Tedd." He pointed at the two of them. "Who're you?" He said, leaning over and seeing her hitai-ate. "From the Leaf?"

She scoffed, "like you don't know me." She said, blowing a stray strand of raven hair out of her eyes. "What are you two doing here? Me and my squad have this sector. We're cleaning it up."

Hibiki gave Minato a glance, but the Yellow Flash just shrugged. "Sorry, got lost." He turned back to the woman, "humor us, though. What's your name?"

She shook her head, "I'm Risa." Risa frowned, her eyes narrowing behind her round sunglasses, "you've seriously never heard of me."

Hibiki leaned back, "oooh..." He said, narrowing his eyes a moment, before he took a chance. "Risa Aburame, right?" Both Risa and Minato both gave him a look, the former of pride, indicated by the upward tick of her mouth, the latter of shock, at how Hibiki had guessed her clan. "Sorry, I'm better with faces than I am with names. There was this one guy, from Iwa - he kicked my ass during my chuunin exams. Found him again a couple years later, completely forgot his name." A beat, "hell, I've already forgotten it again." Wasn't it sparky-sparky-boom lad? He shrugged, and pointed to her arms, "but I thought you were Aburame, I know one, looks a lot like you, but she's quieter. More snide." He said, "let's pretend we hit our heads, though, for a moment." He turned to the battleground behind them, "if... I had to... Guess... This is where Katsuo died?" He asked, turning back to her with an arced eyebrow.

Risa gave him a curious look, "Katsuo's been dead for a decade. Where have _you_ been?"

"I said we hit our heads."

Risa stared at him, her frown unchanging.

Hibiki grinned, he liked this chick. "If I told you we were time travelers, would you believe us?" He deadpanned.

She dropped her gaze again, "are you fucking serious?" She deadpanned, staring at him from over the rim of her glasses.

Hibiki leaned back, a shocked expression growing on his face. "You... My dear... Are the first Aburame I've ever heard curse." Well, Dai had cursed once, but she'd been pretty pissed at the time. Hibiki shrugged, "and of course I'm not. It's impossible, right?" He said, with a noncommittal shake of the head.

She, however, refuted it. "Hibiki... Senju... Did it." Hibiki noticed a brief catch to her voice, her words and previously fast-talking tone slowing down, as if her all of her mind's processing power had just been taken up by something.

Hibiki's head recoiled, a frown briefly playing his features before he turned it into a grin that didn't reach his eyes. "That got _out?"_ He huffed, turning to Minato. "I'll blame you."

_"ME?!"_ Minato's head jerked back, "think about the ratio here - how many people have _I_ told your secrets, versus how many _you've_ told your secrets? _Dai_ has told more of your secrets than I have!" Though despite his outrage, he clearly knew Hibiki was kidding, and was laughing about the whole thing.

"Ha!" Hibiki snorted, as the wind died down. "You've actually got a point, there." He turned back to Risa, "thanks for the help, Risa. We'll get out of your hair, now." He tossed her the rusted kunai, which she caught deftly as he turned Minato by the shoulder. "I told you, though." He said to Minato, "it'll work. Just need to grab -"

"Wait." Risa voiced, her previously brash tone dropping for one much more humble, and quiet.

Hibiki blinked, and the two of them turned to face her, he being slightly surprised at her change of tone. "Hm?"

"Are _you_ Hibiki Senju?" She asked, turning from the kunai, to Hibiki.

Hibiki frowned, and turned to Minato. Minato's blue eyes met his gaze, and after a moment of silence, shrugged. Hibiki could see his point - this wasn't them being in the past, having to tiptoe around everything for fear that it would butterfly effect the world apart. It wasn't like this would change the past, _or_ the future. What was the harm? Hibiki would just have to keep this in mind, and be ready to explain himself in however many years. Of course assuming he didn't wipe this timeline out of existence, what with his 'kill Katsuo' plan. Any small change could result in something much larger, after all.

He couldn't wait to be done with this time travel nonsense, just a few more days and then it would be firmly behind him. "Yeah." Hibiki turned back to the Aburame, "that time traveling you mentioned I... Apparently told you about." He nodded, "I'm just getting out of it." He nodded to Minato, "showing him how it works, in case I don't kill Katsuo." He waved around to the battlefield, "but it's looking like it may not be needed. You just told me whatever I'll do will work."

Her frown slowly fell, to a look of awe. "You look so young." She breathed.

Hibiki gave her a double take, and smirked as he let his hands rest in his pockets. "You know me?" He asked, "I must be... I dunno, actually." He frowned, doing a little mental math, before he turned to Minato. "How old am I _now?"_

"I -"

"You're fifteen!" Minato barked, "how do you not know your own age?"

"Minato, I've been alive too long." Hibiki deadpanned, "and we just got out of the Loop. I hardly even know what day it is."

Risa tried again to interject, "I need -"

"Actually, wait." Hibiki shook his head, "second thought, _do not_ tell me. Me telling you things, that's fine - you can't change it. But you telling me stuff? That's bad juju. You've already told me enough." He frowned, and gave an apologetic shrug. "Sorry I asked. But, tell you what: If you see me after he and I -" He nodded to Minato and himself, "head back home, just tell him you saw me open the tesseract for the last time. Pretty sure I'll remember that."

Risa stared at him, her jaw still slack in a state of abject awe. "Right..."

_Holy hell I must be a hardass... She's looking at me like I'm another person._ "Well, we've gotta get back." He bowed his head, "it was nice meeting you, Risa. 'Till we meet again." As he raised his head again, he narrowed his eyes, seeing her squad standing on the edges of the steep cliffs, looking down on them. The problem, however, was that they were too far away, too high up, and cast in too deep shadows to get any finer details.

"Alright, let's get out of here." Hibiki said, pulling out the cube, and placing his hand on Minato's shoulder. With another sudden transition, they found themselves back inside the tesseract. "So, you understand." Hibiki said, as the two slid back through 4D space, to their time.

Minato shook his head, "just got a weird sense of dejavu." But he nodded all the same. "Yeah. Just... Put a little chakra in it, think, don't walk, then when I trap Katsuo, get out and break it."

A second later, they were back in their seats in the teahouse, hardly even a second having gone by. Hibiki placed the cube on the table again, and picked up his teacup, still piping hot. "There's one caveat, to this." He said, taking a sip.

Minato reciprocated with a sip from his own cup. "What about?"

"Whether or not you use it, it needs to be destroyed." He said, firmly, his tone leaving no room for argument.

But Minato, perhaps the only shinobi other than Orochimaru to be approaching as inquisitive as Hibiki was, had to ask. "Why?" He tilted his head, reaching forward for his tea, and taking a sip.

"Minato, that thing is... Dangerous, to say the _absolute_ least." Hibiki stressed, "it is functionally an object of infinite knowledge, resources, mass, energy, and time. It is the single most dangerous thing on the planet - probably the universe."

"And you want _me_ to destroy it?" Minato asked, eying the cube warily, his blue eyes wide, and his eyebrow arced.

Hibiki grunted in affirmation, "let's think about my track record with things that make me stronger... And keep in mind Iwagakure." And Ame, and, now, the entire fucking planet. "I don't trust myself, not with something like this." He said, earnestly. "This kind of power... If I have it, I'll use it. Inevitably." His voice shook at this, as he frowned deeply. He had to take a calming breath, "and... If I use it, I may _abuse_ it, and I don't want that." He put his cup down, "but you, I trust you. I know I can trust you to destroy it, whether or not we need it."

Minato raised his gaze, locking his dark blue eyes to Hibiki's onyx orbs. There was a silence, for a few moments, before he nodded. "Okay." He said, "okay, I'll destroy it. Whether or not I need it to kill Katsuo."

And with those words, Hibiki felt a great weight slide off of his shoulders. "Thank you." He breathed, lifting his cup in a toast, and then emptying the rest of it.

"I'll just need you to be best man at mine and Kushina's wedding."

Hibiki choked on his drink. "Care that to -" He grunted, "care to run that by me again, Namikaze?" He coughed, a smile of the genuine variety stretching across his face. "You got hitched?"

"Last night I told Kushina about the book you showed me. The one I beat your ass over." He grinned.

"Up yours." Hibiki flipped him off, "and then, what, you proposed?" He remembered when he and Minato were toddlers in the academy, now they both were blowing up villages together, traveling through time, and marrying their other halves.

They were comic book superheroes.

Minato nodded, "yes, actually." He said, with a sheepish chuckle. "We, uh - we talked about it. That's the closest to dying either of us have ever gotten - and that's including when I got this little scar, here." He pointed at a pale spot on his throat. "And we decided, what with Katsuo running around, and the war not looking like it will end with or without him, that it may be prudent to tie the knot." He paused, smiling fondly, no doubt remembering the big 'yes'. "At least this way she can be listed as family, and get reports on me when I get deployed... And vice versa." He elaborated. "Might even get deployed together a bit more often than otherwise." He actually had tinges of red filling up his face, as he looked anywhere but in Hibiki's eyes.

Hibiki clapped, "well fuck, Minato!" He leaned over, seeing the ever-attentive teashop owner already making her way to them, smiling. "Strongest alcohol, please oh-pretty please." He nodded to Minato, "Yellow Flash got hitched." She smiled wide and nodded, before sliding away, and Hibiki turned to Minato. "I don't drink often." He said, "but you and I just survived two rounds of time travel, and we're both getting married. We're going to get shitty." This levity Hibiki felt, he hadn't felt something like it in so long that it was foreign to him.

Foreign, but not unwelcome.

Minato paled, "oh kami..." He cursed, his voice trembling, as he could see in Hibiki's onyx orbs that he wasn't kidding.

* * *

Hours later, Kushina would open the door after being alerted to someone's presence by what sounded like a boot pounding against it. When she opened it, she saw Hibiki, an ear-to-ear smirk plastered across his tan face, it curling his eyes upward with great genuity. The Senju head had Minato hanging across his shoulders in a fireman's carry. The latter was rosy faced and babbling, the former, simply smiling as wide as he could, clearly proud of something, or amused.

"What... Did... I miss?" Kushina murmured, looking from Minato's face to Hibiki's.

Hibiki slid inside the apartment, "this idiot challenging a guy with Kaguya and Uzumaki blood to a drinking contest." He chuckled, "turns out, by the way, I can't get drunk. But he can." He dropped Minato on the couch like a sack of potatoes, and stretched his back.

Kushina narrowed her eyes, "he told you?" She couldn't think of any other reason why they'd get drunk.

Hibiki chuckled again, "we learned that after a few drinks." He said, ignoring her question. "Since neither of us drink, we both should have similar tolerances, but he was getting all tipsy and I was hardly even buzzed. So his ass grabs the bottle and starts doing shots." He rambled, his voice deeper and more rumbly than it usually was.

It was here that Kushina finally realized something that had been staring her in the face, and it made her giggle. "Oh really?" She asked, staring at Hibiki's bare chest. "And where did your shirt go?"

"All I'll say is, at least now I know how World War One started." Hibiki nodded, frowning, as he cleared his throat. " 'Scuse me. But, yeah. The archduke's bodyguards are an angry bunch." He held up a hand, "might've been my fault. But I blame him regardless." He chuckled, a glazed look in his eyes as he dropped his hand.

"Uh-huh." Kushina giggled. She leaned over to knock on the wall, but Dai seemed to already be aware, as she slinked out of her apartment and into Kushina's doorway. "I think this is the happiest I've seen you in a while, Hibiki." She pointed out, as Dai leaned against the doorframe and watched the fireworks, covering her mouth with her hand to mask her rapidly growing smile.

Hibiki was lightly swaying on his feet, "lady, my two oldest friends just got hitched, I broke _time,_ I'm... Kinda... Sorta... A god? I think? Wibbly wobbly timey wime - point is, we all lived to tell about it. I think that's any reason as good to drink." He said, in an argumentative tone, the neutral smirk still on his face.

Kushina shared a glance with Dai, who was still covering her face, trying to keep her composure. Dai couldn't read her nearly as well as Hibiki could, but even she could recognize unabashed humor when she saw it. "I didn't question that." She said, crossing her arms under her chest and leaning against the wall.

Hibiki grunted, "yeah you did." He shot back, "oh, by the way!" He said, holding up a finger, a revelatory look on his face, before he swiveled around, pointing at Dai. "I won." He burped, "you need to know that. It'll - it'll work."

Dai sighed, a wide smile on her face, as she dropped her hand. "Okay, Hibiki." She watched as he fell flat on his face, the entire apartment seeming to shake with the impact.

"Who put that there?" Hibiki's voice muffled out, his head firmly pressed into the carpet.

Dai shook her head, and entered the apartment. "I apologize, Kushina." She said, kneeling down and sliding her arms around one of Hibiki's, and bodily hauling the now snoring man to his feet.

Kushina giggled, "no, I should be thanking you. I don't think many people can claim to have seen the Thunder God and -"

_"I hate that name..."_ Hibki grunted lethargically, his eyes still shut.

"- And the Yellow Flash, both drunk, both passed out in their apartment, you know?" Kushina finished, after a pregnant pause and no further words from Hibiki.

Dai smiled, "well, then I am glad to be of service." She said, as she began dragging her Senju out of the apartment. "And congratulations on the proposal. I hope to be invited."

Kushina smiled, "thanks, I - wait, how did you even know about that?" She began picking up verbal speed as the door swung shut behind Dai. _"Thatonlyhappenedyesterdayyouknow?! Ah..."_ She sighed, as the door clicked shut. "Damn it." Her shoulders slumped.

The red haired Jinchuriki turned to her fiance, and sighed. "Now what am I going to do about you..." She frowned, her gaze lowering to the Yellow Flash.

* * *

After the passing of a few days, Hibiki sat down in the silent teahouse for the second time. His sitting here, however, prompted him to realize that this was the first time he sat down with his squad since before Hot Water. The thought made him sit back and reflect, making him wonder if it had really been only a few months ago, and how it felt like it had been years. So much had happened, in that time - his child and Suboro's, the death of almost all of the Undead, time travel, it felt surreal. After voicing this thought to his squadmates, both of whom had gained a scar or two in their time apart, the two of them, like him, sat back and reflected, their eyes glazing over as they looked off into the distance.

"Amazing, how much time we can fit in such a little space." Noboru finally voiced, breaking the silence as the shop owner came by with a kettle and a few cups. "It feels as if an eternity has passed." He nodded in thanks to the woman, and turned to Suboro. "How is she?"

Hibiki grinned, "yeah, how is 'my' kid, anyways?"

Suboro rolled his green eyes, waving Hibiki away. "She's doing great. She slept through the night, yesterday."

Hibiki narrowed his eyes, looking at the guarded expression the buzz-cut chunin adopted. "There's a story there." He said, pouring himself some tea. "Tell it."

Suboro's expression turned to a bashful frown, "I uh... When I didn't get woken up by her before the sun rose, I about jumped through the wall, to get to her and make sure someone hadn't grabbed her." He specifically didn't make eye contact with either of his squadmates. "It scared her so much she started crying again. Took an hour to quiet her down, and someone called Military Police, thought I was hurting her."

Noboru snorted into his cup before he could control himself. His entire body quivered as he tried to contain his laughter.

"Oh my kami." Hibiki rumbled, "a little fucking girl, is going to be the death of the Kurama clan's most powerful chunin."

At this, however, Suboro's smirk returned. "Jonin."

Hibiki blinked, his grin dropping like a rock. "Man, you drop another bomb like that, I'm going to show you how I almost killed Minato through alcohol poisoning." He said, "damn." He held his hand up.

Suboro clapped it, "it surprised me as much as it did you, Hibiki. Considering our reputation I thought I'd be _last."_

Noboru let out a thin grin, "because you avoid most conflict?"

Suboro scoffed, "up yours, you dick." He reached for his cup.

And as he drank, Noboru gave Hibiki a look. "Dante-sensei recalled me, but only told me that you were the cause, and it appears Suboro is not wise to your goals either. So enlighten us, why are we here, now?"

Suboro nodded, "yeah." He gagged, before he swallowed the rest of his drink. "What's up, man?"

Hibiki shrugged, "we've got a Kage Killer." He indicated Noboru, as he took a drink from his cup. "A Thunder God, and..." He frowned to Suboro, "whatever you are." Suboro simply smirked, but baded him continue. "But I think we can do better. So tell me - who wants to kill Katsuo and become Monster Hunters?"

Noboru spit out his drink.

"Come again?"

"I thought I was pretty clear -"

"No, I understood what you said." Suboro interjected, clapping Noboru's back as the Hyuga coughed, choking on his drink. "But... Seriously. _What?"_ He snorted. "You want to just go kill Katsuo. _Katsuo._ Just like that?"

"It does..." Coughed Noboru, "sound far-fetched, just _saying_ it as you did." He opined. "This is the same monster who united the world. Whom you have fought twice and still yet lives." He said, clearing his throat. "How are you certain that this will not just be a repeat of our battle against Ay and Bee?"

"Because." Said Hibiki, placing a finger on the table, "where we are now, compared to where we were at Kiri, it's like comparing a Kage to a chunin." He said, before he leaned back. "Think of the things we've done since then. Suboro stopped an entire army, Noboru killed a Kage in pitched combat. Both of you have spearheaded entire fronts in war." He shook his head, "for Kami's sake, I killed a village of immortal demon-shinobi.

"And then..." He nodded his head to the side, "consider what Katsuo's done. He united an entire continent against three countries, primarily by beating the hell out of their strongest shinobi and threatening their lives. He abducted Emi Miu - remember her? - and then again with Suna's jinchuriki. The shit he just _tried_ pulling is classified, but make no mistake about it he may have destroyed literally _everything_ if myself and my squad at the time hadn't nipped it in the bud. His threat is growing exponentially every passing day, and if we don't stop him now... We may never get a chance." He stressed. "There's only two of his people left. Him and the one named Aeneas."

Suboro gave Noboru a glance, but Noboru's eyes were locked on the table, thinking. "I mean..." Suboro said, turning back to Hibiki. "I understand that he'll have to be dealt with... I guess the biggest thing I'm stuck on is that _we're_ taking the fight to _him,_ and not the other way around." He rubbed at his buzz-cut scalp.

Hibiki spiked a grin, "I didn't hear a no."

Suboro snorted, "Hibiki, you're giving me a _fight_ on a silver platter. I refuse this, I'll never hear the end of it." He said, downing the rest of his tea.

Noboru nodded his point, "what would we do?"

Hibiki leaned forward in his seat, "I'd engage Katsuo, keep him distracted. You two, and a shadow clone of mine, would fight Aeneas. He's supposed to be a lot like me - copies bloodlines, and I'm certain he's most of the same ones I do." He explained, "you two together can take _me_ down, so if you fought him, and with a clone of mine to boot, I'm certain you could do it. Then you get to me and Katsuo." He nodded to Noboru, "you and me, we beat him down, keep him pinned." He nodded to Suboro, "you, you get the killing blow. Your most powerful genjutsu. You kill him - _period - _before he can recover." He nodded, firmly. "We do it right, we can be back home the next day, and then the biggest threat will be Kumo's shinobi. Inside of a _decade_ we'll have peace again, I know it."

Suboro and Noboru exchanged glances, though no words really needed to be said. Hibiki was asking for their help, and who were they to say no? He'd do the same for them in a heartbeat.

Noboru turned back to him, "do we know where he is?"

Hibiki nodded, "intel says he's hiding out in the land of Grass, recovering from my fight with the rest of his group. Aeneas is there with him." Hibiki poked the table again, "we can be done with it by the end of the week."

His two oldest allies nodded, "how long do we have?"

Hibiki leaned back in his chair, smiling, though it didn't reach his eyes. "We rest and relax, come up with a plan. We leave Saturday."


	90. Fatality

_AN:_

_Fun Fact: This chapter was originally about %25 - 30 longer and the additions completely changed the tone and effect of it.  
However, I ended up scrapping all of them for later use, and when the time comes around I'll tell you all why._

_Also, I know I said 'a couple' entries before Katsuo... But then I kept playing literary musical chairs (chopping up chapters that were related to eachother and pasting them all together to see what they looked like), and I ended up **really** liking the way one such chapter came out... And the easiest way to explain what happened afterwards (as in, what will confuse the lot of you less) will be to say that the plan changed in the eleventh hour, and you got the Katsuo fight earlier, and a much longer chapter afterwards, as a result.  
_

_So... Here it is!  
Team Dante vs Katsuo!_

* * *

Chapter 89

* * *

For once in his life, Hibiki actually felt like he knew what he was doing. It was a strange feeling, this confidence. He was more used to going into situations blind and surviving through any combination of improvisation and liberal usage of shadow clones. In most of his encounters with life and death, he never had the deck stacked in his favor. Even when he'd 'just killed the batman', one slipup and _all_ of the Undead would have been beating him within an inch of his life.

But now?

Now Hibiki had control. He was acting instead of reacting, and thanks to the Flux Capacitor, all of the pieces were on his side of the board. He knew where Katsuo was, what he was doing, and even what he would say when he was suddenly made face to face with Hibiki. Hardly a week had gone by since Roran - Katsuo was still in the dark about the whole thing. He was discussing, in the central building of a small abandoned down, when would be best for him and his final comrade to check on their away agents.

_Maybe one day I'll regret not learning nearly as much about the others, as I did him._ Thought Hibiki, as he exchanged glances with his two teammates, they three standing on the edges of the village's wall, Katsuo's building in plain sight. _But for now... I'll focus on eliminating the threat._ Because, another first in his life, he _knew_ he was doing the right thing. Lacking this battle, lacking Katsuo's death, the entire world would suffer, and even his ceaseless incessant self-arguments about whether or not he was truly in the right when fighting Katsuo would fall to pieces in the face of this knowledge.

The three Konoha shinobi leapt from the walls, making it a quarter of the way into the town before they landed.

"They are moving. Katsuo senses us." Said Noboru, his dojutsu bulging at his temples.

"Remember the plan." Hibiki stressed, as they hopped another rooftop, growing closer to the central, cube-shaped building. "No theatrics. No style. Put him out and put him down." He said, as a second Hibiki burst into existence with a light pop and a plume of smoke.

Suboro nodded, "right."

"I understand." Said Noboru, as the three arced towards the ground, and landed at one end of a long, wide street.

Out from the central building came Katsuo and Aeneas. The former wore his customary white garbs, flowing in the growing wind. The latter wore spartan apparel, light leather armor and mail over a wire mesh and tight-fitting pants. Neither of them had weapons of any sort on their person, only deep scowls. Katsuo's eyes glowed a bright golden color, and Aeneas' a blood red.

"What did you do?!" Katsuo rasped, "where are they!? How did you find us?!"

"They're dead, Katsuo." Hibiki responded, his deepening voice filling the air much more clearly than Katsuo's hoarse rasp. "I will admit that I was wrong... That you were right. Traveling through time, going home - it's all possible." He saw Katsuo's shoulders tense up. "But I know more now than I ever did. Leaving you to use the Ryumyaku... Letting you go home, it will only make things worse. I _cannot_ allow that..." He placed his hands on the shoulders of his squad. _"We_ cannot allow that."

"The Hokage has decreed your death." Noboru picked up. "You have cost the world its peace and have cost too many their lives. The war you started may not end with your death, but your iron grip upon the world will." He slowly fell into a defensive stance, palms aloft. "Should you surrender, we will make it as swift as possible."

Suboro continued, "we do not want to fight, but we will if we must." Said the Kurama Jonin, "and we will win." His customarily jovial tone dropped to one of cold efficiency, as he squared his knees and held his hands up in a boxing stance.

Hibiki's hand slid off of them both, and he stepped forward, his clone taking his spot. "I empathize with you, Katsuo. I really do. But empathy only goes so far in the face of facts. You _are_ going to die today, you and your..." He turned his gaze to Aeneas, who similarly was taking up a defensive posture, this one centered around an enormous aspis tearing its way out of his arm. "Spartan friend." At least now he understood the name. "I wish there was another way, but you and I have proven that there isn't." His curse mark spread its jagged lines around his body, and just as Katsuo radiated green flames, so too was his body enshrouded in deep purple mist. "So make your choice." He called out, frowning. "Die quickly, or die tired."

Katsuo's response was a simple, enraged, _"NO!"_ and he blasted forward, sending debris flying through the air as he hurtled towards Hibiki.

Hibiki threw up his hand and braced himself, catching Katsuo's fist and skidding back several feet, digging up the ground at his feet. The both of them were scowling at eachother with a loathing unmatched, Hibiki's blood red eyes locked onto Katsuo's golden orbs. After that momentary pause, they each threw their free fists forward, Hibiki smashing his into Katsuo's jaw, Katsuo ramming his into Hibiki's chest. A small shockwave blasted out from their impact, Katsuo hurtled upwards into the sky, and Hibiki, sent flying backwards, bouncing over his squad before landing on his feet. His head snapped up to the vibrant green glow from Katsuo's chakra, and he blasted into the air, following him.

They hurtled upwards, screaming towards the skyline, both of their own incongruous battle cries mixing with the wind roaring at their ears. Hibiki, due to flying under his own power and control, reached Katsuo first, his body soon covered by black lightning as he buried his fist into Katsuo's stomach. Katsuo responded by bringing his gray-skinned elbow down on Hibiki's back, spinning him lengthwise, but Hibiki flew into it and drop-kicked Katsuo's head. When Hibiki's feet reached Katsuo's chest, he detonated his chakra and both of them flew away from eachother, Katsuo with his chest smoldering.

Hibiki reoriented himself with the ground, but found Katsuo, wreathed in green flame, hurtling towards him, roaring angrily. The Senju head simply frowned and lunged to the right, completely dodging Katsuo's powerful Superman punch. Hibiki intercepted and deflected the next right cross, left uppercut and right elbow, before he saw Katsuo rearing his head. Hibiki responded in kind, using his chakra thrusters to add to his own impact as he and Katsuo each smashed their heads against eachother. The shockwave from the blow parted the clouds they were rapidly climbing towards; Katsuo slammed his fist into the side of Hibiki's ribs once, twice, before Hibiki stopped resisting and took the next blow, flying into its momentum and away from Katsuo.

When Hibiki twisted around, he saw Katsuo's eyes glowing green, and knew what was coming. His own eyes shifted to their atomic hourglass states and as Katsuo snapped his head forward, bathing the sky in the green light of his ocular blasts, Hibiki was surrounded by the ribcage of his gray spectral guardian. The Senju head then poured more power into his thrusters and flew _into_ Katsuo's attack, almost appearing like a fish swimming upstream.

Katsuo roared out in defiance as he saw his enemy so brazenly shrugging off his attack, and when Hibiki reached him he tried pouring the rest of his gathered energy into one final, powerful pulse, but then found his head entrapped inside the hand of a susanoo, and before he could do anything to react, all of that energy came pouring out, entrapped in the hand and detonating around his skull. Hibiki dispelled the susanoo and kicked Katsuo in the chest, sending the Monster back, clenching his smoldering head and crying out in pain.

He lowered his hands when he felt Hibiki building up his own energy, and found Hibiki to be attempting the same as he - before the Thunder God thrust his cupped palms forward and his own energy attack blasted through the air. Katsuo crossed his hands in front of his face and took the attack, feeling it tearing at his body, breaking through his senjutsu-enhanced durability and inflicting wounds that stung in a pain he was never used to feeling. Worse, was that his golden eyes widened when he sensed something else arcing in from the side. He turned his head to the side and saw a second Hibiki, also streaming black lightning, hurtling in from Katsuo's flank. However, whereas the first Hibiki, the one shooting him, was covered in this lightning, this one's lightning was focused around his fists.

_"NO!"_ Katsuo screamed, physically pushing at the blast in front of him and twisting around to face this Hibiki.

As the blast recovered from Katsuo's induced 'hiccup', it then slammed into him from his left side, and he thrust forward both hands before the Hibiki clone could clap them together. The resultant explosion of black lightning was far lesser than it would have been had his enemy completed the technique, but then Katsuo realized that this and the blast were _both_ distractions.

_"Now get ready for the **REAL DEAL!"** _He heard a deep voice call out from behind him.

Katsuo looked over his shoulder even as the Hibiki in front of him kneed him in his nigh-invulnerable stomach. He saw a third Hibiki come hurtling in, both fists streaming chakra, and his eyes bleeding. Hibiki reared his right hand high above his head, and the chakra streaming from it and his other hand exploded, exponentially growing in volume and intensity, nearly becoming opaque, with the reared hand becoming enveloped in the shape of the head of a massive bird of pray. He then threw the reared fist into his open hand, and the chakra grew again, becoming a near perfect facsimile to the green fire that radiated around Katsuo, save for two crucial differences. The first was that the avian head formed in the reared hand merged with the mass of chakra in the open hand, and formed the rest of its body, becoming many multiple times the size of Hibiki himself, and the second, Katsuo saw occur in slow motion. Katsuo saw his enemy's eyes snap down to his fists, and a powerful pulse of chakra shoot out of them. Instantly the chakra covering Hibiki's fist turned jet black and exploded in violent black fire, and again Hibiki hauled his fist high over his head, and with it, the enormous, flaming, deeply black bird of pray extended its wings to their full length, with Hibiki's fist being in the open, cawing maw of the mighty falcon.

Both the Hibiki Katsuo was struggling against, and the one powering his energy attack, vanished in mighty explosions, and Katsuo took a second too long to recover. The Alpha Hibiki reached him, throwing his fist forward, screaming, _"FALCON **PUUUUUNCH!"**_ And as he screamed, so too did the mighty creature he dragged with him add its screech to his, the two powerful bellows mixing together in a deafening roar.

The punch exploded, as did they all, but this one in a way unique to both of the versions before it. Instead of simply detonating like the normal punch, or expanding outwards to gather energy, and then shooting back inwards with said energy, this punch did something different. As Hibiki's fist surged forward, the mighty falcon he'd created surged with him, and when he slammed his fist into Katsuo's chest, the falcon continued on forward, crashing into Katsuo with great physical force. Instantly Katsuo was enveloped in the raging black flames and the powerful chakra that made the creature's body, and it covered him in his entirety, the entire falcon collapsing onto him until finally its tail vanished and Katsuo was a human shaped mass of black fire.

_Then_ it exploded.

The shockwave blasted outwards, parting the very clouds above them and heralding a great wave of solar-strength heat. The environment around Katsuo was heated so much that the very air turned to plasma, igniting a secondary explosion that only added more power to the first, and both, together expanded outwards in a blinding white sphere of fire and plasma. But Hibiki's attack wasn't done yet, as the ignition of the atmosphere to plasma meant that there was a sudden, and literal, vacuum expanding outwards - and planet earth did not like this kind of differential pressure, and immediately began fighting back, the power of the entire atmosphere pressing against it as it ballooned into a massive sphere of fire and plasma. Once the miniature sun finally lost its steam and stopped expanding, it immediately began contracting back in on itself, and once it reached ground zero - Hibiki and Katsuo themselves - it triggered a _third,_ still blindingly powerful explosion. This last blast shot outwards in a wide, disk-shape, and at its center was a massive rapidly growing cloud, in the iconic, terrifying shape of a mushroom.

Hibiki's fist had, in short order, gone nuclear.

What was more, both of the mortal enemies were hardly even winded, this entire exchange having been akin to a high-stakes warmup than an actual confrontation. Katsuo was shot away, beaten and bloodied by Hibiki's strongest taijutsu attack. They both were in the center of the cloud, surrounded by the bright orange light of fire and brief nebula-like wisps of plasma. Hibiki's fist visibly twitched in pain, having been stripped down to the pearly white bone even through his lightning cloak, but he bit through this pain as he felt sinew, muscle, and skin stretch back across it. He instead scowled, and bolted forward, his body wreathed in black lightning and his lungs straining from pushing out his next battle cry.

Hibiki and Katsuo met with another thunderclap, it going unheard by the two of them over the sounds of mid-air fire raging around them. The Thunder God threw a right cross at the Monster, who lunged back and deflected it with a backhand, and then surged right back in and rammed his fist into the side of his enemy's head. Hibiki followed the momentum through, flipping end over end and kicking Katsuo with his heel. Katsuo's head snapped downwards, and when Hibiki's foot hit its base, he immediately fired it back up and kneed Katsuo in the nose. Katsuo's head recoiled, but Hibiki found his eyes glowing green again.

The blast was much shorter this time, burning Hibiki and sending him flying back several feet, and when the twin beams of green chakra thinned out, it revealed Katsuo, hurtling forward with an animalistic roar. He smashed Hibiki's face with a superman punch, and followed it up with an uppercut to Hibiki's stomach, the force great enough to briefly dispel Hibiki's lightning cloak. Hibiki felt his ribs creak from the impact, and some blood and bile make their way up his throat. He used this, channeling his boil-release bloodline and turning it all to a violent acid, which he spat in Katsuo's eyes, before wrapping his small arm around Katsuo's tree-trunk limb, curling both legs up, and then rocketing them forward into Katsuo's chest in a double-leg kick.

Katsuo would have screamed in pain, but the wind was forced from his lungs by Hibiki's attacks. Now choking on the increasingly hot air around them, Katsuo chopped downwards on Hibiki's knees with his free hand. Hibiki was sent sliding down Katsuo's body and then away from him, the heat of the environment around them growing so high that his clothes were beginning to catch fire, casting an immediate orange glow on his body to contrast with the red-orange ambient light of the mushroom cloud in which they fought. But Hibiki, with his healing abilities and lightning cloak, hardly even noticed - and neither did Katsuo, whose own shirt and parts of his pants had been burned off in their entirety by Hibiki's earlier attack. By now the both of them were breathing heavily and covered in sweat, experiencing temperatures no mortal men were designed to survive.

These two, however, were not mortal men. One was a Thunder God, and the other, a Monster.

Said Monster hurriedly wiped away the acid from his eyes with the back of his hand, blinking away the tears and pain as the nature chakra healed his corneas. He sensed Hibiki making a wide arc through the sky, curving upwards to gain a height advantage on him. The Monster bared his teeth and growled in an anger that was nearly biblical in levels, and oriented himself to face the Senju head above him. With an animalistic roar, Katsuo hurtled up towards his enemy. But, as Katsuo began hurtling back torward the Thunder God, Hibiki got a burst of memories from his shadow clone, and a wicked smirk stretched across his face, as he met Katsuo's advance, with interest.

* * *

Down on the ground, the moment Hibiki and Katsuo ascended, the Hibiki clone and the rest of team Dante charged Aeneas. Aeneas braced and raised his shield; Hibiki smashed his fist, the skin turned to steel and marked with his curse mark, into Aeneas' own barrier. The sound of a bell toll filled the air for miles, even briefly deafening out the Alpha Hibiki and Katsuo above them. Aeneas, however, was only dragged back an inch by the impact, but before he could bring his fist around to attack Hibiki, Noboru appeared behind him, his Byakugan bulging and his body covered in streaming, screaming lightning.

A palm slammed into Aeneas' back and, with a powerful, cannon-like blast of chakra, caused him to fall to one knee in pain. This gave Hibiki the chance he needed to grab the man's enormous aspis from its sides and tear it out of his grip in a bloody spray. Aeneas swung his uninjured arm in a wide arc, but the sword he'd torn out of his ribcage only hit the steel of Hibiki's chest and deflected off of it with a shower of sparks. Hibiki bashed Aeneas' head with his own shield, and the recoil sent him into another explosive palm strike from Noboru, this time to the back of his head, which sent it back forward into Hibiki's knee, the impact made all the worse by chakra blasting out of his foot and sending it rocketing forward.

Throwing the enormous shield away, Hibiki grabbed the Undead by his hair and pounded his face with his steel fist, but the Undead acted soon on instinct - pulsing a wave of explosive chakra blasting out from all of his tenketsu, sending Hibiki and Noboru both flying back. However, he made the mistake of taking this moment to recover - completely unaware of Suboro, rushing in from the side. Suboro's front kick to the side of his head came as a complete surprise, and though he snapped out of his daze quickly enough, he found his face grasped by Suboro's hand, it radiating with a chakra that burned in its intensity.

From between Suboro's splayed out fingers, Aeneas' two blood-red Sharingan eyes could be seen peeking out, wide with something that wasn't fear, as he felt Suboro's chakra burning its way into his own system. Suboro had a single hand sign clenched in front of his chest as he bellowed out, suddenly seeming to grow hundreds of feet tall and looming above Aeneas. Nothing he did, no pulses of chakra or usage of his dojutsu, could dispel the illusion assaulting at his senses. Instead he tried a different approach - knowing that his movements in the illusion would also translate to the real world outside of it, so he clenched his fists and thrust them upwards.

He felt them hit something and sensed Suboro stumble backwards, but this didn't dispel the illusion - if anything, it made it all the worse, as the shinobi looming above him exploded in a literal fashion, and raining out from the enormous pillar of smoke and fire were thousands more shinobi. Some wore Hyuga combat robes, some wore the Senju head's longcoat, others appeared as the towering Shinobi had, and others still were covered head to toe in executioner's robes. Worse, was that Aeneas _felt_ the heat of the explosion, felt it burning at his skin and felt his healing abilities responding to it. He couldn't trust his dojutsu to release him from this prison, and couldn't trust his senses to tell him what was right from what was wrong.

So, aside from laying down and accepting his fate, there was only one option: Attack.

With a loud roar, Aeneas charged forward into the approaching horde.

Outside of the illusion, Team Dante watched as the Undead began combat with his phantom enemies, Suboro nursed a bloody nose and shook his head. "He's tough."

"He's Hibiki in all but name." Noboru countered, the lightning dying down.

"We get close to him again." Hibiki cut through the trash talk, "Noboru, you close his tenketsu, suppress his healing abilities. I'll keep beating him down and throwing him off, Suboro -"

But the Kurama was already nodding, "once Noboru gives the all clear, I hit him with the good stuff." He briefly cast his eyes upwards, "and then we deal with that." Back down, "go!"

And Noboru and Hibiki blasted forward, each streaming lightning, one bright blue and one a dark onyx.

"Hibiki, fastball!" The Hyuga yelled, hopping up into the air, both hands held up in an offensive stance, as he curled his legs.

Hibiki didn't even break stride, instead planting one hand on Noboru's rear and the other on his back of Noboru's legs and, with a loud roar and single, powerful heave, launched him forward at Aeneas, so fast that the lightning-streaming Hyuga left a contrail in his wake. Aeneas was completely deaf to the oncoming Noboru-shaped cannonball, his body covered in burns, bruises, and bloody cuts, all healing just as fast as new ones were made. Flying through the air, Noboru braced himself, one palm held outwards defensively, and the other, reared far above and behind his head, ready to attack. When he reached Aeneas, the outstretched hand hit him first and arrested all of his momentum, causing his reared hand to come flying forward, with all of his strength, an enormously powerful burst of his juken, and the additional strength donated by his squadmate.

When Noboru's offensive palm slammed into Aeneas' chest, a massive thunderclap and a powerful shockwave both shot outwards. Aeneas' chest was obliterated, his skin and even his muscles beneath it unable to withstand the force of the attack, instead shredding apart and flying outwards with the shockwave. The ribcage was soon revealed, and it too bore the heavy punishment of Noboru's attack, all of the ribs splintering and breaking, turning into a fine powder as Aeneas was sent flying backwards. Noboru, with his Byakugan, even saw severe damage to the man's organs and his spine, the former of which rippled so much Noboru thought they would pop, and the latter of which cracked with a sickening sound.

Aeneas flew backwards, bouncing off of the ground like a pebble off of a lake before he skidded to a halt, his chest already regenerating as it freely streamed blood. By the time Hibiki zipped into position behind him, his ribs and parts of his musculature had reformed and he was laboring to his feet. Not accepting this, Hibiki threw his fist down and into the back of Aeneas' head; Aeanas, however, whirled around - a massive aspis tearing out of his arm in the blink of an eye, the bone forming the shield turning to solid steel just as quickly as it grew outwards. Hibiki's fist hit the shield with the deafening sound of a bell toll, and when Aeneas felt the impact, he wrenched his hand to the side - sending Hibiki off balance and giving him the chance to uppercut the Senju in the chest. This stumbled the Senju back and gave Aeanas the room he needed to snap his shield back and forth - ramming its edge into Hibiki's face with a crunching noise.

However, now, as his chest finished forming and his entire body turned to steel, was when Noboru reappeared. He forewent speed for raw power as he buried his palm into Aeneas' steel back. One could physically see the juken needles burst out into the metal flesh as it was crushed and dented by his augmented strength, creating a star-shaped pattern of grooves around the palm-shaped indentation in the flesh. Even through the durability of his steel skin, the strike hurt enough to cause Aeneas to bark out in pain, and in response, he swung around, intent upon broadsiding Noboru with his aspis.

Suboro chose this moment to join - flying in from the side and planting a kick on the man's chest. The Jonin winced in pain as flesh and bone struck solid steel, but the desired effect was achieved and Aeneas' momentum was lost. Suboro shot his deep brown eyes to both of his squadmates, as Aeneas, still trapped in his illusions, began to glow, first red, and growing to white, as if he were being submerged in molten lava. He only stumbled back two steps, still firmly between Hibiki and Noboru.

"Do you two remember Kiri?" He called out over the collective screeches of two localized lightning storms.

The Thunder God and the Kage Killer instantly locked onto what the Kurama Jonin was getting at, and their heads snapped over to eachother. Not a word was needed after that, they made eye contact, nodded, and sprang into action. Hibiki clapped two chakra streaming fists together and threw one forward in a powerful straight, as Noboru threw a palm forward into the same indentation on Aeneas' back. Noboru's hit first, and the same star-shaped pattern expanded, but before it could finish, Hibiki's fist hit next. Both of their respective energies surged through Aeneas' insides and collided with eachother, and with both of them providing caps to the other's rampaging energy, all that could happen was said energy would be reflected back and forth, endlessly. The combined energy built, feeding off of itself and growing until, finally, it detonated in a huge explosion, itself being overshadowed by an exponentially more titanic explosion above. The both of them together briefly turned the entire area a uniform, blinding white, forcing all of those on the ground to protect their eyes, lest they risk being blinded.

Team Dante flew backwards from the explosion, but before they could gain their balance they were beset upon by the shockwave surging down from above, and were all quickly buried into the ground, as if the gravity had increased tenfold. This lasted for several seconds, before finally letting up, and they all labored to their feet, all at opposite ends of the town, with Aeneas at its center. He stood hunched over, his entire body white hot and his skin melting off, the steel having turned completely molten. His lungs were expanding and contracting so fast that they were a blur under his white hot lungs, and it was clear that, if his steel vocal cords weren't currently streaming out from around his glowing spine, he would have been screaming in pain. But then, as if a switch had flipped, in a blink-and-you-miss-it moment he went from a standing skeleton, glowing from its collective heat, to a man, skin and muscle returned. Both of his eyes were wide and radiating hatred, one blood red, one a pale, pearly white.

Gasping for breath, Hibiki bobbed his head from side to side. "Okay... Okay, sure." He took in a deep breath, _"he's coming to you!"_ He said, pointing to Noboru, before he cut his lightning cloak, and replaced it with his swift release.

With a mighty heave and a deafening battle cry, Hibiki charged Aeaneas and, before the now one-eyed man could blink, slammed his shoulder into the man's side. Utilizing all of his speed and strength, Hibiki tore Aeaneas from his feet and sent him hurtling him towards Noboru at a speed equal to his dynamic entry. Noboru stood ready, and the moment Aeneas made it to him, thrust his lightning-streaming palm forward with all of his strength. The sound that followed, the thunderous cracking that echoed out through the entire destroyed town, was of every single one of Aeneas' ribs breaking in tandem, _again_.

Aeneas, for his part, attempted to counter - thinking Noboru a part of the illusion clouding over his single functioning eye. When his feet hit the ground he twisted around and threw a wide right cross at Noboru's face, but Noboru deftly ducked underneath it and slammed his palms into the man's fleshy stomach and chest, sending him stumbling backwards, where Hibiki, sliding on his knees, again locked his arms around the man's gut. Grunting with effort, Hibiki heaved the man over his head and suplexed him, slamming his head onto the ground, sending blood splaying out from his injuries, both fresh and healing.

Aeneas swung both legs around in a circular motion, no-doubt fending off phantom shinobi, but just as Noboru reached him his chest split open as if a massive sword had penetrated it. Noboru didn't even falter as he smashed his palms repeatedly into the grounded Undead's chest, closing off many tenketsu with each strike and covering his arms in the man's blood. The sound of Noboru's hands striking the viscuous blood and breaking more bones filled the air, soon joined by Hibiki appearing and attempting to punt Aeneas' head, cracking his _spine_ in the process.

Aeneas grunted in increasingly horrendous pain with each attack, but nothing he could do could match up against Konoha's shock troopers. Their momentum was too great, and their synergy, even greater. Trapped in his illusion, which itself did as much damage as the two real fighters, Aeneas could not at all distinguish the punishing reality from the damaging waking nightmare, and any attempts he made at countering his opponents were either met with absolutely nothing, as he struck the genjutsu, or a debilitating counter, as he struck flesh. Worse was that, as all this happened, he felt his power - what had once been intoxicating in its volume - shut and grow further and further away from him with every blow from the Hyuga. Before he could have even used _half_ of his full strength, Noboru had sealed away three quarters of it, and every time he would try to strike the Hyuga, he would find his blows intercepted by the expendable Senju clone.

Perhaps alone, facing them one on one, he would have stood a greater chance. Unfortunately for him, he stood facing three of Konoha's best fighters, all of whom had fought, trained, and bled together for their entire careers. They were at the absolute peak of their power and all were only growing stronger. No longer were they genin struggling to survive the Chunin exams, or a trio of shinobi hopelessly outclassed and outgunned by Kumo's strongest duo. Each of them alone was strong enough to be Jonin in their own right, but together? Together, when their combined might was faced against one single target, there wasn't a creature on earth that could survive their onslaught.

Aeneas lasted twenty minutes, before Noboru closed his final tenketsu. He flipped away from the struggling, bleeding Undead, and Hibiki flew away with a pulse of chakra, both of them rounding their gazes on their genjutsu specialist.

_"Now, Suboro!"_ They each shouted.

And with a roar loud enough to startle distant birds, one handsign pressed against his temple and the other hovering in front of his chest, Suboro thrust his free hand forward. Both of his dojutsu-wielding comrades could physically see a wave of dense chakra blast away from their bald comrade, crossing the distance between them and crashing upon Aeneas like a meteor. Aeneas shouted for all of two minutes before the Hyuga and the Senju watched as his skin was peeled from his body and his muscles burned from his bones. Aeneas' agonizing cries lasted all of ten seconds before all of the fleshy parts of his body were either torn, cut, or burned from his bones, and his skeleton was finally pulverized under the might of an unseen executioner.

All of them breathing heavily, they briefly let their arms swing and their shoulders sag, staring at the smoldering crater that held Aeneas' utterly destroyed corpse.

"We did it..." Noboru breathed.

Hibiki shook his head, "we're not kids in Kiri trying to survive against Ay and Bee anymore, Noboru." He looked up, "but don't get complacent. I'm calling him in." He burst into smoke.

And far above them, Noboru saw both figures powering up in the center of their firestorm, before they charged eachother. He raised his hand in Suboro's direction, calling out, "get ready! The real fight begins now!" And just as he spoke, the Monster and the Thunder God collided in air, sending a windstorm their way as the shockwave blasted out.

"Remember what he said! As hard as you can!" He heard the distant Kurama shout out.

Noboru nodded as he saw the two monumentally powerful men hurtling towards the ground, his lightning cloak grew in intensity. At three quarters his reserve already, and watching as the two hurtled downwards, he idly wondered how much chakra his teammate could have that he could so frequently use this technique. The two titans of chakra grew closer to the ground, the Monster's chakra raging like a flame in front of a fan, and the Thunder God's arcing about in all directions, appropriately like a lightning storm. But they weren't the only titans in this battleground. Raw power was their call to arms, but there were two more titans here, watching the others fall to ground, and as above called power, so below called _skill._

The Thunder God and the Monster slammed into the ground with a monumental explosion, sending stone and dirt flying upwards amidst a pillar of light an a dome of fire. Noboru's dojutsu-enhanced vision helped push through any blinding damage, but Suboro had to shield his eyes and leap away to avoid any of the fallout. When the fire and the light cleared, Noboru saw Katsuo and Hibiki already on their feet and already trading blows; even if Noboru hadn't read Hibiki's reports of their previous engagements, he could have told just by the way these two fought that they had done so countless times before. The way they predicted their movements and acted accordingly, the way they intercepted or took some strikes in order to capitalize on weaknesses that wouldn't have been seen by anyone else.

Alone, this would have made the fight drag on, turning it from a battle to a grudge match; but Hibiki was not alone. Hibiki had his squad, and Katsuo hadn't fought the full might of Team Dante even _once._

Noboru dashed forward, his own lightning cloak granting him speeds that only Hibiki and his enemy could exceed. They still moved fast compared to him, but with this bridge, he was able to fight on a level approaching theirs. Katsuo had him beat in raw power, Noboru could never meet that, but there was one thing he had that Katsuo didn't: He had the juken, and with his particular brand of fighting, his Burst Juken, he may not be able to break straight through Katsuo's durability, but he could damage him nonetheless. After all, Katsuo derived his great, irresistable power, from his ability to absorb the natural chakra around him and meld it with his own, so if he suddenly found himself without _either,_ they would make the once indomitable monster fall to his knees.

Reaching Hibiki and Katsuo's intense duel, Noboru came to the Monster's back and rammed his palm into the man's spinal column. The effect was instant, and the air was filled with the primal roar of pain. Katsuo whirled around to swat Noboru away like a bug, but his fist was halted in its entirety by a gigantic gray hand clenching at it, keeping it reared above Katsuo's back. Katsuo grunted in pain, frozen by Hibiki's attack, and Noboru capitalized on this, planting palm after palm onto Katsuo's chest, trailing upwards from the abdomen to his sternum before ending it with a strike to the man's nose. It felt like punching solid steel, Katsuo's skin did not give an inch, and when Katsuo used his free arm to strike Noboru, it was among the worst hits Noboru had taken in his life.

He was sent flying, pain easily transmitting through his lightning cloak and causing him to groan. He saw through his byakugan, as he skidded across the ground, Hibiki grabbed Katsuo's other arm with another spectral gray fist and planted his boot on Katsuo's back, burying him into the ground with a thunderclap. Katsuo whirled around and backhanded away Hibiki's next attempted kick, and as Noboru got to his feet he saw Katsuo lunge to his and slam his fist into Hibiki's crossed arms. A shockwave pulsed out, making Noboru's combat robes billow in the resultant wind, and as Hibiki intercepted Katsuo's next wide cross, Noboru charged back in again.

Noboru reached Katsuo just as Katsuo's monstrous strength overcame Hibiki's and sent the Senju head flying. The Hyuga managed four rapid-fire strikes to Katsuo's back, each one disrupting his fiery cloak like a pebble being thrown into a lake. He predicted Katsuo's next move and hopped back just as the Monster spun around with a wide, angry swing. He overextended and missed his intended punch, giving Noboru the time he needed to dash right back in and land a particularly debilitating palm to the monster's shoulder. Katsuo stumbled back, his arm swinging limply from its socket as his senjutsu chakra tried pushing Noboru's out. Noboru took advantage of this and pressed forward with the juken equivalent of haymakers, rearing each flat palm and slamming it into Katsuo's face, a left, and then a right, and another left, and a second right, each one causing Katsuo's cloak to waver violently and his entire body to recoil in the intended direction. Noboru took a small amount of pride in seeing that he was even creating bruises on the previously impregnable monster's face.

Unfortunately, the Monster was among the few people alive capable of matching Hibiki on his best day, and he proved this by recovering from a series of juken haymakers, and sending Noboru skidding back with little more than the force of his voice. Noboru stuck to the ground and overpowered Katsuo's wind technique with chakra flowing to his feet, but saw with his byakugan what Katsuo's intent had been: To gain just a modicum of space, with which to charge. He had his fist reared and flying forward in a superman punch, and Noboru was his target. Noboru simply frowned, clenched his right hand into a tight fist, and twisted it clockwise. The air began vibrating and humming loudly as his chakra began swirling around his fist, it saturated by the lightning with which he charged his body.

When Katsuo's superman punch met Noboru, Noboru didn't even meet it with his chakra drill. His forward hand, still held aloft, shot up and around in a short arc, smacking into Katsuo's forearm and, with a juken burst, clogged up the tenketsu in the limb and cancelled out most of the power in the strike. Noboru was then able to follow it up by pushing the arm out of the way and exposing Katsuo's back to his drill, which was summarily brought on home. The sound of steel grinding against steel filled the air, as did, after a moment, blood from Katsuo's gray, leathery back. Noboru's drill had been capable of penetrating a jinchuriki's cloak when he was_ twelve;_ now, eight years and a great deal of growth later, drilling through the weakened durability of the Monster was child's play in comparison. Noboru pushed forward until Katsuo's roar of rage became a shriek of pain, and Noboru's knuckles touched against Katsuo's spine. The Monster screamed in pain, stumbling backwards. Noboru didn't follow, however, as now came Hibiki, sprinting in from behind.

He slammed his fist into the wounded portion of Katsuo's back. Noboru saw with his dojutsu Hibiki's fist had three long, metal claws protruding from in between its knuckles, and the blades drove straight through Katsuo's chest and out the other side. With a loud bellow, Hibiki then pushed forward, sending Katsuo stumbling back to the Hyuga, who, with a grunt, thrust _both_ palms forward. His double-palm strike hit the openly bleeding area of Katsuo's chest, managing to send chakra needles so deep into the Monster's system that Noboru saw them reach his _heart_, causing it to fibrillate. Katsuo was spun around, but he turned this into his advantage, recovering enough to smash his fist into the side of Hibiki's head and bury him into the ground, before using his flight technique to lunge himself backwards so fast that Noboru couldn't react, and he himself stumbled back, nearly crashing through one of the abandoned buildings in the village.

As Noboru got back to his feet, he saw Katsuo stumbling around drunkenly, while Hibiki was trying and failing to haul himself to his feet. He had no idea that the two of them were both feeling the otherworldly assault of the endless shrieks and cries of the damned. They each clenched their heads tightly in agony, it feeling as if the shrieks of trillions of tortured souls were piercing their very brains, digging and clawing at them, trying to force them to acknowledge each of the voices individually, all of them, personally, to make the two Undead speak to them, to make him even glance at them or even pretend he might have heard them in passing.

Noboru, however, he heard none of this - only seeing the two suffering from the effects of what he had to assume was a concussion. Both of the Undead's eyes, ears, and noses were freely leaking blood as they thrashed about. Unfortunately, Noboru too was in too much pain to get to his feet, his mouth tasting of blood, his ribs creaking and groaning, and his lightning cloak having faded out of safety as he groaned, trying to muster the strength to recover and get back to the fight.

Noboru could see that the Monster's body was already shunting natural chakra to his erratically beating heart and open wounds, and while one would think that with both of Team Dante's front-line fighters recovering from the fight, he would have time to heal himself, one would be wrong, as the genjutsu specialist charged in headlong, pulling a tanto out from somewhere Noboru, even with his dojutsu, couldn't see. Noboru wore an expression of tranquil fury, and he dodged Katsuo's blindingly fast swing by ducking underneath it. He spun the tanto into the air and caught it in a reverse grip, before surging it upwards and burying it in the Monster's open wounds even as they sealed themselves shut - ensuring that they wouldn't.

Katsuo roared out in anger, but Noboru saw him swing three feet above Suboro's buzz-cut head, as the sole jonin of the group lunged upwards, uppercutting Katsuo in the jaw. Noboru saw Katsuo's chakra immediately enter a state of flux, and several wounds began opening on his body. They sealed themselves up just as quickly, but Suboro followed through with his upward momentum, leaping onto Katsuo's still mid-swing arm and jumping off of it like a springboard, flipping end-over-end over Katsuo's back, and burying a three kunai in three of the larger wounds on the Monster's back. He landed on the ground hands-first, and rolled into it as Katsuo's green flames burst forth anew, and he spun around, a knife sticking out of his back and a short blade out of his chest, giving him the appearance of a wild animal being shot and speared with everything a village had to offer, and still not going down.

As Noboru and his Senju counterpart hauled themselves to their feet, Suboro danced around another of Katsuo's massive meaty swings, bending over backwards at a full ninety degree angle, before he surged back forwards and, with both hands, pushed on Katsuo's forearm with all of his might. The mere contact of Suboro's skin against Katsuo's opened up several more wounds all across the Monster's body, and the act of him pushing Katsuo into the Monster's momentum caused him to stumble around in a circular motion - granting Suboro the chance to bury two more kunai into the man's back. He tried for a third, but the wound sealed up too fast for him and the result was him striking the Monster's impregnable hide, and before the blade shattered, Suboro's hand slid down and was sliced open.

The Kurama didn't even curse in pain, and if he noticed that one of his fingers had fallen off in its entirety, he didn't show it. He couldn't dodge Katsuo's backwards kick, and was sent skidding back across the village - where he immediately burst into smoke. This heralded another Suboro, with another tanto, leaping into the fray from the roofs of the village's building, roaring like a hunter as he surged downwards. He slammed the tanto into Katsuo's back, his aim so true that he slipped it in between one of his earlier placed kunai and the wounds they kept open - tearing it open and forcing the tanto deeper inside. Katsuo screamed in pain and swung around in a wide arc - slamming the back of his hand into Suboro, but this Suboro too burst into smoke - revealing Hibiki, who buried his fist onto Katsuo's face. He stumbled backwards into a third Suboro, who wrapped his hands around Katsuo's stomach, and as more and more wounds opened - some so wide that the skin avulsed and showed the muscle underneath - he, roaring with all of his might, suplexed the monster, before the clone exploded in a might detonation, sending smoke and debris flying into the air alongside the thunderclap.

This prompted Noboru's return, as Hibiki hauled Katsuo into the air by his neck and drop-kicked him across the village, straight towards the sprinting, lightning-cloaked Hyuga. Katsuo snapped out of it in time to block another strike from Noboru, but even though he blocked it, Noboru's fighting style ensured damage was still dealt. Katsuo's right cross was met with a powerful left palm from Noboru, causing the Monster's hand to recoil with a bark of pain, before he tried again with an upwards left punch, only to be met with a downwards palm that caught the punch and pulsed a mass of chakra into Katsuo's system. He visibly twitched and seized as he stumbled backwards, where Hibiki leapt into the air and kicked him in the back, spinning him around and snapping him out of his pain-induced daze.

_"His legs!"_ Hibiki bellowed, as he batted aside Katsuo's next punch and gave him three of his own, targeting specifically the places Noboru had struck earlier.

Katsuo's grunts of pains now worsened to outright shouts as Hibiki planted his fist in the weakened portions of his body. His aura of green fire dispersed after one particularly powerful punch sent him stumbling back, and Noboru slid in behind him. Noboru rammed his palm onto Katsuo's heavily injured back and caused the monster to list forward, briefly stunned by the foreign chakra clogging up his system, and as Noboru swooped down to strike at Katsuo's legs, Hibiki came charging in with a flying knee.

Katsuo felt both knees give out as Noboru smashed his palms into the backs of them, and then was flipped over backwards when Hibiki's knee smashed into his nose. It drew blood with a horrendous cracking noise, and Katsuo felt his head bounce off the ground, his vision blurred. Hibiki straddled Katsuo, pounding his face with an endless series of left and right haymakers, grunting and roaring with each one. Noboru centered Katsuo's head and again struck his scalp with his palm, the chakra needles shooting out with a powerful burst and jamming the precious few tenketsu in the Monster's head.

Noboru actually saw Katsuo's golden eyes lose much of their luster and begin melting away to a more neutral gray as more of his tenketsu were closed, but he also saw that the tenketsu in his eyes remained open - and soon were bulging with energy. Noboru's eyes widened as he saw all of the remaining green chakra in Katsuo's body begin flooding upwards, and both organs in their entirety began glowing a vibrant lime green.

"Hibiki! Off!" He shouted, leaping away.

Hibiki saw what was happening too and leapt away, just as Katsuo blasted the area with his technique, carving apart buildings and tearing the ground open before the green beams thinned out and died off. Hibiki and Noboru stood side by side, breathing heavily as Katsuo lumbered to his feet. One of his lungs rattled, still impaled by one of Suboro's tanto, while the rest of the blades in his back still jutted out like spears, some having been pushed in deeper by Katsuo's brief tenure on the ground. The Monster was covered in his own blood and was shaking in both anger and pain.

Noboru saw his lungs quivering, "you... you killed - you killed them all!" Katsuo shouted, his voice wavering, but rage was only a part of the reason. "Every... Every last one!" He blubbered, as if seconds away from bawling.

"Too many of his tenketsu have been closed, Hibiki. It appears as if his body can no longer draw in the nature chakra." Noboru called out over the twin raging lightning storms, as Katsuo listed from side to side, clenching and unclenching his fists.

Hibiki scowled, "he's still green, so he's still strong. We have to hit him again if we want Suboro to have his best kill-shot." He turned his red eyes over Katsuo's shoulder, seeing the Alpha Suboro focusing his chakra, building it up for another burst, waiting for the opportune moment.

_"All of them!"_ Katsuo's voice picked up, the ground beginning to shake as green fire slowly began to pick up, but instead of a raging bonfire it was more calm flames licking at his skin. _"You..."_ He turned his gaze over to the crater in which Aeneas' skeleton lay, "you killed them all!" He turned his livid, gray eyes, both struggling to return to their older golden luster, the liquid gold swirling within them like whirlpools.

Noboru frowned, turning his all-seeing gaze to Katsuo's stomach, his eyes widening. "Hibiki... We need to hit him now!" He said, as he saw what little chakra Katsuo had rampaging through his damaged and clogged system - right towards two specific locations in his brain.

Hibiki seemed to be aware of what Katsuo, whether intentionally or otherwise, was doing in his rage, and nodded. "You go left, keep him off balance - hit his head again and keep those gates _CLOSED!"_ And the two hurtled forward again.

They reached Katsuo in an instant, Noboru approaching from his left, and Hibiki from his right. Noboru hopped into the air and slammed his palm into the side of Katsuo's head, sending him listing sideways; Hibiki crouched down low and snap-kicked Katsuo's knee, bringing him stumbling back down to the ground with a huff. Noboru again struck Katsuo's head, this time with two palm strikes, but Katsuo, in his unyielding rage, was _forcing_ what little chakra he could through these clogged tenketsu and towards the gates of Opening and Healing. Nothing the two did, not a single savage punch to the head nor any palm strike _anywhere_ from Noboru ceased these attempts by Katsuo to tear open these gates.

_"SUBORO HIT HIM NOW!"_ Hibiki roared, smashing his fist into Katsuo's temple, sending him stumbling over to Noboru who palm-striked his throat, causing him to gag and choke.

Hearing the urgency in his voice, Suboro rampaged towards them, the amount of chakra he was building causing him to leave small craters every time his feet hit the ground. As he got closer, Hibiki looked up to Noboru and nodded in Suboro's direction, Noboru got the hint and the both of them grabbed Katsuo and, with all of their strength, pushed him back towards the approaching Kurama. Suboro reached them just in time, and locked his hand onto the back of Katsuo's head.

There was a blinding flash of chakra that caused both of Suboro's teammates to drop their dojutsu, and Suboro's hand burned Katsuo's flesh on contact, filling the air with the sound of sizzling flesh and the smell of burning hair. Katsuo screamed in pain as Suboro's chakra invaded his system, Noboru rushed forward and, with one hand locked onto Katsuo's shoulders, repeatedly pounded his palm into Katsuo's stomach, pushing his chakra further and further into Katsuo's system and clogging it further and further with his juken strikes. Katsuo still, however, struggled, trying to rip free of Suboro's grip even as wounds opened up all over his body, and tried still to strike Noboru even as the Hyuga's chakra stunned and invaded him. So, to finalize their assault, Hibiki, his teeth bared, shoved both hands forward, grasping onto Katsuo's right pectoral, and the left side of his abdomen, before he poured as much electricity into the man as he could, all of it following the arc towards the other hand, and meeting in the middle: Katsuo's heart.

Now violently convulsing, having his chakra systems torn apart by Noboru's juken, and seeing such horrors that no words had been invented to properly describe them, the Monster finally lost the will and the ability to struggle, and with a mighty, blinding green flash, he screamed in pain, his entire body convulsing, before he slumped over, completely limp. All three members of Team Dante fell with him, stumbling backwards to their respective rears, gasping for breath as Katsuo's back hit the ground, the metal of the blades jutting out of it scraping against the stone ground.

Still breathing.

But not fighting, instead, he was sobbing, crying, blubbering desperately as he faced, for the second time, death. _"You killed..."_ He rasped, as Hibiki leaned forward, staring at the man, open-mouthed. _"We just... We wanted to go... We... Go home."_ His lips quivered and his eyes slowly turned red as tears stained them. _"You..."_ He coughed, blood flying from his mouth, as he turned to look at Hibiki. _"Why won't you... Just... Why..."_

Hibiki leaned his hands on his knees. _"I got hit by a car and died on impact."_ He gasped in their shared language, his voice haggard and deep. _"Twenty six years after I was born."_

His team and Katsuo stared at him, the lattermost with tears streaming from his eyes.

_"How'd you die?"_

Katsuo's lip curled, _"my... My mom... She said..." _He cried. _"She said... Not to go out after - after dark. B- because... I'd get... I'd get l - lost."_ He blubbered like a child.

Hibiki sighed. _"Yes."_ A pause, and then he shook his head. _"And no."_ He grunted firmly. _"You died then, but you came back, and you never moved on. You're alive, now. This world is yours, and you were hurting it. This is your life... And you wasted it, in denial. You died today. Because you declared war, and lost."_ He pulled a pistol out of his wrist. "I tried, Katsuo." He sighed, in the language of all present. "Now I'll tell you I respect what you want. You boil it down, you want to protect the people you love and give them what they want. It's the same thing I want. I've fought myself over this every step of the way. What do I do? Do I fight you over wanting to protect your family? Or let you do it and put _mine_ at risk? Are you really evil? These are questions I've asked myself my entire life." He grunted, his heart rate slowing down, as he gripped his pistol tightly. "And every time I asked these questions... Something bad happened. Every time I thought... Maybe I can turn him around. The only group of kindred spirits in the world.

"And every time I thought that, something bad happened. You attacked my village... I sent you away. You kidnapped me, I tried to convince you to abandon your pursuit. We met under the rain, something happened, you blamed me and you called me a liar. You faked Kushina's kidnapping, I tried to get her back without bloodshed. You attacked my home _again..._ And for every drop of blood you spilled, I repaid tenfold, _warning_ you not to do it again... So you sent your people to an ancient well of chakra... And we all went on one _long_ journey." He nodded, frowning as he inspected his pistol. "I tried every time, and you know what I learned?" He turned his blood red eyes to Katsuo.

"There is nothing more to be said between us." He raised the pistol and fired.

Katsuo's head snapped to the side, his brains smeared across the concrete, the tension from his body flooding away, leaving him limp. The gunshot rang out and echoed endlessly, it being the only thing filling Hibiki's ears as he slowly lowered his pistol, his blood red eyes locked onto Katsuo's head, and the blood and gray matter dribbling out of it. The sounds finally left his ears when, next to him, Noboru leaned over and clasped his shoulder, giving a single shake.

"Are you okay, Hibiki?" He asked, in his deep, airy tone.

Hibiki continued to frown at Katsuo's corpse, silent.

"Hibiki?" Asked Suboro.

"Can you guys do something for me?" Hibiki asked.

The two exchanged glances, and looked back to him. "What do you need?" Suboro asked, his own breathing coming back under control.

"I've kept a lot of secrets from a lot of people." Hibiki voiced, "I've done things I'm not proud of. Some things I knew was necessary, others... I still question." He gave Suboro and Noboru each a look. "Will you two please tell me that there was no other option here? That Katsuo _deserved_ to die?"

"Hibiki." Noboru said, placing his hand on the Senju's shoulder again. "You said it yourself, just now. You _tried,_ and every time you did, Katsuo threw it back in your face. His death was the only way to solve this problem, lest you risk more lives in keeping him alive to try again."

Suboro piped in, nodding emphatically. "Yeah, man! Katsuo killed a lot of people. He started this whole war." He gestured widely with one burned hand. "He would've killed a lot more if you we let him live. There was nothing else to do for him, _but_ kill him."

The Senju head nodded, and Noboru slid his hand off of his shoulder as the three got to their feet. Hibiki knelt down over Katsuo's corpse, and placed his pistol on the man's chest.

_Superman..._ Hibiki got to his feet. "A boy died today." He told the two. "A scared boy who found himself surrounded by many more scared men and women who looked up to him. They all only wanted to go back home." He nodded, "I don't regret what we've done. Only that it had to _be_ done." He looked up, "let's go home. Anbu will be here to burn the body." He sighed, his voice dropping in tone, now more exhausted and rumbly.


	91. Long-Term Potentiation

_AN_

_Looooooooong one, but as I said: I played a lot of literary musical chairs.  
Originally this was two chapters, sandwiching the Katsuo fight in between them. But when I combined the two, I found I liked it too much, and put it **after** the Katsuo fight._

* * *

Chapter 90

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Days before Hibiki left for his final mission against Katsuo, and as Team Dante got reacquainted on the other side of the village, one third of Team Eiji heard a knock on her door. It only took a moment to consult with beetles she had stationed outside to identify her visitor, and while it wasn't strange to be visited by her, Dai still found it a curious encounter, as it wasn't a common one, either. As close as she and Kushina may be, the Namikaze-to-be had always been a closer friend to Hibiki, and her visits were usually tailored around his presence.

So, she dropped a book given to her by Hibiki, and crossed their apartment to the door, sliding her hoodie and sunglasses on as she did so.

She opened the door with a respectful nod, "Kushina. I trust Minato is doing well?"

Kushina's shoulders jerked with a silent giggle. "He was awake for an hour before he went back to bed. He was so hungover walked into the wall three times, and I've never seen someone drink so much water." She said, before her smile dropped a bit. "Can I come in? There's something I think we need to talk about, you know?"

Dai's expression became her characteristic neutral, and she stepped aside from the door. "Of?"

Kushina frowned as she sat at the table in the dining room. "So, when Hibiki came home 'not drunk' yesterday, I was reminded of a conversation he and I had, back when we were each studying under Miss Mito." She began. "It was when his mother was still drinking. He told me that he, in a word, _wouldn't._ D - uh, drink, that is." She said, "I mean, I know that Minato's his friend, and everything, and we all just survived that time loop thing, but it still struck me as strange that he'd do that, you know?"

Dai nodded, "I understand what you say, Kushina. But I would point out that Hibiki has learned and been through a great many things, these last few months. A moment's weakness can be excused, in this regard."

Kushina nodded, "yeah." She acquiesced, "but... Then I started thinking more, and then I noticed some more things strange about him."

Dai kept her expression guarded, her amber eyes masked by her dark glasses, locked right onto Kushina's blue orbs. "Like?"

"Yesterday he was smiling." She pointed out. "He doesn't do that a lot these days. And then I remembered stories of how, when he was still a genin, he would appreciate advice a lot, but now? He works alone more often than he doesn't. Him asking for Noboru and Suboro's help with Katsuo is the first time I can think of that he sought out assistance - even when he thought I'd been kidnapped by Katsuo, he only took Minato because Minato made him, you know?" She said, gesturing with her hands as she spoke. "And then he attacked Iwa, risking all of those people when, in Kiri, his most constant order was to keep civilians out of the line of fire - and those are just the big things, you know? There's a lot of little things I've noticed.

"He still jokes, but not as much. I've seen more and more and more of his clones running around, he's training more now than he ever has before, and I've seen Minato come home after training with just a few shadow clones, Hibiki does it with hundreds. He sleeps less, talks less, eats more; I think I saw him smoking once, but he gave that up. The big things and the little things, they're all building up and they got me thinking, you know?"

Dai kept her expression neutral, but folded her hands in her lap as she leaned back. "Suggesting they started somewhere."

"That's what I'm trying to figure out, you know?" She said, "where it all started. Why." Her voice lowered, as she drifted off into thought.

"Has it occurred to you, the volume of things he deals with on a daily basis?" Dai asked, "this could very well be him coping with it all. Attempting to find ways to deal with it that do not result in him going mad." She pointed out. "He is aging, after all. We do not forever remain and act the same as we did when we were rookies."

Kushina nodded emphatically, her red hair flicking back and forth with the motions. "Yeah! I thought that too!" She said, "I know he's getting older, and I know the things he's going through, they'd be hard on anyone, you know? If that's the case, I thought... Well, then we need to help him, yeah?" She briefly broke Dai's gaze, before looking back up. "If he really makes it work, and he kills Katsuo like he says he wants to, then maybe we'll be able to do so..." She deflated, "but... What if it isn't just him coping?"

"What could it be?" Dai questioned.

Kushina hunched over the table, fiddling with her thumbs. "Well... I've been trying to expand some of my skillsets, you know? And I got Minato and Bana sensei to give me a little training in the sensory side of things." She gave Dai a quick, conspiratorial grin. "I wanted to use it to see if I couldn't figure out how you always knew what I was doing." She giggled.

Dai allowed Kushina a brief upward tick of her mouth. "I can assure you, Kushina-san. Even Akane and her betrothed do not know when I am spying on them. Among the only to ever know was Eiji-sensei, and that was before I'd even become Chunin."

Kushina laughed, "but, it's been working a little. I can't find everyone, but I can at least tell the people I know apart from the people I don't, and I noticed something in Hibiki, when we sparred once. It didn't really register until now, when I started thinking about it."

Dai's expression stilled, "what was it?"

"Well, whenever he uses his cursed seal..." She frowned, "I... Um... Think about it like colors. If his normal chakra is a nice, warm, bright blue, when he uses the cursed seal, it darkens to an oily black. It doesn't flow right, either. Like it gets gunked up." She explained, "and I sensed, after the curse mark receded, some of that gunk remained, and his chakra didn't feel right for a while, later."

Slowly, Dai's lips pressed together, her eyebrows growing closer, as she realized what Kushina may be getting at.

"And when he uses the seal, he always fights a bit differently. He gets less forgiving, he hurts more. And when I noticed this, I tried to remember back to fights I've seen of his when he didn't use his curse mark. When he and Minato spar, it's friendly, they don't hurt eachother - not too bad, anyways. And when he fought Arjuna, yeah it got bloody, but he only ever _reciprocated,_ only ever got bloodier if Arjuna escalated." She lowered her gaze to her hands, "and _then_ I noticed that, it was after Katsuo invaded, when Hibiki got the curse mark, that he stopped smiling as often. It was slow, subtle, but..." She nodded, "he smiled a lot more before then. Laughed more. Genuinely."

Dai found it frightening that the Uzumaki had a point. "Okay..." She prodded.

_"SowillyougowithmetospeakwithOrochimarusamaandaskifheknowsanythingaboutityouknow?"_ She pushed out, all in one breath.

"Try that again." Dai said, arily. "Slowly."

Kushina swallowed, "so, will you go with me, to speak with Orochimaru-sama, and ask if he knows anything about it?"

There was a beat of dead silence, quiet enough that Kushina could have heard Dai's beetles crawling across her skin as easily as she could have heard a gunshot.

Finally, after a minor eternity, Dai broke it. "Kushina, allow me to play devil's advocate for a moment. What could Hibiki's uncle even do?" She asked, "I know as well as any that he made the seal, but Hibiki has many times mentioned it being a prototype from the beginning. There may be nothing Orochimaru can do." She said, "I see the validity in your point. Were I any less rested than I am I may not have been able to, but I still must point this out. If you are right and it is Hibiki's seal that is damaging him, Orochimaru may not be able to fix it. He's had it for so long and has used it so often, removing it may not be an option, and changing it may do more damage than otherwise."

Kushina nodded, "I thought about that too... But, still. Orochimaru _made_ it, and he could have fixed the issues Hibiki's having. Maybe he knows how to reverse the effects." She shrugged, "I'm grasping at straws, I know, but I want to help Hibiki -" She pointed at Dai, "and that you're still talking to me says I've at least got a point, you know?"

Dai broke eye contact with Kushina, turning her gaze around their apartment as her mind slogged along with thoughts. Yes, if there was one thing she wanted more than anything, it would be to help Hibiki. He was a man who would sacrifice his own wellbeing at the drop of a hat, he needed others just as much as they needed him. What she worried about, however, was whether or not this would truly be the best option for him. For as much as he was a man who fought for others, so too was he a creature of pride, he was proud of his power and worked ceaselessly to test it and gain more. How would he react to them attempting to take it away from him?

_No..._ She thought, _I know how he would react._ A frown slowly played at her pale features.

He trusted her, and Kushina, and Minato, perhaps all three of them implicitly, even more than he trusted his own squad. If they came to him and asked him to do this, he would do it. She knew how, too - she had to play to his sensibilities. She had to present him facts. Provided those, Hibiki would cave in to nearly anything, would accept nearly everything. She had the opportunity to force his hand, to act for his own greater good. This, however, relied on Kushina's theory about his seal being correct.

She turned back to the Namikaze-to-be, "he is at his home, at the moment. It is a kilometer from the RND division headquarters."

Kushina gasped, leaning back in her chair. "Thank you!" In the blink of an eye, she shot across the table, wrapping Dai in a bone-crushing hug. _"Oh, I knew you would help!"_

"Please let me go." Dai deadpanned.

There was a moment of silence, before Kushina realized what she'd done, and who she'd done it to. Dai was dropped a moment later, and Kushina retreated a step, rubbing the back of her scalp, sheepishly. "Right... Sorry, I just got excited, you know?"

Dai shook her head, "think nothing of it." She said, as she got to her feet. "The list of people who can touch me in such a way is very small." She nodded to the door, "let us go."

Kushina blinked, "right now?"

"Hibiki is -"

"Oh shit, what am I doing?"

Kushina and Dai both turned to face Hibiki, as his return was heralded by a ripple of light. He removed two fingers from his head, and gave the two women a curious look, as he turned to the coat rack and hung his overcoat from it.

"Killing Katsuo." Said Dai, with little delay. "I assume Dante gave you clearance. I saw Noboru return, earlier."

Hibiki grunted, stretching his back. "Yeah. We're leaving Saturday."

Dai nodded, turning to the Uzumaki. "We will continue this Saturday, then."

Kushina blinked, "but -"

"Girl talk, Kushina." Said Dai, as she placed her hand on Kushina's back and began guiding her out of the apartment. "If Hibiki is hear now, we cannot speak as candidly about his size compared to Minato's."

Kushina's face grew red as Hibiki grinned, "so _that's_ what you two talk about." He grunted, as he fell to the couch with a huff. "Don't tell me the results, please. I'd like to feign ignorance."

Dai smiled, but didn't humor him, as she opened the door for Kushina, who found her legs again and was now walking on her own. "On Saturday, then." She said, nodding to the Uzumaki.

Kushina gave Dai a worried glance, but nodded nonetheless, and Dai swung the door shut. She turned to Hibiki, whose head was leaned upon the back of the couch. Dai was only slightly afraid to admit that she found herself looking at him in a new light, now. If Kushina was correct, and it was the seal on Hibiki's neck that was hurting him, she knew that she likely wasn't the best judge of it. She had only ever known Hibiki without the seal for a few months - he had gotten it after the Chunin exams in Suna, very soon after they had met. Any changes occurring afterwards went by unnoticed or, perhaps worse, too subtly for Dai _to_ notice. Only those who'd known him his entire life would have been able to pick up on it, and Dai hadn't that honor.

"I can put on a show if you want." Hibiki deadpanned, as he raised his head.

"Hm?" Dai hummed, as she slid her jacket off and hung it next to Hibiki's coat.

"You were staring at me for five minutes. If it's a show you want I've got no problem stripping." He grinned, thumbing at the sleeves of his shit.

A quick glance showed Dai that the grin didn't reach his eyes.

She smiled too, as she slid off her sunglasses. "You can't dance, Hibiki." She returned.

"And you can?" Hibiki shot back, as Dai slid next to him on the couch.

"Were _I_ to give you such a 'show', you wouldn't make it halfway through before forcing me into bed." She placed her ear over his heart. "You may wish to correct such a shortcoming, in time for our wedding."

"Ha." Said Hibiki, "let me tell you, Dai, my two left feet are among the few things I kept from the last world to this one. Some problems just can't be fixed."

Dai repressed a frown, "I know I shouldn't have to ask, but Katsuo..." She trailed off.

She felt Hibiki wrap an arm around her, "it'll be fine, Dai." He assured her. "Got the whole squad in on it. The hardest part will be keeping Katsuo busy while Noboru and Suboro deal with Aeneas, and once they get that dealt with, it's smooth sailing." He made a wide, sweeping gesture with his free hand, before resting it on the back of the couch.

"You are so confident." Said Dai, "need I remind you you've fought him twice, now? And neither of those times with another of his men struggling against you."

"Don't sound like you're _worried,_ Dai, I might get the wrong idea." Hibiki responded, "both of those times I didn't have Suboro and Noboru at my back." He tightened his hold on her, "it'll be _fine._ Don't worry so much, yeah? I've just gotta kill the Batman." He snapped his fingers, "that simple. I've done it twice now. First with the whole group, then again with Yui and Aojiroi."

"And the latter effectively poisoned the rest of us." Dai could hear his steady, unchanging heartbeat. She knew he was as confident and assured as he played himself off to be. It briefly cast her shared suspicions with Kushina into doubt. "Just say it again."

Hibiki let out a cross between a chuckle and a sigh. "I'll be fine, Dai. If it isn't obvious by now, it's pretty much _impossible_ for me to die. The universe has thrown everything at me and the kitchen sink, and I'm still standing. Zetsu's dead, so Kaguya won't come back. Most of the Undead are _re_dead, so they won't be much of a threat. The biggest people left are Katsuo and Aeneas - and I stress again, we're dealing with them. By the end of the week..." He shrugged, "biggest threats then... Hell, probably Ay and Bee of Kumo, and I only list them because they kicked my squad's asses in Kiri. You know, like... A half decade and a lot of power growth ago..." He trailed off, as she felt his head change position, he looking down at her. "Let me show you something." He said, digging in his coat, and pulling out a cube.

Dai looked up at it, it was the same cube he'd said had brought them home. "You showed me this already."

"And I told you I intended for Minato to destroy it." He prodded, "I told you why."

"You said it was dangerous."

"There was another reason. I proved it right, just a few hours ago, before I met up with Noboru and Suboro."

Dai frowned, "what did you do?"

"I want Minato to destroy this because I don't trust myself with it." He said, rolling it onto his leg, and kicking it up in the air, where it landed with a light click on the table in front of them. "Because if I had this, all the time, I'd eventually use it. I'd eventually decide that my need for it would eclipse the danger it poses... And I'm right. I've already proved this." He rumbled.

Dai nodded, understanding his implication. "It is why you know so well that you shall win against Katsuo."

Hibiki grunted in the affirmative, "yeah. I cracked it open and cheated. There are... Well, a _lot_ of ways for Saturday to go wrong. But a lot _more_ ways for it to go right. As long as they're there, as long as I can drop a clone with them to gang up on Aeneas, and as long as I keep Katsuo occupied... For hardly even _thirty minutes..._ Just less than a half hour. Aeneas will die, and then twenty minutes later, so will Katsuo.

"I keep telling you I'll be fine because I _know I will."_ He stressed, "and that's why I'm trusting Minato with destroying this. I know he'll do it - he's a better man than me, and if I trust him with this, I know he'll take on this responsibility. He'll understand the danger it possesses, and understand why I don't trust myself with it. He'll destroy it... Katsuo and the Undead will be dead... And once the war's over..." He yawned, "all the bullshit we've been dealing with will be _done."_ He grinned, leaning his head back and holding Dai tight. "We'll be fine."

But Dai, she didn't say anything. Hearing Hibiki say this, she believed in him completely - she trusted that he would defeat Katsuo; but she also now came to believe Kushina, as well. Either something was very wrong with him, or he was changing, and neither one was an attractive option. At the moment, all she could do was hold him as tightly as he held her, and once he left to topple the last of his enemies, then maybe she could help him.

They stayed like this, silent, for several minutes, before Hibiki gave her a pat on the back. "You eaten yet?"

She shook her head. "I can cook, Hibiki, but I prefer not to take _every_ role from you. I feel you've more value than just what is in your pants."

Hibiki snorted, disentangling from her and getting to his feet. "I don't hear regret." He teased, "I'll make some food."

* * *

Saturday came entirely too quickly for Dai. She counted herself miraculously fortunate that Hibiki did not attempt to allow her her sleep. Instead he awoke her with a peck on the head. Her eyes were heavy, but she saw he'd already garbed himself in his mission gear, before the sun was up. Their farewell was quick, with him promising to be back home by the next day, at the latest. Dai still trusted that he would come home, but this was perhaps the first time he had ever intentionally sought Katsuo out, and that didn't instill her with confidence. Regardless of this fact, she drifted off to sleep again after seeing him off, awakening hours later with the sun. By the time she was dressed, Kushina was already at her door.

"Minato went out to train." She supplied, with a nod. "I think I saw Hibiki leaving this morning, I was filling out my mission report, you know?"

Dai nodded, "they would be in Grass Country, by now." She intoned, airily. "His uncle has yet to leave his home. Let us make haste."

"So... How _do_ you know everything you do?"

Dai followed her out of the apartment and up onto the rooftops. "I liken it to what Hibiki so often parrots back to me. The greatest way to keep a secret is to hide it openly." She said, turning to peer at Kushina from the side of her hood, a beetle crawling out and flying away. "To give credit, however, Orochimaru is very well adept at keeping his own secrets. Not a single attempt has been successful at getting _in_ his home, and I feel observation only works because he allows it."

Kushina shuddered at the image of the beetle crawling out of her hood, and the two leapt across rooftops. "So... Are you okay? You seem... Short."

"I am." Dai grunted. "I would inform you that I am not necessarily happy, at the moment."

The Uzumaki blinked, "why?"

"A problem has been brewing inside the man whom I have dedicated a significant portion of my life thus far, and intend to dedicate the rest of it to." The Senju-to-be responded, as she and her companion crossed the village. "And I have not noticed it at all. I wrote it all off as him simply changing with age. I grew complacent. Noticing things like this has always been my weapon, Kushina. Small details, that others would not notice. Being brought this, and so suddenly, with such little warning... It unnerves me."

Kushina shrugged, "we all make mistakes, you know. We're only human." She gave, "and it's still totally possible that I'm just thinking about this too much. Hibiki always says that's a problem with _everyone_, especially shinobi."

Dai hummed, as they continued hopping across rooftops, the early-morning air whipping at her ears and threatening to fell her hood. They soared past local bazaars and over residential districts, ambled around the Hyuuga compound, and eventually came to a quaint cottage, within eyesight of the Research and Development building.

They came to a landing on the pavement in front of the home, but both were stopped by the sounds of crying coming from inside. Dai's expression was its characteristic neutral, with only the change of slightly narrowed eyes, but Kushina's was the picture of confusion, her big blue eyes locked onto the house before them.

"Does that sound like a baby to you?" Kushina asked, turning to Dai.

Dai nodded, "I... Did not think Hibiki's uncle to be the type." She let out, slowly.

The crying died down as they approached the door and knocked. A few minutes of silence followed, and just as they were to knock again, it opened, and the snake sannin loomed above them, his pale skin seeming gray in the shadows of his home, his yellow, snakeslit eyes locked to the two at his door.

"Dai." He nodded to the Senju-to-be, "and... Kushina Uzumaki, I believe. I do not think we've yet properly met." He said, in his airy, slithery drawl. "I apologize for my tardiness, Hidan has yet to sleep through the -"

_"Wait you actually had a baby?!"_ Kushina blurted out, before slapping both hands to her mouth.

" - night, and I have found myself sluggish since acquiring him."

Dai took the snake sannin's appearance in, noticing the lines underneath his eyes, and how well he hid his lethargy. "You are following in your teammates' footsteps." She concluded.

The long-haired snake summoner nodded, "Jiraiya has Minato. Tsunade has Hibiki. Once I may have decided to take an apprentice instead of a child, but my interactions with my adoptive nephew have changed many ideals I once held." He smiled so lightly that his face didn't even crease. "I thusly took in the child from Yugakure. But to what do I owe the unexpected honor?" He asked, giving a look to both chunin.

Kushina briefly broke his gaze, "well... You see, a couple days -"

Few people could read others as well as Dai, and the former Aburame would admit it was much more difficult to read the snake sannin, but difficulty was not synonymous with impossibility, and she saw a flash of annoyance in the pale-skinned man's eyes. She understood why after only a moment's thought - one thing Hibiki commonly said about him was a distaste for wasted time. He was a man who got to the point and would make explanations or demand them only if they were needed.

This in mind, Dai cut the Uzumaki off. "Orochimaru, we have noticed changes in Hibiki. Subtle changes, many small things that have added to a greater whole, only noticeable as of late. We wish to rule out all potential causes before we settle upon mental trauma as the cause."

Orochimaru seemed to hone in on her line of thought instantly. "You come to speak to me about the Cursed Seal of the Earth." His drawl dropping to a light, serious baritone, as he opened the door, "come in."

Kushina blinked, "wait - does that mean we're right? Is something happening to Hibiki?" She asked, entering the home and looking earnestly at the snake sannin.

The man's expression was guarded, "perhaps. That is what I intend to gather." They saw another Orochimaru descending the stairs, and a moment later the one that had answered the door burst into a plume of smoke. "Would you two care for some tea?"

The three spent the next few hours discussing their findings on Hibiki. Orochimaru remained dead silent throughout the entire ordeal, only making noise when he took sips of his tea. His unblinking yellow eyes were locked to those of the women sitting at his table, drinking in everything they told him and the conclusions they based off of their suspicions and findings. Kushina did most of the talking, with Dai joining in when she was needed.

When they were done, Orochimaru, his cup and kettle both empty, sighed. "I had hoped that my lack of findings had been indicative of good results." He finally said.

"What do you mean?" Kushina asked.

"As you know, the seal upon Hibiki's neck is incomplete. A prototype. The version I subsequently finished was intended to draw upon _my_ senjutsu chakra, whereas his draws it in from the environment and forces the balance in his body. It is a less effective method, but a powerful one in its own right. However, my experiments have shown that prolonged usage has had side effects. Mental degradation. Many subjects' minds snapped under the pressure, the influence of the power. They went mad, becoming as animals."

Dai blinked, not having expected - or, truly, _wanted - _the answer to be so simple. "So -"

"But these side effects would manifest typically within months. The strongest subject lasted a year of use as consistent and constant as the benchmark provided by Hibiki. I spent a great amount of time with Hibiki, studying his seal and the effects it had on his body. A great deal of what I know of the seal now came from those studies, and when I returned to those notes, I found no evidence of mental degradation. None at all. I would have noted them had they been present. I continued observing him to make sure, and the results stayed the same.

"After which, I created a theory. I theorized that Hibiki's bloodlines - specifically his Kaguya-based regenerative healing, and the vitality of his Uzumaki heritage - would allow his mind, in order, to snap back, as it were, as well as granting it a much higher resilliance to the kind of decay and damage this seal deals. I saw him become less inhibited during combat, when he used the seal, but immediately upon ceasing the flow to it, he would return to normal. My theory was that... Were we to put it to numbers, using the seal would bring his sanity down from one hundred, to ninety nine. Deactivating it, would give his healing abilities the time to push that back up to one hundred."

Kushina frowned, "so you're saying -"

"However." The snake sannin continued unabated. "It appears that the changes were too subtle for even me to notice, as time went on. I think that his body may have become sensitized to the seal, as it would a disease. Such that each time he was 'infected' by it... It would hurt him all the more. To return to my previous analogy... He would then go to ninety eight, before healing back to one hundred. But after such prolonged, repeated use, he can no longer fully heal from it. His maximum healing capacity drops, each time he uses the seal. It is overwhelming him. Now, each time he uses it, he drops to eighty, and deactivating it, brings it to eighty eight."

"He is fighting a losing battle." Dai surmised.

Orochimaru nodded, "his healing abilities and the strength of his Uzumaki blood... Truly, the power granted to him by _all_ of his myriad bloodlines, are _trying_ to keep him afloat, but his reliance upon the seal is working against him. Were I to guess, there are small... Clots, so to speak, collecting in his chakra circulatory system. Each time he uses the seal, the clots grow. Each time he deactivates it, they hold his healing abilities from removing the full extent of the damage."

"How do you figure this?" Dai pressed.

"He has not been the only recipient of the cursed seal, Dai." Orochimaru sent back. "Many prisoners of war and death-row bandits make their way to my RnD sector. I study the things many do not. It is why mine is known as the black wing. The seals make them strong, but even those who reached their second state failed to breach containment."

Dai chose not to comment on this 'black wing', instead counting herself glad that Hibiki had never worked there. "And the experiments on these prisoners have taught you these things."

Orochimaru nodded. "Even as improved as it is now, the seal still has side effects. It is why I do not wear one. I work to mitigate them. To perfect it."

Kushina latched onto this, "so - so we can do something!" She said, her expression brightening.

Orochimaru snuffed this light out quickly, "it would be costly. And I am not speaking in a metaphorical sense." He said, "I mean in a very physical sense."

Dai couldn't help a scowl, "you helped _raise_ him and you want money." She spat, scathingly.

Orochimaru's expression darkened, "that was not my meaning and don't you _dare_ imply otherwise, girl." He clenched his fist, "were it not for Hibiki's mere _existence,_ I fear for the path I may have set myself upon. He, in a very literal sense, redefined what I knew about life and death, and you as well as anyone know the way he thinks. Had he not imparted that way upon me, were it not for the way he taught me the true nature of knowledge, I fear how limited my definition of it may have been. To question the nature of everything, to never simply accept facts. No - if it were within my power to fix him up and tie everything in a nice bow, I would in a heartbeat. I may very well owe that boy my soul.

"No." He inhaled deeply, and let it out in a low sigh. "No, the price to be paid would be _him."_ He warned, "it is entirely possible to cleanse the taint from his soul, but the cost will be high. To begin, I cannot remove the seal from him - it has been on him so long it is now all but intrinsically linked to his chakra system. To remove it would be to strip him of his power; and while I have no doubt he would allow such a thing if _you -"_ He pointed at Dai, who had to exercise extreme self control not to shrink under the iron of his gaze. "- specifically, asked him to, it would make him miserable, and if you care for him even a _percent _as much as he thinks you do, I know you would not want to put that upon him." He said, his tone returning to its earlier neutral snake-like slithery drawl.

"Then, to cleanse it from him, we would have to do so in both mind and body. That would take, in no short order, the single most skilled medic in the world, _and_ the greatest Yamanaka mind-walker to be able to find his corrupted thoughts and reorder them. With his reputation, neither of these will be difficult to obtain, but you risk exposing some of his _darker_ secrets to the Yamanaka. It would be one you _and_ he would have to trust, and I seldom, if ever, see him in the company of a Yamanaka. He is, however, frequently in the company of the Naara heir, who does indeed trust a very influential Yamanaka. But utilizing this resource would require bringing _another_ individual into his secrets; and with every person you bring into his web, the greater the risk is for his secrets to spread.

"And finally... There is the matter of sensitization." He continued. "If we clean him of this influence, his body will be as it was before the seal ever was placed upon him. However, the cost will be that, if he were to use it again, he would be sensitized to its effects. He may drop from one hundred to _fifty,_ and never climb back up. We do not know how his healing abilities will react to this cleansing of his body, but the safe assumption is to say that they have adapted too well, and will not be able to repair this in a satisfactory way." He leaned back, "and you are in a unique position, from which to force his hand. You two are on the short list of people in this village, perhaps in this world, that he trusts implicitly. He has said as much.

"So if you two asked him to do this, if you brought to him what I have told you today, he would do it. But I warn you, Hibiki is a proud man. He enjoys his power, and he may resent having it taken from him. What's more, we will not be able to remove the seal itself. Tie this into his clear proclivity to place himself at risk to rescue others, and the results..."

Kushina's shoulders slumped, as her eyes widened. "You think he'll use it anyways, if he thinks he has to."

Dai kept her expression still, having reached a different conclusion. "You think he may treat himself as a sacrificial lamb, if such a situation arises. If he cannot entrust a situation to a shadow clone, or does not have the time, you are implying he may go out to _die_ if he activates this seal again." Her voice, however, was as cold as ice.

"Would you not put such a thing past him?" Orochimaru challenged. "Consider that, unless it is through a shadow clone, he does _not_ experiment with his eight gates. If we clean this taint from him, he will treat the seal similarly, but perhaps as far more forbidden a fruit, as he will not know if the loss of sanity from his clone will transfer. Try to think as would he. If... For example... He were to fail in killing Katsuo -"

"He won't." Dai argued, firmly.

Orochimaru shook his head, "for argument's sake, as he is the most powerful man he has faced. Were he to face Katsuo after such a cleansing, or an enemy of equal or greater lethality, he would not hesitate to use his seal, but he would do so in a way that ensured no burden be placed on his loved ones afterwords. As I said, think of it as would he. It is much easier to mourn his sacrifice than it would be to have to put him down were he to go mad." Orochimaru reasoned. "He would not want you to see him in such a terrible state. Would not want to risk hurting you. He would rather die killing his enemy, than be killed hurting his loved ones.

"To be succinct... You have a choice. First, you can leave things as they are, attempt to heal him naturally. Or second, you cleanse him. Heal him completely, and undo the damage the seal has done." He summarized. "Each has benefits and drawbacks. The first benefits in the lack of sensitization to the seal, in the potential to heal him naturally... But suffers in that even if he does heal, he may still never truly trust himself as he once did. You two yourselves said he has admitted to a lack of trust in even his own shadow clones. How would he feel about that lingering doubt, always there, simmering underneath the surface after the war?

"And the second benefits in that he would truly believe in his own psyche again. He would be as clean as he was the day he was born, and he would trust himself again. Perhaps even be happier than he has in a long time... But risks resentment, even on an unconscious level, and _places_ great risk on his sacrificial tendencies. What if someone equal to, or greater, power as Katsuo were to rise? Hibiki would feel obligated to fight him, and if he felt he must, so too would he feel obligated to use _every_ available resource; and you two know, as well, as I, that if he felt the use of the seal was warranted, he would fear what came _after_ the battle... And would thusly use _every_ resource available to him, up to and including the gate of death.

"I cannot make this decision for you, as though I know him, I do not know him nearly as well as you." He said, "even his very mother, while she boasts a better knowledge than I, would say the same. That he is a complicated creature, and has been for a very long time." He locked his eyes to Dai's. "_You_ must make this choice.

"So what will it be?"

* * *

Hours after Dai's verbal battle with Orochimaru, and his own battle with Katsuo, Hibiki and his squad returned to the village. It didn't occur to the Senju head until after he returned to Dante's office, and the Hokage actually looked somewhat surprised to see them, that he'd _done it._

He'd _won._

The miraculous had happened: He'd warred against what was functionally Superman, and had _won._ Everyone from Minato, to Noboru and Suboro, to Kushina and Dai, were all alive. He'd _won._

The absence of the metaphorical weight on his shoulders made him feel as if he could float to the sky. He could hardly believe it. This morning, he'd woken up and Katsuo had been a problem, very well on his way to exterminating the human race out of an equal mixture of spite and anger, and now? Now he was _dead._ Dante was ecstatic - going so far as to make the Team Dante promotion to Jonin universal. Katsuo and all of the Undead were _dead._ Only Hibiki now yet lived, and Tarzan too, were one to be technical.

He and his squad took their sweet time explaining to Dante all _forty five minutes_ of the battle against a man who'd united an entire world, and after which, they each unanimously agreed they needed rest.

Or, at least, Suboro needed rest - he was the only one among them that couldn't functionally get it whenever he wanted anymore, what with the kid in his house, and all. Noboru offered to take Kurenai off his hands for an evening, such that the Kurama Jonin could sleep until next week, but Suboro, even with the bags under his eyes, simply shook his head. They walked eachother to their respective homes, first stopping at Suboro's house, with both Hibiki and Noboru taking a few minutes to coo at what was possibly the best, physical, manifestation of why they'd had to kill Katsuo. Little Kurenai, not knowing what was going on or who the two strange men were that were above her and why they smelled of fire and sweat, promptly started wailing.

Hibiki would admit he felt bad about laughing as he left his old friend's home.

Hibiki then walked with Noboru to his clan's compound, and then to his home. They were greeted by his aging mother, who, ever the noble Hyuga, nodded with great kindness at the arrival of her son and the head of the Senju clan. Noboru mentioned in passing, wondering who among them would be the first to gain genin students, now that they three were jonin. Hibiki responded with, until Dai became Jonin at least, he'd put his money on Suboro, as he had the most reason to not leave the village; and having potential students sneak about his house without waking Kurenai up would be one hell of a training regiment - she heard _everything._

After dropping off Noboru, Hibiki took his sweet time walking through the village and towards his, Dai's, Minato's and Kushina's apartment complex. He'd have to give Minato the go ahead to destroy the cube, no matter _how_ much he wanted to tell him to give it back, just in case. As he passed through a bazaar, his lightly singed overcoat billowing in the wind, Hibiki smiled, among his first genuine smiles in what felt like a _long_ time.

How long had Katsuo hounded his life? Physically, it had been since the invasion of Konoha, since he had been, what, eight? But indirectly, since before even _then._ Tweedle-dee and Tweedle-gun had both gotten their weapons _from him,_ and Emi Miu had as well. Hiruzen Sarutobi had died because of a sniper supplied by him. So he'd been haunted by this man since before he was physically even five years old. Eleven _long_ years, the specter of Katsuo hovered above his life, constantly testing it, poking it, prodding it.

_"Hooo... Man."_ He breathed out, feeling as if the physical act of him letting out air was adding to the weight sliding from his shoulders.

With Katsuo gone, that was the last of the threats to the world at large. Hibiki had just saved the fucking _world, _how cool was that? From humble beginnings in bumfuck America, to fighting fires, to becoming a superhuman ninja, to saving the whole world. _Damn._ Whenever he got students, they'd have one hell of a resume to live up to. Now all that was left was the war, but, at the risk of sounding arrogant, how much of a risk was _that?_ The biggest threats would be jinchuriki - most of whom Katsuo could overpower on a bad day - and maybe Ay and Bee, because of the former's mastery of the lightning cloak, and the latter's association with the former.

But aside from that? Hibiki was the baddest motherfucker around. That felt _really_ good; a lot better than he ever thought it would be. Yes, he had his enemies, but almost every single one of them, most of whom were stronger than him, were all dead, what did _that_ say?

Hibiki had died, and come back to life. He had travelled through time countless times - become _God_ one of those times - and survived. He'd taken on a small army of people all as powerful as, and some more powerful than, him, and won. He'd taken on someone who modeled themselves after superman, and rightfully so, and all of that was just the tip of the iceberg. He felt like he was on top of the world.

_Now... Maybe I can think about the future with hope, and not fear._ He and Teague would have their work cut out for them, but now they had little resting them but time.

He let out another long sigh, as he slipped his hands into his pockets, and came up on his apartment building. Up the stairs to the top floor, Hibiki first stopped at the door leading to Kushina's apartment, finding himself pleasantly surprised when Minato answered. The blue-eyed chunin was covered head to toe in sweat, looking as if he'd just gotten home from some intense training, one of his hands covered in a small amount of blood and lacerations. His head recoiled when he saw his friend standing there, a thin smile on his face.

"Did - did you -" Minato asked, only to be interrupted by Hibiki's confirmatory nod. "Whoa..." He leaned against the door, "so... You're all that's left, from your world." He said, indicating the Senju head.

"Yeah." Hibiki let his head hang back a moment, before lolling it back to a neutral position. He nodded to Minato, "we won't need the cube, anymore." He prompted.

Minato nodded, "right - right!" He said, "I'll head out later today, destroy it before I get back to training." A wide smile grew across his face, "good job, man." The blonde blur extended his hand, "I guess ending a war will be easy compared to this."

Hibiki shook the hand, "lord willing." He felt his own smile widen, "unfortunately, I think there's something more terrifying than Katsuo ever could be, in my near future."

Minato frowned, "wha -" He leaned back, "_ooooooh..."_ He breathed, his face falling into an 'o' of revelatory shock.

Hibiki grinned, "I'll remember to forget to invite you, yeah?" He clapped Minato on the shoulder.

Minato rolled his eyes, "yeah right. You don't invite me to your wedding, I'll come anyways." He said, as the two bid their farewells, and Hibiki took two steps to his right, fumbling inside his coat for the key to his door.

Inside the studio apartment, he saw Dai, lightly dressed, eating lunch in the dining room. Her eyes darted up to Hibiki, who noticed her forlorn expression before she could hide it behind one of relief.

She gave him one of her characteristically thin smiles, "so soon." She said, airily.

The Senju head slid his long coat off of his back and hung it next to Dai's, chuckling. "What, did you not believe me when I said I'd be done inside an _hour?"_ He called out over his shoulder, "that hurts, Dai." He turned and approached, dramatically scoffing and holding his hand above his heart. "Right here. Hurts - hurts right here."

"You smell of smoke and fire." Dai noted, an eyebrow arced.

Hibiki held his hand up to his face, forced out a small cough, with it a burst of chakra that turned to smoke and wafted up towards the ceiling, before flowing out of a nearby open window. "Why on earth would you say that?" He asked.

Dai looked down at Hibiki's hands, noting the scorch marks on them, "I know you." She responded with, turning her amber eyes back up to his. "Did you use the fire punch?"

_"Falcon_ Punch, and yes I did." Said Hibiki, "the lightning version is good, but last time I used that I killed everyone in the vicinity, so..." He shook his hand, "thought it not a good idea around the guys." He leaned forward, scooting his chair closer to the table, "how about you? Seemed kind of down when I came in. The squad okay?" He'd made sure to have his adoptive mother give them all a once over, to make sure that everyone wasn't suffering from any adverse effects from their time travels, and last he'd heard everyone was fine.

Dai nodded, "they are fine." She assured, "Akane and Hiashi have begun filing paperwork for their betrothal, and Aoi was recruited for a mission with her clan heiress, they leave tomorrow." There was a beat of silence, "but I spoke with Kushina, this morning. We had to visit your uncle." She began, briefly breaking eye contact with the Senju head.

Hibiki frowned, "I've got no problem kicking Jiraiya's ass, if Kushina's been catching any flak from him." Hibiki assured, leaning over the table, "though, I didn't realize he'd have _time_ for the springs, considering he's been juggling Minato with one hand, war deployments on the other, and any free time he's had has been spent on this book he's been -"

Dai blinked, and vehemently shook her head. "Oh - _no._ It was not Jiraiya, but Orochimaru." She clarified, "do you remember the child we took from Yuga?"

Hibiki was silent a moment, an incredulous expression growing across his face as his jaw slackened. "No. Nuh-uh. Don't say it, I won't believe you." He shook his head, "no. Mm-mm."

Dai smirked, "he took it in as his own."

Hibiki snorted, "You're fucking serious." A shocked smile formed as he leaned back, letting his head hang over the back of his chair, whistling. "Wow. You know... I'm tempted to say something along the lines of 'Just because Tsunade took me in doesn't mean that it'd work for him, too'... But really..." He leaned back forward, "that'd be three for three, technically. Tsunade took me in, Jiraiya took in Minato - who, because he's an orphan, technically means Jiraiya's his legal guardian, and thus, his dad. Both of _us_ worked out absolutely fine, I'm the Thunder God, he's the Yellow Flash... It'd stand to reason he'd try his hand at the whole 'kids' deal."

"I am surprised you are not as shocked as Kushina and I were." Dai pointed out, her head listing to the side as she regarded her fiance.

Hibiki's chest quivered in a silent chuckle, "I was jointly raised by all three of 'em, Dai. I won't say I know them as well as I do _you,_ or Minato, or Kushina, or my squad, but I do know 'em. Probably wouldn't have been half as strong as I am now if they hadn't started me out. I gave all of 'em a taste of teaching, and every now and then still go back for a lesson or two. Since Tsunade still has Shizune, who's way more into the medical stuff than I am, she didn't have to find someone else, but ever since Dante took me over as primary teacher, I always figured it would be a matter of time before my uncles found some apprentices. Then Jiraiya got ahold of Minato..." Hibiki frowned, "I'll admit the fact that Uncle Oh _adopted_ threw me for a loop, but still... Par for the course, really. Give it by the end of the war, I guarantee you we'll see a mini-Orochimaru running around, snakes falling out of his sleeves. What's his name?"

"Hidan."

Hibiki grunted, nodding. "Hidan, Minato, Hibiki." He gave a sidewards nod of the head and a shrug of a shoulder. "I could see it happening. But I doubt you and the red hot habanero visited him to just say 'hi' and gush at the baby. What'd you guys talk about?" He asked, as Dai finished her meal and wiped her hands clean.

"You." She deadpanned, in her airy tone.

Hibiki stared at her, uncomprehending. "Uh..." In hindsight, he should have predicted that, actually. "I do something?"

She shook her head, "not directly, but Kushina came to me the other day... She was worried about you." Dai explained, resting her arms on the table, the ghost of a frown playing at her features as she lowered her gaze to the center of the table. "She said she has noticed you acting different, lately."

_I have? Well... I have._ All of the shit Katsuo pulled ever since his faked abduction, and since the Iwa explosion, Hibiki saw the reasoning in Kushina's concern. "Is different bad?" He asked, suddenly wary of what was going through Dai's mind. He wasn't going so far as to thinking she would leave him, but if she was worried about him, he wanted to know, so he could try and fix it. He didn't like her being so worried like this, he preferred her smile, and if he was taking that away, he'd do his damnedest to fix things and bring it back.

Dai was silent a moment, "I... Do not think it is right now." She said, slowly, Hibiki noticed how the strength left her voice as she said this, instead going to something more of a breathless whisper, still audible, but also lacking of her usual airy, womanly tone. She cleared her throat, "but..." She raised her gaze, a frown now furrowing her face, from her eyebrows down to her lips. "It may be, I think."

Hibiki nodded, able to see a great conflict in Dai's eyes. He started to feel terrible, seeing all of this tearing her up inside. "Tell me, Dai, please." He prodded, "if there's something wrong, I want to know. I don't want to hurt Kushina or Minato, or any of them, but I can tell this is hurting you, and you're more important. I don't want to hurt _you."_ He stressed.

She pursed her lips, nodding. "I haven't told Kushina about the things you and I speak of." She said, "even after your revealing to her and my squad of your secrets, after the Ryumyaku, and her coming to me, there are things you entrust to me that I will not give freely unless I've your blessing." She began. "But I thought of many of these things as she laid out her theories, and it made me think that perhaps she had a point. She mentioned you visibly seem under greater stress..." She nodded, "she pointed out that, your seeking your squad's help in Katsuo was the first time in recent memory that you specifically sought out assistance in any form, instead of taking on a task or delegating it to a higher authority.

"That reminded me of how much you take on yourself, how often I have to force you to speak to me. It brought to mind how much you keep to yourself. She mentioned you smile less... And I realized that what few times I can remember seeing a genuine smile on your face, not just a teasing grin or a light-hearted smirk, would be when you reminisced about your home - and that has happened with increasing regularity, as of late. And she even mentioned your training, and I thought of how much and how often you used your Sharingan... Even at home, alone with me, and I've told you before what I've thought of that." Hibiki nodded.

She continued, "she suggested it all had a common origin."

Hibiki looked down to the table a moment, thinking, "if it's Katsuo... He's _gone_ now, Dai." Hibiki said, earnestly. "I've only got time, now. I can work through it." There wasn't much he wasn't willing to do, if his friends and loved ones thought this was truly an issue.

He didn't disagree with her, not in the slightest - he'd known that he was changing, and not in a good way, since even before Iwagakure, but with the amount of stuff Katsuo continued to pile onto his plate, he'd never had a chance to work through it, or even talk about it. In hindsight, that had probably been among the worst decisions he'd ever made, if it was paining Dai like this so much, but Katsuo was gone, now. If being right again in her eyes meant he had to talk to a shrink three hours a day, he'd do it.

But Dai shook her head, "he did not help... But Kushina suspected that there was perhaps a problem predating him... If only by hours."

Now it was Hibiki's turn to frown, as he gazed off in thought. _Hours?_ He wondered, _what problem predated Katsuo? And only a few hours, at that? Pretty much everything I've been through - that we've all been through - has tied into him. The Third's assassination, the Chunin exams, the inva -_ Hibiki blinked, leaning his head back in a slow nod. "You think it's the curse mark." He thought, reaching his hand up to rub that small area on his neck. Considering its _name,_ maybe he should have thought that at some point it would be a problem, in some way.

Dai nodded, "that is what she suspected, too." She said, "I did try. I tried to play devil's advocate, as you would say. I pointed out that many shinobi cope in many ways, and that with the things you have gone through, adaptation was not an unexpected outcome." She leaned forward, "and please do not mistake me for thinking of you differently, Hibiki. I know you still to be a good man, and I know that the core of your person has remained unchanged, even in the face of adversity and under the influence of that seal." Hibiki actually felt a little warmth in his chest at this, it made the edges of his lips perk up. "But the problem in my advocacy is that I only knew you for scant months before you obtained it.

"So we went to Orochimaru." She explained.

Hibiki nodded again, the conversation coming full circle, and the learning parts of his brain perking up in interest. "What did he say?" At least now he knew why they'd gone to Orochimaru _specifically - _the only person in the village that knew more about the seal than him was the man who still tinkered with it.

"He said that in test subjects..." Dai began, leaning back in her chair. "They succumbed to madness under its influence. Became feral, deranged, and unhinged."

The Senju head ran his hand through his hair, breaking eye contact with Dai as he leaned on his elbow, "if I had to guess... He never said anything to me because he didn't notice changes." Hibiki said, seeing Dai nod. "Because of the Uzumaki blood, or the Kaguya blood?" He asked, turning his gaze back to Dai.

"Both." She said, breathlessly.

Now, for the big question. "Is this terminal? Or can I do something?" If he had won out against Katsuo, only to be sentenced to inevitable madness, he actually feared the result of said news.

Dai nodded, "that is what I've been thinking so heavily on, these last hours." She said. "There is something that can be done, but both options carry risks."

"Dai." Hibiki said, noticing her trail off. "I don't want to be a burden on you, or anyone else. To be truthful, I don't believe the seal is the _only_ reason for me changing - the kinds of mental trauma and the things I've seen and done, even without the seal I wouldn't be able to walk away from that undamaged." He admitted, "_but."_ He emphasized, firmly. "But, I don't doubt what you say - Uncle Oh is probably one of the only people in the entire village close to a post-enlightenment thought. If he says that the seal is only exacerbating it all, and if you and Kushina agree with him, then I'll do whatever it takes to fix it. If I have to physically rip it off my neck, if I have to learn proper Senjutsu to purge it from my system, if I have to burn it out or poison it like a cancer, I'll do it.

"I've known for a long time that I've been changing. I think my earliest indication was Ame, and doing... You know what. And that was almost six years ago. But at the risk of sounding like I'm five - if my changing is making you, or Kushina, or anyone else I care about sad, if it's hurting you, there's not a damn thing I won't do to try and fix it." He reached forward across the table, before cracking a grin. "I'm not _that_ insane yet."

"Yet." Dai huffed, taking Hibiki's hand regardless.

"_Yet."_ Hibiki repeated, "so lay it on me." Hibiki prodded.

"The first option he laid out was the simplest." Dai began, "it is simply to cease your usage of the seal forthwith. This risks leaving your mind as damaged as it is, and is the slower of the two, as you would need to heal yourself naturally... But he explained that this would allow you to safely use the seal again in the future." A beat, "as safe as it can be, at least."

Hibiki could see the benefits of this option, but could tell there were still things Dai had yet to say. "And the next one?"

"The second option was what he described as 'cleansing'." She explained. "It would remove the taint of the seal from your chakra circulatory system and heal you immediately. All of the damage done would be undone... But the risk..." She paused, "do you remember when we were in Roran?" She asked, "and we were all poisoned, and I was able to remove it with the kikaichu?" Hibiki nodded, "I told you that it was a technique I could not use often, as it would leave your body sensitive to the poison I leached out. The next dose would attack you faster, and I would thusly need to be faster to remove it... And the third dose would be faster than the second, and so on."

Hibiki nodded, "you're saying that if I take this second option, I will be fully healed, but at the risk of becoming sensitized to the negative effects of the seal. That, if I ever used it again, the results could be worse than if I just cut cold turkey and tried recovering naturally. But if I did _that,_ I risk remaining damaged and still unable to trust myself as fully as I used to be able to." Still apt to, among other things, allow himself to blow up villages, sell Rinnegan, and commit mass murders. "It would take much longer to recover from it, and I may never fully get there." He summarized, to the affirmative nods of his fiance.

He hummed, cupping his chin and leaning onto the table. "What do you think?" He asked, after a few moments silence.

Dai pursed her lips, "I love you, Hibiki." She said, "I want you to be better... But I also know you. I worry that you may suffer no matter what option I endorse." She held her hand up, seeing Hibiki about to speak. "If I suggest you simply cease your use of it, I fear that, no matter what efforts you take to help yourself heal, be it talking to me or taking up the time of a Yamanaka... I fear that you may never trust yourself, ever." She said, "your mind is your greatest strength, and perhaps too your greatest weakness. You think so much..." She frowned, "I don't ever want to see you like you were when we left No-Rad. Your mind took in so much that it broke down. If you cease using your seal, you will always doubt. Always wonder. Always think.

"But if you take the second option... I fear you may resent me." She said, slowly sliding her hand out of his.

Hibiki blinked, recoiling his head. "Whoa, Dai I -" He leaned forward in a pleading fashion, but she shook her head.

"Hibiki, please." Dai intoned. "I am not saying this in the manner of some pubescent child worried that revealing even a single insecurity may lead to the unbridled hatred of whosoever warms her bed." She began, giving the Senju head a firm look. "You love me, and I love you. We have been a part of eachother's lives so long I know that there is little that can change this. That it would take either death or infidelity to separate us. I do not fear your hatred, Hibiki, I fear your resentment." She took a steadying breath, and continued with a light nod.

"I know you. Perhaps not as well as I may have thought, as Kushina has revealed to me, but still well enough to know how you think. You take great satisfaction and immense pride in growing your power, in breaking any limit you find imposed upon you. You work for everything you have, and if I ask you to take this second option, I am all but asking you to cast aside this power. To get rid of it and thus impose a limit upon yourself that you will never surpass, to always be just below that which you could be; and though I know you may never cease to love me, I do fear, be it sooner or later, that you will grow to resent the decision...

"Worse..." She continued, after taking a long breath. "Is that I know that if there ever was a moment in your life when you felt that this power was needed again, that you simply could not win a battle or save the lives of those precious to you without it, that you would again use it without hesitation; and I fear that you would do so with the intention of losing your life in the pursuit of this victory. Such that, should you win and survive, we would not have to potentially turn around and fight _you_ should you lose your mind and have to live with that pain for the rest of our lives." She said, lowly. "I am conflicted in the knowledge that no matter what I ask you to do, you will in some way suffer... And though I want you to heal, I do not want to be the cause of you suffering. You have already so much." She finished, with a sorrowful frown, and a break of eye contact

Hibiki leaned back, frowning, and staring at the table just as his fiance did, trying to come up with the words that would set her at ease. Eventually, all he could come up with was, "we're one hell of a pair, ain't we?"

Dai snorted, shaking her head and raising her gaze to his, fingering the ring on her hand. "An undead man in a teenage body and a walking beetle hive who gave up functional royalty in her clan." She smiled wistfully.

"And we both worry entirely too fucking much." Hibiki grinned.

Dai's smile curved up a bit, "did you know I had to have the bed frame replaced? After you left for Hot Water?" She asked, "I don't think I ever told you."

"Yeah, I'm going to pin the blame on you, for that one." Hibiki deliberately refused eye contact, a tight, innocent frown on his face. "'Use your bloodlines', she says. 'Don't worry about my hips!', _she_ _says..."_ A beat "Granted at least now I know what that snapping noise was. I was a little confused when I gave you a once over and only found fractures, no breaks." His resolve finally broke when he peeked at her from the corner of his eyes and saw her smile turning genuine. "You feeling better, now?" He asked, turning back to face her with a smirk of his own.

She nodded, "how do you do that?"

Hibiki simply smiled, "magician never reveals his secret, my darling fiance. You bring me out of the depths? I do the same to you. Quite a pair." He said, in a rumbly voice. "You ready to listen, now?" She nodded, taking a steadying breath. "Good. Now... You're not wrong. I won't lie." He said, shaking his head. "I am one _proud_ motherfucker. Back home? Before the meteor? The kind of stuff I could do now - well, shit, you _know_ pretty much personally. It could take over and-or destroy an entire world. It was and still is godlike, to me. I _love_ figuring out what all I can do, and getting stronger with it... But there was a purpose behind all of it. There always was.

"First, first it was just making sure I didn't die again. Then it was getting a leg up on Minato... I'd say my first really satisfying fight was Emi Miu." He nodded, "that was where I figured out I really liked _not losing._ I really liked getting stronger and fighting people on higher levels than me, defeating them. But even that had a point - because we were trying to figure out who assassinated the third Hokage. After that, it was Katsuo - _everything_ revolved around him. If I trained, it was to get stronger such that the next time I ran into him, I wouldn't just not lose, but I'd _win._ He had the power to wipe out the entire human race - I've _seen_ it first hand. I had to get stronger to protect the people I cared about... Noboru and Suboro. Minato and Kushina. Hell, even Shikaku and Chouza, they count too. But most of all, and this'll sound _cheesy_ as all hell, especially considering you can eat people alive on a molecular level... _You._" He stressed, with a nod. "Everything I did, all of my power, it all had a purpose, and yeah." He nodded again, "I was proud of it. It was _working..._ I had in me the power to kill Katsuo... To kill Zetsu. To save the _world._

"But now?" He said, "now... I don't need it. Katsuo was the strongest man in the world, and he proved that by destroying it... And then _I_ killed _him._ I made a god bleed." Hibiki said, "this power I've amassed... This pride I have..." He sighed, grasping for the right word. "I... It has no use..." He hummed. "They have no use if I can't enjoy the peace it's bought. If one precludes or overshadows the other, or they both ruin everything else." He drawled, "if I can't trust myself with it. If my friends and family cannot trust me." He frowned, "if I can't... I don't want... Hm..." He trailed off, eyes growing distant, as he tried to find a way to articulate what it was in his mind. Yes, these things were important to him, but they weren't what was _most_ important to him. How could he make her understand that? Wipe any doubt away?

A grin appeared on his face and he nodded. "Let me put it to you this way." He grunted, as he slid his chair back and got to his feet. "Listen closely." He instructed, circling around the table, getting an arced eyebrow from Dai. When he reached her, he bent down, his mouth inches from her ear. "You listening?" He asked, his voice a calm, low rumble.

Dai nodded.

"Good. 'Cause I'm only going to say this once." Hibiki let the suspense build a moment, before he reached around with his right hand and pressed his finger to her nose, making a honking sound.

There was a full second of a silence so absolute that it felt as if the entire world had even stopped spinning, before the Senju-to-be burst out laughing. Hibiki smiled, it reaching his eyes as he watched her hug her stomach and slowly beginning to double over, the beautifully melodic sounds of her boisterous guffaws filling the entire apartment. She only stopped to take in air, before the auburn-haired former Aburame began again. After a few moments of this Hibiki saw tears welling up in her tightly clenched eyes, and he had enough presence of mind to predict what would come next, and as she continued laughing, he knelt down. Hardly a second later she wrapped her arms around him, and he around her, her laughter not dying down for an instant as she held him tight, with all of her not inconsiderable strength.

Hibiki didn't bother trying to understand how long had passed since this began, only knew that it hadn't been long enough. The sounds of Dai laughing - genuine laughter, at that, and not just a teasing giggle when he made a piss-poor joke - it wasn't something he got to hear often enough, and it was beautiful. Once it finally did stop, however, she kept holding him until, finally, with a pat on his back and a hand rubbing between his shoulder blades, she and he let go of eachother. At some point during all of this she had slid off of the chair and they both were sitting on the floor. She wiped some of the thick tears from her eyes, a smile stuck to her face, a smile that Hibiki reciprocated.

"There isn't a lot I _wouldn't_ be willing to do for all of my friends, but especially you, Dai. I'll talk to Uncle Oh - get to meet the baby, too. Figure out what all I need to get done, and get it done." A beat, "wanna know what happens after that?"

"Hm?" Dai asked, wiping her eyes again.

Hibiki's smirk only grew, "you and I." He pointed at each of them in turn, "we're getting married. Then all of this - Katsuo, the Undead, all of it. It's going to be put behind us." He held her arms and leaned forward, peering deeply into her amber eyes. "Yeah?"

She nodded, shakily. "Yeah." She said, "yeah."


End file.
